Job summary
Are you passionate about working with Children and Young People with chronic health conditions? Would you thrive in an enthusiastic and proactive multi-disciplinary team?
If so, then we have the perfect opportunity for you. An exciting position has arisen for a Band 8a Clinical Psychologist within the Children and Young People's Sickle Cell Service. The post holder will provide a clinical psychology service for Children and Young People with Sickle Cell Disease across Hertfordshire working alongside a small but supportive multi-disciplinary team of Paediatric Consultants and Sickle Cell Specialist Nurses.
Main duties of the job
To provide a specialist, community based clinical psychology service to Children and Young People living with Sickle Cell Disease across Hertfordshire, this includes the provision of clinics. The post holder will participate as a member of the multi-disciplinary team consisting of Consultant Paediatricians, Clinical Nurse Specialists and Administration staff and lead on the psychological care of children with Sickle Cell Disease through the provision of highly specialist, psychological assessment and treatment including psychometric and cognitive assessments. To exercise responsibility for the systematic governance for their psychological practice within the service and work autonomously within professional guidelines and within the overall framework of the Trust's policies and procedures. To engage self in the clinical network and care pathway for the client group and actively contribute to the further development of such networks and pathways. The post holder will receive supervision from a Clinical Psychologist with specialist knowledge of working in Paediatrics.
About us
A big thank you for considering joining us at Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust. You'll find it a great place to work with many benefits offered to you as a member of our staff
We put our patients, their families and carers at the centre of our vision - Outstanding Services and Healthier Communities Our staff are proud to be Innovative, Caring and Agile in their work to help achieve the Trust visionWe welcome diversity in our workforce and are interested in applicants from all backgrounds and ages
We don't want you to miss out so we'd like you to know that if we have a high level of interest in this role, the vacancy may close prior to the advertised closing date, so please make your application as soon as possible - Apply now
You've made a great decision to apply to join to HCT - we're looking forward to taking the next steps of the journey with you
Job description
Job responsibilities
- To provide specialist psychological assessments to children and young people based upon appropriate use, interpretation, and integration of complex data from a variety of information sources including clinical interview with the child/young person and family members and others involved in the clients care, psychological and neuropsychological tests, self-report measures, rating scales and direct and in-direct structured observations as appropriate.
- To formulate and implement psychological treatment plans and management plans based upon evidence of efficacy across the full range of care settings.
- To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options considering both theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and development processes that have shaped the individual, family, or family group.
- To provide reports and communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner regarding the assessment, formulation, and intervention plans of clients.
- To consider issues of parental responsibility when undertaking assessment/consultation/intervention with children and young people.
- To undertake risk assessment and risk management for relevant individual child and adolescent clients and to provide advice to other professionals on psychological aspects of risk assessment and risk management.
- To exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the treatment and discharge of clients whose problems are managed by psychologically based standard care plans, ensuring appropriate assessment, formulation, and interventions, communicating with referrers and others involved with the care on a regular basis.
- To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation, and treatment plans of clients under their care and to monitor progress.
- To liaise effectively with other health and social care staff, from a wide range of agencies, in the care provided to individuals and families.
- To provide specialist psychological advice, guidance and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to the clients formulation and treatment plan.
- The post holder will be required to establish communication networks with a wide and cross organisational group of professionals, associated agencies and client group/family.
- To represent clinical psychology and attend relevant meetings and professional activities.
- To assess the training and development needs of the MDT in psychological approaches and deliver this training. To provide advice, consultation and training to staff working with the client group across a range of agencies and settings, where appropriate.
- To provide clinical placements for trainee clinical psychologist, ensuring that trainees acquire the necessary skills, competencies, and experience to contribute effectively to good psychology health care and to contribute to the assessment and evaluation of such competencies.
- To contribute to the development and maintenance of the highest professional standards of practice, through active participation in internal and external continuing professional development training and development programmes.
- To contribute directly and indirectly to a psychological based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all clients of the service, across all settings and agencies serving the client group.
- To contribute to the development and articulation of best practice in psychology across the service, by continuing to develop the skills of a reflexive and reflective scientist practitioner.
- To contribute to the development, evaluation and monitoring of the teams operational policies and services, through the development of professional skills in research, service evaluation and audit.
- To utilise research skills to propose and undertake clinical audit, service development and research, for the psychological care of the client groups.
- To propose and implement policies/guidelines within the service in conjunction with the multi-disciplinary team.
- Take part in regular professional and managerial supervision and appraisal and maintain an active engagement with current developments in the field of clinical psychology and related disciplines.
- To maintain the highest standards of clinical record keeping including electronic data entry and recording, report writing and the responsible exercise of professional self-governance in accordance with professional codes of practice of the British Psychological Society, the HCPC and Trust policies and procedures.
- To maintain up to date knowledge of legislation, national and local policies, and issues in relation to both the specific client group and mental health.
- To be aware of NHS resources and manage these appropriately.
- To advise both service and professional management on those aspects of the service where psychology and/or organisational matters need addressing.
- Maintain confidentiality and manage information sensitively.
- Understand and act on the need to Safeguard Vulnerable Children at all times communicating information correctly and appropriately to achieve this.
- Flexible to meet the needs of the service.
Word versions of documents are available if needed to allow for any adaptations to be made i.e. font, colour, background, convert to Read Aloud.
Job description
Job responsibilities
- To provide specialist psychological assessments to children and young people based upon appropriate use, interpretation, and integration of complex data from a variety of information sources including clinical interview with the child/young person and family members and others involved in the clients care, psychological and neuropsychological tests, self-report measures, rating scales and direct and in-direct structured observations as appropriate.
- To formulate and implement psychological treatment plans and management plans based upon evidence of efficacy across the full range of care settings.
- To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options considering both theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and development processes that have shaped the individual, family, or family group.
- To provide reports and communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner regarding the assessment, formulation, and intervention plans of clients.
- To consider issues of parental responsibility when undertaking assessment/consultation/intervention with children and young people.
- To undertake risk assessment and risk management for relevant individual child and adolescent clients and to provide advice to other professionals on psychological aspects of risk assessment and risk management.
- To exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the treatment and discharge of clients whose problems are managed by psychologically based standard care plans, ensuring appropriate assessment, formulation, and interventions, communicating with referrers and others involved with the care on a regular basis.
- To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation, and treatment plans of clients under their care and to monitor progress.
- To liaise effectively with other health and social care staff, from a wide range of agencies, in the care provided to individuals and families.
- To provide specialist psychological advice, guidance and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to the clients formulation and treatment plan.
- The post holder will be required to establish communication networks with a wide and cross organisational group of professionals, associated agencies and client group/family.
- To represent clinical psychology and attend relevant meetings and professional activities.
- To assess the training and development needs of the MDT in psychological approaches and deliver this training. To provide advice, consultation and training to staff working with the client group across a range of agencies and settings, where appropriate.
- To provide clinical placements for trainee clinical psychologist, ensuring that trainees acquire the necessary skills, competencies, and experience to contribute effectively to good psychology health care and to contribute to the assessment and evaluation of such competencies.
- To contribute to the development and maintenance of the highest professional standards of practice, through active participation in internal and external continuing professional development training and development programmes.
- To contribute directly and indirectly to a psychological based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all clients of the service, across all settings and agencies serving the client group.
- To contribute to the development and articulation of best practice in psychology across the service, by continuing to develop the skills of a reflexive and reflective scientist practitioner.
- To contribute to the development, evaluation and monitoring of the teams operational policies and services, through the development of professional skills in research, service evaluation and audit.
- To utilise research skills to propose and undertake clinical audit, service development and research, for the psychological care of the client groups.
- To propose and implement policies/guidelines within the service in conjunction with the multi-disciplinary team.
- Take part in regular professional and managerial supervision and appraisal and maintain an active engagement with current developments in the field of clinical psychology and related disciplines.
- To maintain the highest standards of clinical record keeping including electronic data entry and recording, report writing and the responsible exercise of professional self-governance in accordance with professional codes of practice of the British Psychological Society, the HCPC and Trust policies and procedures.
- To maintain up to date knowledge of legislation, national and local policies, and issues in relation to both the specific client group and mental health.
- To be aware of NHS resources and manage these appropriately.
- To advise both service and professional management on those aspects of the service where psychology and/or organisational matters need addressing.
- Maintain confidentiality and manage information sensitively.
- Understand and act on the need to Safeguard Vulnerable Children at all times communicating information correctly and appropriately to achieve this.
- Flexible to meet the needs of the service.
Word versions of documents are available if needed to allow for any adaptations to be made i.e. font, colour, background, convert to Read Aloud.
Person Specification
Qualifications and Training
Essential
- oDoctoral level training in clinical psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) as accredited by HCPC, including evidence of continuous professional development.
- oPost-qualification training in one or more specialised areas of practice
Experience and Knowledge
Essential
- oExperience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients across the full range of care settings including outpatients, community, primary care, and inpatient settings, including a minimum six-month post-qualification experience in an area relevant to the client group.
- oExperience of using cognitive behavioural therapy with children and adolescents including group work.
- oExperience of administering cognitive assessments, including WISC-V.
- oExperience of multi-disciplinary team working joint work and inter-agency collaboration.
- oExperience of working within multi-cultural populations.
Desirable
- oPost qualification experience of working with children and adolescents with a long-term condition
- oWorking knowledge of paediatric medicine and the management of children and young people with Sickle Cell Disease.
Skills and Abilities
Essential
- oSkills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
- oWell-developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing, complex, highly technical and/or clinically sensitive information to clients, their families, carers, and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS.
- oAbility to engage with children and young people to develop a trusting therapeutic relationship in highly complex distressing circumstances at a time when illness and pain are the primary focus.
- oAbility to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.
- oAbility to think clearly and express self both verbally and in clear, concise clinical reports.
General Skills
Essential
- oStrong IT skills.
- oHold a full, valid, UK driving licence and have access to a car to use for business purposes (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010).
Person Specification
Qualifications and Training
Essential
- oDoctoral level training in clinical psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) as accredited by HCPC, including evidence of continuous professional development.
- oPost-qualification training in one or more specialised areas of practice
Experience and Knowledge
Essential
- oExperience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients across the full range of care settings including outpatients, community, primary care, and inpatient settings, including a minimum six-month post-qualification experience in an area relevant to the client group.
- oExperience of using cognitive behavioural therapy with children and adolescents including group work.
- oExperience of administering cognitive assessments, including WISC-V.
- oExperience of multi-disciplinary team working joint work and inter-agency collaboration.
- oExperience of working within multi-cultural populations.
Desirable
- oPost qualification experience of working with children and adolescents with a long-term condition
- oWorking knowledge of paediatric medicine and the management of children and young people with Sickle Cell Disease.
Skills and Abilities
Essential
- oSkills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
- oWell-developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing, complex, highly technical and/or clinically sensitive information to clients, their families, carers, and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS.
- oAbility to engage with children and young people to develop a trusting therapeutic relationship in highly complex distressing circumstances at a time when illness and pain are the primary focus.
- oAbility to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.
- oAbility to think clearly and express self both verbally and in clear, concise clinical reports.
General Skills
Essential
- oStrong IT skills.
- oHold a full, valid, UK driving licence and have access to a car to use for business purposes (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010).
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
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).
