Clinical Psychologist in Stroke Rehabilitation, ESD in Bury St Edmunds

We are excited to offer a rare opportunity to join our Early Supported Discharge as a Clinical Psychologist in stroke rehabilitation. This role provides specialist psychological and neuropsychological assessment, intervention, consultation, and leadership to support patients recovering from stroke and their families. The role is integrated within the multidisciplinary rehabilitation team and contributes to holistic, patient-centred care across the stroke pathway.

The postholder works with adults who have experienced stroke and may present with:

• Cognitive impairment
• Emotional and psychological adjustment difficulties
• Behavioural changes
• Anxiety and depression
• Trauma-related responses
• Communication and functional challenges following stroke

The psychologist supports rehabilitation by helping patients maximise engagement, independence, emotional wellbeing, and quality of life. The role also supports carers and staff, contributing psychological expertise to rehabilitation planning, discharge preparation, and service development.

Main duties of the job:

• Undertake comprehensive psychological and neuropsychological assessments of patients following stroke, including cognition, mood, behaviour, risk, and capacity.
• Formulate complex clinical presentations to inform individualised care and rehabilitation planning.
• Deliver evidence-based psychological interventions to support adjustment, emotional wellbeing, and engagement in rehabilitation.
• Provide interventions for common mental health difficulties, including anxiety, depression, trauma, and distress.
• Contribute to the management of cognitive impairment, advising on strategies to support memory, attention, executive functioning, and behaviour.
• Support rehabilitation planning, goal setting, safe discharge, and community reintegration.
• Work as an integral member of the multidisciplinary team, contributing to MDT discussions, care planning, and decision-making.
• Provide specialist psychological consultation and promote psychologically informed approaches to care.
• Offer psychoeducation and emotional support to families and carers, supporting adjustment and management of complex needs.
• Provide training, consultation, and reflective practice to MDT colleagues to support delivery of high-quality care.
• Participate in clinical audit, service evaluation, and quality improvement initiatives.
• Maintain accurate and timely clinical records in line with professional and organisational standards.
• Work in accordance with relevant professional, ethical, and governance frameworks.

Person Specification:

Education & Qualifications:

• Doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology or equivalent.
• Currently eligible for Chartered Clinical Psychology status.
• Post qualification training in therapeutic skills.

Experience & Knowledge:

• Experience of/interest in working in multi-disciplinary team.
• Experience in Neuro-psychology.
• Experience with patients who have challenging behaviour.
• Experience of supervising other psychology staff, i.e. assistants and trainees.
• Formal training in behaviour management or CBT, e.g. diploma.
• Research experience relating to neuro-rehab.
• Service evaluation and audit.
• Teaching and training of health care professionals.

Skills & Abilities:

• Ability to organise and prioritise patient caseload.
• Ability to write concise reports/letters.
• Capacity to communicate complex clinical information effectively and empathetically to patients and their families.
• Knowledge of relevant legislation and implications for clinical practice (e.g. Mental Health Act).
• Evidence of CPD programme.

Personal Qualities:

• Leadership: Able to contain and work with organisational stress and able to hold the stress of others.
• Values: Respectful approach to service users, families, carers, colleagues and other professionals. Willing to negotiate and can handle confrontation effectively and professionally.

Other:

• Able to work to professional guidelines.
• Must be capable of accountability for own work, of autonomous clinical practice, of being guided by precedent and of working towards defined results.
• Ability to make own travelling arrangements to meet needs of service.

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.

£57,528 to £64,750 a year pro rata, per annum.