police officer

social worker

service technician

registered nurse - emergency room

communications operator

California Department of State Hospitals

I enjoyed working with amazing colleagues and an interesting forensic population.  While i had experience doing a variety of things (listed in vitae), there was too much time spent completing legal paperwork.  Safety concerns existed due to poor supervision provided to floor staff and a general disregard for ethics or integrity.  Management/Administration were untrained and spent the majority of their energy denying the presence of the elephant in the room.  The hardest part of this job was jumping through hoops and over hurdles to provide a minimum standard of care to the individuals to whom i was assigned to provide treatment combined with a lack of support from supervisors and the unethical manner in which the day-to-day operations were run.  The best part of the job was the formation of collegial relationships.  Despite the difficulties, successful ventures with regard to patient care with talented colleagues from multiple disciplines proved to be amazing learning experiences and provided me with meaning.  Overall, this environment was not well-suited with my aspirations, passions, and ethical integrity.   However, the knowledge that i obtained in the fields of forensic and clinical psychology as well as learning how to navigate a complicated bureaucratic system are invaluable to my future professional opportunities.

I have gained a new perspective toward mental health issues as it relates to sexual preditors, the incarcerated populations as they age in the penal system. My observation has viewed a lot of the repeat offenders started by making bad choices consuming very dangerous drugs and risk taking behaviors. They also were dependant on severe alcoholic thinking and behavior leading to cycled in and out of the justice system. They have learned to be manipulative to have their needs met which also leads to risk taking. The best therapy is to treat the human nature of people that evolves from hope and compassion. The patient has choices if the patient decides to take another way to better the person on the path to a human condition responding to the influences of good and not so bad.

I am grateful for the opportunity I had to work for the Department of State Hospitals.  I was able to apply my skills and talents I learned during my education as a Recreation Therapist.  I facilitated a variety of groups and created several lesson plans which I was able to apply in the groups with the patients.  

Regarding management, there is also going to be those who you love working with and are open-minded and willing to communicate. Then there are those who are the later. 

The hardest part of the job for me was working with patients who came from rough backgrounds and committed grievous crimes. Which appeared to affect fellow co-workers with negative energy and attitudes. 

The most enjoyable part of the job was when a patient expressed gratitude for my services and stated that the groups I provided were their favorite groups.

The best part of this job was finding good co-workers. The work with patients can be interesting and even fun at times. But after a few years, you feel like you’re just doing the same thing over and over because patients come in and leave like it’s a factory. The hospital just cares about filling beds instead of what’s best for patient care. 

If you’re lucky, you can get a good supervisor and they will be supportive of you and your work. Newer management micromanage your time and what you do everyday. That’s probably why all the good supervisors and staff have left in the last 1-2 years. I’m on Indeed trying to find a better place to work, so I wouldn’t recommend coming here!

Very strange work experience. Was given very little direction or training or feedback of any kind. A general air of paranoia seemed to permeate the aisles. I think it kind of depends on what manager you get. I noticed another coworker who started about the same time I did, and her supervisor appeared to be spending a great deal of time training her. But there were definite signs of a toxic workplace overall. Yelling was occasionally to be heard coming from certain offices. Gossip and backstabbing occurred.

Working at DSH, the sky's the limit if you want to learn new skills and insights and grow professionally. Great place for multidisciplinary collaboration. However, DSH is a cult of youth organization, so if you are 35 and over forget rapid advancement if any. The younger the better prospects. Not the best become supervisors so you have to endure much infamy and misery. I wish someone would have been this honest with me when I started, but, there, I fixed it for you.

They say it all the time, "The best Department to work for in CA" and I believe it. I have worked for CCHCS and HCAI, and nothing compares to the atmosphere here. I have been here since 2019, in both the Legal and Forensic Services Division. Aside from one manager, it was a great experience. They cater to your needs and leave you alone. Ive been remote work from 2021 - 2024, then hybrid since March, (2 days in office). I cant speak for the hospital locations, but headquarters is super chill. 

Being involved with an agency that oversees five hospitals and three corrections mental health facilities involves a lot of travel throughout the state. Handle everything from patient conservatorship issues to employment to contract negotiation. Management has taken great strides to help the attorneys both gain experience and have a good work-life balance.

Pros: autonomy day-to-day, wage, benefits, employer retirement contribution & pension, option to join a union
Cons: micromanagement by nutrition dept but very slow operations in every other dept, nepotism is everywhere, paper charting, dangerous patients, anxiety inducing facilities, change is at a snail's pace (i.e. will take 5 years after starting the process to change to EHR from paper charting) 

Work can be easy on some days, and sometimes stressful.  The pay is low, but benefits are good.  The co workers are good, and management is okay.  I didn’t like floating to other units that I am not familiar with.  Otherwise, job is overall okay. 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Police officer 65 salaries reported	$6,921 per month
Social worker 9 salaries reported	$8,521 per month
Service technician 1 salary reported	$2,293 per month
Registered nurse - emergency room 1 salary reported	$10,119 per month
Communications operator 1 salary reported	$5,998 per month

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