Job summary
Senior Clinical, Counselling or Forensic Psychologist for trailblazing Mental Health Urgent Care Department (MHUCD), Basildon Hospital. Band 8b - £58,972 - £68,525 per annum plus 5% fringe allowance - 37.5 hours per week, up to £6000 for relevant CPD over the first three years.
MHUCD is a gateway to either community provision or to acute inpatient services. It serves three cohorts of clients: people with first presentation mental health crisis; people who are known to mental health services who are in crisis; people who have complex systems and changeable needs which cannot be served by traditional 9-5 services.
We know that moving across services can be stressful and make it harder difficult to engage with unfamiliar professionals/ environments, resulting in poor rehabilitation and repeat attendances at crisis services. Your role will help understand, prevent and ameliorate such and other distress and improve the mental health and wellbeing of local service users. You will play a key part in a specialist service that is cost effective, culturally appropriate and based on best clinical and professional practice, to meet Trust objectives, national strategic, and policy guidelines, commissioner requirements and user and carer needs.
Main duties of the job
As part of this role, you will lend your expertise to transitional formulations, consultation and brief interventions to allow for a rich understanding the person and their system. This could inform goal setting and shape interventions focused on re-engagement in self-care, productivity and leisure activities. Depending on need and complexity, this could mean up to 3 sessions as clients move and are seen in another service, supporting continuity of care in a trauma-informed way, as transitions between islands of emotional containment can be particularly difficult. This will support everybody involved to develop mutual understanding/ rapport while co-producing a "passport" to inform care across the system.
- You will develop/deliver staff training & complex case discussion
Your work will be crucial to facilitate integration with other parts of the system (e.g. social care, primary care, VCSEs and specialist services) and therefore, facilitate development of relationships and consideration of opportunities for service development/joint working. You will be in a prime position to champion wider system understanding across a wide geographical patch and integrated care system.
- You will work autonomously within professional guidelines
- You will work on ensuring MHUCD provision is evidence based, meets practice and Trust standards, while providing clinical leadership, evaluation and monitoring of relevant therapeutic, standardised assessments and outcomes.
About us
EPUT are looking for motivated staff who shares our Trust values of Care, Learn and Empower. In return, EPUT can offer you a range of benefits and development including;
- Season Ticket Loans
- NHS discounts for staff
- Excellent Training facilities and opportunities
- Buying and Selling annual leave scheme
- The opportunity to work bank shifts and expand knowledge and experience in other areas
- Salary Sacrifice schemes including lease cars and Cycle to Work
- Day One Flexible Employer
The Trust supports and actively encourages flexible working for all employees. We offer many options and you are encouraged to ask the recruiting manager what is possible for this role. If appointed, you will have the opportunity to apply for a flexible working request from the first day of your employment
Join our Staff bank
What is Staff Bank?
Our EPUT NHS staff bank is an entity managed by the trust that hires clinical and non-clinical healthcare professionals to take on shifts at our trust hospitals and community settings. Here at EPUT we maintain our own bank of specialist staff to ensure that we are able offer safe and effective care at all times.
All our permanent staff are automatically enrolled onto the staff bank however this does not mean you have to work any additional shifts, but the option is there for you if you wish.
If you are joining our Trust in a fixed term role, please indicate on your New Starter Paperwork that you wish to join our staff bank.
Job description
Job responsibilities
- We are looking for a skilled and compassionate psychologist who is able to manage and work positively and proactively both with MDTs, and with people who present to our services with complex needs. You need to bring a passion for promoting a trauma-informed culture while working closely and collaboratively with other professionals.
- This is a varied and busy role working with adults experiencing complex, severe and enduring mental health problems (including personality disorder, severe depression, severe and disabling anxiety disorders, OCD, psychosis, and substance misuse), presentations often involving overlapping conditions (dual diagnosis) and multiple needs sometimes being complicated by organic dysfunction. In the course of their work, the post holder will encounter a range of presenting problems and needs (including complex emotional dysfunction, self-harm, aggression and challenging behaviour, cognitive impairment, severe interpersonal problems, social disabilities), often in cases where motivation and engagement is poor or where understanding or acceptance by the patient of their condition is constrained by psychological, cognitive, linguistic or other factors. You will also work with the patients support networks (including direct care staff, families and other natural carers) and any other services involved in their care.
Job description
Job responsibilities
- We are looking for a skilled and compassionate psychologist who is able to manage and work positively and proactively both with MDTs, and with people who present to our services with complex needs. You need to bring a passion for promoting a trauma-informed culture while working closely and collaboratively with other professionals.
- This is a varied and busy role working with adults experiencing complex, severe and enduring mental health problems (including personality disorder, severe depression, severe and disabling anxiety disorders, OCD, psychosis, and substance misuse), presentations often involving overlapping conditions (dual diagnosis) and multiple needs sometimes being complicated by organic dysfunction. In the course of their work, the post holder will encounter a range of presenting problems and needs (including complex emotional dysfunction, self-harm, aggression and challenging behaviour, cognitive impairment, severe interpersonal problems, social disabilities), often in cases where motivation and engagement is poor or where understanding or acceptance by the patient of their condition is constrained by psychological, cognitive, linguistic or other factors. You will also work with the patients support networks (including direct care staff, families and other natural carers) and any other services involved in their care.
Person Specification
Education/Qualifications
Essential
- Doctorate in Clinical Psychology OR Doctorate in Forensic/Counselling Psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) with extensive evidence of working with in-patient or crisis populations, and evidence of work across the age span, and/or documented training in neuropsychological assessment, as accredited by the BPS and registered with HCPC.
- Training should include models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies.
- Doctoral level (or equivalent of) knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical fields of psychology.
- Evidence of significant CPD in relation to Adult Mental Health
Desirable
- Post-doctoral qualifications in DBT/CBT/EMDR or other evidence based models for the treatment of complex cases presentations in the context of very brief interventions.
- Evidence of CPD in relation to Adult Mental Health speciality
Knowledge
Essential
- Knowledge of mental health legislation, NHS Constitution, CPA and risk assessment and management.
- British Psychological Society Code of Professional Conduct.
- Experience, knowledge and understanding of health legislation, principles of CPA and Care Management, Mental Capacity Act, Mental Health Act 1983 and safeguarding, the NHS Constitution, and risk assessment / management.
- Knowledge of psychological therapies and the application of current models of practice, specialist assessment tools and outcomes frameworks in own specialist area of practice.
Desirable
- Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in specific 'difficult to treat' groups (e.g. personality disorder, risk behaviours, dual diagnoses, people with additional disabilities etc.).
- High-level knowledge of the theory and practice of at least two specialised psychological therapies.
- Knowledge of relevant legislation and DoH policy and implementation guidelines in relation to mental health in general and the client group with which this post is concerned.
Person Specification
Education/Qualifications
Essential
- Doctorate in Clinical Psychology OR Doctorate in Forensic/Counselling Psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) with extensive evidence of working with in-patient or crisis populations, and evidence of work across the age span, and/or documented training in neuropsychological assessment, as accredited by the BPS and registered with HCPC.
- Training should include models of psychopathology, clinical psychometrics and neuropsychology, two or more distinct psychological therapies.
- Doctoral level (or equivalent of) knowledge of research methodology, research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the clinical fields of psychology.
- Evidence of significant CPD in relation to Adult Mental Health
Desirable
- Post-doctoral qualifications in DBT/CBT/EMDR or other evidence based models for the treatment of complex cases presentations in the context of very brief interventions.
- Evidence of CPD in relation to Adult Mental Health speciality
Knowledge
Essential
- Knowledge of mental health legislation, NHS Constitution, CPA and risk assessment and management.
- British Psychological Society Code of Professional Conduct.
- Experience, knowledge and understanding of health legislation, principles of CPA and Care Management, Mental Capacity Act, Mental Health Act 1983 and safeguarding, the NHS Constitution, and risk assessment / management.
- Knowledge of psychological therapies and the application of current models of practice, specialist assessment tools and outcomes frameworks in own specialist area of practice.
Desirable
- Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in specific 'difficult to treat' groups (e.g. personality disorder, risk behaviours, dual diagnoses, people with additional disabilities etc.).
- High-level knowledge of the theory and practice of at least two specialised psychological therapies.
- Knowledge of relevant legislation and DoH policy and implementation guidelines in relation to mental health in general and the client group with which this post is concerned.
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).
