Clinical Practice Specialist

NHS England/Improvement has developed a new Framework to support local systems in implementing the NHS Long Term Plan’s vision for transforming community mental health care. This Framework sets out how the LTP’s vision for a new place-based community mental health model can be realised, and how we can modernise community mental health services to shift to whole person, whole population health approaches.
The role of Clinical Practice Specialist is fundamental to the developing of these innovative new ways of working. The role will support the ongoing development and mobilisation of integrated mental health service offer with a specialist clinical focus on the discharge and step down pathway, Assertive in reach into the community and supporting the flow within the team especially with difficult to reach patients. The role provides and promotes flexible and responsive access to assessment, treatment and/or onward bridging to community resources and support, in line with evidence based interventions for people with serious mental illness. The role will help people to focus on achievable goals and access local community resources as part of their recovery and care plan.
The service offer will be for people over 18 years who are experiencing mental health difficulties but with a specific focus on: the step down and in reach pathways being developed and implemented into community clinical protocols and models.
Provide follow up care for service users who are difficult to engage or struggling to access care and support. In addition, support the teams clinical thinking and decision making as part of the step down and discharge pathways within the teams.
- Work closely with colleagues in specialist community mental health services to ensure smooth transitions between teams and services and facilitate an ‘easy in, easy out’ approach to improve access to evidence based interventions.
- Provide a responsive place based care and support for clients in immediate crisis where their needs/difficulties are best met or understood within a biopsychosocial model and away from physical health setting ( A&E).
- Offer professionals support which can be accessed by community partners such as the police, paramedics and GPs who are seeking clinical advice around mental health crisis or when use of s136 is being considered.
- Use evidence based practice to provide assessment and interventions that promotes the engagement of the client in treatment, to assist them into recovery.
- Share in the clinical management of a defined caseload and develop an interface with other services and agencies so that service users are offered focussed and co-ordinated packages of care which are appropriate to their needs.

The partnership between Barnet, Enfield and Haringey Mental Health NHS Trust (BEH) and Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust (C&I) is going from strength to strength since it was originally established in 2021 forming the North London Mental Health Partnership.
In order to meet the needs of the new Partnership services 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 fall under Barnet, Enfield and Harringay Trust and Camden and Islington Trust. 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.
- To work in collaboration with Consultant Psychiatrists and other lead professionals for the Adult Mental Health and Social Care team.
- Provides a brief clinical risk and mental health assessment, formulation and short-term contingency planning for people presenting in mental health needs or support.
- Provide care or support via telephone/Video or a face-to-face assessments.
- Work closely with other mental health services and agencies; such as the police, ambulance, local authority and third sector.
- Using a range of brief solution-focused interventions, to empower people, carers and their families in decision making; diverting to a range of health and social care resources for support.
- Communicate with service users and callers at their level of understanding, culture and background. Remain courteous and professional at all times.
- Provide skilled and detailed triage, full assessment and intervention to clients for all follow up or new referrals to the team. In the event of support during mental health crisis, re directing to the most appropriate services.
- Offer support and advise to carers in prevention and management of crisis situation.
- Provide clinical advice, education, support and training to team colleagues, CMHTs, primary healthcare teams, other professionals, service users and carers on the management of mental health problems.
- Deliver care that is evidence based, reflecting current best practice and research.
- To maintain safe and acceptable standards of practice in accordance with