Job summary
Tower Hamlets Centre for Mental Health provides inpatient adult mental health services to this historic borough of London which is one of the most ethnically diverse urban areas in the world. As well as comprising the grandeur of Canary Wharf, the borough also has some of the highest levels of social deprivation and inequality in the UK. The inpatient unit, based at Mile End Hospital, has been leading the way in terms of clinical leadership and quality improvement, and is one of the few mental health services in London that consistently has well under 100% bed occupancy. Tower Hamlets Centre for Mental Health now has an exciting opportunity for an Activities Coordinator for those who want to be part of our successful inpatient team on Roman Ward.
Roman Ward is a 19-bedded acute admissions ward for patients from the Isle of Dogs, Stepney & Wapping area of Tower Hamlets, as well as patient from EIS the speciality service for patients with first episode of psychosis. As Activities Coordinator your primary duty and responsibility is to lead and encourage patients to join in meaningful activities whilst maintaining their independence, choice and dignity to enable them to lead as full and active life as possible.
Main duties of the job
To engage in positive, helpful relationships with service users based on foundations of respect and openness that are negotiated within appropriate and transparent boundaries.
To be able to meet all patients, carers, relatives, members of the MDT i.e. anyone they come in contact with in a professional capacity in a warm and friendly manner at all times
To be able to channel high expressed emotion from patients and carers into appropriate channels e.g. direct them to senior member of staff on the ward or duty nurse and make them aware of the complaint processes
To possess the ability to remain calm externally whilst being able to emotionally self regulate internally
To be able to set therapeutic limits in a non-punitive and appropriately assertive way to patients, carers or relatives
To be able to communicate the care planning needs and risk assessment needs to patients and to be able to provide an emotionally safe place for patients to return to throughout their recovery
Communicate complex and sensitive information orally and in writing to and from service users, their carers, other members of the multidisciplinary team and other agencies i.e. the voluntary sector, social services and GP's
Actively contribute during handovers to meet the care needs of patients and the planning of the next shift
Actively contribute to staff meetings in an objective manner
About us
Our mission is to make a positive difference to people's lives by improving the quality of life for all we serve. Our values are: We Care, We Respect, We are Inclusive - so we are looking for people who live and breathe these qualities when supporting service users and carers, and in their relationships with colleagues in the Trust and our partner organisations
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please could you kindly refer to the job description and person specification attached to this vacancy.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please could you kindly refer to the job description and person specification attached to this vacancy.
Person Specification
Education and Training
Essential
- NVQ level 3 or equivalent. Degree level and an ability to operationalise this depth of knowledge into clinical practice
Experience
Essential
- Ability to function effectively as a team member. Experience of working with service users with mental health problems.
- Experience of working in a multi-cultural environment and knowledge of methods to develop culturally sensitive practice.
- Experience of setting therapeutic boundaries with patients who exhibit challenging and high risk behaviours, that require advanced interventions to enable effective de escalation
Knowledge and Skills
Essential
- Ability to communicate in a variety of settings with service user of varying levels of understanding Able to present factual information and refer questions to others where appropriate
- Able to deal with sensitive issues with tact and diplomacy Ability to develop effective interpersonal relationships with colleagues in the health care setting
- The impact mental health difficulties have on other areas of a service user's life. E.g. Lack of social inclusion, inability to reach life goals, inability to reach others expectations, inability to maintain relationships. Poverty financial and social. Knowledge of Recovery model.
- An understanding of the organisation of nursing care. Basic understanding of NHS issues.
Person Specification
Education and Training
Essential
- NVQ level 3 or equivalent. Degree level and an ability to operationalise this depth of knowledge into clinical practice
Experience
Essential
- Ability to function effectively as a team member. Experience of working with service users with mental health problems.
- Experience of working in a multi-cultural environment and knowledge of methods to develop culturally sensitive practice.
- Experience of setting therapeutic boundaries with patients who exhibit challenging and high risk behaviours, that require advanced interventions to enable effective de escalation
Knowledge and Skills
Essential
- Ability to communicate in a variety of settings with service user of varying levels of understanding Able to present factual information and refer questions to others where appropriate
- Able to deal with sensitive issues with tact and diplomacy Ability to develop effective interpersonal relationships with colleagues in the health care setting
- The impact mental health difficulties have on other areas of a service user's life. E.g. Lack of social inclusion, inability to reach life goals, inability to reach others expectations, inability to maintain relationships. Poverty financial and social. Knowledge of Recovery model.
- An understanding of the organisation of nursing care. Basic understanding of NHS issues.
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.
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).
Additional information
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.
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).
