Band 6 Senior Practitioner - Veterans Service Team in Birmingham

Are you passionate about ensuring our ex-British Armed Forces – Navy, Army and RAF service personnel have access to excellent mental health care? The Armed Forces Covenant is a promise from the Nation that those who serve or have served in the armed forces, and their families, are treated fairly ensuring they are not at a disadvantage due to their Veteran status. A Veteran is an individual who has served one or more days in the military, and it is this group of people that Op COURAGE works with on a holistic level. Op COURAGE offers support to Veterans within the geographical patch (Birmingham, Black Country, Staffordshire, Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin) experiencing mental health crisis who require support in engaging with their local primary and secondary services.

This is an exciting opportunity for a Mental health nurse to join the “bigger-picture” development of NHS Veteran mental healthcare through the Op COURAGE urgent care pathway.

Main duties of the job:

• Be responsible for Veterans on the caseload with identified, complex needs.
• Liaise with local services, including secondary mental health and primary care services and support engagement with these services to ensure care is being provided.
• This is a community-based service, providing a high intensity support package of care to Veterans in times of crisis, across a large geographical area (West Midlands, including Birmingham, Black Country, Staffordshire, Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin).
• The post holder will work within the wider veterans service caseload providing co-ordination of assessment, planning, and implementation of care to veterans and carers within the defined West Midlands Region.
• Provide professional advice and support to the veteran and their families, as well as other agencies including crisis teams and the police.
• Working within the Veteran’s care pathway, alongside non urgent pathway (previously known TILS and CTS).
• Appointments are made using a combination of communications; in person, digital and telephone.
• This role works to enhance already existing services such as CMHTs, crisis services and charitable organisations rather than replace them – the aim is to improve veteran-service engagement and ensure that Veterans are able to fairly access the appropriate support they require, and are not at a disadvantage due to their Veteran status.

Working for our organisation:

Welcome to Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust. Our 4000 clinical and support staff help us to improve mental health wellbeing and meet the needs of the 70,000 people we serve each year. We provide a range of mental healthcare services across Birmingham and Solihull, as well as specialised services nationally. We also offer medical, nursing and psychology training and are proud of our international reputation for both research and innovation. Our population is culturally diverse, characterised in places by high levels of deprivation which create an increasing demand for our services and a necessity for us to make sure everyone can access the help they need. We are a team of compassionate, inclusive and committed people working together to provide excellent care to support our community. If you are looking for a place to belong, where you can make a real difference to people’s lives, join our team where our warm welcome is waiting for you.

Person specification:

• Current unrestricted registration with HCPC/NMC
• Experience of supervising qualified staff
• Ability to work autonomously skilled in the assessment of complex patient material including crisis intervention and risk management
• Experience of working as a care coordinator for those with complex needs (working knowledge of MHA/MCA)
• Effective organisational and delegation skills
• Ability to demonstrate and apply understanding of policies and procedures
• Knowledge/Understanding of Armed Forces and the mental health needs of veterans and their families
• Experience in a Community Mental health care setting
• Experience of undertaking formulation, risk assessment and positive risk management
• Experience of staff supervision
• Evidence of continuing professional development

Our Trust is committed to treating individuals fairly and ensuring they have the same opportunities to fulfil their potential, even if this means doing things differently for different people sometimes. We are working hard to ensure our workforce reflects the diversity within Birmingham and Solihull and that our services meet the needs of all diverse service users and carers. The Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.