Clinical, Counselling or Health Psychologist Specialist Weight Management Service Band 7 with a Preceptorship offered to 8A.

20 hrs working across Tier 3 Specialist Weight Management and Tier 4 Bariatric Surgery multidisciplinary teams.

We are committed to compassionate and respectful care for people with bigger bodies and our service is psychologically informed, forward thinking and in a rapidly developing clinical area.

The role has recently become a preceptorship which represents an investment in psychology provision to this patient group and a hope to develop and retain excellent and happy staff. The role will involve assessment, formulation and treatment, often of individuals with complex physical and psychological needs; care must be sensitively managed and trauma informed. Treatment is both individual and group. We also work with patients wishing to be considered for bariatric surgery and contributing to decisions regarding suitability, providing pre-surgery education and the longer term post-operative support including those who develop emotional and psychological difficulties post surgery.

We work with a level of clinical autonomy unlike some other services and there are regular opportunities to contribute to service development. Working across Tier 3 and Tier 4 services provides a variety of clinical work. We have strong links with the Exeter doctoral course and psychology is well respected by our medical, nursing and dietician colleagues.

Main duties of the job

Assessment of patients where psychology has been identified by colleagues as particularly pertinent.

Formulation of barriers to weight loss and psychological relationships with body/weight/eating behaviours often in the presence of ambivalence, ambiguity or dissociation and working around complex trauma.

Treatment: group and individual treatment; co-delivering our effective and well-received Understanding Eating Habits group and with potential to develop groups on building self-esteem / tackling self-loathing or another topic that is particularly pertinent. Individual work can involve ACT, Mindfulness, CFT, CBT, SFT and motivational Interviewing.

Teaching/training and shared facilitation of a supervision group of other health professionals

About us

Musgrove Park Hospital is a recognised centre of excellence for Bariatric Surgery.

You will be working alongside a Principal Clinical Psychologist, dieticians, nurses and a number of Consultant Endocrinologists and Bariatric Surgeons with years of experience and expertise in Weight Management and a high reputation internationally. We are based on a hospital site and psychology has its own office and dedicated clinical space.

Job description Job responsibilities

Resilience and flexibility are essential personal requirements, as is good humour, excellent interpersonal skills and an appetite for innovation. You will need to engage people who may not be convinced about the psychological elements with their weight, or with challenging defences due to shame, stigma or complex trauma. You will need to have a sense of how to maintain a therapeutic relationship after a difficult conversations (e.g. not being referred for bariatric surgery) or challenging when you believe a patient may be simply telling you what they believe you wish to hear. The work is meaningful and rewarding and often is a patients first experience of talking about their mental health and/or lived experience. We would welcome applications from those about to complete clinical training who are interested in joining us in this exciting developing specialty.

The key objectives are:

• To provide a specialist clinical psychology service including assessment and interventions for patients referred by the weight management and bariatric surgery teams, under the supervision of the lead clinical psychologist in the servic
• To provide specialist group interventions for pre and post bariatric surgery out-patients.
• To utilise research skills for audit and research and contribute to policy and service development within the depart
• To contribute to other areas of work undertaken by the department according to changing demands.

Person Specification Qualifications Essential

• Post-Graduate Doctorate Qualification in Clinical Psychology
• HCPC Registered Practitioner Psychologist

Desirable

• Post doctoral training

Knowledge Essential

• Doctoral level knowledge of clinical psychology theory and practice including highly developed knowledge of lifespan developmental psychology, models of psychopathology and two or more distinct therapies.
• Knowledge of legislation in relation to psychology in medical settings
• Doctoral level knowledge of research design and methodology

Desirable

• Well developed, specialist knowledge of psychological models and therapies related to the needs of people with medical problems, weight management and bariatric surgery issues.
• Evidence of post-qualification continuing professional development, as demonstrated by personal study and continued attendance at training courses and conferences, as recommended by the HCPC and BPS and documented in CPD log book or equivalent

Experience Essential

• Experience of working with a range of clients, presenting with a range of clinical severity (mental health/psychological and physical health problems) maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive, challenging and distressing circumstances.
• Experience of specialist psychological assessment, formulation and treatment across the full range of care settings including outpatient, community and in-patient settings.
• Demonstrable evidence of significant specialist clinical supervision within a scientist-practitioner framework, including individual supervision, group supervision and case presentations.

Desirable

• Experience of working with issues of obesity and bariatric surgery.
• Experience of working with issues of eating disorders.
• Experience of tailoring psychological assessment and intervention to individual needs.
• Experience of teaching/training and/or professional and clinical supervision.

Skills Essential

• Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management, frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
• A high level ability to communicate effectively both orally and in writing of highly technical and clinically sensitive information to patients, their families, carers and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS.

Desirable

• Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.
• Ability to identify, provide and promote appropriate means of support to other team members and staff exposed to highly distressing situations.

Any attachments will be accessible after you click to apply.

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