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Job Description
Description
Overview
The inpatient psychiatric units at the Lemuel Shattuck Hospital are seeking an experienced, skilled, and licensed Psychiatrist. The selected candidate will provide direct comprehensive, quality psychiatric treatment to adults with severe and persistent mental illnesses. The incumbent is the clinical supervisor of the multidisciplinary treatment team and supervises the psychologists on the unit. Our Attending Psychiatrist serves as the supervisor for psychiatric nurse practitioners and psychiatric physician assistants as well as psychiatry residents and other trainees. Specific duties include the formulation and development of multidisciplinary treatment plans, comprehensive psychopharmacologic assessments and treatments, and comprehensive diagnostic and risk evaluations.
Patients are treated by a multidisciplinary team that includes psychologists, clinical social workers, psychiatric nurses, mental health workers, occupational therapists and rehabilitative staff specializing in vocational, recreational, and expressive therapies.
Duties and Responsibilities
- Serves as the clinical supervisor of the multidisciplinary treatment team and the supervisor of the psychologist on the assigned unit.
- Supervises Psychiatric Nurse Practitioners and/or Psychiatric Physician Assistants, Psychiatry Residents, and other trainees.
- Provides comprehensive, quality active psychiatric services to patients, including timely admission evaluations (within 24 hours or by the next business day after admission) and ongoing assessments and treatment, documented as they occur and at least weekly in progress notes.
- Meets regularly with patients and with the treatment team; attends clinical rounds on the inpatient unit.
- Orders appropriate consultations and laboratory studies and documents results in progress notes per medical practice standards.
- Prepares and develops the multidisciplinary treatment plan and updates at required intervals and as clinically necessary.
- Coordinates and completes all required risk assessments per DMH policy.
- Obtains and documents informed consent; applies for guardianships when patient capacity is in question.
- Tracks and monitors the legal status of patients and applies for commitments/guardianships when necessary.
- Oversees the discharge plan and coordinates with the outpatient psychiatric provider to ensure continuity of care.
- Attends all departmental meetings and assigned committee meetings.
Required Qualifications
- Skilled in understanding, diagnosing, and treating serious mental illness.
- Ability to supervise and coordinate the efforts of others in accomplishing work objectives.
- Talent for establishing and maintaining positive, respectful, and professional relationships with all patients, staff, and family members.
- Ability to assess accurately information provided verbally or written.
- Capacity to work in a collaborative and productive manner to achieve programmatic and agency goals.
- Capacity to initiate and maintain productive and professional communication with a variety of service providers, individuals, family/significant others, and legal guardians.
- Professional experience treating patients with severe mental illness, trauma, and substance use disorders.
- Understanding of psychiatric conditions and their treatment.
- Ability to assess, diagnose, and supervise treatment to assigned patients in compliance with regulatory standards and applicable laws to reduce psychiatric symptoms/disorders.
Preferred Qualifications
- Capacity to initiate and maintain productive and professional communication with a variety of service providers, individuals, family/significant others, and legal guardians.
- Experience in inpatient care of patients with serious mental illness, including forensic involvement, and experience at an intermediate care facility (or equivalent) is desired.
- Ability to work cooperatively within an interdisciplinary team and with other clinical staff.
- Competence in maintaining accurate records and handling confidential information with discretion; ability to resolve problems diplomatically.
- Proficiency in basic computer skills including Microsoft Word, Excel, Teams, and Outlook.
- Bilingual or multilingual fluency is an asset.
About the Metro Boston Mental Health Units (MBMHU) at Lemuel Shattuck Hospital
The Department of Mental Health MBMHU manages and staffs 115 psychiatric beds across 5 units at the Lemuel Shattuck Hospital. Patients are admitted from other hospitals, from Bridgewater State Hospital and from the courts for evaluations.
About Lemuel Shattuck Hospital
Located at 170 Morton St. in Jamaica Plain, the Lemuel Shattuck Hospital is managed by the Department of Public Health. The total hospital capacity is 260 beds, including seven medical units and a unit managed by the Department of Corrections. The hospital provides services in surgery, oncology, ventilators, intensive care, and a range of specialties including outpatient clinics.
The Department of Mental Health provides access to services and supports to meet the mental health needs of individuals of all ages, enabling them to live, work, and participate in their communities. The Department promotes recovery, self-determination, and protection of human rights and supports mental health training and research.
Pre-Offer Process
A criminal background check will be completed on the recommended candidate as required by the regulations set forth by the Executive Office of Health and Human Services prior to hire. For more information, please visit
Education, licensure and certifications will be verified in accordance with the Human Resources Division’s Hiring Guidelines. Education and license/certification information provided by the selected candidate is subject to the Massachusetts Public Records Law and may be published on the Commonwealth’s website.
For questions regarding this requisition, please contact the Executive Office of Health and Human Services, Human Resources at Ext. #4
Qualifications
- First consideration given to applicants who apply within the first 14 days.
- Minimum Entrance Requirements: at least three years of residency training in psychiatry and board eligible with the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN) and/or ABPN certified.
- Special Requirements: Current and valid registration as a Physician with the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Medicine.
- Incumbents must possess a current and valid motor vehicle driver’s license at a class level specific to assignment.
- Salary placement is determined by experience and education and applicable collective bargaining agreements.
When you embark on a career with the Commonwealth, you are offered an outstanding suite of employee benefits that add to the overall value of your compensation package.
Title 101 CMR 23.00 requires certain agency staff to have received COVID-19 and influenza vaccination or take required mitigation measures. Successful candidates will be required to acknowledge and attest to vaccination status for both COVID-19 and Influenza.
An Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action Employer . Females, minorities, veterans, and persons with disabilities are strongly encouraged to apply.
The Commonwealth is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, age, disability, national origin, veteran status, or any other basis protected by law. We encourage applicants who believe they have the necessary skills to thrive to apply.
Job Details
- Primary Location: Medical Services
- Agency: Department of Mental Health
- Schedule: Full-time
- Shift: Day
- Job Posting: Sep 17, 2025
- Number of Openings: 1
- Salary: 190,134.88 - 317,277.74 per year
If you have Diversity, Affirmative Action or Equal Employment Opportunity questions or need a Reasonable Accommodation, please contact Diversity Officer / ADA Coordinator: William Herbert, ,
Bargaining Unit: 07-MNA - Professional Health Care
Confidential: No
Potentially Eligible for a Hybrid Work Schedule: No
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