Job overview
Are you interested in a role where every day is different and where you can use a variety of psychology skills?If so, we are looking for a caring and innovative clinical psychologist to join us for 2 days a week alongside our existing psychologist. There is a huge variety of work within this role and you may undertake neuro-psychological assessments which contribute to a diagnosis of dementia as well as provide a range of post-diagnostic therapeutic options. These include providing groups and individual therapy for people with dementia as well as for their carers. This includes supporting cares whose loved ones have behaviour that challenges the care giver. You will also work with patients who have co-existing mental health needs in addition to their cognitive difficulties. You will also provide consultation to help promote psychological thinking within the MDT and the wider system around the patient
Main duties of the job
The London borough of Ealing is culturally highly diverse and there is a real commitment to meet the needs of the communities we serve. You will be based in the Ealing CIDS West team in Greenford and be involved in ensuring psychology provision is appropriate and accessible for our community. Our teams reflect the cultural diversity of our communities, and we are developing our outreach and co-production work.
Our all-age Cognitive Impairment and Dementia Service (CIDS) works alongside our Specialist Older Adult Mental Health Service (SOAMHS) which is a community service for people over 70 which works closely with our older adult in-patient service. So although your main role would be in CIDS, there would be opportunities to work with the other teams too. You will also supervise the Assistant Psychologist for the team and would be able to participate in research projects which are a feature of CIDS.
Working for our organisation
West London NHS Trust is one of the most diverse healthcare providers in the UK, delivering a range of mental health and physical healthcare and community services. The Trust runs Broadmoor Hospital, one of three high secure hospitals in the country, with an international reputation.
Our high secure services care for patients from South of England and we provide low and medium secure services across eight London boroughs. The Trust also provides mental and physical healthcare in three London boroughs (Ealing, Hounslow and Hammersmith & Fulham). We employ over 5,000 staff, of whom 59% are BME. Our turnover for 2024-25 is over £500m.
The Trust is rated as ‘Good’ overall by the Care Quality Commission. Forensic services are rated as ‘Outstanding’.
The Trust is an established partner and contributor in the development of the evolving North West London Integrated Care System and the Integrated Care Board. The Trust leads the NW London Children and Adolescent Mental Health provider collaborative.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
The Candidate Pack provides an overview of the key tasks and responsibilities of the role, and the person specification outlines the qualifications, skills, experience and knowledge required. Please view as attached
The person specification below is not the full person specification, but outlines the criteria against which your application form will be assessed.
Person specification
Qualifications and Training
Essential criteria
1. Good honors degree (2:1 minimum) in Psychology. Eligibility for graduate membership of BPS.
2. Post-graduate doctorate in clinical psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996 or those in lateral transfer) as accredited by the BPS.
3. Registration with the Health and Care Professions Council.
Desirable criteria
4. Other related academic qualifications.
5. Evidence of additional training in psychological therapy techniques.
Experience
Essential criteria
6. Experience of working with older people
Desirable criteria
7. Experience of teaching, training and/or supervision.
8. Experience of having facilitated/co-facilitated psychological therapy groups.
9. Experience of the application of clinical psychology in different cultural contexts.
10. Experience of representing psychology within the context of multi-disciplinary care.
Personal Qualities
Essential criteria
11. Able to adapt to rapidly changing service demands
12. Able to maintain intense concentration frequently and for prolonged periods with unpredictable patients (e.g., in the assessment and treatment of patients with complex difficulties).
13. Able to function in potentially traumatic circumstances and in highly emotionally distressing circumstances on a frequent basis (e.g., in dealing with patients with serious mental illness, violence, self- harm, sexual abuse).
Knowledge
Essential criteria
14. Specialist knowledge, both theoretical and practical, of psychology applied to clinical practice.
15. Specialist theoretical and practical knowledge of the assessment and treatment of a range of mental health conditions.
16. Able to provide and receive complex, sensitive or contentious information, where there are significant barriers to acceptance which need to be overcome using the highest level of interpersonal and communication skills such as would be required when communicating in a hostile, antagonistic or highly emotive atmosphere.
17. Able to plan, prioritise and organise own service user caseload, treatment programmes (individual or group) involving other staff and other aspects of the work such as research activity.
18. Ability 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.
19. Able to use database, word processing and test administration/scoring software.
20. Evidence of continuing professional development
Desirable criteria
21. Specialist theoretical and practical knowledge of assessment and intervention with families.
22. Able to speak other languages present in local communities such as Hindi, Punjabi or Polish.