We are seeking to recruit a B6 Senior Mental Health Practitioner working with the Acute Care Pathway within Livewell Southwest.
Liaison Psychiatry operates as an urgent and emergency mental health service within Derriford Hospital. This specialised service provides mental health care in conjunction with physical health treatment, supporting hospital clinicians in assessing and managing mental health concerns for patients receiving care at the hospital.
All Livewell staff are expected to be able and willing to work across a 7-day service.
You will serve as shift lead on a rota basis, coordinating service delivery, prioritising workload, and providing clinical advice to junior staff.
You will also consult with other services, participate in a multi-agency forum and risk management, and contribute to training and supervision.
Additionally, you will chair Risk Management and Professionals meetings as needed and will have access to support from an experienced multi-disciplinary team.
You will help develop training programs for staff and the local induction program, including student mentoring.
Please note that this role may not be eligible for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker route.
Please note that Livewell may close the job advertisement earlier than the specified deadline if a high number of applications are submitted. Therefore, we recommend you submit your application at the earliest opportunity.
Main duties of the job
Senior Mental Health Practitioners are responsible for conducting brief clinical risk assessments and mental health evaluations, formulating care and safety plans, making informed decisions, and developing short-term contingency strategies for individuals experiencing mental health crises.
Operating within community settings, as well as Livewell and hospital sites, Senior Mental Health Practitioners conduct face-to-face assessments and collaborate closely with other mental health services and agencies, including Police, Ambulatory services, and local authorities.
Through a variety of brief, solution-focused interventions, Senior Mental Health Practitioners empower patients, their families, and caregivers in the decision-making process, directing them to a spectrum of health and social care resources for additional support.
Collaboration with representatives from various agencies (e.g., Police, Paramedics) is an integral part of the role, especially during out of normal office hours shifts, to provide acute assessment and assistance for individuals experiencing mental health crises in both hospital settings and in the community.
Key attributes for this role include substantive experience working in mental health acute work, professionalism, assertiveness, experience in patient advocacy, and a sound understanding of how physical health conditions influence mental well-being.
About us
Livewell Southwest is an independent, award-winning social enterprise delivering integrated health and social care services across Plymouth, South Hams, and West Devon, with specialist services in parts of Devon and Cornwall. Our teams work in community hospitals, GP practices, sports centres, and health hubs.
As an organisation with a strong social conscience, we are guided by our values: kindness, respect, inclusivity, ambition, responsibility, and collaboration. We focus on transforming services to ensure sustainability while empowering staff and those we serve.
We involve the people we care for, along with their families and carers, in shaping the care they receive, striving to deliver the right care at the right time and place. Centering our work on individual needs helps people lead healthy, independent lives.
We prioritise employees' development, offering protected CPD time, training pathways, leadership programs, and funding for qualifications like the Care Certificate and Nurse Training Scholarships. Our induction and preceptorship programs ensure a smooth transition into our organisation.
Livewell Southwest values diversity and encourages applications from all sections of the community, including those with armed forces experience, lived experience of mental health, neuro-diverse conditions, and learning disabilities.
Job responsibilities
As a member of the Liaison Psychiatry Team, you will be assessing patients who are referred from the Emergency Department and ward areas within the acute general hospital.
The specialist function of the team is to provide bio-psychosocial assessments for individuals aged 18 years and above within the Derriford Hospital footprint, either attending via the Emergency Department or being an in-patient within the hospital. Patients seen may present with mental health difficulties, e.g., psychiatric crisis or an organic presentation such as dementia/delirium.
You will be able to make clear clinical decisions based on the analysis of often complex, presenting problems. This can include being the decision maker in terms of discharge of patients experiencing mental health needs. You will be required at times to make clear autonomous decisions based on analysis of complex presenting problems and clinical judgement.
You will be able to demonstrate a high level of communication skills in terms of use of verbal, electronic, and written formats.
You will be required to engage with patients who can be challenging and/or acutely distressed.
You will have freedom to act as a lone worker. Some autonomous working is expected.
The Liaison Psychiatry Service sustains Core 24 compliance.
The operational hours of this service are currently 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, with different shift patterns to cover the service delivery. Post holders will be expected to participate in the shift patterns over a 7-day period, including weekends and bank holidays.
You will serve as shift lead on a rota basis, coordinating service delivery, prioritising workload, and providing clinical advice to junior staff.
You will also consult with other services, participate in a multi-agency forum and risk management, and contribute to training and supervision.
Additionally, you will chair Risk Management and Professionals meetings as needed and will have access to support from an experienced multi-disciplinary team.
You will help develop training programs for staff and the local induction program, including student mentoring.
You will lead investigations for complaints, complex cases, and internal reviews, with management support as required.
Please see the full job description within the supporting documents section.
Person Specification
Experience
* 18 months + recent experience as a Band 5 Nurse or AHP equivalent either working with older adults or within dementia/complex care environments or with functional mental health issues.
* Ability to demonstrate transferable skills.
* Either experience of working with older adults with Depression and older adults with dementia.
* Or experience of working with adults with functional mental health problems.
* Suitable Candidates will show a clear willingness to develop skills in the areas of both functional mental health problems and older peoples/complex care mental health needs.
* Previous experience of working in a community mental health setting.
* Evidence of developing and contributing to service development.
* Experience of change in health care.
Knowledge and Skills
* Up to date knowledge of current practice with emphasis on Liaison Psychiatry.
* Evidence of post-registration development.
* Understanding about how a person's physical health can affect their mental state.
* Specialist knowledge of mental disorders and their impact on physical health.
* Understanding of National guidelines and initiatives related to provision of mental health services in an acute general hospital.
* Understanding of services and their role in the provision of mental health care in the community.
* General understanding of Continuing Healthcare and the assessment process for this.
* Sound working knowledge of Mental Health Act (1983), Mental Capacity Act and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards (2005).
* Protection of Vulnerable Adults Policies and Procedures.
* Time management.
* Ability to manage environmental stress.
* Ability to work in a changing team.
* Articulate with a high level of communication skills.
* Ability to deal with high levels of emotional stress.
* Ability to sustain high levels of concentration.
* Motivated and committed to developing new ideas and improving patient care.
* Ability to function as an autonomous practitioner.
* Autonomous practitioner with ability to work unsupervised.
* Facilitative and Influencing skills.
* Flexible and adaptable.
* Tact, diplomacy and self-confidence.
* Ability to meet deadlines.
* Ability to prioritise and reprioritise work to meet clinical demand.
* Cognitive Behaviour Therapy skills.
* Solution focused therapy skills.
* Physical healthcare skills.
* Motivational interviewing skills.
* Experience of working in both acute mental health and in complex care and dementia care.
Qualifications
* Registered Mental Health Nurse/Registered General Nurse or Allied Health Professional such as Physiotherapist, Social Worker or Occupational Therapist (on relevant register e.g. NMC or HCPC).
* Mentorship qualification or equivalent experience.
* Post qualification experience/training in mental health and related issues.
* Teaching Qualification.
* Non Medical Prescribing.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Full-time, Part-time, Job share, Flexible working
#J-18808-Ljbffr