Senior mental health clinician

The CAMHS Brighton Duty and Liaison team has an exciting opportunity for a full time Band 7, Senior Mental Health Practitioner to join an experienced team with a positive and relaxed team culture.

The role of the Senior Clinician encompasses a split rota across the community and hospital settings. The Senior Clinician will be expected to respond to referrals made to the duty team from a variety of sources, to prioritise work according to the level of urgency and to work closely with young people, their carers and other professionals to facilitate a safe plan of care.

The Senior Clinician will also be expected to respond to and triage referrals from A&E and acute hospital wards, carry out comprehensive psychosocial assessments including risk assessments and safety care planning. They will be expected to lead within multi-disciplinary network meetings using high quality communication and effective relationships and work collaboratively within the Duty and Liaison Team and with our general hospital colleagues, other agencies and carers.

Strong relationship building skills are required alongside an understanding of different clinical disciplines including general hospital staff providing interventions and support to patients who are staying on acute hospital wards awaiting the allocation of appropriate mental health services.

Main duties & responsibilities

1. To develop & maintain specialist clinical skills and expertise in the assessment of young people referred to the duty and liaison team via Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.
2. You will be supporting young people who are presenting with a mental health crisis via telephone, Attend Anywhere (online) or offering face to face assessments.
3. To offer advice on management of patients with mental health issues and non organically based physical symptoms.
4. To ensure assessment, care and support of each client is appropriate to individual needs.
5. To feed back outcome of assessment to the referrer and agree care and risk plans.
6. To ensure that children and young people requiring further assessment and help are referred on appropriately.
7. To provide consultation to other professionals regarding mental health issues in relation to young people and their families.
8. To know how to access appropriate services and develop effective networks and channels of communications.
9. To adhere to relevant code of Professional Conduct.
10. To attend case conferences & meetings as relevant to the job description.
11. Work in accordance with Sussex Partnership Foundation NHS and University Hospital trusts' policies, guidelines and protocols.

Job responsibilities

Managerial

1. To ensure care plans and risk plans are valid.
2. To participate in individual professional supervision.
3. Provide supervision to Band 6 members of the team.
4. Deputise for the Clinical Service Manager.

Educational

1. To identify one's own training needs through a Personal Development Plan (PDP). Access relevant courses/conferences nationally or locally as identified on P.D.P./Appraisal.
2. To demonstrate awareness of research and its applications to practice.
3. To participate in monthly clinical supervision and weekly team supervision.

Person Specification

Sussex Partnership NHS Trust is working towards equality and has policies relating to the equality of opportunity in employment and service delivery. All staff are expected to comply with these policies.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Professional Health or Social Care Qualification (i.e. RMN, OT, NURSE, SOCIAL WORKER) with postgraduate training or experience relevant to child and adolescent mental health or an accredited formal post-qualification training in Mental Health e.g. iapt OR Professional Health Qualification (RGN, Paediatric Nurse, School Health Nurse) with formal post-graduation qualifications in child and adolescent mental health and experience of working in a mental health setting (as student or other), working with children, young people.

EXPERIENCE

• Experience of working with people with serious mental health problems.
• Experience of risk assessment of & research into suicide and self-harm.
• Experience of working with self-harm client group.
• Understanding of Clinical Governance.
• Previous experience in the community.

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.

The Aldrington Centre, 35 New Church Road.