The Department of Haematological Medicine at King's is one of the largest in Europe and is at the forefront in providing treatments to patients with blood and lymphatic cancers, bone marrow failure disorders, sickle cell disease, haemophilia and thrombosis. Our stem cell transplantation and CAR-T therapy programmes are renowned. There has been an embedded psychological therapy service within the Haemato-Oncology department for several years, supporting the psychological needs of patients and informal carers/ family members.

An exciting opportunity has arisen within the Haemato-Oncology Psychological Therapies team. We are looking for a fully accredited, highly skilled, and compassionate psychotherapist ideally with experience of working in the NHS or similar healthcare setting, however applicants with experience and knowledge of supporting clients with serious health conditions will be considered. The successful candidate will be a creative and flexible practitioner with a good understanding of the relationship between psychological functioning and physical health.

Main duties of the job

The successful candidate will work mainly with patients diagnosed with blood cancers or bone marrow failure disorders (and their families and carers) undergoing challenging treatments like chemotherapy, stem cell transplantation and CAR-T therapy.

The post-holder will be part of a small team comprised of a senior psychotherapist/ service lead, another psychological therapist and a social worker. They will undertake and deliver a range of psychological assessments, psychological interventions and talking therapies to service users. The post-holder will be expected to work in a responsive, and person-centred way in an acute hospital setting, with inpatients and outpatients. In addition to direct client work, the successful candidate will work closely with multi-disciplinary colleagues, sharing psychological expertise and contributing to a holistic, psychologically-minded approach to patient care. The successful candidate will provide clinical supervision and consultation to a range of colleagues and/or trainees, as needed, and will contribute to the regular education and training programmes of the Haemato-Oncology Psychological therapies team.

The post is based mainly at our main Denmark Hill site, but the successful candidate may be expected to occasionally provide out-reach sessions, in person, at the Princess Royal University Hospital (PRUH) site in Bromley.

Please see the attached job description and person specification for further details about this role.

About us

King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is one of the UK's largest and busiest teaching Trusts with a turnover of c£1 billion, 1.5 million patient contacts a year and more than 15,000 staff based across South East London. The Trust provides a full range of local and specialist services across its five sites. The trust-wide strategy of Strong Roots, Global Reach is our Vision to be BOLD, Brilliant people, Outstanding care, Leaders in Research, Innovation and Education, Diversity, Equality and Inclusion at the heart of everything we do. By being person-centred, digitally-enabled, and focused on sustainability, we aim to take Team King's to another level.

We are at a pivotal point in our history and we require individuals who are ready to join a highly professional team and make a real, lasting difference to our patients and our people.

King's is committed to delivering Sustainable Healthcare for All via our Green Plan. In line with national Greener NHS ambitions, we have set net zero carbon targets of 2040 for our NHS Carbon Footprint and 2045 for our NHS Carbon Footprint Plus. Everyone's contribution is required in order to meet the goals set out in our Green Plan and we encourage all staff to work responsibly, minimising their contributions to the Trust's carbon emissions, waste and pollution wherever possible.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Job Purpose:

To provide specialist psychological therapy and support to adult haematology patients and their families and carers, in a timely manner and tailored to clients needs. This includes specialist assessment, treatment, planning, implementation and monitoring of outcomes.

To contribute to enabling other staff, service users and carers from diverse backgrounds to flourish by working to create a psychologically safe environment.

To provide clinical supervision, consultation and training, as appropriate.

To undertake service evaluation, audit and research with support from the Lead Psychological Therapist

To work as an autonomous professional within professional guidelines(BACP, UKCP, BABCP) and codes of conduct, and guided by the policies and procedures of the service, taking responsibility for own work including treatment and discharge decisions with support of clinical supervisor.

To agree outcomes/results with clinical/professional lead and to decide how they are best achieved

To contribute to service and strategic developments in conjunction with the service lead.

Key Responsibilities:

KR 1 Clinical and Client Care

To provide specialist psychological assessments, formulations, interventions and talking therapies for clients referred to the Haemato Oncology Psychotherapy Team. To support clients adjust to the impact and psychological consequences of potentially life-limiting / life-threatening diagnoses in outpatient and inpatient settings, in line with the services Standard Operating Procedure (SOP)

To provide psychological support and care to patients/caregivers on inpatient units (eg. Haematology wards or Critical Care Units)

To provide psychological interventions and talking therapies face to- face or remotely (i.e. by telephone or video conferencing), where appropriate or necessary

To provide culturally appropriate psychological interventions with carers or families of referred clients when required.

To regularly assess and monitor risk and draw up appropriate risk management plans.

To deliver debrief sessions, crisis intervention and reflective practice sessions to colleagues affected by emotionally distressing or traumatic situations involving patients, as appropriate

To arrange and attend joint consultations with other MDT colleagues (eg doctors, nurse specialists, AHPs) where clinically helpful and appropriate to patient care.

KR 2 Contributing to team or services clinical functioning

To be an active member of the wider multidisciplinary team (MDT) and contribute to MDT meetings. Attend weekly team meetings

To contribute to the effective working of the service and to a psychologically informed framework for the service.

To be proactive in challenging discrimination and support the development of culturally competent services.

To advise other members of the department on specialist psychological care of clients.

To liaise with referrers, GPs and other professionals concerned with clients in order to develop and review care plans.

To utilise theory, evidence-based literature and research to support evidence based practice in individual work and work with other team members.

KR 3 Policy and service development

To implement policies and procedures in own area of work, and to propose improvements or beneficial changes.

To contribute to the consultation and engagement of service users in planning and delivering services which meet the needs of local communities.

To contribute to service development through undertaking and participating in appropriate projects.

KR 4 Care or management of resources

To take care of, and use carefully, the Trusts equipment and physical resources.

To ensure that the post-holder has sufficient resources by estimating future needs and requesting or ordering supplies as needed.

KR 5 Management and supervision

To be responsible for the allocation and/or clinical supervision of the work of a trainee or volunteer psychotherapist if required, under supervision and support from the service lead.

To supervise trainee psychotherapists within own area of specialism, as required and appropriate and following completion of the relevant supervisor training course.

To offer clinical supervision/ reflective practice sessions to colleagues, including cancer CNSs, as required.

KR 6 Teaching and Training

To provide occasional specialist training in psychological approaches to care to other professionals as appropriate, and contribute to the teams education and training activities.

To contribute to the development of the knowledge and skills base within the service by maintaining an active awareness of current developments in psychology/psychotherapy and the service and by implementing knowledge gained in practice.

To disseminate research and service evaluation findings through presentations and published articles.

KR 7 Record-keeping and Information Governance

To ensure that all information generated by own work is recorded as required by Trust policies and local procedures.

To maintain the highest standards of clinical record keeping and report writing, according to professional and Trust guidelines, including electronic data entry.

To jointly monitor the team inbox, voicemails and referrals and ensure they are recorded as per the services policy and procedures

KR 8 Research and development

To undertake regular service evaluation or audits relevant to service needs.

To contribute to the writing and dissemination of the teams annual service report.

To contribute to and lead, as appropriate, research projects relevant to the needs of the service

To disseminate research and service evaluation findings through reports, presentations and published articles.

To utilise theory, evidence-based literature and research to support evidence based practice in individual work and work with other team members

KR 9 Maintaining professional standards and continuing professional development

To receive regular clinical and professional supervision from a more senior psychotherapist according to the relevant psychotherapy accreditation body (e.g., BACP, BABCP, UKCP) and Trust guidelines.

To ensure own Continuing Professional Development in line with professional registration guidelines and Trust appraisal processes

To maintain an up-to-date knowledge of current developments in professional and clinical practice and of relevant legislation and policies.

To comply with the ethical framework and standards of proficiency of relevant psychotherapy accreditation body (e.g., the BACP Ethical Framework for the Counselling Professions)

KR10 General

To travel to sites across the Trust, including Princes Royal University Hospital, Orpington, as appropriate and when required

To share clinical practice experience and knowledge externally, e.g. speaking at conferences, contributing to literature about haematology produced by partners in the third sector

To be aware of risk relating to aggressive and challenging behaviour amongst the client group, and follow trust policies relating to its management.

To respond appropriately and professionally to emotionally distressing situations including those associated with physically unwell patients approaching end of life care and to support others involved in such situations.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Post-graduate Psychotherapy qualification that confers registration and full accreditation with the relevant accreditation body (e.g., BACP, BABCP, UKCP)
• Full accreditation as a Psychotherapist (e.g., with BACP, UKCP or BABCP)

Desirable

• Training/ qualification in clinical supervision

Knowledge

Essential

• A high level of knowledge of the theory and practice of psychological therapy approaches (core model and at least one other model)
• Knowledge of the theory and practice of psychological models as they apply to patients coping with serious or life-limiting illness, and end-of-life issues
• Knowledge of relevant policy and legislation and its implications for clinical practice in relation to the client group and mental health issues, child and adult protection, and equalities.
• Knowledge of factors affecting acceptability and accessibility of psychological and psychotherapeutic interventions
• Masters and/or Doctoral level knowledge of research design, methodology and complex statistical analysis

Desirable

• Knowledge and experience of the theory and practice of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT)
• Knowledge and experience of the theory and practice of systemic family therapy

Experience

Essential

• Experience of psychological assessment and treatment of clients with a range of psychological needs of a complex nature
• Experience of receiving clinical supervision across a range of client needs
• Experience that supports working with, and addressing issues of equality and diversity. This may have been gained through work, research, volunteering and / or lived experience
• Experience of developing and carrying out service audits, evaluations, service development or research projects

Desirable

• Experience of working with people with long-term health conditions
• Experience working in physical healthcare settings

Employer details

Employer name

King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Address

King's College Hospital

Denmark Hill

London

SE5 9RS

Any attachments will be accessible after you click to apply.

213-CAX-6879854-A