Research Assistant - The PETAL Trial

North London NHS Foundation Trust are seeking a Research Assistant to work on the PETAL (Personalised treatment packages for adults with learning disabilities who display aggression in community settings) research programme, which is funded by the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR)'s Programme Grants for Applied Science (PGAR) for 66 months. It is conducted in collaboration with University College London and is led by Professor Angela Hassiotis, a professor of psychiatry of intellectual disabilities and consultant psychiatrist at Camden and Islington Foundation Trust.

The post holder's work base will be in University College London, where the study lead and trial manager work.

Main duties of the job

The Research Assistant will be responsible for supporting the recruitment of study participants and the collection of clinical data. You will be liaising with GPs and healthcare staff, conducting interviews, and using questionnaires to conduct assessments. You will also be responsible for data management.

These posts offer an exciting opportunity for individuals who want to develop their research skills and work within a clinical environment. The successful applicants should have a primary degree in psychology or equivalent, experience of recruiting, assessing, and following up patients in clinical trials, and experience of managing data. We want to appoint someone who has excellent communication skills and experience of working with people with intellectual disabilities.

The posts will involve working with Intellectual Disability (ID) Services in boroughs under North London NHS Foundation Trust, as well as other sites supporting the study.

The appointed research assistant's work base will be the Division of Psychiatry in University College London, where the study lead and the trial manager are based.

You will be provided with an induction to working for North London NHS Foundation Trust and a bespoke training programme for your role. Supervision in your role will be provided by the Trial Manager and Chief Investigator.

About us

North London NHS Foundation Trust (NLFT) is committed to improving mental health care across North London to deliver excellent services to our local people.

Our Five-Year Strategy:

1. We will provide consistently high-quality care closer to home.
2. With our partners in North London and each borough, we will ensure equity of outcome for all.
3. We will offer great places to work, providing staff with a supportive environment to deliver outstanding care.
4. We will be more effective as an organisation by pioneering research, quality improvement, and technology.

In order to meet the needs of the Trust, you may be required from time to time to work at different locations to your normal place of work. This may mean that you are required to work at any location that falls under Barnet, Camden, Enfield, Haringey, or Islington. The Trust reserves the right to require staff to work at such other places or locations as it considers reasonable and necessary on a temporary or permanent basis.

Job responsibilities

A detailed description of the Research Assistant role and its essential and desirable requirements are provided in the Job Description and Person Specification.

A DBS criminal records check will be required. Some travel around the boroughs of Camden, Islington, Barnet, Enfield, and Haringey will be involved.

Person Specification

Qualifications/ Registrations

• First degree (2:1 or higher) in psychology or other relevant subject and excellent academic record.

Skills/ Abilities

• Excellent interpersonal communication skills
• Excellent organisational skills
• Strong time management skills and ability to work to deadlines
• Skills in interviewing research participants with intellectual disabilities and carers
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and handle confidential information
• Self-motivation, the ability to work on own initiative
• Self-motivation, the ability to work in a team
• Good computer skills and proficient with MS Office
• Commitment to the Trust's policy of equal opportunity and the ability to work harmoniously with colleagues and research participants of all cultures and backgrounds
• Skills in using research data software e.g. NVivo

Experience/ Knowledge

• Experience in mental health research
• Experience of using Word and SPSS
• An understanding of the needs and difficulties of people with mental health problems and other disabilities
• Knowledge of the literature on psychosis, including cognition
• Working with diverse groups of people
• Working with people with an intellectual disability

Personal Qualities

• Meticulous in approach to work
• Persuasive, able to motivate others
• Interest in mental health service research
• Ambition to develop an academic career or to be a clinical psychologist

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

UCL Division of Psychiatry, Maple House,

Consultant Psychiatrist, Intellectual Disabilities

£35,964 to £43,780 a year (inclusive of HCA)

Contract

Fixed term

Duration

12 months

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

455-CANDI-1207

Job locations

UCL Division of Psychiatry, Maple House,