Home Health and Personal Care Aides; and Nursing Assistants, Orderlies, and Psychiatric Aides

How to become a Psychiatric Aide

Official title: Psychiatric Aides

Also called: Developmental Aide, Mental Health Aide (MHA), Mental Health Worker (MHW), Psychiatric Aide, Psychiatric Assistant, Psychiatric Nursing Aide, Qualified Medication Aide (QMA), Resident Care Technician (Resident Care Tech), Residential Care Tech (Residential Care Technician), Therapeutic Program Worker (TPW)

Assist mentally impaired or emotionally disturbed patients, working under direction of nursing and medical staff. May assist with daily living activities, lead patients in educational and recreational activities, or accompany patients to and from examinations and treatments. May restrain violent patients. Includes psychiatric orderlies.

Main tasks

Listen and provide emotional support and encouragement to psychiatric patients.
Provide patients with cognitive, intellectual, or developmental disabilities with routine physical, emotional, psychological, or rehabilitation care under the direction of nursing or medical staff.
Complete physical checks and monitor patients to detect unusual or harmful behavior and report observations to professional staff.
Restrain or aid patients as necessary to prevent injury.
Work as part of a team that may include psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric nurses, or social workers.
Record and maintain patient information, such as vital signs, eating habits, behavior, progress notes, treatments, or discharge plans.
Maintain patients' restrictions to assigned areas.
Organize, supervise, or encourage patient participation in social, educational, or recreational activities.

How to become one

To enter the occupation, psychiatric technicians typically need a postsecondary certificate, and aides need at least a high school diploma or equivalent. Some states require technicians to be licensed. Both technicians and aides get on-the-job training.

Typical education to start: High school diploma or equivalent

Read the full guide from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Ways in

Licence: A licence is required in 13 states.

Pay · Outlook · AI and this job

Median pay: $44,910 a year The middle half earn $37,750 to $49,950.
About 36,900 people work in this job now, and about 37,600 are projected by 2035. (+1.9%)
People use generative AI for relatively little of this work so far. Microsoft Research rates its AI applicability as low.

Questions people ask

How do I become a Psychiatric Aide?

How much does a Psychiatric Aide earn in the US?

Median full-time pay is $44,910 a year (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics). The middle half earn $37,750 to $49,950.

Is a Psychiatric Aide a growing career in the US?

Employment is projected to stay about the same by 2035: about 36,900 people now and 37,600 later (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics).

Do you need a degree to become a Psychiatric Aide?

Usually not. Only 22% of people in this job hold a bachelor's degree or higher.

Will AI change the work of a Psychiatric Aide?

People use generative AI for relatively little of this work so far. Microsoft Research rates its AI applicability as low.

Sources

Microsoft Research: Working with AI: AI applicability by occupation (2025-12-22 (built on O*NET 29.0)), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Employment Projections (2025-35 (released 2026-08-27)), Public domain (BLS), retrieved 2026-10-03
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Occupational Outlook Handbook (2025-35 edition (published 2026-08-27)), Public domain (BLS); photographs excluded, retrieved 2026-10-03
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2025), Public domain (BLS), retrieved 2026-10-03

Updated 2026-10-03

This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.