Mental Health Liaison Practitioner

An excellent opportunity has arisen for an experienced Mental Health Practitioner to join our Mental Health Liaison Practitioner Service in the Adur, Arun & Worthing area. You will work as part of a multi-disciplinary team and provide specialist assessment and short term interventions to patients to promote their recovery and you will have the opportunity to work closely with local practices, IAPT services, Recovery College and other providers in the local area.

Covid-19 full vaccination may be a condition of employment for this role, unless an exemption applies. The successful applicant may have contact with vulnerable service users and we will therefore seek proof of being fully vaccinated during the recruitment process.

You must be enthusiastic, self-motivated, flexible and able to work autonomously and we will support you by providing supervision and training including a comprehensive induction, access to complex case formulation and courses to support your continuous professional development.

**Working in our team includes**:

- Working autonomously as a Lead Practitioner to a defined caseload of clients. This will include offering specific interventions to people diagnosed with depression and anxiety and other conditions.

**What you will receive from us**:

- Regular Line Management and Professional supervision
- Access to a wide range of Training and CPD opportunities including;
- The opportunity to participate in a range QI work and service innovations
- Varied leadership development opportunities

We’re a large NHS Mental Health Trust in South East England. We’re looking for people to help us provide high quality services for the patients, carers and local communities we serve.

We want patients and staff to recommend our organisation as a place where they would be happy for their friends and family to be treated. You can help us do this by bringing your skills, experience and commitment to Sussex Partnership.

We encourage flexible working. We know that a positive work/ life balance brings about huge health-related benefits, which has a positive impact on the care we provide. Please speak to us about flexible working, for example, home-working, part time hours, flexible start/ finish times or anything else. If it works for you and works for the role, we'll do our best to make it happen.

**MAIN DUTIES**:
Clinical
1. The post-holder will be both a member of a number of GP led primary care teams and a member of
secondary care mental health services.
2. To undertake screening and assessment of patients with mental health problems referred by GPs to
determine the most appropriate intervention and offer support and advice using the philosophy of
least intervention possible and of a recovery, strength based approach.
3. To support GPs and primary care teams in assessing and managing risk.
4. To facilitate the patient’s journey to secondary services and other statutory services as needed
including acting as broker between secondary care services to avoid clients being “bounced” around
teams.
5. To be aware of service users with complex needs who are discharged from secondary care to
primary care, and to liaise with their GPs to ensure that the discharge is well managed.
6. To support and work alongside GPs in the implementation of patient-centred care packages and
treatment for use within primary care.
7. To support GPs with issues relating to medication, and to liaise with psychiatry colleagues about
medication advice and diagnostic advice as required.
8. To contribute to the development of assessment skills of other practitioners in primary care to
promote more accurate identification of mental health problems.
9. To provide, where required, supervision for students and other mental health trainees.
10. To ensure that clinical practice is evidence-based and consistent with relevant NICE Guidelines, and
Trust policies and procedures.
11. To work in a flexible way in providing cover in other GP practices when needed.
Consultation and training
1. To provide advice and consultation to GPs and primary care teams.
2. To provide high quality information to GPs and primary care teams on local resources and services
3. To publish and make available information about the practitioner role to local people
4. To attend supervision from appropriate clinical practitioners in nursing and psychological care,
approved by the service manager.
5. To provide formal and informal training in a range of mental health issues identified by GPs for GPs
and Primary Care Mental Health Teams and present cases, literature reviews and research findings
at clinical and other meetings as appropriate.
Networking and service provision
1. To work closely with other practitioners, local day services, local education establishments,
employment agencies and third sector services
2. To maintain close working relationships with secondary care services.
3. To provide information to patients, and their carers, about their care and