Assistant Psychologist

Job description

Job responsibilities

Key Responsibilities:

KR 1 Clinical and Client Care

To provide psychological assessments and formulation for clients in the Adult Community Mental Health Hub (CMHH) at Bentley House in Harrow under the close supervision of a practitioner psychologist.

To provide protocol based individual psychological interventions for clients experiencing severe and enduring mental health difficulties at Step 2, including manualised psychological Stabilisation.

To arrange, schedule and provide protocol-based group psychological interventions for clients experiencing severe and enduring mental health difficulties at Step 2.

To assist the psychologists in the development of individual or group clinical materials or training materials.

KR 2 Contributing to team or service clinical functioning

To contribute to the effective working of the Adult Community Mental Health Harrow Hub (CMHH) by supporting with the psychology waitlist, attending MDT where applicable, supporting co-facilitators to deliver PTMF Team Formulation and Trauma Informed Approaches (TIA) staff training.

To act in a manner that supports a psychologically informed framework for the service.

To participate in the team or services delivery of accessible and acceptable services to diverse local communities.

KR 3 Policy and service development

To follow policies and procedures in own area of work

To participate in the consultation and engagement of service users in planning and delivering services which meet the needs of local communities.

KR 4 Care or management of resources

To take care of, and use carefully, the Trusts equipment and physical resources.

To ensure that the post-holder has sufficient resources by estimating future needs and requesting supplies as needed.

To be responsible for safe-keeping of equipment and confidential clinical materials.

KR 5 Teaching and Training

To participate in demonstrating work methods to newly recruited Assistant Psychologists and to support their development of necessary skills.

To disseminate research and service evaluation findings through presentations or published articles.

KR 6 Record-keeping and Information Governance

To ensure that all information generated by own work is recorded as required by Trust policies and local procedures.

Under the supervision of the practitioner psychologist to maintain the highest standards of clinical record keeping and report writing, according to professional and Trust guidelines, including electronic data entry.

To maintain data bases and enter data, and perform analyses and produce reports.

KR 7 Research and development

To assist in the design and implementation of audit and research projects to inform the service Psychologist and others in the development of Trust psychology and other services, training provision and research activities.

To undertake data collection, analysis, the production of reports and summaries, using IT and statistical programmes.

To undertake searches of evidence-based literature and research to assist in the development in the Trust of evidence-based practice.

Under guidance to conduct surveys with service users and carers to gather views on service provision

KR 8 Maintaining professional standards and continuing professional development

To receive regular clinical and professional supervision in accordance with professional practice guidelines

To gain wider experience of professional psychology within the NHS over and above that provided within the principal service area where the post-holder is employed.

To develop skills and competencies that assist in the delivery of current duties.

To undertake personal training relevant to the post in agreement with the supervising psychologist and the manager.

General

Your base will predominantly be at Bentley House. Some travel may be required occasionally where appropriate to service users homes (in Harrow) or Northwick Park Hospital.

To be aware of risk relating to aggressive and challenging behaviour amongst the client group, and follow trust policies relating to its management

To respond appropriately and professionally to high levels of distress and to support others involved in such situations.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• A First-class or Upper-second-class Bachelor's degree with Honours in Psychology that is accredited by the British Psychological Society and confers the Graduate Basis for Chartered Membership of the British Psychological Society.

Desirable

• Further post graduate training in relevant areas of professional psychology, mental health practice and/or research design and analysis

Experience

Essential

• Sufficient post-graduate experience of psychological assessment and treatment of adult clients with severe and enduring mental health difficulties with close direct supervision.
• Post-graduate experience of conducting research projects or audits.
• Experience that supports working with, and addressing issues of, diversity within local communities. This may have been gained through work, research, volunteering and / or lived experience.

Desirable

• The Trust encourages and welcomes applications from people with lived experience of mental health challenges. We see this as valuable and recognise the positive impact this experience can have on the work we do.
• At least one year paid post-graduate work with people with mental health problems and/or other disabilities

Knowledge

Essential

• Graduate level knowledge of psychological research methodology and statistical analysis.
• Good theoretical knowledge of the problems experienced by and the needs of Adults with severe and enduring mental health needs and of methods of assessment and treatment.
• Awareness of racial and diversity issues through attendance of relevant training.

Desirable

• An understanding of the needs and difficulties of people with mental health problems or other disabilities.
• An understanding of Trauma Informed Approaches (TIA) and Power Threat Meaning Framework (PTMF).

Skills

Essential

• Skills in relevant psychological assessment and interventions that enable working as a pre-qualified practitioner with close clinical supervision.
• Well-developed verbal and written communication skills including communicating complex, information to clients, families and colleagues.
• Skills in providing supporting teaching and training provided by psychologists or others to other professional groups.
• Well-developed IT skills including entry and analysis of research data.

Desirable

• High standard of report writing.

Abilities

Essential

• Ability to work effectively within a multidisciplinary team, participating in effective team functioning and holding team roles.
• Ability to identify and follow relevant clinical governance procedures.
• Ability to maintain concentration and to remain in restricted positions for long periods during observations, assessments and psychological interventions
• Ability to manage occasional emotionally stressful situations such as working with victims of abuse or trauma, or with people who engage in severe self-harming or aggressive behaviour.
• Ability to communicate complex, sensitive or contentious information to people who may have impediments to understanding.
• Ability to manage verbal abuse and hostility directed at self.
• Ability to manage physical aggression directed at self, including use of physical interventions as prescribed by Trust policies

Desirable

• Ability to accept and use supervision appropriately and effectively.
• Ability to communicate sensitive information to patients, carers and colleagues in a way that addresses psychological resistance.

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. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

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 (Opens in a new tab).

Employer details

Employer name

Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Bentley House CMHH

15-21 Headstone Drive

Harrow

HA3 5QX

Employer's website

https://www.cnwl.nhs.uk/work (Opens in a new tab)