Assistant Psychologist

Job summary

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an Assistant Psychologist to join the HPFT Community CAMHS Dialectical Behaviour Therapy (DBT) team.

This is an exciting new post in an established DBT team working across HPFT CAMHS. The DBT Team offer's a specialist evidence-based therapeutic approach for young people at high risk, to prevent crises and ensure that young people are in the least restrictive service for their need.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will be expected to take an active role in the facilitation of the DBT Skills Group programme under supervision of a qualified Clinical Psychologist. The post holder will also have an essential role in maintaining the service database, including data entry, producing reports on service targets, and completing service-related audits and service evaluations.

Regular clinical supervision will be provided. It is essential that applicants have a recognised undergraduate degree in Psychology and have the Graduate Basis for Registration with the British Psychological Society. The ability to provide group-based interventions and or experience of working with adolescents with complex mental health difficulties would be an advantage.

About us

Hertfordshire Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (HPFT) is an outstanding organisation with ambitions to match. We are one of just five mental health trusts to achieve an overall rating of 'Outstanding' from theCare Quality Commission, and our aim is to be the leading provider of mental health and specialist learning disability services in the country.

Our family of over 3500 members of staff provide health and social care for over 400,000 people with mental ill health, physical ill health and learning disabilities across Hertfordshire, Buckinghamshire, and Norfolk, delivering these services within the community and several inpatient settings. We also deliver a range of nationally commissioned specialist services including Tier 4 services for children and young people, perinatal services, plus medium and low secure learning disabilities services.

The care we provide makes a fantastic difference to the lives of our service users, their families and carers - everything is underpinned by choice, independence and equality, with our Trust values embedded throughout:

Our Trust values are:

Welcoming. Kind. Positive. Respectful. Professional.

These values are at the core of who we are, everything we do, and how we do it

Would you like to be part of the HPFT family? Would you like work with us to ensure our service users live the fullest lives possible they can? Would you like to be supported in your career to be the best that you can be?

Job description

Job responsibilities

Clinical Duties : (which will be co-worked under supervision of a qualified member of the DBT team):

To assist in the mental health and risk assessment of adolescents referred to the DBT service.

To assist in the provision of DBT as appropriate, with particular emphasis on the skills group component.

Participate fully in providing quality care in line with local and national guidelines NICE Guidance & Quality Standards relating to children and/or young people with mental health disorders and social care difficulties

To respond through liaison with qualified members of the DBT team to any crisis that a patient may advise of.

Act as a role model in providing a service for adolescents with mental health problems.

To liaise and negotiate with other agencies Hertfordshire County Council, Children Schools and Families, Thriving Families, Housing Authorities, ADASH, the voluntary sector Signpost etc., for joint planning with, or on behalf of, children and/or adolescents

To participate in regular managerial and clinical supervision.

To contribute to the DBT team multi-disciplinary working and DBT Consult.

To assist in the development of a psychologically based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all users of the DBT service.

To implement psychologically-informed interventions to clients under the direct clinical supervision of a clinical / counselling psychologist, as appropriate.

To assist in the coordination and running of the DBT skills groups as appropriate.

To undertake a broad range of psychological assessments, including, self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi- structured interviews with service users, family members and others involved in care under direct supervision of a qualified DBT team member as appropriate.

To contribute to the local psychological services team in both individual and group-based settings.

To adhere to Trust policies and procedures

To carry out any other duties as appropriately identified by your line manager.

Service Evaluation

1. To undertake data collection and the analysis and production of reports and summaries on a regular basis, using IT and statistical programmes, under the direct supervision of a qualified psychologist.

2. To be responsible for ensuring routine outcome data is entered onto the computer system and appropriately collated.

3. To assist in service evaluation, audit and research projects to benefit service users.

4. To undertake searches of evidence-based literature and research to assist other staff in evidence based practise in individual work and work with other team members.

Person Specification

Training/qualifications

Essential

Upper second class honours degree in psychology, or other higher degree in psychology, or equivalent undergraduate qualification.

Desirable

Masters level training in relevant Psychological or Mental Health area. Post-graduate training in relevant mental-health / psychological / recovery discipline.

Experience

Desirable

At least two years' experience of work with children and/or adolescents with moderate to severe mental health problems Experience of working in a multidisciplinary team. Experience in psychological interventions - DBT, CBT or interpersonal therapy interventions or other evidence based approaches.

Knowledge and Skill

Essential

Ability to work independently, reliably and consistently with work agreed and managed at regular intervals. Ability to manage distressing and challenging situations.

Other

Essential

Car driver (unless you have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010 which prevents you from driving)

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