Band 5 Drug and Alcohol Practitioner -14 St James' Parade, Bath

at  Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust

We would love to hear from applicants interested in working as part of a thriving multi-disciplinary team, in a busy and varied work place to meet the needs of people who use drugs and alcohol.
Whilst experience of working with this client group is desirable we are also keen to hear from newly qualified nurses or more experienced clinicians looking for a change in setting. We are a supportive and nurturing team and can provide an opportunity to develop skills and experience in what is an incredibly rewarding role.
We are looking for a registered nurse to work as part of the Specialised Drug and Alcohol Service in B&NES, supporting a caseload of complex needs service users with their drug and alcohol use. This will include service users on Opioid Substitution Therapy (OST), those requiring medically assisted detoxification from alcohol and well as people using other non-opiate drugs such as Cannabis, Spice and Ketamine.
We are looking for a registered health professional with a passion for supporting people with drug and alcohol problems. The ideal candidate will have experience of working with patients facing social exclusion and of co-ordinating holistic packages of care that ensure all needs are met.
The post holder will be responsible for case management, psychosocial interventions and brokering a package of support that makes use of the wider offer both within and outside of the drug treatment service to ensure service user needs are met.
AWP has partnered with Developing Health and Independence (DHI) to provide community drug and alcohol treatment in Bath and North East Somerset (B&NES). The B&NES Drug and Alcohol Service provides a wide range of interventions to adults who use drugs and alcohol including needle and syringe programmes, blood borne virus screening and vaccination, advice and information, assessment, pharmacological interventions and psychosocial support including group work, mutual aid, 121 key working and counselling.
Good interpersonal skills and the ability to build trust and rapport with service users is essential as is the ability to work as part of a multi disciplinary team.
Good record keeping and administrative skills are also a must.
At AWP we actively encourage applicants from all backgrounds; we are particularly keen to encourage applications from people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, those with disabilities and from the LGBTQ+ community. We want people to bring their unique blend of experiences, backgrounds, perspectives and knowledge to AWP, as diversity makes us stronger.
AWP provides the Complex Need Team which specialises in working with service users facing multiple barriers to accessing services. The Complex Needs team consists of a Consultant Addictions Psychiatrist, a Clinical Psychologist, Independent Non-Medical Prescribers, Community Psychiatric Nurses and General Nurses.
Many of our clients have had traumatic pasts and so present with an array of complex issues and are using drugs and alcohol (along with other maladaptive coping strategies) as a means to manage their distress. Many are motivated to access support that will help them to understand the role trauma may has played in their feelings and behaviours and are keen to learn other ways of managing their distress.
The post holder will be responsible for managing a caseload of drug and alcohol users. Assessment, support planning risk assessment, safeguarding and the delivery of psychosocial interventions will be key tasks on a daily basis. This post sits within a multi disciplinary team consisting of psychiatry, psychology and nursing staff. The MDT approach is central to the management of the team caseload and the post holder will be expected to contribute collaboratively within this environment.
Please see attached job description for further details

Please refer the Job description for details