Public Employee Press

Psychiatric Social Health Technicians
Six-week training helps 16 Local 420 members get a new title and pay boost at Bellevue Hospital

Sixteen hospital employees and Local 420 members completed a six-week course to become Psychiatric Social Health Technicians, a title that will bring them pay increases.

“We all worked very hard and our teachers did a great job,” said Loretta Privot on Feb. 4 at their graduation ceremony at Bellevue Hospital Center.

“I feel like a proud mother whenever I go to a graduation like this,” said Local 420 President Carmen Charles. “The union is the wind beneath your sails, and we are here to push you forward.”

Hospital administrators joined Charles, Local 420 Bellevue Chapter Chair Wanda Johnson, Recording Secretary Mary McCloud and DC 37 Education Fund Program Coordinator Stephen Johnson in congratulating the proud graduates.

“Today is the beginning of a new and exciting phase in your career,” said Nursing Director Susan Amaut.

The new graduates will work in the Psychiatric Dept. — Bellevue’s largest — with a volatile population diagnosed with illnesses such as manic
depression and schizophrenia. They will serve as the patients’ liaison with doctors and monitor their progress.

After getting their certificates, the graduates were joined by their families, management and union officials for a luncheon.

The 16 were the first of three groups selected to become Psych Techs.