Occupational Therapy Assistant in Seaham

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a part time (30 hours) Occupational Therapy Assistant. As an occupational therapy assistant in TEWV, you will provide support to service users (community older persons) to engage in a therapeutic programme of care, as delegated by an occupational therapist, demonstrating adherence to the Trust Values at all times and operating as a member of the team, service and organisation.

The successful applicant will work under the direction of qualified Occupational Therapists with a strong focus on delivering high quality evidence based services that directly support recovery, occupational formulation and occupational engagement delivered as 1:1 or group interventions. The post holder will support occupational therapists in the provision of evidence-based occupational therapy assessment and interventions as part of the OT Pathway and offer input to individuals, their families and carers.

You must have the Right to Work in the UK in order to be successfully appointed to this role. Please note, due to the part time hours the starting salary for this role would not meet the required salary threshold for this post to be eligible for sponsorship under the Health and Care (Skilled Worker) visa.

• To be responsible for working with delegated service users and contributing to assessments and interventions to address key occupational areas of self-care, productivity and leisure.
• To engage service users and their carers in therapeutic programmes of care, supporting them in achieving their identified goals and promoting independence and well-being through a client-centred approach.
• To participate in clinical supervision.
• To contribute to multi-disciplinary team working.
• To contribute to safety and quality improvement activities as part of the occupational therapy team.
• To use the Trust electronic patient record system.
• To abide by all Trust policies and procedures.
• To be able to respond flexibly and creatively to challenges.

You will access wider support from the occupational therapy network in Durham in supporting the delivery of a high quality, needs-led OT service, utilising your technical and creative skills to engage service users in therapeutic activities and supporting service users/carers to achieve their identified goals. All team members must be committed to providing the best possible care for the people we work with and their families/carers. The ability to engage and communicate with service users as well as the parents/family/carers and system around them is essential.

Clinical/Professional supervision is provided by the supervising Occupational Therapist as identified by the relevant Lead OT. The postholder will attend OT Learning and Governance Networks to ensure fidelity to core occupational therapy delivery, enhance CPD and contribute to the wider OT service developments. You must be able to demonstrate experience of working alongside occupational therapists or experience of paid or voluntary work with people with mental health conditions or learning disabilities, and a keenness to continually develop yourself and others. We will support use of transferrable skills from a range of clinical settings. There are varied opportunities for training and development, with CPD needs being identified and monitored through appraisal.

Please refer to the person specification within the attached job description to ensure you meet the essential criteria for the post prior to applying. Applicants must meet the shortlisting criteria to be considered for this post. This job advert may close early if a high volume of applications have been received. If interested, please apply for this post as soon as possible.

• Qualifications: Relevant NVQ Level 3 in Care or Appropriate AVCE in Health & Social Care or Willingness to undertake within agreed timescale. Numeracy, Literacy and ITQ level 2 (or equivalent).
• Experience: Experience of paid or voluntary work with people with mental health conditions or learning disabilities. Experience working alongside occupational therapists.
• Knowledge: Awareness of needs of service users with mental health conditions or learning disabilities. Awareness of the needs of individuals from diverse social, ethnic and cultural backgrounds. Understanding of therapeutic terminology (within agreed timescale). Understanding of a variety of therapeutic approaches (within agreed timescale). Awareness of health & safety issues (within agreed timescale).

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.

Salary: £25,760 to £27,476 a year pro rata, per annum.