Integrated Discharge Team Advanced Practitioner in Beckenham

The Integrated Discharge practitioner will work with inpatient services, community and rehab within Croydon Directorate. The purpose of this post is to support the Integrated Discharge Team Leads in reducing length of stay within inpatient and complex care services, creating capacity and flow across the whole mental health system. The role requires excellent communication and organisation skills and the ability to work collaboratively with all relevant parties including external agencies. The post holder will support identification of internal and external barriers to flow, record information systematically and escalate accordingly. The post holder will assist clinical teams to ensure delayed discharges are identified and progressed in a timely manner. The role requires experience of working in mental health acute settings and supporting patients with complex needs to enable discharge at the earliest opportunity. The post holder will be responsible for overseeing, updating and maintaining accurate information systems to enable a robust system of daily reporting on bed availability across inpatient services. The post holder will need to maintain excellent communication and working relationships with all staff across the Directorate. The post holder will be able to demonstrate critical thinking in the clinical decision-making process. Advanced Practitioners are expected to deputise for the Integrated Discharge Clinical Service Lead.

Main duties of the job:

• To work in collaboration with a broad range of professionals to gain intelligence regarding inpatient demand and anticipated discharges and extended periods of leave.
• To work closely with ward teams to support staff to be proactive about discharge planning from day one of admission.
• To be integral to decision-making about patient care and discharge in liaison with all other health professionals.
• To assist the multidisciplinary team in diffusing difficult situations when discharge plans become complex or there is conflict with the carers / other health professionals and escalate to the Integrated Discharge Team Lead as necessary.
• To work closely with multi-disciplinary teams to standardise good discharge planning practice throughout the Directorate.
• To communicate with all members of the multidisciplinary team when a concern is raised regarding a patient's discharge, escalating to the Integrated Discharge Lead as necessary.
• To ensure good communication with patients and carers about plans for discharge.
• To employ excellent clinical and communication skills with inpatient colleagues to achieve optimum utilisation of beds.
• To identify and escalate barriers to discharge to the Integrated Discharge Team Lead and any other relevant parties using initiative and sound clinical judgment.
• To provide early warning of patient flow risks, considering potential solutions and taking corrective action as appropriate and/or escalating as required.

To complete Care Act Assessment, attending panel and presenting patients to Local Authority (ICB, for placement). Liaising with placement.

About us:

We are committed to ensuring our staff get the most out of their benefits package and understand the importance of a healthy work-life balance. There is an extensive range of excellent benefits for you and your family. We want you to feel like you are part of a close-knit team at SLaM. It's important to us that you are valued and appreciated and that is why we have a comprehensive benefits package on offer.

Some of our benefits are highlighted here:

• Generous pay, pensions and leave.
• Work-life balance, flexible working and support a range of flexible options, such as part-time working and job sharing.
• Career development, with plenty of opportunities to progress your career and support through a number of programmes such as mentoring, coaching, positive people management, collective leadership and other talent programmes.
• Car lease, competitive deals to lease cars.
• Accommodation, keyworker housing available on selected sites.
• NHS discounts, with discounts up to 10% from a variety of well-known retail brands through Health Service Discounts website.
• Other benefits include counselling services, wellbeing events, long service awards, cycle to work scheme, season ticket loan, childcare vouchers, and staff restaurants.

Details:

• Date posted: 05 August 2026
• Pay scheme: Agenda for change
• Band: Band 7
• Salary: £55,524 to £62,652 a year per annum inc of High Cost Allowances
• Contract: Secondment
• Working pattern: Full-time
• Reference number: 334-NUR-8161161-FR
• Job locations: Bethlem Royal Hospital, Monks Orchard Road, Beckenham, BR3 3BX, United Kingdom

Job responsibilities:

Play a key role in ensuring that patients are supported in identifying potential barriers of care and support early in the patients' journey and throughout their hospital stay. As per the Trust Care Process Model, ensuring that pre-discharge planning commences early. This means planning starts at the time a patient is identified for admission, whether into one of our Borough/Trust beds or other institutions whether NHS or Private. Attending and contributing to clinical meetings on the wards to identify potential barriers in patient care which may contribute towards their potential discharge. Undertaking assessments of patients identified as suitable for discharge with Home Treatment Teams and linking in with the respective locality Borough, with Trust and externally. Supporting with booking transport to facilitate smooth transitions to home destinations when patients are being discharged from the wards. Referring patients to CMHTs in a timely manner to ensure there is no delay at the time of discharge. Liaising with care coordinators to ensure all barriers are identified early, clarifying potential risks that patients may pose to themselves and others as well as seeking clarification of their intended purpose for patient admission. Supporting patients with GP registrations. Supporting patients with home visits to ensure habitability ahead of planned discharge and arrange blitz cleaning as appropriate. Supporting with referrals to KHP, ASC NRPF, Step Downs and welfare benefits referrals. Undertaking the role of advocating for patients/service users under their care. To be conversant with policies on administration and issue of medication as per Trust policy. Liaise with pharmacy to ensure medications are dispensed in a timely manner. To ensure that safeguarding issues are acted upon and reported appropriately in line with the Trust's Safeguarding Policies. To operate within the legal requirements of the Mental Health Act and be able to exercise independent judgement in the assessment of mental health conditions. Support service users to adopt recovery strategies that promote their wellbeing, healthy lifestyle, independence and self-care. Using excellent communication skills to provide accurate information to service users and their families and carers in a sensitive and professional manner. Have a flexible approach to work and complete tasks as required by the management team.

Person Specification:

Qualification/Education:

• Essential: Recognised Professional Qualification in Nursing (RMN), Social Work (Dip SW/CQSW) or Occupational Therapy; Masters degree or equivalent demonstrable experience; Evidence of continuing professional development; Attending and presenting patients to local authority for ICB.
• Desirable: Recognised leadership qualification or equivalent management experience.

Skills / Abilities:

• Essential: Good time management skills, with the ability to work effectively under pressure; Ability to rapidly analyse complex issues/problems, gather relevant information and exercise sound judgement in reaching the most appropriate conclusions; Experience of developing systems, processes and new ways of working to optimise patient flow; Understanding of capacity management and bed management procedures; Knowledge of Psychiatric Liaison required.
• Desirable: Working knowledge of delayed discharge; Evidence of undertaking audit work.

Knowledge / experience:

• Essential: Sound knowledge and understanding of current issues in specialty; Experience and knowledge of quality, standard setting and audit; Care Act Assessment & 117 Care Planning; Understanding of capacity management and bed management procedures; Working knowledge of delayed discharge criteria and barriers to discharge.
• Desirable: Working knowledge of delayed discharge criteria and barriers to discharge.

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.

UK Registration: Applicants must have current UK professional registration.

Employer details:

Employer name: South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
Address: Bethlem Royal Hospital, Monks Orchard Road, Beckenham, BR3 3BX, United Kingdom