Community Mental Health Nurse Watford.

We have opportunities for Band 6 Community Nurses in our welcoming and friendly Adult Community Mental Health Services in Dacorum. We are looking for enthusiastic nurses to join our vibrant, friendly and supportive multi-disciplinary team. This is an excellent opportunity for someone who is looking for further development with their knowledge of nursing in a community setting. Successful candidates will be working closely with experienced colleagues in a multi-disciplinary team, alongside allied teams in the wider local mental health system, making a difference to the quality of our service user experience. Successful candidates will also benefit from a competitive salary, staff benefits package and excellent career development opportunities, regular supervision, and training that comes from working for Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust.

Main duties of the job

• The post holder will be able to undertake assessments of needs of service users, working in partnership with service users and their families, to formulate personalised care and support plans and risk assessments.
• The post holder will work with colleagues and allied resources to review the effectiveness of interventions and re-plan using evidence-based interventions to best effect in partnership with the service user.
• The post holder will be involved in physical procedures including administration of oral and injectable medications, the storage and transportation of them, and the monitoring of people's physical responses to medications and physical health, such as blood pressure, glucose and weight monitoring.

About us

Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust are one of just five mental health trusts to achieve an overall rating of 'Outstanding' from the Care Quality Commission. Our family of over 4,000 members of staff provide health and social care for people with mental ill health, physical ill health and learning disabilities across Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Essex and Norfolk, delivering these services within the community and several inpatient settings. Everything is underpinned by choice, independence and equality, with our Trust values embedded throughout: Welcoming. Kind. Positive. Respectful. Professional.

Job responsibilities

• To carry a clinical caseload and act as the lead practitioner fulfilling the named nurse role for a group of service users.
• The post provides opportunities to specialise in different aspects of specialist mental health care.
• To undertake comprehensive personalised care and support needs and risk assessments (including capacity assessments).
• Where necessary to administer prescribed medication or to supervise its administration and assess the service user for desired and non-desired effects.
• To maintain robust clinical records and prepare reports as required.
• To be aware of and comply with the relevant mental health and work-related legislation and policy at all times.
• Car driver essential as a majority of the posts are community based; the post holder will need a full valid driving licence and access to a car to use regularly for business purposes including business insurance (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010).

Person Specification

Knowledge/Training/Experience

• Essential: RMN or Dip / BSc (Hons) in Mental Health Nursing, ENB 998 / Preceptorship and Mentorship.
• Desirable: ENB 812/Bsc in Specialist Community Nursing Practice (Mental Health), Psychosocial interventions.

Experience and Attainments

• Essential: Experience of working in a range of settings relevant to the post, Post registration experience at Band 5 level or equivalent, Experience of working in acute mental health inpatient/day care services, Experience of working in situations of crisis and emotionally demanding environments, Experience and knowledge of safeguarding process, Experience of teaching and training, Experience of working in a multi-ethnic community, Experience of delivering evidence-based care.
• Desirable: Experience of working with acute mental health problems in a community setting.

Knowledge

• Essential: Up to date knowledge of relevant legislation, ethical issues, strategic frameworks and current guidelines regarding the range of presenting problems in adult mental health, their implications for both practices and clinical management, Professional Code of Conduct, Evidence of continuing professional development, Clinical risk assessment and management in a community setting.
• Desirable: Knowledge of parenting literature and its application, Ability to teach and train others using multi-media materials suitable for presentation, Knowledge of current developments in research with service user group.

Skills and Aptitudes

• Essential: Skills to use and give supervision effectively, Skills in the use of complex methods of assessment and treatment of individuals, couples, and families requiring sustained and intense concentration, Skills in applying theory to practice and ability to use a range of models in formulating community care plans, Ability to communicate effectively within a multi-professional team, Ability to work with diverse communities in a wide variety of contexts, Ability to provide and receive complex, sensitive or contentious information where persuasive, empathic and reassuring skills are required, Ability to deal sensitively with stressful situations including; staff and organisational problems; safeguarding; family breakdown; serious mental ill health and risk of self-harm, Ability to cope with verbal abuse and to recognise and diffuse potential physical abuse from service users, Ability to apply practice governance as appropriate to maintain ethical and effective clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour, Assessing and monitoring physical health care.
• Desirable: Substantial IT skills.

Communication and People Skills

• Essential: Able to communicate effectively, orally and in writing at an age-appropriate level - complex, technical, and/or clinically sensitive information to service users, their families, carers and professionals within and outside the NHS, Ability to work flexibly across service boundaries, Ability to contain and work with organisational stress and ability to hold the stress of others.

Organisational skills

• Essential: Ability to maintain high standards of record keeping, including data entry and recording, Ability to work autonomously, setting appropriate goals in accordance with professional, ethical guidelines and Trust policies.

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. 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.

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website.

Employer contact details

For questions about the job, contact: Clinic Nurse Specialist (interim) Chenara Peters chenara.peters@nhs.net 07957315032