Lead Clinical Psychologist

To improve the psychological health & wellbeing of people with Learning disabilities and to provide psychological services to people who use services and staff in the South/Torbay and West Learning Disability Intensive Assessment and Treatment Teams. This will be achieved in this post by: 1. Ensuring the systematic provision of a high quality psychological service to people with Learning Disabilities Services in Devon. 2. Providing clinical leadership, co-ordination and supervision for staff, trainees and volunteers employed by or attached to the psychology service. 3. Taking a leadership role in the delivery and development of psychological services for people with Learning Disabilities 4. Carrying a specialist caseload of clients, and providing interventions, advice and consultancy to patients and professionals. 5. Working autonomously within professional guidelines and exercise responsibility for the systematic governance of psychological practice within the team. 6. Receiving regular professional and clinical supervision in accordance with Trust policy and Professional Practice Guidelines set out by the Health and Care Professions Council and British Psychological Society. 7. Contributing to the management of psychology services in the locality. Communication and Working Relationship Skills • Service Users, family and carers: To communicate in a highly skilled and sensitive manner with service users who have specific difficulties in understand and/or communicating and who may be hostile, antagonistic or highly emotionally disturbed. • Multidisciplinary team colleagues: To work closely with colleagues in the multi-professional integrated service on a day to day basis. • Health & social care staff: To communicate with a wide range of health & social care staff in hospital and in community settings in a highly skilled and sensitive manner, complex and sensitive information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of clients under the services care. To provide support & guidance in the application of psychological principles and techniques, and to foster reflective practice. • Senior managers & professional staff: To maintain and build good working relationships with senior professional staff and managers in Devon Partnership Trust , service provider organisations and across partner agencies, to foster a positive approach to the integrated mental health and wellbeing service and to enable effective negotiation Analytical and Judgemental Skills • Responsibility for Assessment, Judgement and Analysis • Assessment: Responsible for providing a psychological service to a range of people with learning disabilities experiencing a variety of serious psychological disorders and/or presenting behaviours that challenge. Carrying out specialist psychological, psychometric assessments, the preparation of reports and the communication of complex, sensitive and distressing information to people with learning disabilities and carers. To effectively draw on a variety of sources to establish care plans and treatment formulations in the context of much data being unavailable because of the persons inability to express themselves. Treatment may require interventions involving the social and professional network of the person and where expert opinion may vary. To make highly skilled evaluations and decisions about treatment, about the psychological management of peoples difficulties and experiences (including management of risk). • Consultation & guidance: To provide advice, guidance and consultation on psychological aspects of patient care to colleagues, other service providers, patients, supporters and families. Planning and Organisational Skills • The psychology service: To plan and organise the work of the psychology service within the Intensive Assessment and Treatment team, and to contribute to the development and improvement of provision of psychological services for people with learning disabilities to best meet the organisations strategy and priorities. • The multidisciplinary service: To provide psychology leadership to the multi-professional planning, development and marketing of mental health and wellbeing services for people with learning disabilities. • Partnership To work as part of Devon Partnership Trust management structures to contribute to the planning and implementation of service developments. Responsibility for Patient/Client Care, Treatment and Therapy • Responsible for formulating and implementing plans for a range of evidence-based psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families, groups and service delivery systems adjusting and refining psychological formulations, drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses based upon the analysis of each individual case. In addition to demonstrate awareness of diversity issues. • Responsible for providing specialist advice and consultation to other service members on psychological aspects of learning disability and mental health; including appropriate treatment approaches, complex issues of engaging clients and maintaining change, and working with the wider systems which affect clients wellbeing (e.g. family, day services). Responsibility for Policy and Service Development Implementation • The post holder is accountable for their own professional actions, acting within Trust policies and procedures and Professional Practice Guidelines. • Policy & service: To interpret and develop policies and procedures for the provision of psychology and psychological therapy services in the service for people with learning disabilities. Responsibility for Finance, Equipment and Other Resources • To maintain and apply psychometric tests and equipment in order to assess people with learning disabilities and evaluate progress. Responsibility for Human Resources, e.g. Supervision, Training, HR Advice and Management • There is a requirement to support learners on a regular basis which includes the achievement and updating of profession specific training to the required standard to fulfil this role • Leadership & supervision: To lead and professionally supervise psychology staff, trainees and volunteers. • To provide therapy supervision for non-psychology staff providing psychological therapies within the service for people with Learning Disabilities. • To provide psychology leadership in the Intensive Assessment and Treatment team. Responsibility for Information Resources and Administrative Duties • The Post holder will be required to compile clinical reports, maintain accurate records using the appropriate IT system and be responsible for any other administrative tasks e.g. clinical audit reports. • The Post holder is responsible for liaising with other team members and health and social services employees, both in verbal and written form in order to co-ordinate effective and appropriate care for service users Responsibility for Research and Development • To organise the R&D activities of the psychology service, and to undertake a research programme as agreed within the service. • To ensure all psychology staff participate in appropriate audit and evaluation of outcomes of the psychology and psychological therapy services • To carry out research activities applying knowledge of research methodology and to contribute research knowledge and expertise to the research activities of other disciplines as required by the service. • To take responsibility and develop effective means of auditing and evaluating the outcomes of individual work, team activity and clinics within the service. • The post holder will be involved in identifying and implementing service developments which will enhance the treatment opportunities provided to service users and carers, through consultation and collaboration with managers, team members and locality wide facilities. Freedom to Act • The post holder is accountable for their own professional actions, acting within Trust policies and procedures and Professional Practice Guidelines (HCPC). • To work autonomously within clinical professional guidelines and exercise responsibility for the governance of psychological practice within the Devon Partnership Trust Learning Disability Service. • To provide expert and specialist clinical psychologist intervention, expertise and advice guidance and consultation on psychological aspects of patient care to colleagues, patients, other service providers, supporters and families. Any Other Specific Tasks Required • To ensure all clinical care and treatment provided by psychologists is carried out under appropriate supervision and leadership. • To ensure that all relevant staff groups continuously update the skills and techniques relevant to their clinical work. Job description Job responsibilities To improve the psychological health & wellbeing of people with Learning disabilities and to provide psychological services to people who use services and staff in the South/Torbay and West Learning Disability Intensive Assessment and Treatment Teams. This will be achieved in this post by: 1. Ensuring the systematic provision of a high quality psychological service to people with Learning Disabilities Services in Devon. 2. Providing clinical leadership, co-ordination and supervision for staff, trainees and volunteers employed by or attached to the psychology service. 3. Taking a leadership role in the delivery and development of psychological services for people with Learning Disabilities 4. Carrying a specialist caseload of clients, and providing interventions, advice and consultancy to patients and professionals. 5. Working autonomously within professional guidelines and exercise responsibility for the systematic governance of psychological practice within the team. 6. Receiving regular professional and clinical supervision in accordance with Trust policy and Professional Practice Guidelines set out by the Health and Care Professions Council and British Psychological Society. 7. Contributing to the management of psychology services in the locality. Communication and Working Relationship Skills • Service Users, family and carers: To communicate in a highly skilled and sensitive manner with service users who have specific difficulties in understand and/or communicating and who may be hostile, antagonistic or highly emotionally disturbed. • Multidisciplinary team colleagues: To work closely with colleagues in the multi-professional integrated service on a day to day basis. • Health & social care staff: To communicate with a wide range of health & social care staff in hospital and in community settings in a highly skilled and sensitive manner, complex and sensitive information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of clients under the services care. To provide support & guidance in the application of psychological principles and techniques, and to foster reflective practice. • Senior managers & professional staff: To maintain and build good working relationships with senior professional staff and managers in Devon Partnership Trust , service provider organisations and across partner agencies, to foster a positive approach to the integrated mental health and wellbeing service and to enable effective negotiation Analytical and Judgemental Skills • Responsibility for Assessment, Judgement and Analysis • Assessment: Responsible for providing a psychological service to a range of people with learning disabilities experiencing a variety of serious psychological disorders and/or presenting behaviours that challenge. Carrying out specialist psychological, psychometric assessments, the preparation of reports and the communication of complex, sensitive and distressing information to people with learning disabilities and carers. To effectively draw on a variety of sources to establish care plans and treatment formulations in the context of much data being unavailable because of the persons inability to express themselves. Treatment may require interventions involving the social and professional network of the person and where expert opinion may vary. To make highly skilled evaluations and decisions about treatment, about the psychological management of peoples difficulties and experiences (including management of risk). • Consultation & guidance: To provide advice, guidance and consultation on psychological aspects of patient care to colleagues, other service providers, patients, supporters and families. Planning and Organisational Skills • The psychology service: To plan and organise the work of the psychology service within the Intensive Assessment and Treatment team, and to contribute to the development and improvement of provision of psychological services for people with learning disabilities to best meet the organisations strategy and priorities. • The multidisciplinary service: To provide psychology leadership to the multi-professional planning, development and marketing of mental health and wellbeing services for people with learning disabilities. • Partnership To work as part of Devon Partnership Trust management structures to contribute to the planning and implementation of service developments. Responsibility for Patient/Client Care, Treatment and Therapy • Responsible for formulating and implementing plans for a range of evidence-based psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families, groups and service delivery systems adjusting and refining psychological formulations, drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses based upon the analysis of each individual case. In addition to demonstrate awareness of diversity issues. • Responsible for providing specialist advice and consultation to other service members on psychological aspects of learning disability and mental health; including appropriate treatment approaches, complex issues of engaging clients and maintaining change, and working with the wider systems which affect clients wellbeing (e.g. family, day services). Responsibility for Policy and Service Development Implementation • The post holder is accountable for their own professional actions, acting within Trust policies and procedures and Professional Practice Guidelines. • Policy & service: To interpret and develop policies and procedures for the provision of psychology and psychological therapy services in the service for people with learning disabilities. Responsibility for Finance, Equipment and Other Resources • To maintain and apply psychometric tests and equipment in order to assess people with learning disabilities and evaluate progress. Responsibility for Human Resources, e.g. Supervision, Training, HR Advice and Management • There is a requirement to support learners on a regular basis which includes the achievement and updating of profession specific training to the required standard to fulfil this role • Leadership & supervision: To lead and professionally supervise psychology staff, trainees and volunteers. • To provide therapy supervision for non-psychology staff providing psychological therapies within the service for people with Learning Disabilities. • To provide psychology leadership in the Intensive Assessment and Treatment team. Responsibility for Information Resources and Administrative Duties • The Post holder will be required to compile clinical reports, maintain accurate records using the appropriate IT system and be responsible for any other administrative tasks e.g. clinical audit reports. • The Post holder is responsible for liaising with other team members and health and social services employees, both in verbal and written form in order to co-ordinate effective and appropriate care for service users Responsibility for Research and Development • To organise the R&D activities of the psychology service, and to undertake a research programme as agreed within the service. • To ensure all psychology staff participate in appropriate audit and evaluation of outcomes of the psychology and psychological therapy services • To carry out research activities applying knowledge of research methodology and to contribute research knowledge and expertise to the research activities of other disciplines as required by the service. • To take responsibility and develop effective means of auditing and evaluating the outcomes of individual work, team activity and clinics within the service. • The post holder will be involved in identifying and implementing service developments which will enhance the treatment opportunities provided to service users and carers, through consultation and collaboration with managers, team members and locality wide facilities. Freedom to Act • The post holder is accountable for their own professional actions, acting within Trust policies and procedures and Professional Practice Guidelines (HCPC). • To work autonomously within clinical professional guidelines and exercise responsibility for the governance of psychological practice within the Devon Partnership Trust Learning Disability Service. • To provide expert and specialist clinical psychologist intervention, expertise and advice guidance and consultation on psychological aspects of patient care to colleagues, patients, other service providers, supporters and families. Any Other Specific Tasks Required • To ensure all clinical care and treatment provided by psychologists is carried out under appropriate supervision and leadership. • To ensure that all relevant staff groups continuously update the skills and techniques relevant to their clinical work.