Principal Clinical or Counselling Psychologist

at  Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Are you a psychologist with an interest in supporting patients with complex long-term medical conditions? Are you keen to use your skills to lead and develop an emerging psychology service in a new field, as part of a friendly, close-knit and supportive MDT?
This is an exciting senior post embedding psychological care within our highly-specialist prosthetic cornea (osteo-odonto-keratoprosthesis, OOKP) service at our main site in City Road, central London. The postholder will assess patients who are suffering from end-stage corneal blindness and are being considered for surgical intervention aimed at restoring meaningful vision. The role also entails consulting with the multidisciplinary team in decision-making, preparation for surgery and post-surgical adjustment and adaptation.
P rofessional supervision and liaison will be provided by an experienced Consultant Clinical Psychologist and Psychology Leadership Network based within the well-respected and established UCLH Clinical Health Psychology Services.
Shortlisted candidates will be asked to give a 10-minute presentation to the interview panel titled: “A holistic approach to OOKP: what can a psychologist offer to the OOKP service to improve clinical outcomes, peer support, staff experience and our knowledge of the psychosocial impact of OOKP?”
This post is one day a week on Thursdays.
The role includes direct psychological consultation at three stages: pre-operative assessment, post-surgical follow-up and long-term follow-up. The psychologist is responsible for the assessment of new patients and provides a specialised service to allow preparation, supporting informed consent, optimisation for surgery and living successfully with OOKP.
The Principal Psychologist is part of a multidisciplinary team formed by ophthalmologists, maxillofacial surgeons, anaesthetists and a specialist nurse and needs to be proactive in liaising with other departments supporting multidisciplinary formulations drawing on a range of psychological knowledge and competencies to allow constant improvement of the service. They are also expected to participate and conduct research relevant to the areas of need served and provide advice to other staff undertaking research.
The Principle Psychologist should be highly skilled and senior Clinical or Counselling Psychologist with experience of working in various clinical health psychology services (across in-patient and out-patient settings) who can develop this relatively new psychology service.
Applicants with evidence of multidisciplinary consultancy experience, service development, staff team supervision and training and very strong clinical skills are particularly encouraged to apply
At Moorfields, we provide more than just an excellent career and great colleagues to work with. We also offer:
Salary including High-Cost Area Supplement
Opportunity to join the NHS Pension Scheme
Free 24/7 independent counselling service
Learning and development opportunities
Easy and quick transport links
A range of attractive benefits and discounts
Access to Blue Light Card and other NHS Discount Schemes
Free Pilates classes
Full support and training to develop your skills
Flexible working friendly organisation
And so much more! To see the full range of benefits we offer please see our Moorfields benefits document.
The postholder will offer high-quality, psychologically-informed care across the OOKP services and may also have the opportunity to advise on the development of other relevant psychology services within Moorfields.
To carry out specialist psychological assessments of patients referred to the OOKP service, based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex psychological data from a variety of sources including psychological and neuropsychological tests, self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews with patients, family members and others involved in the patient’s care, in order to reach a psychological formulation of the patient’s difficulties.
To be responsible for holding and managing a clinical caseload and to exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the planning and prioritising of own workload and the assessment, treatment and discharge of patients, within the bounds of the service operational policy.
To be responsible for implementing a range of psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups drawing on different psychological and explanatory models
To formulate and implement plans for evidence based psychological treatment and/or management of a patient’s mental health problems, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of the patient’s problems.
To evaluate and make complex decisions about treatment options taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes that have shaped the individual, family or group.
To undertake complex risk assessments and risk management for individual patients. To provide advice to other professions on psychological aspects of risk assessment and risk management.
To facilitate a patient peer group, including overseeing governance and pragmatic issues and supporting patients in the running and use of this group.
To provide consultation, mentorship, supervision and advice about psychological issues at a high level of professional expertise to other members of the team/service.
To provide specialist psychological advice, consultation, training and clinical supervision to other professionals in order to develop a psychological understanding on the basis of which to plan, implement and evaluate evidence based interventions for patients with complex needs.
To communicate effectively in writing and orally complex, highly technical and/or clinically sensitive information to patients, their families, carers and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS.
Teaching, Training and Supervision
To receive and provide regular clinical supervision.
To maintain an up-to-date knowledge of legislation, policy and developments in the provision of services relevant to the Clinical population.
To keep abreast of developments in the relevant professional area of expertise and pursue further training within resources available.
Provide expert advice, consultation, training and clinical supervision to other members of the service.
To provide pre- and post-qualification teaching of applied psychology and psychological therapy, as appropriate

Please refer the Job description for details