Senior Occupational Therapist (Band 5 Developmental)

Job summary

There is an opportunity for an experienced Occupational Therapist to join the therapies team for the acute wards at St. Ann's hospital delivering an OT service to the two Psychiatric Intensive Care Units. We would welcome applications from Band 5 OT who are interested in developing to a Band 6 Senior OT.

Haven Male PICUis a 7 bedded male PICU andHaven Female PICUis a 5 bedded female PICU. Both provide a high level of effective and compassionate care to men and women who are experiencing the most acute phase of a serious mental disorder and behavioural disturbance. People may present with significant risk of harm to themselves and others, as well as vulnerability from others.

As the dedicated OT you will investigate and respond to occupational need using assessment tools and interventions accessible to people experiencing an acute phase of their illness.

The therapies team delivers OT, physiotherapy, and exercise instruction to the 6 acute wards in the hospital. This supportive team work collaboratively across the wards, coming together regularly for clinical discussions, team development and CPD meetings. The team is proud to be passionate about the role of Occupational Therapy in our setting and we work closely with other services and are involved in projects across the trust.

This is a full time role working Monday to Friday, we would consider part-time.

We strongly welcome informal discussions, please contact Kelly Haysom at kelly.haysom@nhs.net or on 07585998691

Main duties of the job

You will have the lead role developing the provision of meaningful occupations on the unit.

As a senior member of the team you will model RCOTs code of conduct and the NHS values. The role will include the supervision of junior OT staff, delegation of therapy work to OT and activity assistants and teaching as part of the team and ward CPD.

You will enjoy working collaboratively with other professional and have strong organisational and self management skills. You will be skilled at demonstrating the unique value that occupational therapy delivers in acute mental health.

The team promote a calm and therapeutic approach in a specialist environment where people are supported by a friendly, skilled and enthusiastic staff enabling them to move forward with their recovery.

The team constantly strives to improve the quality of care that we provide to people. We have a progressive focus around initiatives such as Reducing Restrictive Interventions and Recognising Positive Practice. The unit is a member of National Association of Psychiatric Intensive Care and Low Secure Unit, the organisation committed to developing and promoting the speciality of psychiatric intensive care allowing the ward to keep up to date with practical guidance and support from professionals who are on the frontline in PICU, acute and low secure services.

Additionally, it is an opportunity for you, as the construction for a replacement PICU at St Ann's is underway, as part of the New Hospitals programme.

About us

At Dorset HealthCare we're on a mission to empower people to make the most of their lives through our outstanding, joined-up healthcare services. We're a dynamic, forward-looking Trust, running 12 community hospitals, specialist inpatient facilities and a wide range of integrated community and mental health services for a population of almost 800,000 people.

We do things differently here - it's one of the reasons the CQC rated us 'outstanding' in 2019. It's also why 95% of patients across our services say they have a good or very good experience of our services and 89% of staff feel they can really make a difference. Whether you're looking to work with us in one of our bustling market towns, vibrant urban locations, thriving seaside spots, or among the rolling hills of Dorset, there are lots of ways you can make a difference in our communities.

Our 7,000-strong workforce is at the heart of what we do and our success is a testament to our brilliant people. We're all about building a workplace for the future, we believe in equal opportunities and we celebrate diversity. We're an inclusive workplace, where everyone is welcome, everyone can be authentic, and we are all encouraged to be the best version of ourselves.

Working with us you'll be part of a strong team, challenge yourself, build a career, and teach us what we don't know. And you'll be working towards our vision to be better every day through excellence, compassion and expertise in all we do.