Job overview
Are you a nurse interested in supporting children, young people and their families who are experiencing mental health difficulties or neurodivergence? Would you like to further your career within CAMHS?
If so, we have an opportunity for you!
The Single Point of Access serves as the "front door" to Buckinghamshire CAMHS. We are a team of nurturing, experienced clinicians and support staff who are passionate about providing equitable access to mental health care, early intervention and staff development.
The team works to screen and triage new referrals into Buckinghamshire CAMHS, and make decisions on care for these children. We also provide advice, guidance and consultation to young people and their families, healthcare professionals and schools, as well as deliver training on mental health care.
Main duties of the job
As a Senior Mental Health Practitioner in SPA, you will screen and triage referrals and other contacts into SPA, and provide expert advice and guidance, onward referrals and signposting.
You will also act as shift lead, coordinating SPA staff on a shift to ensure that risk is managed and cases are triaged effectively. You will gain valuable skills in clinical leadership.
You will also have the chance to be involved in the delivery of accredited training to external professionals in schools and from the local authority, by attending a 3 day train-the-trainer programme delivered by the University of Reading.
You will receive individualised support as a clinician and professional to enable you to grow as a valued member of our team. All staff receive management, clinical (where appropriate) and safeguarding supervision as standard.
Within SPA, we have regular reflective practice and opportunities to share learning. We also have a Bucks CAMHS Nurse's forum, and SPA Peer Supervision, for you to share knowledge and discuss current topics.
The role is based at the Sue Nichols Centre, with some scope for home working.
Working for our organisation
Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust provides physical, mental health and social care for people of all ages across Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Swindon, Wiltshire, Bath and North East Somerset.
Our services are delivered at community bases, hospitals, clinics and people’s homes, delivering care as close to home as possible
Our vision is that no matter who you are or where you are, you will tell us that you receive: “Outstanding care delivered by an outstanding team”
Our values are: “Caring, safe and excellent”
At Oxford Health we offer a wide range of benefits designed to support your career and wellbeing. These include:
1. Excellent opportunities for career progression
2. Access to tailored individual and Trust wide learning and development
3. 27 days annual leave, plus bank holidays, rising to 33 days with continuous service
4. NHS Discount across a wide range of shops, restaurants and retailers
5. Competitive pension scheme
6. Lease car scheme
7. Cycle to work scheme
8. Employee Assistance Programme
9. Mental Health First Aiders
10. Staff accommodation (please note waiting lists may apply)
11. Staff networking and support groups hosted by our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion team
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
You will screen and triage referrals, mostly by phone contact, with the intention of providing expert advice, support and onward referral/signposting to young people and their families.
You will work closely with the multi-disciplinary team to support children who present with complex and wide ranging symptoms.
You will provide leadership to the rest of the SPA team as shift coordinator as allocated on the SPA rota.
You will be involved in liaising with external agencies, such as school, local authority, GPs and other healthcare professionals for both the care and support of individuals who have been referred into CAMHS, and to provide training, advice and guidance.
You will support the SPA Operational and Clinical Leads in the delivery of the service, ensuring it meets national guidance and local key performance indicators, as well as engaging in audit and research relevant to the service and your role.
Person specification
Education and Training
Essential criteria
12. Registered Nurse
13. Evidence of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) portfolio
Desirable criteria
14. Qualification in Mental Health or Neurodiversity
Experience
Essential criteria
15. Previous mental health experience
Desirable criteria
16. Previous CAMHS experience
17. Previous leadership experience
Skills
Essential criteria
18. Ability to assess client need; mental health, social, health
19. Understanding of evidence based practice
Desirable criteria
20. Understanding of principles and methods of clinical audit, research and service evaluation
21. All new starters have a thorough induction process, both local and Trust wide, which aims to create a positive supportive working environment allowing new employees to learn key elements of their role over a reasonable timescale.
22. Appointment to this post is subject to the trust receiving satisfactory references covering 3 years of employment or study. Please ask your referees to respond promptly to reference requests.
23. Employees are expected to undertake mandatory and statutory training related to their role.
24. We are ambitious in our pursuit of excellence, driven by the belief that a fair, just and fully inclusive organisational culture enables our teams to deliver the best quality of care and services possible and we work hard to ensure that our diverse workforce reflects the communities that we serve.
25. We welcome applications from all sections of the community, are an Equal Opportunities employer with a number of internal networking groups to support our employees and where possible will always look to make reasonable adjustments in order that you can fulfil the role to recognise your full potential. All our employees are committed to demonstrating through their behaviour our core values – safe, caring and excellent.
26. Oxford Health is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, we expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.
27. Oxford is a world-renowned centre of excellence for research. Oxford Health works closely with the University of Oxford department of Psychiatry and the Department of Primary care, has a Biomedical Research Centre dedicated to improving mental health and the NIHR Clinical Research Facility at the Warneford site. The Trust also hosts the NIHR Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) which carries out applied research that directly impacts patient health and wellbeing