Early Intervention Practitioner

An exciting and challenging opportunity has arisen for an enthusiastic and driven Band 5 Mental Health Practitioner to work within Early Intervention Team for Psychosis Liverpool.

The service works with people between the ages of who are experiencing a first episode of psychosis.

We are looking for qualified Registered Nurse (MH), Occupational Therapist or Social Worker to join the team as a Key Worker. You will be involved in the patient journey from triage, assessment through to offering interventions supporting service users to recover from psychosis over a 3 year period.

The service delivers both managerial supervision and clinical supervision from specialist staff. There is in-house training on all aspects of the service including psychological formulation, Family Interventions, CBT skills and assessment skills. Mersey Care also has an active Learning and development team who offer personal, clinical and service development opportunities.

Early Intervention Team Liverpool works with service users who present with a first episode of psychosis and is a busy and skilled multi-disciplinary group which actively promotes close partnership working within the wider community.

If you feel you possess the values of Mersey Care NHS Trust, we would welcome an application from you. Applicants should hold a professional qualification .

The role will include providing high quality evidenced based care, formulating risk management plans, supervising risk assessments, providing expertise and advice, care co-ordination and directing unqualified staff.

In addition, we require a strong commitment to working with service users with complex needs, in order to assist them plan and take steps towards their recovery. You will have excellent interpersonal skills that will enable you to support service users and their families and challenge, motivate, influence and inspire your colleagues at all levels.

Mersey Care is one of the largest trusts providing physical health and mental health services in the North West, serving more than 1.4 million people across our region and are also commissioned for services that cover the North West, North Wales and the Midlands.

We offer specialist inpatient and community services that support physical and mental health and specialist inpatient mental health, learning disability, addiction and brain injury services. Mersey Care is one of only three trusts in the UK that offer high secure mental health facilities.

At the heart of all we do is our commitment to 'perfect care' – care that is safe, effective, positively experienced, timely, equitable and efficient. We support our staff to do the best job they can and work alongside service users, their families, and carers to design and develop future services together. We're currently delivering a programme of organisational and service transformation to significantly improve the quality of the services we provide and safely reduce cost as we do so.

Flexible working requests will be considered for all roles.

To coordinate the care of service users carrying out assessment planning, implementation and evaluation of their care under the guidelines of the care programme approach and under the supervision of the line manager.

To ensure that the service users care plan is developed to meet the assessed need of the individual and that unqualified staff are delivering care as laid down in the care plan.

To liaise with family members, carers and significant others when completing the assessment and developing a care plan

To develop a risk management plan for service users, taking note of the contributions from other members of the team. Ensure that all significant people are aware of the risk management plan and are actioning it appropriately.

To direct unqualified staff in order to ensure delivery of a high standard of care to service users.

To participate in setting standards for care based on sound evidence based and research findings

To participate in the systematic monitoring and evaluation of service users that you have responsibility for with guidance from a supervisor.

To communicate with other members of the multi-disciplinary team to ensure the communication of any relevant information which has an impact on the service user's care

To use verbal and non-verbal communication skills gained through training or experience to impart sensitive information.

To check understanding of information where there are often barriers to effective communications due to distress, psychiatric symptoms or where English is not the first language

To use skills gained through training and experience to give and receive information to other individuals with regards to a service users care in the reviews and multi-disciplinary meetings. These individuals may be external to the Trust

To have knowledge of the Mental Health Act / Mental Capacity Act and other relevant legislation. To support services users and their carers when the Mental Health Act is being used to admit the service user to hospital. To ensure that service user rights under the Mental Health Act are effectively communicated to them and outcomes documented

To provide and co-ordinate the provision of a range of therapeutic activities for service users and monitor their effectiveness.

To take responsibility for the safe administration of medication to service users ensuring that the Trust policies and procedures and the Nursing & Midwifery Councils regulations are adhered to.

To ensure that all relevant information with regards to a service users care and treatment is documented accurately and legibly into the health record. To supervise and monitor the entries made by unqualified staff.

To under the guidance of a supervisor provide reports both in written and verbal formats as requested e.g. for a service user Mental Health Act Tribunal or Managers Hearing

To contribute to teaching sessions in order to pass on knowledge and skills.

To use skills gained through training and experience to de-escalate situations where service users become physically or verbally aggressive

To ensure that unqualified staff members get appropriate support following violent or other untoward incidents

To ensure that all incidents or near misses are documented as per Trust policy and that any follow up action is taken.

To actively participate in service user reviews ensuring that service user needs are met and that the team has all the relevant information on which to base their clinical decisions.

To develop care plans that enable service users to reach and maintain their optimum level of health and independence to help them to remain in the community in their chosen setting.

To react pro-actively in cases of service user crisis and put in place immediate plans to resolve the situation with supervision and guidance as appropriate.

To assist in the assessment and supervision of nursing and other students.

To assess and monitor the physical and mental health of service users, seeking advice and support from medical staff as appropriate.

To actively participate in team meetings in order to positively influence team working and the development of research based practice.