Job summary
ASD Specialist Practitioner
Band 7
Permanent
37.5 Hours per week
This is an exciting opportunity for a specialist practitioner of any discipline to join the ASD Team, within Developmental Paediatrics at Alder Hey Children's NHS Foundation Trust. We would welcome applications from Occupational Therapy, Specialist Teachers , Educational Psychology, Clinical Psychology, Specialist Nurses and Social Workers.
At Alder Hey we are a commissioned ASD Diagnostic Assessment service for Children & Young People aged from 2 years to 18 years from Sefton and Liverpool. We are looking for a dedicated practitioner with strong clinical skills and experience relevant to working with children and young people. The successful candidate should possesses strong interpersonal skills and personal qualities which will support them to work with children, young people and families in sensitive situations from a diverse range of backgrounds; and to communicate effectively with a range of professionals, including the police and social care. Experience of working with children in care and those who have experiences ACES is advantageous.
The successful applicant will access clinical supervision from the ASD lead within the ASD Team, and will have opportunities for ongoing personal and professional development. The ASD service has strong links with our CAMHS services.
Main duties of the job
The post holder will be required to undertake specialist assessment and diagnostic activities for children and young people referred to the Developmental Paediatric Service with suspected ASD.
The post holder will:
- Work as a member of the Developmental Paediatric Team, providing a high quality specialist assessment and support to patients presenting for diagnostic assessment for Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in Sefton and Liverpool.
- Work autonomously within professional guidelines and support the systemic governance and development of practice within the Developmental Paediatric Team for patients and their families.
- Provide supervision to junior clinicians and assistant within the Developmental Paediatric Service as required.
- To utilise skills assessment, audit, and policy and service development as required.
About us
Alder Hey has already earned our place as one of the world's leading children's hospitals, thanks to innovation and pioneering medical work. We treat 250,000 young patients a year and have a broad range of hospital and community services, serving the local population of children, as well as being a tertiary referral centre for children from across Merseyside, Cheshire and parts of Lancashire, Shropshire and North Wales. Every individual makes a valuable contribution and Alder Hey is proud of its long history of providing pioneering and innovative healthcare to children and young people.
The post holder must adhere to Trust Policies and Procedures at all times.
The Trust is committed to carefully screening all job applicants to ensure the safeguard of children and to an environment that promotes equality and embraces diversity. The trust operates a flexible working policy.
As black and minority ethnic (BME) employees are currently under-represented in this area, we particularly welcome applications from members of our BME communities. All appointments will be made on merit.
The Trust is an equal opportunities employer and operates a no smoking policy.
Further information concerning the post is available from: Lynsey Boggan, Head of ASD service lynsey.boggan@alderhey.nhs.uk
Job description
Job responsibilities
Clinical
- To provide specialist assessments of clients referred to the Developmental Paediatrics Team for the diagnostic assessment of ASD, based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources including specialist assessments, self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews with clients, family members and others involved in the clients care.
- Where appropriate contribute to plans for the treatment and/or management of a clients mental health problems based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of the clients problems, and employing methods based upon evidence of efficacy, across the full range of care settings.
- Where appropriate be responsible for implementing a range of interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups, within and across teams employed individually and in synthesis, adjusting and refining formulations drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses.
- Where appropriate make highly skilled evaluations and decisions about diagnosis taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes that have shaped the individual, family or group.
- Where appropriate exercise full responsibility and autonomy for the diagnosis of and discharge of clients, ensuring appropriate assessment, formulation and interventions, communicating with the referral agent and others involved with the care on a regular basis.
- Where appropriate provide specialist advice, guidance and consultation to other professional contributing directly to clients formulation, diagnosis and treatment plan.
- To undertake risk assessment and risk management for relevant individual clients and to provide both general and specialist advice for other professionals on all aspects of risk assessment and management.
- Where appropriate act as care co-ordinator, where appropriate, ensuring the provision of a care package appropriate for the clients needs, arranging clients care reviews as required and communication effectively with the client, his/her family and all others involved in care.
- Where appropriate communicate in a highly skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation and diagnosis of clients under their care and to monitor and evaluate progress during the course of both uni and multi-disciplinary care.
- To provide consultation about the assessment and care of the client group to staff and agencies outside the Directorate and Trust.
Teaching, training and supervision
- In common with all practitioners to receive regular clinical supervision and professional management, according to good practice guidelines, from a senior clinician and where appropriate clinical supervision from other senior professional colleagues.
- Where appropriate provide specialist clinical placements for trainees or students ensuring that they acquire the necessary clinical and diagnostic skills to achieve their competencies.
- To provide advice, consultation and training and clinical supervision to other members of the team for their provision of a specialist interventions to help improve clients functioning.
- To continue to develop expertise in the area of professional pre and post graduate training and clinical supervision.
Management, recruitment, policy and service development
- To participate as a clinician in the development of a high quality, responsive and accessible service for patients and their families within the Developmental Paediatric Team.
- To participate in the systematic governance of and evidence based practice within the Developmental Paediatric Team.
- To be support the implementation of service developments and projects within the Developmental Paediatric Team.
- Where appropriate take responsibility for managing the workloads of trainee, students and other professional staff as required within the framework of the services policies and procedures.
- Where appropriate assess the clinical competence of trainees and provide formal feedback to the relevant university training body.
Research and service evaluation
- Where appropriate be involved in the planning and implementing systems for the evaluation, monitoring and development of the locality service, through the deployment of professional skills in research, service evaluation and audit and ensuring incorporation of psychological frameworks for understanding and provision of high quality care.
- To utilise theory, evidence-based literature and research to support evidence based practice in individual work, work with other team members within the Developmental service Developmental Paediatric Team.
- Where appropriate undertake appropriate research and provide research advice to other staff undertaking research within the Developmental Paediatric Team.
- Where appropriate use appropriate means of analysis for research data (e.g. use of computer packages such as Microsoft Excel, Access and SPSS) for departmental or service projects supporting other team members.
- Where appropriate communicate research/audit findings in a professional manner through use of IT packages (e.g. Microsoft Word and PowerPoint) for the preparation of documentation.
- Where appropriate support the implementation of project management, including complex audit and service evaluation, with colleagues within and across the service to help develop and improve services to clients and their families.
Information Technology
- To maintain comprehensive clinical notes and consultation records as defined in the operational policy, utilizing both case files and the services electronic patient record system.
- To utilize electronic patient record data for implementation of audit and service delivery purposes to inform service developments.
Professional
- To contribute to the development and maintenance of the highest professional standards of practice, through active participation in internal and external CPD training and development programme, in consultation with professional and operational managers and within the KSF, BPS, and HPCP CPD best practice guidance and requirements.
- To prepare for and attend an Annual Review/Personal Development Plan. Chaired by the professional line manager, and involving any relevant senior clinicians. To provide evidence of CPD undertaken e.g. in the form of a CPD log book. To collaboratively set aims and objectives and systematically monitor progress.
- To maintain the highest standards of record keeping including electronic data entry and recording, report writing and the responsible exercise of professional governance in accordance with professional codes of practice and Trust policies and procedures.
- To maintain up to date knowledge of legislation, national and local policies and issues in relation to both children and families and mental health
- To attend and contribute to service meetings and development and articulation of best practice in ASD across the service, by continuing to develop the skills of a reflexive and reflective practitioner, taking part in regular professional supervision and appraisal and maintaining an active engagement with current developments in the field of ASD and related disciplines.
General
- To work with managers and colleagues to continually improve the quality of services within the overall Trust governance frameworks.
- To contribute to the delivery of national and local priorities as set out in the Trusts corporate objectives.
- To perform other duties of a similar kind appropriate to the grade this may be required from time to time by senior managers.
- To comply with all relevant Trust policies and procedures and guidelines including those relating to equal opportunities, Health & Safety and Confidentiality of Information.
- This job description provides an outline of the main responsibilities of the role, it is not intended to be an exhaustive list of duties and will be reviewed regularly in the light of changing service requirements and any such changes will be discussed with the post holder.
- All individuals will have some risk management responsibilities with which they are required to comply, for details of your responsibilities please refer to the current Risk Management Strategy, which is available on the Intranet in the local strategies folder.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Clinical
- To provide specialist assessments of clients referred to the Developmental Paediatrics Team for the diagnostic assessment of ASD, based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources including specialist assessments, self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews with clients, family members and others involved in the clients care.
- Where appropriate contribute to plans for the treatment and/or management of a clients mental health problems based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of the clients problems, and employing methods based upon evidence of efficacy, across the full range of care settings.
- Where appropriate be responsible for implementing a range of interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups, within and across teams employed individually and in synthesis, adjusting and refining formulations drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses.
- Where appropriate make highly skilled evaluations and decisions about diagnosis taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes that have shaped the individual, family or group.
- Where appropriate exercise full responsibility and autonomy for the diagnosis of and discharge of clients, ensuring appropriate assessment, formulation and interventions, communicating with the referral agent and others involved with the care on a regular basis.
- Where appropriate provide specialist advice, guidance and consultation to other professional contributing directly to clients formulation, diagnosis and treatment plan.
- To undertake risk assessment and risk management for relevant individual clients and to provide both general and specialist advice for other professionals on all aspects of risk assessment and management.
- Where appropriate act as care co-ordinator, where appropriate, ensuring the provision of a care package appropriate for the clients needs, arranging clients care reviews as required and communication effectively with the client, his/her family and all others involved in care.
- Where appropriate communicate in a highly skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation and diagnosis of clients under their care and to monitor and evaluate progress during the course of both uni and multi-disciplinary care.
- To provide consultation about the assessment and care of the client group to staff and agencies outside the Directorate and Trust.
Teaching, training and supervision
- In common with all practitioners to receive regular clinical supervision and professional management, according to good practice guidelines, from a senior clinician and where appropriate clinical supervision from other senior professional colleagues.
- Where appropriate provide specialist clinical placements for trainees or students ensuring that they acquire the necessary clinical and diagnostic skills to achieve their competencies.
- To provide advice, consultation and training and clinical supervision to other members of the team for their provision of a specialist interventions to help improve clients functioning.
- To continue to develop expertise in the area of professional pre and post graduate training and clinical supervision.
Management, recruitment, policy and service development
- To participate as a clinician in the development of a high quality, responsive and accessible service for patients and their families within the Developmental Paediatric Team.
- To participate in the systematic governance of and evidence based practice within the Developmental Paediatric Team.
- To be support the implementation of service developments and projects within the Developmental Paediatric Team.
- Where appropriate take responsibility for managing the workloads of trainee, students and other professional staff as required within the framework of the services policies and procedures.
- Where appropriate assess the clinical competence of trainees and provide formal feedback to the relevant university training body.
Research and service evaluation
- Where appropriate be involved in the planning and implementing systems for the evaluation, monitoring and development of the locality service, through the deployment of professional skills in research, service evaluation and audit and ensuring incorporation of psychological frameworks for understanding and provision of high quality care.
- To utilise theory, evidence-based literature and research to support evidence based practice in individual work, work with other team members within the Developmental service Developmental Paediatric Team.
- Where appropriate undertake appropriate research and provide research advice to other staff undertaking research within the Developmental Paediatric Team.
- Where appropriate use appropriate means of analysis for research data (e.g. use of computer packages such as Microsoft Excel, Access and SPSS) for departmental or service projects supporting other team members.
- Where appropriate communicate research/audit findings in a professional manner through use of IT packages (e.g. Microsoft Word and PowerPoint) for the preparation of documentation.
- Where appropriate support the implementation of project management, including complex audit and service evaluation, with colleagues within and across the service to help develop and improve services to clients and their families.
Information Technology
- To maintain comprehensive clinical notes and consultation records as defined in the operational policy, utilizing both case files and the services electronic patient record system.
- To utilize electronic patient record data for implementation of audit and service delivery purposes to inform service developments.
Professional
- To contribute to the development and maintenance of the highest professional standards of practice, through active participation in internal and external CPD training and development programme, in consultation with professional and operational managers and within the KSF, BPS, and HPCP CPD best practice guidance and requirements.
- To prepare for and attend an Annual Review/Personal Development Plan. Chaired by the professional line manager, and involving any relevant senior clinicians. To provide evidence of CPD undertaken e.g. in the form of a CPD log book. To collaboratively set aims and objectives and systematically monitor progress.
- To maintain the highest standards of record keeping including electronic data entry and recording, report writing and the responsible exercise of professional governance in accordance with professional codes of practice and Trust policies and procedures.
- To maintain up to date knowledge of legislation, national and local policies and issues in relation to both children and families and mental health
- To attend and contribute to service meetings and development and articulation of best practice in ASD across the service, by continuing to develop the skills of a reflexive and reflective practitioner, taking part in regular professional supervision and appraisal and maintaining an active engagement with current developments in the field of ASD and related disciplines.
General
- To work with managers and colleagues to continually improve the quality of services within the overall Trust governance frameworks.
- To contribute to the delivery of national and local priorities as set out in the Trusts corporate objectives.
- To perform other duties of a similar kind appropriate to the grade this may be required from time to time by senior managers.
- To comply with all relevant Trust policies and procedures and guidelines including those relating to equal opportunities, Health & Safety and Confidentiality of Information.
- This job description provides an outline of the main responsibilities of the role, it is not intended to be an exhaustive list of duties and will be reviewed regularly in the light of changing service requirements and any such changes will be discussed with the post holder.
- All individuals will have some risk management responsibilities with which they are required to comply, for details of your responsibilities please refer to the current Risk Management Strategy, which is available on the Intranet in the local strategies folder.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Professional qualification: Any discipline- NMC registered nurse, Clinical Psychologist, Occupational Therapist, Social Worker, Specialist Teacher, Educational Psychologist
- Current registration with a professional body
Desirable
- Further training in Autism Spectrum Disorder: ADOS, 3DI, ADi, DISCO
- Training and experience in working on a ASD diagnostic service
- Training and experience in supervision of qualified staff
Experience (both work and 'life' related)
Essential
- Training/experience of providing evidence based interventions.
- Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, across the whole life course and presenting with the full range of clinical severity across the full range of care settings including outpatient, community, primary care, inpatient and residential care settings including maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and stressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse.
- Experience of conducting risk assessments within complex clinical settings.
- Experience of exercising full clinical responsibility for clients' care and treatment, both as a professionally qualified care co-ordinator and also within the context of a multi-disciplinary care plan.
- Experience of teaching, training and/or professional and clinical supervision.
- Experience of the application of practice in different cultural contexts.
Desirable
- Assessed experience of working as a clinician within CAMHS or Paediatrics.
- Experience of working with young people with ASD and ACE's
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Professional qualification: Any discipline- NMC registered nurse, Clinical Psychologist, Occupational Therapist, Social Worker, Specialist Teacher, Educational Psychologist
- Current registration with a professional body
Desirable
- Further training in Autism Spectrum Disorder: ADOS, 3DI, ADi, DISCO
- Training and experience in working on a ASD diagnostic service
- Training and experience in supervision of qualified staff
Experience (both work and 'life' related)
Essential
- Training/experience of providing evidence based interventions.
- Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups, across the whole life course and presenting with the full range of clinical severity across the full range of care settings including outpatient, community, primary care, inpatient and residential care settings including maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and stressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse.
- Experience of conducting risk assessments within complex clinical settings.
- Experience of exercising full clinical responsibility for clients' care and treatment, both as a professionally qualified care co-ordinator and also within the context of a multi-disciplinary care plan.
- Experience of teaching, training and/or professional and clinical supervision.
- Experience of the application of practice in different cultural contexts.
Desirable
- Assessed experience of working as a clinician within CAMHS or Paediatrics.
- Experience of working with young people with ASD and ACE's
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).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
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).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
