Job Description
Physician Assistant or Nurse Practitioner, Behavioral Health at Geisinger summary:
The Physician Assistant or Nurse Practitioner in Behavioral Health provides comprehensive care to patients with substance use disorders, collaborating with physicians and staff to evaluate, diagnose, and treat within their scope of practice. They also serve as the Training Director for the Addiction Medicine program, overseeing curriculum development, supervision, and evaluation of Advanced Practice learners. This role combines clinical expertise with educational leadership to improve addiction medicine practice and community health outcomes.
Job Title: Physician Assistant or Nurse Practitioner, Behavioral Health
Location: Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania
Job Category: Physician Assistant, Nurse Practitioner, Advanced Practice
Schedule: Days
Work Type: Full time
Department: Addiction Psychiatry Division
Date Posted: 09/17/2025
Job ID: R-84920
Job SummaryIn collaboration with the physician, provides care to new or established patients. Demonstrates autonomy through patient evaluation, assessment, diagnosis, treatment and follow-up care. Orders testing as deemed necessary and remains proficient in interpreting results and prescribing appropriate medication and therapeutic regimen within the scope of practice of the physician assistant. These roles, undertaken in cooperation with nursing, staff physicians and other department staff, may include triage, telephone communication and patient education. The Training Director (TD) will share these responsibilities with the Grant Primary Investigator (PI): responsibility, authority, and accountability for: administration and operations; teaching and scholarly activity; fellow recruitment and selection, evaluation, and promotion of fellows, and disciplinary action; supervision of fellows; and fellow education in the context of patient care. Together, they will design and conduct the program in a fashion consistent with the needs of the community, the mission(s) of Geisinger, and the mission of the program, which is to educate Advanced Practitioners to care for persons with SUD’s in a variety of clinical settings. The TD will have the bulk of the day-to-day functioning in administering and monitoring the program, and in monitoring the progress of the learners and the functioning of the faculty. It is expected that the TD will have regular and frequent contact with the learners (in Geisinger’s NE area) and will be easily available to the learners and the faculty in the event of a crisis. The PI will act as a consultant and mentor for the TD as well as helping to construct strategies and policies for the program. The following tasks are included but may not be comprehensive. Other tasks may be necessary.
Job Duties
Physician Assistant/Nurse Practitioner, Addiction Medicine - Training Director
- Responsible for the planning, direction and administration of the AP Addiction Medicine Training Program in conjunction with the Addiction Medicine and Behavioral Health Medical Directors and department leadership.
- Provides an educational experience that will enable the Advanced Practitioner resident to obtain the knowledge, skills and attributes necessary to practice competently in Addiction Medicine.
- Develops, designs and implements the program curriculum, program policies, procedures and protocols that are consistent with the overall mission statement of the program.
- Develops and maintains the written curriculum, with detailed goals and objectives for each rotation and educational activity.
- Assures appropriate supervision of Advanced Practice residents by teaching faculty through well-defined, explicit and agreed upon supervisory lines of patient care responsibility.
- Participates in didactic and clinical instruction of students.
- Course assignments and content are assigned by the Training Director.
- Participates in the planning of all instructional activities of the program to include didactic and clinical instruction by qualified faculty.
- Coordinates the development and maintenance of an ongoing evaluation process for the Advance Practice learners.
- Evaluates Advanced Practice learner performance and progress through the program in meeting educational goals and objectives, and in acquiring the desired competencies required for practice.
- Provides a final evaluation for each learner who completes the program.
- Coordinates, and participates in, Advanced Practice learner orientation and advisement.
Qualifications:
The TD must be an advanced practitioner who has completed training at least 5 years prior to beginning the position, and who has had substantial experience (at least 2 years full time equivalent) in the care of persons with SUDs. This experience must include a variety of SUDs and must have taken place no earlier than 2022. Must be in full time employment with Geisinger in Addiction Medicine.
Work is typically performed in a clinical environment. Accountable for satisfying all job specific obligations and complying with all organization policies and procedures. The specific statements in this profile are not intended to be all-inclusive. They represent typical elements considered necessary to successfully perform the job. Additional competencies and skills outlined in any department-specific orientation will be considered essential to the performance of the job related to that position.
EducationBachelor's Degree-Physician Assistant (Required), Master's Degree-Physician Assistant (Required)
Certification(s) and License(s)Basic Life Support Certification - Default Issuing Body; Certified Physician Assistant - National Commission on Certification of Physician Assistants (NCCPA)
Our Purpose & ValuesOUR PURPOSE & VALUES: Everything we do is about caring for our patients, our members, our students, our Geisinger family and our communities. KINDNESS: We strive to treat everyone as we would hope to be treated ourselves. EXCELLENCE: We treasure colleagues who humbly strive for excellence. LEARNING: We share our knowledge with the best and brightest to better prepare the caregivers for tomorrow. INNOVATION: We constantly seek new and better ways to care for our patients, our members, our community, and the nation. SAFETY: We provide a safe environment for our patients and members and the Geisinger family We offer healthcare benefits for full time and part time positions from day one, including vision, dental and domestic partners. Perhaps just as important, from senior management on down, we encourage an atmosphere of collaboration, cooperation and collegiality. We know that a diverse workforce with unique experiences and backgrounds makes our team stronger. Our patients, members and community come from a wide variety of backgrounds, and it takes a diverse workforce to make better health easier for all. We are proud to be an affirmative action, equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment regardless to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability or status as a protected veteran.
Keywords:
Behavioral Health, Addiction Medicine, Physician Assistant, Nurse Practitioner, Substance Use Disorder, Clinical Supervision, Medical Education, Addiction Psychiatry, Patient Care, Curriculum Development
Job Tags
Full time, Part time,