We are looking for someone to join our diverse, passionate and creative team of psychological and psychotherapeutic practitioners working in cancer and palliative care. This role presents an exciting opportunity to deliver a systemically informed therapy service to children and young people who are impacted by a diagnosis of advance and palliative cancer within adults in their family.

The role nurtures leadership, consultation, teaching and service development skills alongside delivering groups, 1-1 and family interventions.Your learning, wellbeing and development is a priority for us and we will support your needs. There is external supervision offered by a Consultant Family Therapist, alongside peer supervision, and extended support through a well-organised professional support network from other psychological therapists working for the Trust.

Main duties of the job

• Conduct initial consultations with parents or guardians, whether individually, as a couple, or including other significant adults based on the family's unique circumstances.
• Collaborate with parents and guardians to determine the best approach for involving children in therapy, if appropriate.
• Work closely with key systems in the child's life, such as schools and children's services, to ensure comprehensive support.
• Continue providing support following the death of a parent or guardian, working with surviving family members to establish the way forward.
• Offer one-time consultations for parents undergoing curative cancer treatments aimed at complete remission.
• Focus on delivering a parent group and exploring the development of bereavement groups.
• Recognizing the pervasive impact of oppression and discrimination on health and well-being, you will acknowledge and address the dynamics of power within therapeutic relationships. This requires a deep understanding of the diverse cultural, social, and individual factors shaping the experiences of patients and their families.
• Employing reflective practice skills is essential to continually examine your own biases and assumptions, integrating this awareness into your clinical formulation and collaborative interventions.

About us

Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust comprises five of the UK's best known hospitals - Guy's, St Thomas', Evelina London Children's Hospital, Royal Brompton and Harefield - as well as community services in Lambeth and Southwark, all with a long history of high quality care, clinical excellence, research and innovation.

We are among the UK's busiest, most successful foundation trusts. We provide specialist care for patients including heart and lung, cancer and renal services as well as a full range of local hospital and community services for people in Lambeth and Southwark.

We have a long tradition of clinical and scientific achievement and - as part of King's Health Partners - we are one of England's eight academic health sciences centres, bringing together world-class clinical services, teaching and research.

Dimbleby Cancer Care has been providing a service to people with cancer, their friends and families for over 20 years at Guy's and St Thomas's.The service includes, Clinical Nurse information, Benefits advice, Complementary Therapy and Psychological therapy. Support is provided for both outpatients and inpatients, and to those bereaved, and who have received support from our palliative care teams at Guy's and St Thomas.'As well as direct clinical work we also provide staff training, supervision and support.

Job description

Job responsibilities

The post holder will be located at Guys Cancer, providing systemically informed psychological therapy to parents/guardians with advanced cancer and their children (0-18). Key responsibilities include delivering therapies based on identified needs, delivering workshops for parents and offering staff training, evaluating services, and publishing findings. The role involves supervising staff, and working closely with the POST lead to ensure high-quality psychology services at Guys Cancer Centre.

Key Responsibilities:

• Conduct specialist psychological assessments and treatments for patients and their families.
• Provide flexible clinic consultations and advice on psychological care to patients, family members, and professionals.
• Deliver and evaluate a systemically informed therapy service for families affected by advanced cancer.
• Formulate and implement psychological management plans, considering equity, diversity and inclusion, access to resources, and evidence-based practices.
• Implement a range of psychological interventions and make decisions about therapy options.
• Provide specialist psychological advice and consultation to other professionals.
• Conduct risk assessments and manage psychological aspects of risk.
• Act as care coordinator when appropriate, planning and reviewing care plans.
• Communicate assessment, formulation, and care plans effectively.
• Develop and deliver workshops for parents and children across the cancer pathway.
• Explore digital and remote therapy platforms.
• Additionally, the role supports Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) initiatives within cancer services, considering their impact on cancer care and outcomes.
• Pursue continuous professional development in systemic approaches.

Teaching, Training, and Supervision:

• Receive regular clinical supervision and gain specialist skills.
• Develop and provide postgraduate teaching, training, and supervision.
• Supervise qualified and trainee psychologists and systemic practitioners.
• Provide consultation and training to staff across various agencies.

Management, Recruitment, Policy, and Service Development:

• Coordinate and deliver systemic services for families.
• Evaluate and monitor team operational policies and services.
• Manage practitioner workloads and participate in recruitment if required by the service.

Research and Service Evaluation:

• Initiate and supervise complex service evaluations and audits.
• Use evidence-based literature and research to support practice.
• Manage projects to develop service provision and ensure comprehensive service evaluation.
• Disseminate research findings through publications and presentations.

General:

• Maintain high professional standards through CPD , reflective practice and training.
• Develop skills in clinical supervision, selection, recruitment, and service development.
• Contribute to best practices in psychology through reflexive practice and engagement with current developments.
• Maintain clinical record-keeping standards and stay updated on relevant legislation and policies.
• Supporting the wider team to build on Equity, Diversity and Inclusion initiatives

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Doctoral level training in clinical psychology (or its equivalent) Registered with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) as a Practitioner Psychologist UKCP registered psychotherapist or equivalent

Desirable

• Specialist training in cancer and/or palliative care.
• Specialist training in systemic family therapy.

Experience

Essential

• Substantial experience of working with children, adults and families at a highly specialist level and of working with clients with a range of complex psychological needs. Experience of highly specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients across the full range of care settings, including outpatient, community, primary care and inpatient settings
• Experience, skills and knowledge related to supporting parents and families to meet their child's emotional needs in extremely difficult circumstances. For example, maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly distressing circumstances such as when a parent is dying.
• Experience of exercising full clinical responsibility for client's psychological care and treatment, working within an interdisciplinary care plan.
• Experience of managing very stressful clinical situations, including the threat of verbal or physical abuse.
• Experience of providing teaching, training, consultation and/or supervision to other professionals within a physical or mental health context
• Experience of managing a complex and busy caseload of adults and children and of responding to urgent requests for support/help from colleagues.
• Experience of representing psychological therapy within an MDT, showing respect for different approaches and a desire to work to collaboratively and enhance team cohesion and support

Desirable

• Experience of working in cancer and palliative care/or physical health care setting

Knowledge and Skills

Essential

• Highly specialist knowledge of the family therapy literature, child development theory and psychological approaches to psychological problems associated with physical health conditions and/or mental health difficulties
• Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
• Well 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.
• Skills in providing consultation to other professional and nonprofessional groups.

Desirable

• Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in relation to those who show chronic and complex interpersonal ways of relating that may make it difficult for them to engage with medical teams/receive medical treatment/care.
• Skills in the use of methods of communicating clinical material for efficient working in a busy general hospital setting.
• High level knowledge of the theory and practice of at least two specialised psychological therapies.
• Knowledge of policy and guidelines within oncology and palliative care that highlight and inform psychological ways of working with both individuals living with cancer/palliative condition and the wider system supporting them (professionals and significant others).

Other

Essential

• Ability to teach and train others, using a variety of complex multi-media materials suitable for presentations within public, professional and academic settings.
• 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.
• Willingness to talk about death and dying using psychologically informed approaches both clinically, in supervision/training of others

Desirable

• Experience of working with people from culturally and ethnically rich and diverse communities.
• Experience in working with patients with appearance concerns as part of their clinical presentation

Employer details

Employer name

Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Guys Cancer Centre

Great Maze Pond, London

London

SE1 9RT

Any attachments will be accessible after you click to apply.

196-LIS8694