Job summary
Milton Keynes Mental Health Services are committed to moving towards specialist older adult care provision, improving accessibility and quality for service users and carers, and are seeking a dynamic and motivated individual who can lead this work. Due to career progression the Clinical Lead position is vacant and service changes mean the role is more varied and exciting.
The service currently consists of two parts. The MSNAP accredited , psychology led Specialist Memory Service (SMS) is an established team which provides early identification, assessment, diagnosis and support to clients who have dementia and their carers/families, including those with behaviour that challenges. SMS has merged with the existing Healthy Aging pathway which delivers care and support to older people with functional illness in the current community mental health Hub. This merger is in its infancy so will need sensitive leadership with a clear vision to establish and embed the new team, and the post holder will be key in providing this.
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
The main responsibilities of this post will be to hold a caseload of complex patients who have a diagnosis of dementia, undertake and supervise neuropsychological assessments and provide psychological support for families living with dementia, as well as provide therapeutic input for older people with functional difficulties. Furthermore the post holder will bring a high level of experience and expertise to the strategic development of older adult services as well as consultation on the needs of Older People to other areas of the service
CNWL are committed to progressing and supporting their staff with career development and training, and ensuring staff health and wellbeing and job satisfaction. MK Mental Health Services have a strong track record of providing both external and internal training for our staff in line with service development and need.
About us
We are delighted that you are interested in working with us here CNWL. Our Trust is an exciting place to work with a wealth of CPD opportunities available for all our staff. We work in collaboration with our AHP and Social Work colleagues and value the lived experiences of both our staff and service users. Open Dialogue is a key focus for the Mental Health part of the Trust, engaging with families and support networks as well as the individual.
Here at CNWL we encourage our psychological professions staff to pursue leadership opportunities in senior roles. Various prominent leadership roles within the Trust are currently held by Psychologists including: Director of Strategy and Integration, Chief Information Officer, 3 Clinical Directors. We try to facilitate the development of our psychological professions staff across all areas.
Job description
Job responsibilities
This is a leadership post for the newly developing Healthy Aging Service in Milton Keynes requiring strong leadership skills and clinical expertise in the mental health of older adults and those who suspect and are diagnosed with Dementia.
The pathway will provide a service for people who are ageing with complex mental, physical and cognitive problems, as well as supporting families and carers of those who use the service. The pathway incorporates the busy and fully functional specialist memory service provision and the newly developing provision for older adults with mental health problems. It is anticipated in time this pathway will expand further to include the existing older adults inpatient service and the post holder will play a key role in these service developments.
The post holder will work collaboratively with the service manager and have a key role in ensuring the development and systematic provision of a high-quality clinical service that will include specialist psychological therapies. The post holder will take a lead role in ensuring adherence to a good quality service model that guarantees all patients have timely access to Dementia assessments, ongoing support and interventions post diagnosis as well as thorough assessment and interventions for functional mental health problems. The post holder will ensure all patients can access the appropriate psychological therapies for their presentation. They will also deliver psychological interventions in their key areas of skill.
Job description
Job responsibilities
This is a leadership post for the newly developing Healthy Aging Service in Milton Keynes requiring strong leadership skills and clinical expertise in the mental health of older adults and those who suspect and are diagnosed with Dementia.
The pathway will provide a service for people who are ageing with complex mental, physical and cognitive problems, as well as supporting families and carers of those who use the service. The pathway incorporates the busy and fully functional specialist memory service provision and the newly developing provision for older adults with mental health problems. It is anticipated in time this pathway will expand further to include the existing older adults inpatient service and the post holder will play a key role in these service developments.
The post holder will work collaboratively with the service manager and have a key role in ensuring the development and systematic provision of a high-quality clinical service that will include specialist psychological therapies. The post holder will take a lead role in ensuring adherence to a good quality service model that guarantees all patients have timely access to Dementia assessments, ongoing support and interventions post diagnosis as well as thorough assessment and interventions for functional mental health problems. The post holder will ensure all patients can access the appropriate psychological therapies for their presentation. They will also deliver psychological interventions in their key areas of skill.
Person Specification
Training and Qualifications
Essential
- Post-graduate doctoral level training in clinical psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS, including specifically models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology.
- Registration with HCPC as a practitioner psychologist.
- Trained in the use of diagnostic tools used in memory services
Desirable
- Post-doctoral training in one or more additional specialised areas of psychological practice.
Experience
Essential
- Assessed experience of working as a qualified clinical psychologist for a significant number of years, including post qualification experience supervising staff.
- Experience of working within an older adults service.
- Experience of exercising full clinical responsibility for clients' psychological care and treatment, both as a professionally qualified care co-ordinator and also within the context of a multi-disciplinary care plan.
Desirable
- Experience of professional management of qualified and pre-qualified clinical psychologists and/or other psychological therapist e.g., HI CBT therapists.
- Experience of multi-professional management of teams or services within the designated specialty.
Knowledge and Skills
Essential
- Doctoral level knowledge of clinical psychology including highly developed knowledge of lifespan developmental psychology, models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, and two or more distinct psychological therapies.
- Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
Desirable
- Highly developed knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in specific difficult to treat groups (e.g. personality disorder dual diagnoses, people with additional disabilities and severely challenging behaviours etc.)
Person Specification
Training and Qualifications
Essential
- Post-graduate doctoral level training in clinical psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS, including specifically models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies and lifespan developmental psychology.
- Registration with HCPC as a practitioner psychologist.
- Trained in the use of diagnostic tools used in memory services
Desirable
- Post-doctoral training in one or more additional specialised areas of psychological practice.
Experience
Essential
- Assessed experience of working as a qualified clinical psychologist for a significant number of years, including post qualification experience supervising staff.
- Experience of working within an older adults service.
- Experience of exercising full clinical responsibility for clients' psychological care and treatment, both as a professionally qualified care co-ordinator and also within the context of a multi-disciplinary care plan.
Desirable
- Experience of professional management of qualified and pre-qualified clinical psychologists and/or other psychological therapist e.g., HI CBT therapists.
- Experience of multi-professional management of teams or services within the designated specialty.
Knowledge and Skills
Essential
- Doctoral level knowledge of clinical psychology including highly developed knowledge of lifespan developmental psychology, models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, and two or more distinct psychological therapies.
- Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
Desirable
- Highly developed knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in specific difficult to treat groups (e.g. personality disorder dual diagnoses, people with additional disabilities and severely challenging behaviours etc.)
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).
