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. in our Specialist Older Adult Mental Health Service (SOAMHS) for people over 70 to join us for a year covering the maternity leave of the current post holder. This post is for 2.5 days a week. You will work directly with people with mental health needs with a variety of presentations either individually or in groups.
The London Borough of Hounslow is culturally highly diverse and there is a real commitment to meet the needs of the communities we serve. You will therefore be involved in ensuring psychology provision is appropriate and accessible for this diverse community and outreach activities are encouraged.
Main duties of the job
The service supports people with a wide range of difficulties and the whole service seeks to work within a Trauma Informed model. Although the psychology team works with psychological therapies with a proven evidence base, we also understand that to truly meet client needs, flexibility of approach is essential. Our service users come from a wide variety of cultures and experiences, so there is a need to adapt any therapy to the needs of the client and creativity is therefore valued. There is also an emphasis on working with staff, through supervision, consultation, training and joint working to increase psychological thinking within the team and to maximize the potential for improving the psychological well-being of all patients and carers. We are also seeking to expand the involvement of service users and carers/family and friends in the development of our service and there is a focus on improving access for people from underrepresented groups (eg LGBTQ+, BAME).
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 4,500 staff, of whom 56% are BME. Our turnover for 2023-24 is £426m.
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 or counselling psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996 ) 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.
Knowledge
Essential criteria
10. Specialist knowledge, both theoretical and practical, of psychology applied to clinical practice.
11. Specialist theoretical and practical knowledge of the assessment and treatment of a range of mental health conditions.
12. 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.
13. 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.
14. 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.
15. Able to use database, word processing and test administration/scoring software.
16. Evidence of continuing professional development
Desirable criteria
17. Specialist theoretical and practical knowledge of assessment and intervention with families
18. Able to speak other languages present in local communities such as Hindi, Punjabi or Polish.
Personal Qualities
Essential criteria
19. Able to adapt to rapidly changing service demands
20. 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).
21. 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).