Op COURAGE Veterans Dual Diagnosis Lead in Colchester

Please be aware that, due to current allocation constraints, Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) are being prioritised for registered roles at this time.

Our Trust cares for more than 100,000 patients at any one time across our community health, mental health and learning disability services across Essex and parts of Bedfordshire and Suffolk.

We want you to be part of our journey of transformation, where our patients and their families are at the heart of everything we do and to achieve our vision to be the leading health and wellbeing service in the provision of mental health and community care.

You’ll be part of a Trust where you will be supported to be your authentic self and be the best you can be, where we will help you to grow, develop and thrive.

The Trust is recognised by the University of Essex and is a top provider of apprenticeships for people looking to be an assistant practitioner, senior health care support worker (CAP). Our trailblazing CAP apprenticeship won a national HSJ Award.

We are also recognised as a Veteran Aware Trust and holder of gold accreditation from the Ministry of Defence Employment Recognition Scheme. Our services are highlighted as an exemplar of good practice, producing the best care for more than 3.500 armed forces veterans in the past seven years.

We have been shortlisted and won national awards. We are an inclusive organisation and Level 3 Disability Confident Leader Trust.

We are constantly innovating and looking for new ways to deliver care, such as using technology to enhance patient care and working with partners to launch new services such as the Basildon Mental Health Urgent Care Department, virtual hospitals and falls response cars.

Join us and you’ll do the best work of your life – and make a difference to other people’s lives. What we do together, matters.

Job overview

This is a new post within the service, so you have an exciting opportunity to be part of developing and evaluating Op COURAGE's approach to supporting veterans with dual diagnosis needs, ensuring effective partnership working and timely access to appropriate local services.

As the Band 7 Dual Diagnosis Lead, you will be part of the management team within Op COURAGE, utilising both leadership skills and your specialist knowledge and clinical experience of dual diagnosis.

This team is unique in that we cover the six counties of the East of England and comprise of six contracted clinical and non-clinical partner organisations, to deliver high-quality mental health care to Veterans, Reservists, and Service Leavers. The team offer a blend of face-to-face and remote working, so you will need to be comfortable with working with staff and patients remotely. You will also need to be able to drive to relevant meetings across the East of England region, where face-to-face attendance is required.

Main duties of the job

You will be responsible for leading on partnership working for service users who experience both mental health and problematic alcohol and substance use. You will understand clinical interventions and local and national protocols regarding the formulation of effective assessments, harm minimisation, risk management, and recovery.

You will lead on developing and maintaining relationships with local drug and alcohol services across the East of England, to help ensure that Op COURAGE are helping our Veterans to access the right care for their needs.

You will lead on developing staff capability within Op COURAGE to build confidence, knowledge and skills in supporting Veterans with dual diagnosis.

You will lead on implementing specialist therapeutic groups within Op COURAGE, to provide a motivational space to help Veterans get ready for making positive changes. You will be provided with support from leadership, and specialist training, to deliver these groups.

Working for our organisation

Valuing you. Recognising your dedication. At EPUT, we look after you.

• Receive supervision and support to help you fulfil your potential.




• Join an inclusive EPUT community and connect with others through engagement events and equality or champion networks.




• If you need help, we provide mental health and wellbeing services, occupational health advice and counselling.




• 27 days holiday, plus bank holidays, rising to 33 days after 10 years’ service.




• Excellent pension of up to 14.5% of your pensionable pay.




• Staff discounts include Blue Light Card, NHS discount offers, and staff benefits.




• £8K relocation package if you move to Essex to join us




• Season ticket loans are interest-free to cover the cost of travelling to and from work via tram, rail, or bus.

Work that wraps around your needs

• Job share: Applications for job shares are welcomed.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Key Responsibilities

• Lead on the review and development of the dual diagnosis offer, making recommendations to the Deputy Regional Lead regarding service improvement and future development




• Provide clinical leadership across the service in relation to dual diagnosis practice.




• Attend daily referral triage meetings, to offer your specialist clinical opinion on cases that have co-occurring needs, and the correct timely pathways.




• Attend and participate in internal MDT meetings, maintaining an oversight of relevant referrals and assessments, and providing your specialist advice and guidance on evidence-based care for dual diagnosis




• Provide specialist consultation and clinical supervision to Band 6 case managers who are supporting Veterans with dual diagnosis needs




• Develop, deliver and evaluate specialist training, reflective practice and consultation sessions to improve workforce capability.




• Where appropriate, to provide specialist input through completing initial assessments and joint working with Band 6 case managers for service users with complex dual diagnosis presentations, including significant clinical risk, diagnostic uncertainty, treatment resistance, safeguarding concerns and/or multi‑agency involvement.




• Plan and organise the delivery of a specialised ‘SMART’ recovery group for Veterans with addictions, including organising the training of staff to co‑deliver this group




• Influence and promote evidence‑based approaches to assessment, intervention and recovery.




• Maintain high standards of clinical documentation, record keeping and information governance, ensuring that records accurately reflect assessment, formulation, risk management, clinical decision‑making and care planning in accordance with Trust policies and professional standards.




• To act as the regional specialist lead for dual diagnosis within Op COURAGE, establishing and maintaining relationships with specialist drug and alcohol services across the East of England




• Facilitate timely and effective referrals between Op COURAGE and relevant external services by acting as a designated point of contact. This will involve communicating sensitive/ highly sensitive, confidential information concerning patients.




• Advocate for the Armed Forces Community, by educating external services to understand the Armed Forces Covenant and the importance of reducing unwarranted variation and disadvantage in accessing care and treatment




• To promote the involvement of families/carers/social systems in the delivery of care and treatment to individuals with dual diagnosis




• Collect, analyse and report on service activity, outcomes and audit data relating to the Dual Diagnosis offer, using findings to inform service development, quality improvement and reporting requirements.




• You may be required to have direct clinical patient contact to support clients and staff, providing trauma‑informed and culturally competent mental health assessment and care.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Registered Nurse/OT/SW

Knowledge

• Understanding of considerations for working with AF community




• Knowledge and experience of working with DD

Skills/Experience

• Experience with planning and organising activities or programmes in a clinical setting




• Previous experience of working in a community based service

Please be aware that, due to current allocation constraints, Certificates of Sponsorship (CoS) are being prioritised for registered roles at this time.

As a newly appointed employee, you are responsible for incurring the cost of your initial DBS check relevant to your post; the amount will be deducted from your first salary with the Trust.

Our Trust is an Equal Opportunities Employer. We particularly welcome applications from people with experience of using mental health services. We also hold the Disability two tick symbol and have made the pledge to commit to employing more people with learning disabilities, we encourage people with a disability to apply. If you require this application form in another format i.e. Braille or audio tape etc, please contact the Recruitment Department on 01375 364513 or email epunft.recruitment.adverts@nhs.net and we can arrange for this to be dispatched to you.

The Trust has the right to expire vacancies prior to the closing date if they so wish. The Trust makes every attempt to contact all applicants and we strongly advise that you check the email account which is registered with NHS Jobs regularly, we would advise however due to the high number of applications we receive that if you have not heard from us within three weeks of the closing date your application has been unsuccessful on this occasion.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults, and expect all staff to undertake this commitment. Applicants will be subject to robust safer recruitment processes.

Important Notice: Recently the Health and Social Care Act 2008 (Regulated Activities) (Amendment) (Coronavirus) Regulations 2021 (the Regulations) which amended on 22 July 2021 and come into force on 11 November 2021 that anyone directly employed to work in a Care Home or who are required as part of their role to be deployed to a CQC registered care home are required to have had both their COVID vaccinations, unless they are exempt. This is therefore a requirement of this role and will form part of our pre‑employment checks.

Please note - staff who are formally at risk within the organisation will be given priority in securing alternative employment. Should it come to light that a post being advertised by the Trust is considered ‘suitable alternative employment’ to an individual who is at risk, the recruiting manager will be advised and the post will be withdrawn from NHS Jobs.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.

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