Band 8a Highly Specialist Clinical / Counselling Psychologist, Ealing Early Intervention Service, West London NHS Trust

Full-Time Permanent Post

We have an exciting post available for a committed, skilled and enthusiastic Clinical/Counselling Psychologist in the Ealing Early Intervention in Psychosis Service.

The psychology service is fully integrated within the borough MDT team, and as previous post-holders have built excellent relationships and working processes, psychology is highly valued for its direct clinical expertise and contribution to team and service development.

There is considerable room for creativity and innovation in the development and provision of the service, together with close support from senior leadership.

You would be a member of the borough and cross-service senior leadership teams and would be joining us at an exciting time as we design our ARMS pathway and continue to grow and consolidate psychologically informed practice across EIS.

Main duties of the job

You would work alongside another Highly Specialist Clinical/Counselling Psychologist, and with close support from the Head of Psychology for EIS, in leading on the provision and delivery of a comprehensive borough psychology service including direct and indirect psychological interventions, family work and complex case consultation to MDT colleagues.

You will work as a key member of the Ealing borough and tri-borough EIS multi-disciplinary Senior Management Teams and will contribute to the leadership and development of the service. Skills, commitment and experience in working with clients with psychosis, including experience of direct provision of CBTp, other individual interventions for trauma and emotional needs, and Family Interventions, are essential.

We are looking for a psychologist with a genuine enthusiasm for MDT partnership working and psychological approaches to recovery, and an interest in supporting and developing psychological skills in MDT and more junior psychology colleagues.

About us

West London NHS Trust is one of the most diverse providers of mental health, community and social care in the UK. We are committed to supporting staff to grow their careers with us.

Our 3,982 staff care for people in hospital and in the community, helping them to recover and go on to lead full and productive lives. We aim to be the best organisation of our kind in the country.

We provide care and treatment for more than 800,000 people living in the London boroughs of Ealing, Hammersmith & Fulham and Hounslow, delivering services in the community (at home, in GP surgeries and care homes), hospital, specialist clinics and forensic (secure) units.

We'rerated good overall by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

Together, we're committed to promoting hope and wellbeing, working with patients, service users, carers, families and partners across the communities we serve.

We are keen to ensure that our workforce reflects the community it serves, particularly in terms of ethnicity, gender, disability, LGBTQ+ and experience of mental illness.

Job description Job responsibilities

You will be joining a thriving and enthusiastic team of psychologists and therapists within EIS and across the Community & Recovery pathway. You would contribute to the creation of a network of psychosis psychology specialists and in providing placement, teaching and training opportunities to build the Trusts reputation as a site of excellence in psychosis psychology. We would welcome your interests in research, teaching and supervision and support you to further develop these through training and CPD opportunities. You will be closely supported by the Psychology Lead for EIS.

Person Specification Qualifications Essential

• Good honours degree (2:1 minimum) in Psychology.
• Eligibility for graduate membership of BPS
• Post-graduate doctorate in clinical or counselling psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996 or those in lateral transfer) as accredited by the BPS.
• Registration with the Health and Care Professions Council.
• Training in clinical supervision for doctoral, and equivalent, trainees

Desirable

• Other related academic qualifications
• Evidence of post-doctoral training in CBTp, and/or FIp and/or other relevant approaches

Experience Essential

• Experience of working as a qualified (specialist) psychologist with clients with psychosis and complex needs.
• Experience of having facilitated/co-facilitated psychological therapy groups
• Experience of the application of clinical psychology in different cultural contexts.
• Experience of administration, scoring and written interpretation of psychometric / neuropsychological tests
• Experience of teaching, training and/or supervision.
• Experience of co-producing and/or co-delivering services with service users and/or 3rd sector partners.
• Experience of supervising other staff and/or having led service development projects
• Significant level of experience in working within multidisciplinary community teams

Knowledge Essential

• Advanced specialist knowledge, both theoretical and practical, of psychology applied to clinical practice
• Specialist theoretical and practical knowledge of the assessment and intervention of complex mental health difficulties.
• Knowledge of relevant legislation and its implications for work in the current setting

Skills Essential

• Able to function as part of an MDT leadership team and work in partnership with professionals with a range of experience, professional background and outlook.
• Able to provide and receive highly complex, highly sensitive or highly 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.
• Able to make judgements involving highly complex facts or situations, which require the evaluation of a range of options (e.g. the assessment of specialist clinical conditions and the determination of treatment options), Where expert opinions may differ
• 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
• Able to use database, word processing and test administration/scoring software
• Working knowledge of SPSS
• Able to sit for lengthy periods of time while demonstrating active listening skills
• Able to maintain intense concentration frequently and for prolonged periods
• Able to function in highly emotionally distressing circumstances on a frequent basis (e.g. in dealing with service users with serious mental illness, histories of homicide and serious violence, self-harm, sexual abuse)

Other Requirements Essential

• Demonstrable enthusiasm for and commitment to working with service users with psychosis and a range of levels of need.
• Demonstrable enthusiasm for and commitment to leadership and partnership working with MDT colleagues and community and 3rd sector partners.
• Knowledge of the professional code of conduct of the BPS
• Must be capable of being guided by precedent, clearly defined policies, procedures and codes of conduct
• Able to reflect on own professional practice
• Willing to participate actively in CPD in line with BPS guidelines
• 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.
• Ability to teach and train others, using a variety of complex multi-media materials suitable for presentations within public, professional and academic settings.
• Experience of working within a multicultural framework

Desirable

• Demonstrable commitment to the skill and career development of other staff members.
• Record of having published in either peer reviewed or academic or professional journals and/or books

Any attachments will be accessible after you click to apply.

222-LS-CARMHS-236