Clinical Psychologist

Job description

Job responsibilities

To work as part of an interdisciplinary team, providing clinical psychology input within the Peartree House neurobehavioural model to service users with acquired brain injury/neurological conditions. To liaise with internal and external professionals, family members and service users. To engage in relevant research and advise other professionals as appropriate.

Main Tasks and Responsibilities

CLINICAL

To provide specialist psychological assessment of adults with acquired brain injury referred to Peartree House and related services, utilising and interpreting information from a variety of sources including psychological and neuropsychological tests, self report scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews with service users, family members and others involved in the service users care.

To formulate and implement plans of specialist psychological treatment or management of service users neuropsychological and mental health problems based on a multi-factorial psychological understanding and current evidence-based best practice.

To undertake a range of psychological therapeutic and rehabilitation interventions, drawing on a range of psychological models and employing a range of modalities (individual, family and group) adapted and tailored to the needs of the individual and the context and ongoing evaluation of the outcomes of the intervention.

To exercise autonomous professional judgement and responsibility for the psychological management of service users on own case load.

To be responsible for providing a specialist psychological perspective in the multi-disciplinary assessment of service users and their families.

To contribute highly specialist psychological advice to the multi-disciplinary formulation of appropriate therapeutic approaches or intervention plans, and to be involved in, or oversee specialist psychological aspects of their implementation in collaborations with other staff.

To undertake psychologically based risk assessment and risk management for relevant service users and provide advice on the psychological aspects of risk to the multi-disciplinary team.

To consult with and provide specialist psychological guidance to carers and families of service users.

TEACHING/TRAINING/SUPERVISION/CONSULTATION

To provide training and presentations to other disciplines on the role and function of neuropsychology, and significantly contribute to the psychological skills development training programme for the service.

To consult with and advise colleagues from other professions on psychological assessment and treatment methods.

To teach, advise and consult with carers and appropriate others on psychological elements of brain injury related problems.

To participate in the specialist training of other psychologists as appropriate.

To supervise, appraise and participate in the management of assistant psychologists.

POLICY AND SERVICE DEVELOPMENT

To participate in multi-disciplinary meetings concerned with the delivery and development of clinical services and contribute a psychological perspective as appropriate.

To contribute as required to the planning and development of the operational policies and service delivery in the Clinical Neuropsychology Service through undertaking agreed project work.

To advise service management on areas of service where issues of psychological need should be addressed.

To develop and maintain good communication links with the NHS, Social Services and other agencies working in the area of neurorehabilitation.

To contribute to the interpretation and implementation of national guidelines and policies relating to neuropsychology and Neurorehabilitation practice

EVALUATION/RESEARCH/DEVELOPMENT

To remain informed of and critically evaluate current research to support evidence-based practice in own professional work and to contribute this perspective in the multi-disciplinary team.

To contribute to project management of complex audit, assisting colleagues to develop service provision.

To coordinate administration of agreed outcome measures.

To initiate and conduct psychologically based research relevant to the care of adults with acquired brain injury, as agreed with the General Manager.

To provide advice to members of other professions as required on research design and method.

PROFESSIONAL/ADMINISTRATIVE

To participate in regular clinical supervision and to negotiate further specialist supervision, development and training.

To work within the Code of Ethics and the relevant professional practice guidelines of the British Psychological Society and the professional guidance framework of the Organisation.

To work within the framework of the policies and procedures of the Organisation.

To be responsible for relevant data collection on work activities, as required, and to maintain a high standard of clinical record keeping.

To participate fully in supporting the activities of the Psychology profession within the Organisation, including attending relevant meetings.

To keep abreast of developments in Clinical Psychology, particularly in the field of neurorehabilitation.

To carry out such other duties as the General Manager may reasonably request.

To plan and prioritise own clinical workload.

COMMUNICATION

To communicate effectively with service users and carers including an awareness of alternative and augmentative communication aids often required by ABI and complex needs clients and / or their families. ie: clients with visual, hearing, communication, mental health and learning disabilities.

To communicate highly confidential, personal and sensitive information obtained through assessments, therapy and interventions to the service users themselves who may have limited understanding and maybe antagonistic and very distressed, and where appropriate, to their relatives and carers, other involved professionals, and referring agents.

Communication to be in a skilled and sensitive manner, making informed clinical judgements concerning what information to report, how and when to convey it, in the best interests of the service user.

To provide detailed assessment reports with recommendations in a format service user and family find readily accessible.

To participate in multi-disciplinary team goal setting to assist in the development of service users rehabilitation programmes with the service.

Person Specification

Skills and Knowledge

Essential

• In depth knowledge of the evidence base for specialist areas of clinical neuropsychology with regards to assessment and rehabilitation
• Evidence of ability to conduct service evaluations and audit
• Ability to plan and organise individual and group therapy interventions at a high standard
• Ability to interpret a range of national guidelines and policies to advise and co-ordinate the provision of psychological care in the service
• Skills in the use of a range of psychological assessment and intervention strategies and the ability to integrate complex data from a variety of sources
• Skills in the ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing a variety of complex, technical and clinically sensitive information to a range of recipients (e.g. clients, their families, carers and members of the multidisciplinary team and other professional colleagues both within and outside of the NHS)
• Skills in providing supervision and consultation to other professionals and non-professionals within the service
• The ability to employ strategies of clinical governance to support the development of good clinical practice

Desirable

• Doctoral level knowledge of research design, methodology, and complex multivariate analysis in clinical neuropsychology

Experience

Essential

• Substantial experience of exercising full clinical responsibility for clients psychological care and treatment within the context of neuropsychology (Applicable to Band 8 candidates)
• Substantial experience of working with people with a wide range of acquired neurological difficulties (e.g. traumatic brain injury, stroke, degenerative disorders, tumours, epilepsy)
• Experience of working with a variety of client groups, and with a variety of presenting problems including complex, highly emotive and distressing problems such as verbal abuse and the threat of physical violence
• Experience of clinical supervision (junior psychologists, Assistant Psychologists and/or Trainee Psychologists)
• Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of patients in a range of settings including in-patients, outpatients, community and group work

Desirable

• Experience of teaching and training to doctoral trainees and/or healthcare staff

Qualifications

Essential

• Honours degree in Psychology (2.1 or 1st Class)
• Eligibility for membership of DCP of the British Psychological Society & Chartered Status
• Post-graduate Doctoral level training in Clinical Psychology (e.g. DClinPsy) or equivalent
• Registered as a Practitioner Psychologist with the HCPC (Health & Care Professions Council)
• Substantial previous clinical experience within the field of neuropsychology, post qualification training in Clinical Neuropsychology (e.g. PGDip or MSc) or completing training
• Post qualification training in clinical supervision (Applicable to Band 8 candidates)

Desirable

• Qualification in Clinical Neuropsychology (QiCN), or in the process of QiCN training or willingness to undertake QiCN

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

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).

Employer details

Employer name

Peartree House Rehabilitation

Address

8a

Peartree Avenue

Southampton

SO19 7JP

Employer's website

https://peartreerehab.co.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)