NHSJobs.com

Job Purpose

•        Accountable for own professional practice in the delivery of highly specialist psychological care to clients with highly complex and contentious mental health conditions or learning disabilities which include challenging behaviours and possible risk of physical aggression.

·       To be compassionate in meeting the needs of clients, their carers and families.

·       To promote at all times a positive image of people with mental ill health or learning disabilities.

·       To promote at all times a positive image of the service and the wider Trust.

·       In line with the banding of the post and its service context to:

§  Exercise supervisory/professional responsibility for other psychological therapists

§  Provide leadership in multi-disciplinary training and development

§  Provide leadership in service audit and development

§  Provide leadership in service evaluation and research

Ensure that a psychological perspective is brought to service redesign and cultural change

Main Duties/Responsibilities

1.0.        Clinical Responsibilities, Patient Contact

1.1.     Provides highly specialist psychological assessment of clients with highly complex and contentious conditions based on the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of data from a variety of sources, which may include neuropsychological testing.

1.2.     Responsible for recognising the potential for or signs of client harm, abuse or neglect, including poor clinical practice, reporting all such concerns and taking all reasonable steps to protect the client. Responsible for identifying and reporting concerns regarding the safeguarding of children who may be at risk.

1.3.     Undertakes risk assessment and risk management for individual clients and provides highly specialist advice to other professionals on psychological aspects of risk assessment and risk management and the high physical risks inherent in the client group.

1.4.     Formulates plans for highly specialist psychological therapy and/or management of clients’ mental health conditions based upon an appropriate conceptual framework and evidence-based practice. Negotiates the implementation of such plans with clients and/or their carers.

1.5.     Implements a range of highly specialist psychological therapies for individual clients, carers, families and groups, adjusting and refining psychological formulations as required.

1.6.     Undertakes highly skilled evaluations and makes decisions about treatment options.

1.7.     Provides highly specialist psychological advice, guidance and consultation to other staff contributing directly to client’s diagnosis, formulation and intervention plan.

1.8.     Facilitates decision-making by planning and mapping processes/interventions with members of the team to determine the most appropriate treatment modality or service for clients.

1.9.     Leads the multi-disciplinary care team in the development and implementation of multi-disciplinary care plans where appropriate. Monitors progress during the course of multidisciplinary interventions.

1.10.   To liaise with other professionals working within the NHS, Social Inclusion and Health and the voluntary sector on matters relating to client care that have implications for the service. 

2.0      Supervisory/Professional Responsibility

2.1.     Clinical supervision of Trainee Applied Psychologists and Assistant Psychologists

2.2.     Supervises Band 7 and 8a Applied Psychologists

2.3.     Specialist psychological supervision and scaffolding in a care pathway/cluster

2.4.     Line manage Assistant Psychologists

2.5.     Will hold responsibility and accountability for their own actions, ensuring appropriate support and supervision is sought when required.

2.6.     To keep abreast of current developments in this field through reading, attendance at appropriate training courses, and a range of other CPD activities, and to ensure that a log is kept of this in line with HCPC requirements.

2.7.     To contribute, as appropriate, to the teaching offered on the local Applied Psychology training courses.

3.0      Multi-Disciplinary Training and Development

3.1.     To work with members of the multi-disciplinary team to develop and maintain psychologically minded ways of understanding and working with clients using the services, both to promote and maintain the mental health and coping strategies of the clients and to maintain the safety of clients and staff.

3.2.     Provides highly specialist advice, guidance and consultation to other direct care staff in MDT

3.3.     Provide clinical supervision to other direct care staff in MDT

3.4.     Ensures appropriate clinical supervision and scaffolding is in place to enable embedding of psychological skills in relation to a specific care pathway/cluster

3.5.     Assesses the need for and develops a plan for training in psychological interventions for the team in relation to a specific care pathway/cluster

3.6.     Devises and delivers training to staff which may include those outside immediate MDT in consultation with Consultant Applied Psychologist

4.0      Service and Organisational Development

4.1.     Clinically leads MDT in development, implementation and monitoring of MD care plans/ pathways/clusters

4.2.     Takes a lead role in MDT delivery of CQUIN and QIP projects, NICE benchmarking and compliance requirements as required within MDT

4.3.     Able to identify service priorities and to work with Consultant Applied Psychologist and/or Team/Service Managers on developing these into action plans

5.0      Service Redesign and Cultural Change

5.1.     Bring an understanding of psychological change processes to own role within MDT and to help MDT to cope with changes, in consultation with Consultant Applied Psychologist

5.2.     Bring an understanding of psychological change processes to help Team/Service Managers to devise suitable plans for change

5.3.     Represent a psychological perspective in regular specific Division-wide forums around governance, quality and redesign under guidance from Consultant Applied Psychologist

6.0      Service Evaluation and Research

6.1.     Take a lead role in clinical audits as required within MDT

6.2.     Evaluates training and competencies of staff who have been trained in psychological therapies in relation to the care pathway/cluster

6.3.     Undertake service evaluation and research

6.4.     Working on projects from conception to delivery

6.5.     Leading projects across MDTs in agreement with Consultant Psychologist and Team/Service Manager

6.6.     Engaging multiple stakeholders in project work including service users and/or carers

6.7.     Developing and implementing outcome monitoring within MDT

6.8.     Supervise Applied Psychology trainee service evaluation and/or research

7.0      Other

7.1.     To undertake any other duties of a similar nature consistent with the responsibilities of this post in order to provide a quality Forensic Community Team service.

• A requirement of this post is that the post holder will participate in the Trust’s on call rota.

• To undertake any other duties of a similar nature consistent with the responsibilities of this post in order to provide a quality CMHT service.

please see full job description to understand our:-

• Trust Values
• Confidentiality & Data Protection
•  Data Quality
• No Smoking policy
• Health & Safety 
• Clinical Governance
• Infection Prevention & Control
• Adult & children Safeguarding
• Professional Managerial Codes of Practice 
• Policies & Procedures
• Pandemic & Other Emergencies