| Location | Los Angeles, CA |
| Salary | $113,890.32–$170,479.20 Per Year |
MENTAL HEALTH COUNSELOR, R.N./EMERGENCY APPOINTMENTS HOMELESSNESS
Salary
$113,890.32 - $170,479.20 Annually
Location
Los Angeles County, CA
Job Type
Full time
Job Number
b5278J-EA
Department
MENTAL HEALTH
Opening Date
10/20/2026
Closing Date
11/20/2026 5:00 PM Pacific
Position/Program Information
TYPE OF RECRUITMENT:
OPEN COMPETITIVE - EMERGENCY
EXAM NUMBER:
b5278J-EA
FILING START DATE:
Applications will be accepted from Wednesday, October 21, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. (PT) until Friday, November 20, 2026 at 5:00 p.m. (PT).
All applications must be received before 5:00 p.m. (PT) on Friday, November 20, 2026 to be accepted.
The LA County Board of Supervisors recently declared a local state of emergency for homelessness, and the County is working to revise and expand our response to help all who are affected. We are looking for qualified and passionate individuals to help us in the mission of addressing issues like housing, mental health, and substance use. If you are looking for a new career that will directly benefit the population of LA County, this may be the opportunity for you.
The Department of Mental Health is seeking qualified candidates to fill emergency Mental Health Counselor, RN. vacancies related to the homelessness crisis.
Under the emergency order, applicants who meet the requirements may be hired for an initial period of up to 90 days, with an opportunity for permanent County employment.
During your initial work period, you will be assessed on your work performance. This assessment will be weighed 100%.
Those who successfully pass the assessment will be considered for permanent appointment to Mental Health Counselor, RN.
About this position:
This experienced-level class functions as a primary provider of mental health nursing services to individuals, families, and groups in a range of mental health care settings.
Essential Job Functions
Provides individual counseling to a caseload of assigned patients in the regional Mental Health Clinic.
Conducts initial interview and ongoing assessment of clients presenting problems, including mental status, level of functioning, developmental status, social and employment skills, co-occurring substance abuse problems, and mental and physical health educational needs.
Obtains clients social and medical history, and integrates assessment of physical health problems that impact the clients mental illness. Provides input to the multidisciplinary team with respect to the clients diagnosis as impacted by physical health problems.
With the participation of the client and appropriate others, plans and conducts the Client Care Coordination Plan; and in collaboration with the treatment team, determines whether the client requires long- or short-term counseling, the priorities in which the problems will be addressed, the counseling methods to be used, and the advisability of using individual or group counseling.
Administers psychotropic medication; monitors drug effectiveness and side effects; and provides drug education to clients and clients families.
Provides periodic and ongoing re-assessment of changes in clients mental and physical health status, nutritional status, and progress toward recovery.
Plans and conducts conferences with family members, significant others, and caregivers in order to gain insight into the clients mental illness by observing how the client reacts to the family and the family to the client.
Evaluates client outcomes and periodically consults with the psychiatrist to determine the need for adjustments in the Client Care Coordination Plan.
Guides individual and group therapy activities by facilitating communication, clarifying questions, explaining behavior characteristics, and encouraging interaction within the group in order to assist clients in gaining insight into their emotional problems and in developing new coping strategies.
Identifies community agencies and resources to assist clients with rehabilitation and recovery while living in the community; and may interact with private medical facilities, courts, and governmental agencies to link or coordinate services.
Participates in team meetings to discuss ongoing client needs and progress, shift activity, and adherence to program policies and procedures such as documentation and timeliness of services and/or treatments provided.
Serves as a member of the Psychiatric Mobile Response Team or similar crisis response team in reply to urgent requests to evaluate the mental status of persons who appear dangerous to themselves or others, or who appear to be gravely disabled due to mental illness.
Assesses clients suicidal or homicidal tendencies, potential for violence toward self or others, and grave disability; makes independent judgment with respect to clients need for involuntary treatment; and, where appropriate, signs application for immediate 72-hour detention at a hospital facility or schedules an appointment for evaluation and treatment at mental health clinic.
As acting Officer of the Day, provides triage, information and referral when appropriate, and may assess incoming clients for assignment within the unit or department.
Conducts site reviews and investigates client complaints or grievances by reviewing clinical records to ensure quality of care, appropriateness of medications administered based on diagnosis, and overall mental health treatment plan; writes plan of corrective action as appropriate and conducts follow-up visits as necessary to ensure that compliance standards are met.
Requirements
MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:
OPTION I: One year as an Assistant Mental Health Counselor, RN* in the service of Los Angeles County.
OPTION II: A Bachelors degree in Nursing from an accredited college or university with completion of specialty coursework in psychiatric nursing --AND-- two years of full-time post baccalaureate experience as a licensed registered nurse in psychiatric nursing.
OPTION III: A Masters degree in Psychiatric Nursing from an accredited college or university --AND-- one year of full-time post-graduate experience as a licensed registered nurse in psychiatric nursing.
Applicants must meet the above requirement at the time of filing in order to be appointed to fill any vacancies related to this recruitment.
LICENSE REQUIREMENT:
An active license (without limitations or restrictions) to practice as a Registered Nurse issued by the State of California Board of Registered Nursing.
A valid California Class C Driver License or the ability to utilize an alternative method of transportation when needed to carry out job-related essential functions.
Physical Class:
II - Light: This class includes administrative and clerical positions requiring light physical effort that may include occasional light lifting to a 10 pound limit and some bending, stooping or squatting. Considerable ambulation may be involved.
Option I : *To qualify, applicants must have County status in the class as evidence by holding or having held such payroll title in the service of Los Angeles County for the required amount of time to qualify.
Option II & Option III : see accreditation information below.
ACCREDITION INFORAMTION:
It is important to fill out the job application completely as directed. The Department of Mental Health encourages all applicants to submit relevant attachments including resumes and required documents in the Attachments section of the application.
Official Transcript is defined as a transcript that bears the college seal and states "official and/or copy" issued by the schools Registrar Office. A printout of the transcript from the schools website is NOT considered official and; therefore, will NOT be accepted and may result in your application being incomplete or rejected.
NOTE: if you are unable to attach the required documents with your application online, you may e-mail them to Exams@dmh.lacounty.gov within seven (7) calendar days from application submission. In the "Subject" of the e-mail please type Exam Title and Exam Number.
We do not accept password-protected documents. Ensure documents are unlocked before attaching to your application or sending to the exam analyst.
Additional Information
EXAMINATION CONTENT:
During your initial work period, the appointing department will evaluate your performance. Those who achieve a passing score on this evaluation will be considered for permanent County employment.
APPLICATION AND FILING INFORMATION:
Applications must be submitted online only and will be reviewed for interview consideration on an ongoing basis. If you have not been contacted within 60 days and the recruitment remains open or reopens for filing, we encourage you to submit a new application. This will allow you to reaffirm your interest and update any relevant information.
Applications must be filed online by clicking on the green "Apply" button located on the top right corner of the screen. Applicants must complete and submit their online applications and upload required documents (e.g. Official Transcripts, Resume, etc.) as attachment(s) during application submission, or send by email to exams@dmh.lacounty.gov within 7 calendar days from date of application submission. Indicate the Exam Title on the subject line when sending required documents by email.
Fill out your application completely. The acceptance of your application will depend on whether you have clearly shown that you meet the Minimum Requirements. Provide any relevant education, training, and experience in the spaces provided so we can evaluate your qualifications for the job. For each job held, provide the name and address of your employer, your job title, beginning and ending dates, and description of work performed. If your application is incomplete, it will be rejected.
Many important notifications will be sent electronically to the email address provided on the application, so it is important that you provide a valid email address. Please add isan@dmh.lacounty.gov as well as noreply@governmentjobs.com and info@governmentjob.com to your email address and list of approved senders to prevent email notification from being filtered as span/junk/clutter mail.
You have the ability to opt out of emails from LA County. If you unsubscribe, you will not receive any email notification for any examination for which you apply with Los Angeles County. Regardless of whether you choose to unsubscribe, you can always check for notifications by logging into governmentjobs.com and viewing your profile inbox, which saves a copy of all emailed notices. Plan to submit your online application well in advance before the deadline as you may be required to verify your email address. This only needs to be done once per email address, and if you already have a job seeker account on govermentjobs.com/careers/lacounty.gov you can verify at any time by logging in and following the prompts. This is to enhance the security of your online application and to ensure you do not enter an incorrect email address.
IMPORTANT NOTES:
SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER LANGUAGE
Please include your Social Security Number for record control purposes. Federal law requires that all employed persons have a Social Security Number.
COMPUTER AND INTERNET ACCESS AT LIBRARIES
For candidates who may not have regular access to a computer or the internet, applications can be completed on computers at public libraries throughout Los Angeles County.
NO SHARING USER ID AND PASSWORD
All applicants must file their applications online using their own user ID and password. Using a family member or friends user ID and password may erase a candidates original application record.
ANTI-RACISM, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION (ARDI)
The County of Los Angeles recognizes and affirms that all people are created equal and are entitled to all rights afforded by the Constitution of the United States. The Department of Human Resources is committed to promoting Anti-racism, Diversity, and Inclusion efforts to address the inequalities and disparities amongst race. We support the ARDI Strategic Plan and its goals by improving equality, diversity, and inclusion in recruitment, selection, and employment practices.
DEPARTMENT CONTACT:
HR Examinations Unit: (213) 972-7034
HR Examinations Unit Email: exams@dmh.lacounty.gov
Analyst Contact Phone: Irene San, (323) 705-4074
Analyst Contact Email: isan@dmh.lacounty.gov
ADA COORDINATOR PHONE: (323) 705-4074
TELETYPE PHONE: (800) 735-2922
CALIFORNIA RELAY SERVICES PHONES: (800) 735-2922
COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES
Employment Information
Any language contained in the job posting supersedes any language contained below.
This document is intended to provide general information about the recruitment process of the County of Los Angeles. Applicants with questions about a specific job posting should contact the exam analyst listed on the posting.
Equal Employment Opportunity/Non-Discrimination Statement:
The County of Los Angeles is an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer and is committed to non-discrimination in the County workforce, regardless of age (40 and over); ancestry; color; ethnicity; religious creed; protected family or medical leave status; disability; marital status; medical condition; genetic information; military and veteran status; national origin; race ; sex; gender; sexual orientation; or any other characteristic protected by State or federal law. For more information, please visit: https://employee.hr.lacounty.gov/eeo-programs/.
Testing Accommodations for Applicants:
The County of Los Angeles complies with all federal and state disability laws and makes reasonable accommodations for qualified applicants and employees with disabilities. If a reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application process, please contact the testing accommodation coordinator listed on the job posting. Hearing impaired applicants with telephone teletype equipment may leave messages by calling the teletype phone number on the job posting. For more information on accommodations, please visit: https://hr.lacounty.gov/accessibility/.
Fair Chance:
The County of Los Angeles is a Fair Chance employer. Except as otherwise permissible under applicable laws, you will not be asked to provide information about conviction history unless you receive a conditional offer of employment. The County will make an individualized assessment of whether your conviction history has a direct and adverse relationship with the specific duties of the job, and will also consider potential mitigating factors, which may include, but is not limited to, evidence and extent of rehabilitation, recency of the offense(s), and age at the time of the offense(s). If asked to provide information about conviction history, any convictions or court records which are exempted by a valid court order do not have to be disclosed. Qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with County Fair Chance Policies and the Fair Chance Act (Gov. Code Section 12952).
Employment Eligibility:
Final appointment is contingent upon verification of U.S. citizenship or the right to work in the United States.
Career PathFinder:
Resources to help current and prospective employees plan a career with Los Angeles County are available. To explore career paths to and from nearly all job titles, please visit our interactive Career PathFinder application at http://career-pathfinder.hr.lacounty.gov.
Veteran's Credit:
Pursuant to the County Charter and County policy, in all open competitive examinations (i.e., examinations open to everyone), the County of Los Angeles will add a credit of 10 percent of the total credits specified for such examination to the final passing score of an honorably discharged veteran, as well as the spouse of a deceased or disabled veteran, who served in the Armed Forces of the United States under specific conditions.
For more information on veteran's credit, please visit: https://file.lacounty.gov/SDSInter/dhr/205102_PPG_115.pdf
Revised September 2025
For detailed information, please click here
01
The information you provide on your application and supplemental questionnaire will be evaluated and used to determine your eligibility to participate in the next phase of the examination process.
CHECK YOUR ANSWERS CAREFULLY.
Please be advised that failure to provide the complete and correct information in your application and supplemental questionnaire may result in not accepting your application, even if you possess the qualifying experience or education.
All information is subject to verification at any time in the examination and hiring process. Falsification of any information may result in disqualification or dismissal.
02
This position works with individuals experiencing homelessness.
03
Do you possess an active and current Registered Nurse license issued by the California Board of Registered Nursing?
In order to qualify, you must attach/upload a legible copy of your RN license to your application at the time of filing or within seven (7) calendar days from application submission
Failure to submit the required document will result in your application being rejected
I UNDERSTAND THE ABOVE INFORMATION AND INSTRUCTIONS
Note: Print out from the Board of Nursing website which shows issue and expire date is acceptable form of RN license verification.
04
If you answer yes to question #3 above, please provide your Registered Nurse License information below:
Type of License:
License Number:
Issuing Agency:
Issued Date:
Expires Date:
05
Option I: Do you have one year of experience as an Assistant Mental Health Counselor, RN* in the service of Los Angeles County?
To qualify, applicants must have County status in the class as evidence by holding or having held the Assistant Mental Health Counselor, RN payroll title for the required amount of time to qualify.
06
Describe your experience as an Assistant Mental Health Counselor, RN in the Services of Los Angeles County.
Please be as specific as possible and include all information as requested. It is the applicants sole responsibility to complete this questionnaire completely, correctly, and accurately. Additionally, please do not use "see resume and application", this is a non-response and credit will not be given.
Please provide the following information below.
EMPLOYER NAME / SECTION:
PAYROLL TITLE:
NUMBER OF HOURS WORKER PER WEEK:
DATES OF EMPLOYMENT RELATED TO ABOVE EXPERIENCE: From (mm/year) - TO (mm/year)
LIST OF DUTIES THAT CLEARLY DEMONSTRATE YOUR EXPERIENCE OR ASSIGNMENTS:
If you do not have any experience in this area, please write "DOES NOT APPLY".
07
Option II: Do you possess a Bachelors degree in Nursing from an accredited college or university with specialty coursework in psychiatric nursing?
In order to qualify, you must attach/upload a legible copy of your official diploma, official transcripts, or official letter from the accredited institution which shows the area of specialization with your application at the time of filing or within seven (7) calendar days from application submission
Failure to submit the required document will result in your application being rejected
I UNDERSTAND THE ABOVE INFORMATION AND INSTRUCTIONS
08
Do you have at least two years of full-time post baccalaureate experience as a licensed Registered Nurse working in a psychiatric setting?
09
Please describe your post-baccalaureate experience as a licensed Registered Nurse working in a psychiatric setting.
Please be as specific as possible and include all information as requested. It is the applicants sole responsibility to complete this questionnaire completely, correctly, and accurately. Additionally, please do not use "see resume and application", this is a non-response and credit will not be given.
Please provide the following information below.
EMPLOYER NAME / SECTION:
PAYROLL TITLE:
NUMBER OF HOURS WORKER PER WEEK:
DATES OF EMPLOYMENT RELATED TO ABOVE EXPERIENCE: From (mm/year) - TO (mm/year)
LIST OF DUTIES THAT CLEARLY DEMONSTRATE YOUR EXPERIENCE OR ASSIGNMENTS:
If you do not have any experience in this area, please write "DOES NOT APPLY".
10
Option III: Do you possess a Masters degree in Psychiatric Nursing from an accredited college or university?
In order to qualify, you must attach/upload a legible copy of your official diploma, official transcripts, or official letter from the accredited institution which shows the area of specialization with your application at the time of filing or within seven (7) calendar days from application submission
Failure to submit the required document will result in your application being rejected
I UNDERSTAND THE ABOVE INFORMATION AND INSTRUCTIONS
11
Do you have at least one year of full-time post-graduate experience as a licensed Registered Nurse working in a psychiatric setting?
12
Please describe your full-time post-graduate experience as a licensed Registered Nurse working in a psychiatric setting.
Please be as specific as possible and include all information as requested. It is the applicants sole responsibility to complete this questionnaire completely, correctly, and accurately. Additionally, please do not use "see resume and application", this is a non-response and credit will not be given.
Please provide the following information below.
EMPLOYER NAME / SECTION:
PAYROLL TITLE:
NUMBER OF HOURS WORKER PER WEEK:
DATES OF EMPLOYMENT RELATED TO ABOVE EXPERIENCE: From (mm/year) - TO (mm/year)
LIST OF DUTIES THAT CLEARLY DEMONSTRATE YOUR EXPERIENCE OR ASSIGNMENTS:
If you do not have any experience in this area, please write "DOES NOT APPLY".
13
Are you proficient in American Sign Language (ASL)?
14
Do you have ASL certification?
Please attach a legible copy of your certificate to your application at the time of filing. If you are unable to attach your certificate, please email your certificate to exams@dmh.lacounty.gov within seven (7) calendar days from application submission.
15
Do you have a County American Sign Language (ASL) certification? Note: Please attach a legible copy of your certificate to your application at the time of filing. If you are unable to attach your certificate, please email your certificate to exams@dmh.lacounty.gov within seven (7) calendar days from application submission.
16
This is a reminder for you to check to ensure that you have attached your resume and that you have answered all of these supplemental questions completely and as directed.
Required Question
Employer County of Los Angeles
Address
Los Angeles, California, 90010
Website http://hr.lacounty.gov