Job summary
The Psychological Therapies in Physical Health team is looking for a Clinical, Counselling or Health Psychologist or Cognitive Behaviour Therapist with a passion for working with patients with long term health conditions. The post is offered substantively at band 8a, but there is an option to come into the post as a 2 year preceptorship for clinicians who are recently qualified . Preceptorship would be appointed at band 7, and would be supported with relevant specialist training.
This would be an exciting opportunity for clinicians with an interest in and experience of working with patients with long term health conditions or persistent physical symptoms, to work in this small supportive team. It would be well suited to clinicians who have skills in CBT and other interventions with an evidence base for long term health conditions.
Main duties of the job
The post holder would work closely with the Principal Psychologist to offer liaison to acute trust colleagues, patient assessment and formulation as well as ongoing evidence based therapy. There are also opportunities to develop and deliver training to acute trust colleagues, in order to develop their understanding of mental health and wellbeing. Interested staff will also have opportunities to offer supervision to nursing colleagues or trainee psychologists.
As a preceptorship role, there will be a range of clinical, supervisory and professional development opportunities to develop and demonstrate leadership in psychological care.
About us
The Psychological Therapies in Physical Health service is a small specialist team covering Bury, North Manchester, Rochdale and Oldham. Working to support consultant referrals from Manchester Foundation Trust and the Northern Care Alliance, the team offers appointments in Bury and Rochdale clinics with a choice of remote and face to face appointments.
The team sits within a network of physical health psychological services and psychological medicine services across the trust. These services have been developed over the last 20 years with some national recognition of positive practice in healthcare. All services have a focus on improving the experience and wellbeing of patients with health conditions and atypical healthcare utilisation.
Job description
Job responsibilities
The post holder will be responsible for providing informed and highly specialist assessment and formulation of patients with health related conditions . Working within evidence base, the post holder will provide therapy interventions to patients, whilst offering appropriate and relevant feedback to referrers to guide healthcare.
The post holder will liaise with colleagues in the acute trusts, offering where needed, advice, consultation and supervision. Post holders may also provide training to acute trust colleagues to improve their understanding of mental health and psychological skills in supporting patients in their care.
Job description
Job responsibilities
The post holder will be responsible for providing informed and highly specialist assessment and formulation of patients with health related conditions . Working within evidence base, the post holder will provide therapy interventions to patients, whilst offering appropriate and relevant feedback to referrers to guide healthcare.
The post holder will liaise with colleagues in the acute trusts, offering where needed, advice, consultation and supervision. Post holders may also provide training to acute trust colleagues to improve their understanding of mental health and psychological skills in supporting patients in their care.
Person Specification
Eduction/Qualification
Essential
- Post-Graduate doctoral level training in clinical psychology (or equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS including specific models of psychopathology / mental health, clinical psychometrics, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology.
Desirable
- Post-doctoral training in one or more additional specialised areas of psychological practice.
- Training relevant to working with Physical Health Conditions and or personality difficulties.
Experience
Essential
- Experience working as a qualified specialist clinical psychologist.
- Post qualification experience of psychological assessment, intervention and management working with a wide range of clinical presentations. These should include complex, long-term co-morbid physical health conditions and / or, complex mental health conditions.
- Ability to maintain a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threats of physical abuse.
- Experience of exercising full clinical responsibility for patients' psychological care and treatment, both as a professionally qualified clinical psychologist and within the context of a multi-disciplinary care plan.
- Experience of teaching and training.
- Experience of working in a multi-disciplinary team.
Desirable
- Experience of representing psychology within the context of multidisciplinary care.
- Experience of assessing and treating patients across the full range of care settings, including both those with complex mental health needs and those with complex physical health conditions, would be helpful but not essential.
- Experience of the application of psychology in different cultural contexts.
- Experience of supervising other health care professionals.
- Experienced in group therapies.
Knowledge
Essential
- Evidence of post-doctoral learning and the development of knowledge of theory and practice in relation to the psychology of adjustment to illness, role of distress in interfering with treatment and recovery, adherence to and decision making about treatment and lifestyle changes to improve and maintain health.
- Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialist psychological therapies with complex patient groups (e.g. those with long term co-morbid physical and mental health problems, history of trauma and abuse)
- Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
- Well-developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, highly technical and clinically sensitive information to patients, their families, carers and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS.
- Skills in providing consultation to other professional and nonprofessional groups.
- Doctoral level knowledge of research design and methodology, including complex multivariate data analysis as practice within the field of clinical psychology.
- Knowledge of legislation in relation to the patient group and mental health.
- Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the BPS.
- Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the BPS.
- An interest in developing skills in group work.
- An interest in developing skills in pain management.
Skills and Abilities
Essential
- Ability to identify, provide and promote appropriate means of support to carers and staff exposed to highly distressing situations and severely challenging behaviours.
- Ability to identify and employ, as appropriate, clinical governance mechanisms for the support and maintenance of clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.
- Ability to develop and use complex multi-media materials for presentations in public, professional and academic settings.
Desirable
- Highly skilled in working with complex patients in groups and managing group dynamics in the face of highly emotive issues.
- Formal training in supervision of other Psychologist.
- Formal training in supervision of other Psychologist.
Work Related Circumstances
Essential
- Use of a car or access to a means of mobility to travel across the Trust footprint in line with service needs.
- Willing to carry out all duties and responsibilities of the post in accordance with the Trust's Equal Opportunities and Equality and Diversity policies.
- Appointments to regulated and controlled activities require an enhanced DBS disclosure.
Person Specification
Eduction/Qualification
Essential
- Post-Graduate doctoral level training in clinical psychology (or equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS including specific models of psychopathology / mental health, clinical psychometrics, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology.
Desirable
- Post-doctoral training in one or more additional specialised areas of psychological practice.
- Training relevant to working with Physical Health Conditions and or personality difficulties.
Experience
Essential
- Experience working as a qualified specialist clinical psychologist.
- Post qualification experience of psychological assessment, intervention and management working with a wide range of clinical presentations. These should include complex, long-term co-morbid physical health conditions and / or, complex mental health conditions.
- Ability to maintain a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threats of physical abuse.
- Experience of exercising full clinical responsibility for patients' psychological care and treatment, both as a professionally qualified clinical psychologist and within the context of a multi-disciplinary care plan.
- Experience of teaching and training.
- Experience of working in a multi-disciplinary team.
Desirable
- Experience of representing psychology within the context of multidisciplinary care.
- Experience of assessing and treating patients across the full range of care settings, including both those with complex mental health needs and those with complex physical health conditions, would be helpful but not essential.
- Experience of the application of psychology in different cultural contexts.
- Experience of supervising other health care professionals.
- Experienced in group therapies.
Knowledge
Essential
- Evidence of post-doctoral learning and the development of knowledge of theory and practice in relation to the psychology of adjustment to illness, role of distress in interfering with treatment and recovery, adherence to and decision making about treatment and lifestyle changes to improve and maintain health.
- Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialist psychological therapies with complex patient groups (e.g. those with long term co-morbid physical and mental health problems, history of trauma and abuse)
- Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
- Well-developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, highly technical and clinically sensitive information to patients, their families, carers and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS.
- Skills in providing consultation to other professional and nonprofessional groups.
- Doctoral level knowledge of research design and methodology, including complex multivariate data analysis as practice within the field of clinical psychology.
- Knowledge of legislation in relation to the patient group and mental health.
- Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the BPS.
- Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the BPS.
- An interest in developing skills in group work.
- An interest in developing skills in pain management.
Skills and Abilities
Essential
- Ability to identify, provide and promote appropriate means of support to carers and staff exposed to highly distressing situations and severely challenging behaviours.
- Ability to identify and employ, as appropriate, clinical governance mechanisms for the support and maintenance of clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.
- Ability to develop and use complex multi-media materials for presentations in public, professional and academic settings.
Desirable
- Highly skilled in working with complex patients in groups and managing group dynamics in the face of highly emotive issues.
- Formal training in supervision of other Psychologist.
- Formal training in supervision of other Psychologist.
Work Related Circumstances
Essential
- Use of a car or access to a means of mobility to travel across the Trust footprint in line with service needs.
- Willing to carry out all duties and responsibilities of the post in accordance with the Trust's Equal Opportunities and Equality and Diversity policies.
- Appointments to regulated and controlled activities require an enhanced DBS disclosure.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Additional information
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
