Specialist CAMHS Practitioner Psychologist

at  Barnet Enfield Haringey Mental Health NHS Trust

MAIN TASKS, DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES Clinical: To provide specialist psychological assessments of clients referred to the team based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex 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 clients, family members and others involved in the clients care To plan and implement formal psychological treatment and/or management of a clients mental health problems, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of the clients problems, and employing methods of proven efficacy To implement a range of psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups, adjusting and refining psychological formulations drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models and complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes that have shaped the individual, family or group. To be responsible and accountable for the assessment, treatment and discharge of clients whose problems are managed by psychologically based standard care plans. To provide specialist psychological advice, guidance and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to clients formulation, diagnosis and treatment plan. To contribute directly and indirectly to a psychologically based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all children and young people of the service, across all settings and agencies serving children and young people with learning disabilities and mental health problems / challenging behaviour.
To undertake risk assessment and risk management for individual clients and to provide advice to other professions on psychological aspects of risk assessment and risk management. To act as care coordinator, where no other team member is involved, taking responsibility for initiating planning and review of care plans including clients, their carers, referring agents and others involved the network of care. To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of clients under their care and to monitor progress during the course of both uni- and multi-disciplinary care. To maintain the highest standards of clinical record keeping including electronic data entry and recording, report writing and the responsible exercise of professional self-governance in accordance with professional codes of practice of the BPS and Trust policies and procedures To take part in the duty rota for emergency assessments as agreed with the team manager.
Teaching, training, and supervision 1. To receive regular clinical and professional supervision from a senior psychologist and, where appropriate, other senior professional colleagues. To gain additional highly specialist experience and skills relevant to clinical, counselling or educational psychology and the service as agreed with the professional psychology supervisor and in collaboration with the team manager. To develop skills in the area of professional post-graduate teaching, training and supervision and to provide supervision to other MDT staffs psychological work as appropriate.
To provide professional and clinical supervision of trainee and assistant psychologists. To provide advice, consultation and clinical supervision to other members of the treating team in the provision of psychologically based interventions to help improve client functioning. To contribute to the pre- and post-qualification teaching of clinical, counselling or educational psychology, as appropriate. To provide advice, consultation and training to staff working with the client group across a range of agencies and settings, where appropriate.
Management, recruitment, policy and service development To advise both service and professional management on those aspects of the service where psychological and/or organisational matters need addressing. To contribute to the development, evaluation and monitoring of the teams operational policies and services, through the deployment of professional skills in research, service valuation and audit. To manage the workloads of junior psychologists, assistant and trainee psychologists, within the framework of the team/services policies and procedures. To be involved, as appropriate, in the short listing and interviewing of assistant / graduate psychologists and other junior staff members.
Research and service evaluation To contribute to the development, evaluation and monitoring of the teams operational policies and services and participate in the development of high quality, responsive and accessible services. To utilise theory, evidence-based literature and research to support evidence-based and evidence-informed practice in individual work and work with other team members. To undertake appropriate research and provide research advice to other staff undertaking research as appropriate to own level of experience and within agreed service objectives. To undertake project management, including complex audit and service evaluation, with colleagues using research methodology to address a clinical question or improve services.
Information Management To use computers to write reports and record data, including the use of statistical packages as part of the psychological testing, research and assessment when needed. To be able to use research databases and advanced tools for analysis at both quantitative and qualitative levels. General and Professional To contribute to the development and maintenance of the highest professional standards of practice, through active participation in internal and external CPD training and development programmes, in consultation with the post holders professional and service manager(s). To contribute to the development and articulation of best practice in psychology across the service, by continuing to develop the skills of a reflexive and reflective scientist practitioner, taking part in regular professional supervision and appraisal and maintaining an active engagement with current developments in the field of clinical, counselling, educational psychology and related disciplines.
To maintain up to date knowledge of legislation, national and local policies and issues in relation to both the specific client group and mental health. To maintain the highest standards of clinical record keeping including electronic data entry and recording, report writing and the responsible exercise of professional self governance in accordance with professional codes of practice of the British Psychological Society and Trust policies and procedures

Please refer the Job description for details