Night Shift Hospital Behavioral Health Technician
Experience Information
Employer: Helen DeVos Children's Hospital
Job Title: Resource Behavioral Health Technician
Major: Psychology
Received Credit: Yes
Paid: Yes
Abroad: No
Description of the Organization
Helen DeVos Children's Hospital is the pediatric hospital right in downtown Grand Rapids owned by Corewell Health. There are 14 floors, 10 having regular patients on them. Helen DeVos is a connected building with Butterworth Hospital, a Corewell Health adult hospital.
Description of the Tasks/Projects Completed
Being part of the resource team, I moved to whichever floor in the hospital they needed me the most. As a behavioral health technician, I maintained a safe and therapeutic environment for each of my patients through direct observation. I worked alongside the RNs and nurse technicians to implement the patient's established behavioral plan. I kept the patient safe from themselves and to other individuals, whichever was required. Some patients came in for ingestions, aggressive behavior, suicide attempts, and other similar situations/experiences.
Skills/Knowledge Gained Through The Experience
I was trained in verbal de-escalation, situational awareness, and a limited scope of the nursing technician role to learn the skills and tasks of daily patient care and ADLs (activities of daily living).
Favorite Part of the Experience
My favorite part of being a behavioral health technician will always be the patients. I cared for them at their worst of times, and always got to see them get better, in whatever way that was.
How the Experience Influenced Future Career Goals
When I became a behavioral health technician, I was looking to gain hospital experience as I wanted to pursue a career as a Certified Child Life Specialist. From gaining this experience, I still want to pursue that same career. However since working in the hospital, I realized how difficult it is to get a child life internship. Therefore, I will still be trying to pursue this career, but also will be looking towards another career path in a similar field.
Internship Format
In Person