Job summary
We are looking for experienced Senior Mental Health Practitioner to work in General Practice as part of Primary Care Network neighbourhood. This is part of an exciting new initiative to improve collaborative working across primary and secondary care, the roles will contribute to the expansion of community mental health services as set out in the NHS Long Term Plan.
You will be actively involved in patient care provided by the wider General Practice teams in General Practice, supporting and enabling practice staff to provide an effective service for patients with mental health needs. You will also act as the interface between partner agencies, developing good communication channels and links to ensure effective transition to primary care and referral into secondary care settings
The Senior Mental Health Practitioner will have close inks with the Living Well Centre staff, receive professional supervision, and also receive good support from General Practice. Lambeth has three Living Well Centres where patients receive support from innovative, integrated teams which include mental health, social care and voluntary sector staff. The post will suit individual who is committed to innovative and collaborative working to improve outcomes for people with mental health needs.
Main duties of the job
- To develop a close relationship the General Practices in the PCN and Living Well Centre teams, attending practice meetings and having regular informal contact.
- To work closely and in partnership with colleagues within Primary Care and their community partner organisations in a collaborative way, ensuring that decisions are made that ensure the best care for service users and that there is a seamless pathway.
- To be responsible for the management, supervision and appraisals of Primary Care Mental Health Practitioners, working across PCNs in Lambeth.
- To support GPs in assessing risk by providing expert advice and consultation.
- To work with patients and team members to support engagement with appropriate services and treatment which may include onward referral to Living Well Centres or signposting to other mental health services, social prescribers, voluntary services and community-based support groups.
- To support patients to transition from secondary care to Primary Care and in their referral from Primary Care to Secondary Care and ensure effective and safe transition.
- Contribute to the improvement of physical health for people with mental health needs.
About us
We are committed to ensuring our staff get the most out of their benefits package and understand the importance of a healthy work life balance. There is an extensive range of excellent benefits for you and your family. We want you to feel like you are part of a close knit team at SLaM. It's important to us that you valued and appreciated and that are why we have a comprehensive benefits package on offer
Some of our benefits are highlighted here:
- Generous pay, pensions and leave,we offer a comprehensive pay, pensions and leave package which is dependent on the role and length of service.
- Work life balance,flexible working and support a range of flexible options, such as: part-time working and job sharing.
- Career development,There are plenty of opportunities to progress your career and we support your development through a number of programmes such as mentoring, coaching, positive people management, collective leadership and other talent programmes
- Car lease,our staff benefits from competitive deals to lease cars
- Accommodation,our staff benefits fromkeyworker housing available which is available on selected sites
- NHS discounts,with discounts up to 10% from a variety of well-known retail brands though Health Service Discounts website.
Other benefits include:
- Counselling services
- Wellbeing events
- Long service awards
- Cycle to work scheme
- Season ticket loan
- Childcare vouchers
- Staff restaurants
Job description
Job responsibilities
Clinical
- To provide medicine management education, adherence advice and lifestyle advice for patients and their families and/or carers presenting with mental health needs
- To assist in supporting early intervention and shared decision-making around self-management of symptoms and adherence to treatment
- To work with patients and team members to support engagement with appropriate services and treatment which may include onward referral to Living Well Centres or signposting to other mental health services, social prescribers, voluntary services and community-based support groups.
- To support patients to transition from secondary care to primary care by providing appropriate number of step-down sessions at the point of step down from secondary care services dependant on patient need.
- To support patients in their referral from primary care to secondary care and ensure effective and safe transition.
- To support patients to stay well within their local communities, including psychological support and the re-enforcement of psychology techniques.
- To promote the safety and the wellbeing of patients and their families and/or carers
- To develop a close relationship with Primary Care practices with the PCN, attending practice meetings and having regular informal contact.
- To work closely and in partnership with colleagues within primary care and their community partner organisations in a collaborative way, ensuring that decisions are made that ensure the best care for service users and that there is a seamless pathway.
- To support GPs in assessing risk by providing expert advice and consultation.
- To support primary care teams with the review of long-acting depot injections for those patients with complex needs, offering support with administration on an occasional basis if required.
- To support patients on the SMI register to access annual physical health checks and to work in collaboration with the Band 4 Associate Nurses in the PCN with delivery of physical health checks
- To work closely with the Mental Health Personal Independence Co-ordinators
Quality Improvement
- To contribute to the improvement of pathways between primary and secondary care and where practicable, to standardise processes across the PCN
- To improve quality and effectiveness of prescribing of mental health medications through clinical audit and education of prescribers to improve performance against NICE standards and clinical and prescribing guidance
- To support primary care initiatives which improve the physical health outcomes of those with a long-term mental health condition and the mental health outcomes of those with a long-term physical health condition
Training Development and Education:
- To provide informal mental health specific learning for staff across the Primary Care Network, including providing specialist advice relating to mental health
- To undertake mandatory and statutory training as required by Alliance policy, identifying individual training needs.
- To contribute and commit to undertaking an annual Development Review/appraisal.
- To undertake personal development as identified in the Personal Development Plan (PDP).
Management:
- To be responsible for the management, supervision and appraisals of Primary Care Mental Health Practitioners, working across PCNs in Lambeth.
- To facilitate and enable appropriate communication within Primary Care Networks within Lambeth, between other teams and departments across Lambeth including Local Authority, service users, carers and other relevant agencies.
- To ensure policies on staff supervision, health and sickness, safety and equal opportunities are adhered to, and ensure that all staff absence is recorded through an agreed team procedure.
- To provide supervision on clinical caseloads and ensure that all team members have appropriate clinical supervision and Development Review.
- To ensure all staff receive an appraisal in line with service policy, ensuring that training, professional and legal requirements are met.
- To provide specific professional supervision to team members from the same profession as the post holder.
General:
- This is not an exhaustive list of duties and responsibilities, and the postholder may be required to undertake other duties which fall within the grade of the job, in discussion with the manager.
- The postholder is expected to comply with all relevant Alliance and PCN policies, procedures and guidelines, including those relating to Equal Opportunities and Confidentiality of Information.
- The postholder is responsible for ensuring that the work that they undertake is conducted in a manner which is safe to themselves and others, and for adhering to the advice and instructions on Health and Safety matters given by Manager(s). If postholders consider that a hazard to Health and Safety exists, it is their responsibility to report this to their manager(s).
- The postholder is expected to comply with the appropriate Code(s) of Conduct associated with this post and meet the required professional standards for on-going registration.
- To make effective use of supervision and be able to acknowledge their own limitations, reflect on practice and discuss/identify their training and development needs with their line manager.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Clinical
- To provide medicine management education, adherence advice and lifestyle advice for patients and their families and/or carers presenting with mental health needs
- To assist in supporting early intervention and shared decision-making around self-management of symptoms and adherence to treatment
- To work with patients and team members to support engagement with appropriate services and treatment which may include onward referral to Living Well Centres or signposting to other mental health services, social prescribers, voluntary services and community-based support groups.
- To support patients to transition from secondary care to primary care by providing appropriate number of step-down sessions at the point of step down from secondary care services dependant on patient need.
- To support patients in their referral from primary care to secondary care and ensure effective and safe transition.
- To support patients to stay well within their local communities, including psychological support and the re-enforcement of psychology techniques.
- To promote the safety and the wellbeing of patients and their families and/or carers
- To develop a close relationship with Primary Care practices with the PCN, attending practice meetings and having regular informal contact.
- To work closely and in partnership with colleagues within primary care and their community partner organisations in a collaborative way, ensuring that decisions are made that ensure the best care for service users and that there is a seamless pathway.
- To support GPs in assessing risk by providing expert advice and consultation.
- To support primary care teams with the review of long-acting depot injections for those patients with complex needs, offering support with administration on an occasional basis if required.
- To support patients on the SMI register to access annual physical health checks and to work in collaboration with the Band 4 Associate Nurses in the PCN with delivery of physical health checks
- To work closely with the Mental Health Personal Independence Co-ordinators
Quality Improvement
- To contribute to the improvement of pathways between primary and secondary care and where practicable, to standardise processes across the PCN
- To improve quality and effectiveness of prescribing of mental health medications through clinical audit and education of prescribers to improve performance against NICE standards and clinical and prescribing guidance
- To support primary care initiatives which improve the physical health outcomes of those with a long-term mental health condition and the mental health outcomes of those with a long-term physical health condition
Training Development and Education:
- To provide informal mental health specific learning for staff across the Primary Care Network, including providing specialist advice relating to mental health
- To undertake mandatory and statutory training as required by Alliance policy, identifying individual training needs.
- To contribute and commit to undertaking an annual Development Review/appraisal.
- To undertake personal development as identified in the Personal Development Plan (PDP).
Management:
- To be responsible for the management, supervision and appraisals of Primary Care Mental Health Practitioners, working across PCNs in Lambeth.
- To facilitate and enable appropriate communication within Primary Care Networks within Lambeth, between other teams and departments across Lambeth including Local Authority, service users, carers and other relevant agencies.
- To ensure policies on staff supervision, health and sickness, safety and equal opportunities are adhered to, and ensure that all staff absence is recorded through an agreed team procedure.
- To provide supervision on clinical caseloads and ensure that all team members have appropriate clinical supervision and Development Review.
- To ensure all staff receive an appraisal in line with service policy, ensuring that training, professional and legal requirements are met.
- To provide specific professional supervision to team members from the same profession as the post holder.
General:
- This is not an exhaustive list of duties and responsibilities, and the postholder may be required to undertake other duties which fall within the grade of the job, in discussion with the manager.
- The postholder is expected to comply with all relevant Alliance and PCN policies, procedures and guidelines, including those relating to Equal Opportunities and Confidentiality of Information.
- The postholder is responsible for ensuring that the work that they undertake is conducted in a manner which is safe to themselves and others, and for adhering to the advice and instructions on Health and Safety matters given by Manager(s). If postholders consider that a hazard to Health and Safety exists, it is their responsibility to report this to their manager(s).
- The postholder is expected to comply with the appropriate Code(s) of Conduct associated with this post and meet the required professional standards for on-going registration.
- To make effective use of supervision and be able to acknowledge their own limitations, reflect on practice and discuss/identify their training and development needs with their line manager.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Registered mental health professional appropriate to the job role (Registered Mental Health Nurse, Occupational Therapist, Social Worker, Psychologist).
- Evidence of recent continued professional development
- Evidence of recent continued professional development
Desirable
- A recognised management qualification (e.g. MSc) or evidence of other advanced education
- Experience of using quality improvement methodologies
Experience
Essential
- Significant relevant clinical experience
- Experience of research based/reflective practice e.g. understanding and ability to use supervision to reflect on skills, attitude and knowledge and develop these by using evidence-based practice
- Experience of psychological assessment and treatment of clients with a range of psychological needs of a complex nature in adult mental health
- Experience of providing a range of clinical interventions, including triage and assessment, to people in the designated care group with a variety of health problems
- oExperience of working with people who have experienced serious ongoing mental health problems
Desirable
- Experience of working in a community mental health setting
- Experience of team management
- Understanding of Clinical Governance
Knowledge
Essential
- An understanding of the relationship between primary and secondary care services
- Knowledge of key legislation and guidelines in relation to statutory mental health responsibilities, including Safeguarding Adults, Young people and children.
- Awareness of racial and diversity issues and factors affecting access to mental health care
- An understanding of the stepped care model of delivery of psychological therapies for depression, anxiety and personality disorder
Desirable
- Knowledge of the theory of psychological models, such as CBT, DBT, or MBT
- Theoretical knowledge of psychopathology and the evidence base for the relevant treatment
Skills
Essential
- Highly developed verbal and written communication skills including communicating complex, highly technical and sensitive information to clients, families and colleagues
- Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate and to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive and/or challenging behaviour
- Skills in emotional resilience: able to cope in difficult interpersonal situations
- oSelf-aware, self-confident and intrinsically motivated to do a good job and to motivate others
Desirable
- Ability to contribute to, monitor and implement changes and improvements to services
- Accredited practitioner skills in at least one model of psychological therapy
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Registered mental health professional appropriate to the job role (Registered Mental Health Nurse, Occupational Therapist, Social Worker, Psychologist).
- Evidence of recent continued professional development
- Evidence of recent continued professional development
Desirable
- A recognised management qualification (e.g. MSc) or evidence of other advanced education
- Experience of using quality improvement methodologies
Experience
Essential
- Significant relevant clinical experience
- Experience of research based/reflective practice e.g. understanding and ability to use supervision to reflect on skills, attitude and knowledge and develop these by using evidence-based practice
- Experience of psychological assessment and treatment of clients with a range of psychological needs of a complex nature in adult mental health
- Experience of providing a range of clinical interventions, including triage and assessment, to people in the designated care group with a variety of health problems
- oExperience of working with people who have experienced serious ongoing mental health problems
Desirable
- Experience of working in a community mental health setting
- Experience of team management
- Understanding of Clinical Governance
Knowledge
Essential
- An understanding of the relationship between primary and secondary care services
- Knowledge of key legislation and guidelines in relation to statutory mental health responsibilities, including Safeguarding Adults, Young people and children.
- Awareness of racial and diversity issues and factors affecting access to mental health care
- An understanding of the stepped care model of delivery of psychological therapies for depression, anxiety and personality disorder
Desirable
- Knowledge of the theory of psychological models, such as CBT, DBT, or MBT
- Theoretical knowledge of psychopathology and the evidence base for the relevant treatment
Skills
Essential
- Highly developed verbal and written communication skills including communicating complex, highly technical and sensitive information to clients, families and colleagues
- Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate and to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive and/or challenging behaviour
- Skills in emotional resilience: able to cope in difficult interpersonal situations
- oSelf-aware, self-confident and intrinsically motivated to do a good job and to motivate others
Desirable
- Ability to contribute to, monitor and implement changes and improvements to services
- Accredited practitioner skills in at least one model of psychological therapy
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).
