Lead Fertility Counsellor

Job description

Job responsibilities

Main Duties of the Job

The post holder will provide specialist consultation and education on infertility counselling and related psychosocial issues within the health board for health professionals and other related bodies and provide supervision of staff and liaison with other agencies including other NHS departments. This also includes providing counselling skills training for staff within the multidisciplinary team and the wider Health Board as appropriate.

To organise, promote, deliver, evaluate, develop and manage the Counselling Service within the multidisciplinary fertility services of the Wales Fertility Institute, NPTH. This will be carried out within the overall framework of the multidisciplinary team's policies and procedures.

Management, Training & Leadership

Exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the assessment, treatment and discharge of clients/patients, whose problems are managed by appropriate assessment and counselling approaches relevant to the specialist area of infertility.

Ensure patients receive a high-quality counselling service, which may include referring patients to other agencies for further specialist medical or mental health help or treatment, if required.

Develop the necessary administrative structures to facilitate the work of the counsellors and integrate any changes in the law in a timely way for the benefit of patients.

Take responsibility for the maintenance, storage and disposal of confidential counselling records and ensure that patient confidentiality is not compromised by working within the BACP Ethical Framework and the HFEA Code of Practice.

Be responsible for the welfare of the WFI B6 counsellor or trainee counsellors on placement within the department and ensure their on-going professional development needs are met .

Develop and maintain effective communication within the team and the Trust and liaise with the multidisciplinary team regarding the provision of counselling services including educating all team members about good practice in counselling.

Attend ethics committee meetings and contribute to ethical decision making.

Attend and contribute to multidisciplinary team meetings.

Demonstrate commitment to ongoing clinical professional development in accordance with the BACP Ethical Framework, the BICA guidelines and the current HFEA Code of Practice by attending further education and training events as appropriate.

Participate in mandatory training activities according to Health Board policy.

Provide teaching regarding counselling and managing emotions for team members and other members of the Trust.

Provide counselling skills training and promote, develop and support the use of counselling skills within the multidisciplinary team as appropriate to individual members professional roles and relationships.

Give lectures/presentations to professional bodies, local groups, students, and Health Board staff, when required.

Communication

Attend relevant infertility/counselling meetings, BICA study days and conferences to maintain specialist knowledge and skills relevant to infertility, so as to meet the needs of the department and client group and build up resources that may help all these groups.Provide specialist advice, information and consultation to other professionals, agencies and counsellors on the social, emotional and psychological effects of infertility, related medical conditions and assisted conception procedures.Oversee communication with other team members, with other departments within the Health Board and with outside agencies when issues arise regarding the Welfare of the Child.

Counselling

Provide a Counselling Service for people experiencing infertility difficulties at the Wales Fertility Institute, NPTH or by referral from elsewhere within the WJCC funding areas.

Be responsible for implementing a range of specialist counselling interventions for individuals and couples, drawing on different models based on an appropriate framework for the client's problems.

In line with the BACP Ethical Framework provide confidential therapeutic face-to-face counselling to individuals, couples and, on occasions, their families, whose infertility, circumstances, treatment, donation and/or outcome give rise to particular difficulties or distress.

In line with the HFEA Code of Practice provide implications counselling to individuals and couples who are considering or wishing to donate or receive gametes (eggs/sperm or embryos), and those who are considering, are undertaking, have undertaken or who are otherwise affected by assisted conception, donation or gamete storage procedures.

Provide counselling to patients throughout all stages of the infertility treatment process as well as providing an opportunity for patients to return to the unit for counselling support after treatment has been completed.

Provide psychosexual and relationship counselling, where required.

Undertake Welfare of the Child Assessments in liaison with the patients, the multidisciplinary team and external agencies (when indicated) in line with the HFEA Code of Practice.

Adhere to the Health Boards Child Protection Procedures if and when such issues arise during the course of working with patients.

Improvement, Monitoring, Policy/Service Development

Areas of discretion and typical analysis, decisions and judgements made in the course of the job, Does the post holder work to agreed procedures e.g. SOPs, policies add examples to illustrate analysis, decisions and judgements made.

Consider the job in a time frame i.e. things done on a daily, weekly, monthly, annual or longer basis.

Implement systems to evaluate the efficacy of the counselling service.

Digital and Information

Prepare annual audit report of the counselling service for HFEA Inspection according to BICA guidelines.Produce leaflets and information for the benefit of the patients/clients and to promote the Counselling Service.Research Development. Evaluation & Audit

Conduct ongoing review of current research, technologies, legislation, national and local policies and other activity relevant to the specific patient/client group.

Participate in the WFIs research programme as appropriate and work towards initiating research in the area of infertility counselling as the regional centre becomes established.

Represent the counselling service and provide evidence of compliance with HFEA Code of Practice as part of the HFEA Inspection Process of the Centre.

Demonstrate awareness of research and resources available.

Participate in clinical audit within the multidisciplinary team.

Professional

Make own independent supervision arrangements to receive regular professional and clinical case supervision from an appropriately qualified supervisor as required by the HFEA, the BACP and the BICA.

Maintain membership of a relevant professional body with a complaints/disciplinary procedure (e.g. BACP) and abide by their professional code of conduct and ethics.

Maintain membership of the BICA.

Remain up to date with relevant national legislation, e.g. welfare of the child, donor anonymity, guidelines, and local policy standards.

Participate in annual performance reviews to identify personal training and development needs and work to achieve set objectives.

Contribute directly and indirectly to a holistic framework of understanding and care for the benefit of all patients of the Wales Fertility Institute, NPTH, across all settings and agencies serving the patient group.You will be able to find a full Job description and Person Specification attached within the supporting documents or please click Apply now to view in Trac.

The ability to speak Welsh is desirable for this post; Welsh and/or English speakers are equally welcome to apply.

Person Specification

Essential Qualifications & Knowledge

Essential

• Recognised post graduate professional qualification to diploma level or equivalent to Master's level. For example, UKCP or BACP recognised course or equivalent (i.e. 450 hours skills and theory, 120 hours of supervised practice, 20 hours of personal therapy) or the BICA Infertility Counselling Award.
• Knowledge of specialist therapeutic counselling procedures and techniques acquired through professional diploma, short courses and infertility study days held regularly by the British Infertility Counsellors Association (BICA)
• Post qualification training in relevant therapies (e.g. working with couples, psychosexual counselling).
• Knowledge of the emotional implications of infertility and the emotional, legal and ethical implications of fertility treatments
• A sound understanding and knowledge of the issues associated with infertility including the impact on relationships, family life, social life and intimacy.

Desirable

• Additional training in health related field (e.g. nursing, occupational therapy and psychology) to degree or masters level

Experience

Essential

• In depth experience (a minimum of 3 years or 450 hours supervised counselling practice) of counselling using a range of theoretical approaches
• Experience of counselling related to reproductive health and fertility, bereavement and loss, couples/psychosexual relationships and donor conception
• Experience of counselling individuals and couples
• Experience of addressing highly emotive and distressing problems
• Experience of setting up, developing and managing a counselling service
• Experience of communicating complex information (as required in implications counselling

Desirable

• Experience of training and teaching involving creating and delivering specialist training courses and materials
• Experience of teaching listening, communication and counselling skills - including specifically to other fertility clinic staff and health professionals

Aptitude and abilities

Essential

• Ability to work in a highly emotionally demanding role/work with individuals/couples in great distress and to engage directly with their distress
• Intermediate IT skills e.g. in Microsoft office and power point to maintain highest standards of clinical record keeping, report writing and professional self-governance in accordance with professional codes of practice and Trust policies and procedures
• Ability to utilise theory, evidence-based literature and research to support evidence-based practice in individual work.
• Ability to contribute to best practice in counselling by continuing to develop skills of a reflective practitioner, regular professional supervision and appraisal and maintaining an active engagement with current developments in the fields of counselling - especially fertility counselling.
• Ability to clinically supervise qualified counsellors and trainee counsellors on placement.

Desirable

• An interest in the field of infertility generally and a commitment to engaging in wider debate on the subject by involvement with national and international infertility organisations e.g. The British Infertility Counselling Association, The British Fertility Society and the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology.
• This is a highly emotionally demanding post where the postholder will be expected to work on their own with individuals and couples in great distress. The post requires sustained and intense pro-active mental attention and concentration for long periods when seeing patients.
• Ability to challenge others when appropriate for the benefit of patients

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).

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details

Employer name

Swansea Bay University Health Board

Address

Neath Port Talbot Hospital/Remote

Baglan Way

Port Talbot

SA12 7BX

Employer's website

https://sbuhb.nhs.wales/ (Opens in a new tab)