Highly Specialist Clinical Psychologist or Psychotherapist in Crediton

We are seeking a psychologist or psychological therapist with a passion for trauma informed approaches to working with risk to join us in Mid Devon CRHTT and Core Team. This unique role will span Adult Core Mental Health and crisis services. The individual involved will have the opportunity to contribute to the development of this novel post.

Given the degree of service development available in this role we would particularly welcome applications from 8a therapists who are seeking to gain further experience of strategic working, working with teams, and the management of complex risk, with a view to applying for more senior posts.

You will offer consultation and treatment often over a relatively short period. For people with complex trauma presentations interventions will include TF-CBT or EMDR or NET. Clinicians will have the opportunity to offer a small number of longer-term therapeutic interventions to people using both Mid Devon Crisis Services and Mid Devon Core Adult Mental Health teams.

Job Purpose

The principal purpose of the job is to improve the psychological health & wellbeing of people within core adult mental health and crisis services in Mid Devon. This will be achieved in this post through undertaking the following areas of responsibility:

• To ensure the systematic provision of a high-quality psychological service in specialist field of practice, across identified locality area, as a key component of integrated mental health and wellbeing services across Devon Partnership NHS Trust.
• Providing clinical leadership and supervision for less experienced staff, trainees and volunteers employed by or attached to the psychology service.
• Caring a specialist caseload of clients, and providing advice and consultancy to patients and professionals.
• To work autonomously within professional guidelines and exercise responsibility for the systematic governance of psychological practice within professional and Trust guidelines as lead specialist.

The post holder will receive regular professional and clinical supervision in accordance to Trust policy and to Professional Practice Guidelines set out by the British Psychological Society or appropriate designated Professional Body. Observe, and abide by all relevant Professional Codes of Conduct and Practice including the British Psychological Society. The post holder will be fully registered with the Health Professions Council, BABCP, BACP or UKCP as a condition of employment.

About us

We provide mental health, learning disability and neurodiversity services, as well as a range of specialist & secure services for the wider south west region & nationally. We are passionate about promoting good mental health & wellbeing. We strive to use the expertise & resources within our organisation, and through our partnerships, to deliver high quality services that are safe & focused on people's recovery.

We are committed to developing a culture of coproduction, involving patients, families & carers in everything we do.

Our values

We not only recruit based on qualifications & experience - we recruit individuals who possess & demonstrate the behaviours which underpin our Trusts core values. These include such attributes as showing a commitment to quality of care, improving lives of others, giving respect, dignity & compassion. We can bring those values to life in our everyday tasks by giving a smile; making time for people; challenging ourselves & others, & being open to new ideas.

We are committed to being an inclusive employer & applications are encouraged & welcomed from all sections of the community, regardless of any protected characteristics as governed by the Equality Act 2010. Part time & flexible working applications will be considered & supported, where possible. We particularly encourage applicants with lived experience of mental health conditions, neurodiversity or learning disabilities. We are a Disability Confident Leader.

Job responsibilities

Communication and Working Relationships

• Clients, family and carers: To communicate in a highly skilled and sensitive manner with clients who may have specific difficulties in understanding and/or communicating and who may be hostile, antagonistic or highly emotionally disturbed.
• Multidisciplinary team colleagues: To work closely with colleagues in the multi-professional integrated mental health and wellbeing service on a day-to-day basis.
• Health & social care staff: To communicate with a wide range of health & social care staff in hospital and in community settings in a highly skilled and sensitive manner, complex and sensitive information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of clients under the services care. To provide support & guidance in the application of psychological principles and techniques, and to foster reflective practice.
• Senior managers & professional staff: To maintain and build good working relationships with senior professional staff and managers across the Trust to foster a positive approach to the integrated mental health and wellbeing service and to enable effective negotiation.

Planning and Organisation

• The psychology service: To plan and organise own work within the service setting and to contribute to the development and improvement of provision of psychological services within the commissioned integrated mental health and wellbeing service to best meet the organisations strategy and priorities.
• The multidisciplinary service: To provide psychology/therapy supervision to the multi-professional planning, development and marketing of mental health and wellbeing services.

Responsibility for Judgement and Analysis

• To provide specialist clinical psychology/therapy expertise and advice.
• To provide psychological therapies, developing specialist psychological formulations and assessments of clients, formulating plans for their psychological treatment and implementing specialist psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups. Proficiency in both individual and group therapy approaches is desirable.
• To support the Professional Head, General Manager, Practice and Strategic Development Leads and Professional Leads by undertaking service development and redesign projects and coordinating the resulting work within the team.
• To provide complex assessment of specialist conditions.

Responsibility for Patient/Client Care, Treatment and Therapy

• Assessment & intervention: To provide expert psychological therapies, developing specialist psychological formulations and assessments of clients, formulating plans for their psychological treatment and implementing specialist psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups, and to demonstrate awareness of diversity issues.
• Consultation & guidance: To provide advice, guidance and consultation on psychological aspects of patient care to colleagues, other service providers, patients, supporters and families.

Policy, Service, Research, Innovation and Improvement

• The post holder is accountable for their own professional actions, acting within Trust policies and procedures and Professional Practice Guidelines.
• Policy & service: To implement policies and procedures for the provision of psychology and therapy services within own service and other services within the Trust.
• R & D: To support the R&D activities of the psychology and psychological therapy service.

Responsibility for Finance, Equipment and Other Resources

• To be responsible for the safe keeping of equipment under own use.

Responsibility for Supervision, Leadership and Management

• Leadership & supervision: To lead and professionally supervise less experienced psychology/therapy staff, trainees and volunteers.
• To provide placement responsibilities for trainee staff.
• To contribute to the provision of therapy supervision for non-psychology/therapy staff providing psychological therapies within other Trust teams.
• To support placements for trainee staff in line with professional guidelines.

Information Resources and Administrative Duties

• To maintain accurate records, compliant with Trust Practice Standards.
• To be responsible for using an email account to generate, monitor, and respond to the e-mail traffic by which the Trust conducts much of its internal communication.

Responsibility for Research and Development

• To utilise theory, evidence-based literature and research to support evidence-based practice in individual work within the PPT and local mental health services.
• To conduct project work including specific areas of audit, research or service evaluation.
• As a clinician to be responsible for collecting clinical practice and outcome data that contributes to building practice based evidence and service evaluation. To participate in service audits and relevant research projects.

Freedom to Act

The post holder is accountable for their own professional actions, acting within Trust policies and procedures and Professional Practice Guidelines. To work autonomously within clinical professional guidelines and exercise responsibility for the governance of psychological practice within the locality/specialty. Interpretation of professional and Trust guidelines, and implementing policies in conjunction with peers, Head of Profession and General Manager. To provide expert and specialist clinical psychology/therapy expertise and advice guidance and consultation on psychological aspects of patient care to colleagues, other service providers, patients, supporters and families.

Any Other Specific Tasks Required

• To ensure all clinical care and treatment provided by psychologists/psychotherapists/therapists is carried out under appropriate supervision and leadership.
• To ensure that all relevant staff groups continuously update the skills and techniques relevant to their clinical work.

Review of this Job Description

This job description is intended as an outline indicator of general areas of activity and will be amended in the light of changing service needs. This job description is to be reviewed in conjunction with the post holder on an annual basis.

General Information

Equality & Diversity

Devon Partnership NHS Trust is committed to recruiting and supporting a diverse workforce and so we welcome applications from all sections of the community regardless of age, disability, sex, race, religion or sexual orientation, maternity/pregnancy, marriage/civil partnership or transgender status. The Trust expects all staff to behave in a way which recognises and respects this diversity in line with the appropriate standards.

Recovery

It is a requirement of all employees to have an understanding of the broad principles of the Recovery Approach and to incorporate them into every aspect of their work in support of the Trusts aim to provide services that support peoples recovery through being holistic and promoting social inclusion, self management, personal autonomy and independence.

Risk Management / Health and Safety

Employees must be aware of the responsibilities placed on them under the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974, ensure that agreed safety procedures are carried out and maintain a safe environment for employees, patients and visitors.

Records Management

The post holder has responsibility for the timely and accurate creation, maintenance and storage of records in accordance with Trust policy, including email documents and with regard to the Data Protection Act, The Freedom of Information Act and any other relevant statutory requirements.

Clinical Governance, Compliance and Performance

The post holder will be responsible for proving that the Care Quality Commission outcome areas have been met in all registered/related activities for which the post holder is responsible. Where outcomes are not met the post holder is expected to put in place/recommend action to improve. The post holder will proactively seek and engage the support of the governance teams in the Compliance and Corporate Development directorate to gather information as required. The post holder will build an understanding of and adhere to the CQC guidelines as well as the Trusts guidelines on the approach to maintaining CQC registration.

Prevention and Control of healthcare Associated Infection

The post holder is expected to comply with Trust Infection Control Policies and conduct themselves at all times in such a manner as to minimise the risk of healthcare associated infection.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Psychotherapist/ Psychological Therapist/Clinical or Counselling Psychologist registered with appropriate accrediting body.
• Further training in working with people using short term interventions.
• Further training in at least one NICE approved psychological therapy for trauma.
• IT Skills.
• Further training or experience in approaches to serious mental health problems and working with young people.
• Training in the provision of supervision.

Experience

• Broad knowledge of specialist mental health services and of the services in the NHS where psychology and psychotherapy is commonly applied.
• Extensive knowledge of the skills, practice and knowledge base of Clinical/Counselling Psychology/Psychological therapy.
• Knowledge of the policy context of specialist psychological services within the NHS and of clinical leadership arrangements in this setting.

SKILLS & ABILITIES

• Excellent verbal, nonverbal and written communication skills.
• Strong leadership qualities, resilience and ability to handle ambiguity and uncertainty.
• Skills in managing conflict, negotiation and achieving consensus in complex situations in the pursuit of agreed strategic aims.
• Ability to integrate complex data; make highly skilled evaluations and decisions; and take a long term perspective.
• Proven organisational, planning and time management skills.
• Ability to work under pressure and cope with deadlines.
• Presentable.
• Calm, methodical approach, friendly but concise.
• Good communication skills when presenting / facilitating to varying groups of people.
• Advanced psychological assessment and formulation skills including risk assessment.
• Highly skilled in specialist interventions with the client group.

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.

£55,690 to £62,682 a year pro rata (22.5 hours per week)