Higher Assistant Psychologist (Band 5) - Clinical Psychology - Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne an[...]

Higher Assistant Psychologist (Band 5) - Clinical Psychology - Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust

Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust – Cramlington, Northumberland

We are delighted to be offering a full-time Band 5 Higher Associate Psychologist (HAP) post within our Psychiatric Liaison Team at Northumberland and North Tyneside, based at Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital, Cramlington. Experience of working as an Assistant Psychologist or Research Assistant is essential, along with some experience of working within care settings.

The team is well-established, with experienced mental health nurses and dedicated psychiatry input. The team provides timely biopsychosocial assessment and formulation to people presenting with a range of mental health needs to the acute care hospital, including self-harm, delirium, and medically unexplained symptoms, with the possibility of providing brief follow-up for people with complex presentations.

The post is an integral part of the MDT. The main duties will be to undertake two service evaluation projects to support innovation and effective care of people accessing crisis mental health support in the setting.

The role will be supervised by a Principal Clinical Psychologist. There will also be opportunities to be involved in enabling provision of direct specialist psychological assessment, formulation, and brief interventions with service users and families, and via team formulation and reflective practice, contributing to the multidisciplinary understanding of complex risks and the development of care plans.

We aim to attract and retain a diverse, talented, and committed workforce, who are caring and compassionate, and therefore able to meet the demands of the modern NHS now and in the future. In return, we can offer a dynamic working environment in which to build a career.

The post holder will be part of a supportive multidisciplinary team. The post is also part of a valued trust-wide psychological service which has a range of regular meetings and support activities to ensure professional governance and to promote evidence-based and innovative psychologically informed care.

Working in psychiatric liaison services offers excellent opportunities to develop a range of skills, including skills in service evaluation, multidisciplinary working, and clinical skills. We welcome contact from interested candidates to further discuss the role and to visit our service.

The post involves undertaking two service evaluation projects: the first project is to evaluate the impact of closer working with the Crisis Team on patient care and experience. The second project will evaluate the impact of a new navigation system for people attending the Emergency Department to help identify ways to understand patient attendance, needs, and ways to support effective access to emergency care. The post will be an integral part of the MDT, enabling gathering of information to inform service delivery.

We are looking for applicants who can work as part of a team and also independently, with a high level of research and report writing skills. The post holder will be supported to develop their skills in the required areas of work and provided with appropriate supervision from our experienced clinical psychologist.

Please find attached job description for full details.