Job summary
We're looking for enthusiastic and motivated qualified Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners to join our team at Harrow NHS Talking Therapies (formerly IAPT service). We are a large and well-established service based in a diverse Borough. Our service provides low and high intensity therapies at Step 2 and Step 3, alongside our Step 3 counselling service.
We are looking for Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners with excellent communication and interpersonal skills, who are adaptable, enjoy challenges and diversity and demonstrate an enthusiasm for primary care work. We particularly welcome applicants who speak other languages and who have enthusiasm for and experience of working with diversity.
We currently have a 20/80 split of F2F and remote appointments, and so can offer very generous hybrid working and flexible working options. We can also be flexible with your working hours and you will receive regular supervision, appraisal and opportunities to develop as a practitioner.
The successful applicant may have contact with patients or service users. As an NHS Trust we strongly encourage and support vaccination as this remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course patients and service users when working on our healthcare settings.
Main duties of the job
You will be working within a stepped care model, providing assessments and delivering evidence based low intensity interventions for people with common mental health problems. Assessments and interventions may be delivered via digitals platform (Teams), face to face or via the telephone. You would also be expected to deliver psychoeducational workshops and become involved in working within the local community and establishing links with voluntary service organisations to promote the service.
You will receive regular clinical supervision and support from a qualified therapist and work closely with other clinical practitioners within the team. The Harrow Talking Therapies service has close links with other Talking Therapy teams in CNWL, as well as wider links with other mental health teams within Harrow. We have a strong tradition of supporting staff development and further progression onto higher training.
About us
The team hub is based at 12-14 Station Road, Harrow, HA1 2SL and serves the catchment area of the London Borough of Harrow
The team consistently meets its access and recovery targets and undertakes further projects and service innovation work to meet new demands and needs of the local population. There are clear and well defined systems for triaging and screening of incoming referrals, allocation of clients to step 2 and step 3, management of waiting lists and stepping up and stepping down clients as appropriate.
We operate a generous agile working policy where staff combine remote working and being on-site to deliver face-to-face appointments and other service commitments that require a hub-based presence. The post-holder will work full-time hours and may be required to work at any times between 8am and 8pm on weekdays including an evening clinic as required by the service. Wellbeing is important within our service and we are a collaborative and tight knit team.
We are passionate about delivering first-class patient-centred care. Patients are at the heart of everything we do. With every new employee were hoping to find future leaders and we'll support you with opportunities to develop your career.
Job description
Job responsibilities
- Accept referrals via agreed protocols within the service and develop care package programmes.
- Make protocols based assessments of risk to self and others and respond to client risk as appropriate.
- Make decisions on suitability of new referrals, adhering to the departments referral protocols, refers unsuitable clients on to the relevant service or back to the referral agent as necessary or steps-up the persons treatment to other forms of psychological therapy or other services where appropriate.
- Undertakes patient-centred interviews which identify areas where the person wishes to see change
- Make decisions with people about which appropriate low-intensity intervention would address the clients difficulties and areas where the person wishes to change.
- Provide a range of information and support for evidence based high-volume low-intensity psychological treatments.
- Provide a range of high-volume low-intensity psychological treatments based on evidence-based literature and research to support best practice in clinical work. Interventions may include guided self-help, computerised CBT and information about pharmacological treatments. Treatment might be individual or in psycho-educational groups.
- Clinical work may be face to face, telephone or via other media according the choice of the client.
- Educate and involve family members and others in treatment as necessary.
- Adhere to an agreed activity contract relating to the overall number of client contacts offered, and clinical sessions carried out per week in order to minimise waiting times and ensure treatment delivery remains accessible and convenient.
- Monitor treatment and client progress and provide appropriate feedback to client, GP and referrer.
- Attend multi-disciplinary meetings relating to referrals or clients in treatment, where appropriate.
- Complete all requirements relating to clinical data collection within the service including clinical and service data.
- Keep coherent and accurate records of all clinical activity in line with service protocols and use these records and clinical outcome data in clinical decision making.
- Work closely with other members of the team ensuring appropriate step-up and step-down arrangements are in place to maintain a stepped care approach.
- Assess and integrate issues surrounding work and employment into the overall low intensity intervention process.
- Operate at all times from an inclusive values base which promotes recovery and recognises and respects diversity.
- Prepare and present clinical information for clients on their caseload in clinical supervision sessions in order to ensure safe practice and adherence to high volume low intensity treatment principles.
- Respond to and implement supervision suggestions by supervisors in clinical practice.
- Engage in and respond to personal development supervision to improve competences and clinical practice.
- Work independently and manage your own time on a day-to-day basis
- To hold a caseload of clients with common mental health conditions and manage and organise client follow up appointments.
- To provide and receive complex and emotive information to individuals, carers, members of the public and professionals and react accordingly with sensitivity to mental health issues within the Caldicott Guidelines.
- To recognise personal and professional limitations and not overstretch own working capacity.
Job description
Job responsibilities
- Accept referrals via agreed protocols within the service and develop care package programmes.
- Make protocols based assessments of risk to self and others and respond to client risk as appropriate.
- Make decisions on suitability of new referrals, adhering to the departments referral protocols, refers unsuitable clients on to the relevant service or back to the referral agent as necessary or steps-up the persons treatment to other forms of psychological therapy or other services where appropriate.
- Undertakes patient-centred interviews which identify areas where the person wishes to see change
- Make decisions with people about which appropriate low-intensity intervention would address the clients difficulties and areas where the person wishes to change.
- Provide a range of information and support for evidence based high-volume low-intensity psychological treatments.
- Provide a range of high-volume low-intensity psychological treatments based on evidence-based literature and research to support best practice in clinical work. Interventions may include guided self-help, computerised CBT and information about pharmacological treatments. Treatment might be individual or in psycho-educational groups.
- Clinical work may be face to face, telephone or via other media according the choice of the client.
- Educate and involve family members and others in treatment as necessary.
- Adhere to an agreed activity contract relating to the overall number of client contacts offered, and clinical sessions carried out per week in order to minimise waiting times and ensure treatment delivery remains accessible and convenient.
- Monitor treatment and client progress and provide appropriate feedback to client, GP and referrer.
- Attend multi-disciplinary meetings relating to referrals or clients in treatment, where appropriate.
- Complete all requirements relating to clinical data collection within the service including clinical and service data.
- Keep coherent and accurate records of all clinical activity in line with service protocols and use these records and clinical outcome data in clinical decision making.
- Work closely with other members of the team ensuring appropriate step-up and step-down arrangements are in place to maintain a stepped care approach.
- Assess and integrate issues surrounding work and employment into the overall low intensity intervention process.
- Operate at all times from an inclusive values base which promotes recovery and recognises and respects diversity.
- Prepare and present clinical information for clients on their caseload in clinical supervision sessions in order to ensure safe practice and adherence to high volume low intensity treatment principles.
- Respond to and implement supervision suggestions by supervisors in clinical practice.
- Engage in and respond to personal development supervision to improve competences and clinical practice.
- Work independently and manage your own time on a day-to-day basis
- To hold a caseload of clients with common mental health conditions and manage and organise client follow up appointments.
- To provide and receive complex and emotive information to individuals, carers, members of the public and professionals and react accordingly with sensitivity to mental health issues within the Caldicott Guidelines.
- To recognise personal and professional limitations and not overstretch own working capacity.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Qualification from PWP Training Course (Post Graduate Certificate or Level 3 undergraduate course) OR equivalent ,e.g. Experienced and Qualified Graduate Mental Health Worker with relevant Primary Care experiences and competences as required.
Experience
Essential
- Demonstrable experience of working in mental health services
- Demonstrates high standards in written communication
- Able to write clear reports and letters to referrers
- Worked in a service where agreed targets in place demonstrating clinical outcomes
Desirable
- Experience of working in Primary Care Services
Knowledge
Essential
- Knowledge of medication used in anxiety and depression and other common mental health problems
- Demonstrates an understanding for the need to use evidence based psychological therapies and how it relates to this post
Key Skills/Abilities
Essential
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills
- Computer literate
Other Requirements
Essential
- Ability to work within a team and foster good working relationships
- Ability to work under pressure
- Car driver with ability and willingness to travel to locations throughout the organization
Desirable
- Fluent in languages other than English
- Experience of working with diverse communities within a multicultural setting
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Qualification from PWP Training Course (Post Graduate Certificate or Level 3 undergraduate course) OR equivalent ,e.g. Experienced and Qualified Graduate Mental Health Worker with relevant Primary Care experiences and competences as required.
Experience
Essential
- Demonstrable experience of working in mental health services
- Demonstrates high standards in written communication
- Able to write clear reports and letters to referrers
- Worked in a service where agreed targets in place demonstrating clinical outcomes
Desirable
- Experience of working in Primary Care Services
Knowledge
Essential
- Knowledge of medication used in anxiety and depression and other common mental health problems
- Demonstrates an understanding for the need to use evidence based psychological therapies and how it relates to this post
Key Skills/Abilities
Essential
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills
- Computer literate
Other Requirements
Essential
- Ability to work within a team and foster good working relationships
- Ability to work under pressure
- Car driver with ability and willingness to travel to locations throughout the organization
Desirable
- Fluent in languages other than English
- Experience of working with diverse communities within a multicultural setting
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
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).
