Job summary
Due to the current post holders career progression, we have a vacancy for a Band 4 Assistant Psychologist to join our multidisciplinary community mental health service for older people (CMHSOP). The services offer specialist assessment and support to people who present with complex mental health needs and an associated degree of risk, at secondary care level, as well as those encountering challenges associated with (suspected) dementia.
The post provides opportunities to gain experience and skills working with multifaceted systems, helping to provide psychologically informed interventions to clients, including group work, and contributing to dementia assessment processes.
Previous experience of working with people with significant mental health difficulties, associated distress and/or other disabilities would be advantageous, alongside experience of direct observations, semi-structured interviews (with clients and their significant others) and psychometric testing. High-level communication skills (written and verbal) are required.
This post is a full-time, permanent position.
Main duties of the job
To support and enhance the professional psychological care of clients within Thanet Community Mental Health Service for Older People, providing psychological assessment (including psychometric testing as part of dementia diagnostic processes) and interventions under the supervision of HCPC registered practitioner psychologists. To assist in clinically related administration, for example: waiting list management, research and project work.
About us
Come and work with us in the Garden of England where we combine exceptional professional development opportunities with a tremendous quality of life.
We are Kent and Medway NHS Partnership Trust (KMPT), providing mental health, learning disability and specialist services, serving 1.8 million people across the county.
The Trust (rated Good overall by the CQC and Outstanding for care) has 3,283 staff working in 66 buildings across 33 locations, covering an area of 1,450 square miles.
You will be joining friendly, passionate colleagues, rich in their diversity, who are committed to providing excellent care to our service users and their loved ones.
The nature of our work attracts kindness and compassion as standard and everyone from our cleaners and porters to the chief executive and chairman are recognised as playing a vital role in providing an exemplary service.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please see the attached job description and person specification for full details of the post and the main responsibilities it entails.
The post holder must hold a full, valid, UK driving licence and have access to a car/vehicle to use for business purposes (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010).
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please see the attached job description and person specification for full details of the post and the main responsibilities it entails.
The post holder must hold a full, valid, UK driving licence and have access to a car/vehicle to use for business purposes (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010).
Person Specification
Training, Qualifications and Registration
Essential
- An upper second-class honours degree or higher in psychology.
- Entitlement to graduate membership of the British Psychological Society
Desirable
- Further postgraduate training in relevant areas of professional Psychology
Experience
Essential
- Worked with people with mental health problems and/or other disabilities
- Experience of research, audit/service evaluation & project work
Desirable
- Experience of working with psychosis & substance misuse
- Experience of working with people with cognitive impairment
- Experience of working with family and professional carers
- Experience of undertaking psychometric assessments
Knowledge and skills
Essential
- Awareness of psychological issues of later life, the dementias and their impact on individuals and their families.
- Ability to comprehend and communicate verbally and in writing highly complex and sensitive information in a manner appropriate to a range of settings and audiences, including complex highly emotive situations and those with significantly impaired communication capacities.
- Ability to analyse and manage complex multi-factorial clinical information from a range of sources integrating it into a formulation utilising a variety of psychological perspectives.
- Ability to organise own workload effectively, prioritising a complex range of tasks and responsibilities to meet agreed deadlines.
- Adequate keyboard skills and sound understanding of I.T. packages.
- Ability to drive.
- Ability to administer accurately and speedily, complex psychometric text materials.
Desirable
- Knowledge of the dementias and ways of providing psychological assessment and support.
- Knowledge and skill in administering screening measures for dementia and/or functional mental health problems
Person Specification
Training, Qualifications and Registration
Essential
- An upper second-class honours degree or higher in psychology.
- Entitlement to graduate membership of the British Psychological Society
Desirable
- Further postgraduate training in relevant areas of professional Psychology
Experience
Essential
- Worked with people with mental health problems and/or other disabilities
- Experience of research, audit/service evaluation & project work
Desirable
- Experience of working with psychosis & substance misuse
- Experience of working with people with cognitive impairment
- Experience of working with family and professional carers
- Experience of undertaking psychometric assessments
Knowledge and skills
Essential
- Awareness of psychological issues of later life, the dementias and their impact on individuals and their families.
- Ability to comprehend and communicate verbally and in writing highly complex and sensitive information in a manner appropriate to a range of settings and audiences, including complex highly emotive situations and those with significantly impaired communication capacities.
- Ability to analyse and manage complex multi-factorial clinical information from a range of sources integrating it into a formulation utilising a variety of psychological perspectives.
- Ability to organise own workload effectively, prioritising a complex range of tasks and responsibilities to meet agreed deadlines.
- Adequate keyboard skills and sound understanding of I.T. packages.
- Ability to drive.
- Ability to administer accurately and speedily, complex psychometric text materials.
Desirable
- Knowledge of the dementias and ways of providing psychological assessment and support.
- Knowledge and skill in administering screening measures for dementia and/or functional mental health problems
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.
