Job summary
The Wiltshire Talking Therapies service offers support to clients who may be experiencing common mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety, stress and low mood, offering evidence based treatments based on the difficulties the patient is experiencing.
An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Senior Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner (Snr PWP). This post is open to qualified and experienced PWPs who have completed low intensity supervision training.
You will work as a key member of the senior PWP team to provide Case Management Supervision, Clinical Skills Supervision and Line Management to Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners, Trainees and Assistants.
We are currently operating a hybrid working arrangement, where you will be based at either Green Lane Hospital, Devizes or Fountain Way Hospital, Salisbury combined with opportunities for remote working from home.
Main duties of the job
The post-holder will work within the Wiltshire Talking Therapies service to provide high-volume, low-intensity Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) based self-management interventions to support clients presenting to the service with mild to moderate common mental health problems.
The post holder will provide Case Management Supervision, Clinical Skills Supervision and Line Management to Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners, Trainee Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners and Assistant Psychological Wellbeing Practitioners under the direction of the Lead Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner and Head of Service.
About us
We are a friendly and supportive team with a strong focus on staff wellbeing. We often run fun team activities such as a recent walking challenge, a pumpkin carving competition and a vegetable growing contest.
We have excellent opportunities for staff development and also offer opportunities to get involved in specialist areas of interest as a "champion". Current topics covered include support for younger people, equality, diversity & inclusion, service user involvement, staff wellbeing, and several others.
We are AWP (Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust)a diverse organisation with over 5,000 dedicated staff providing inpatient and community-based mental health care.
We provide services from a range of locations to approximately million people living in Bath and North East Somerset (B&NES), Bristol, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Swindon, across the county of Wiltshire and in parts of Dorset.
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.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Clinical
1. To offer assessment and referral advice, informed by knowledge of service provision, the spectrum of mental health needs and presenting risk factors.
2. Provide low-intensity interventions psychoeducational courses/workshops, computerised CBT and one-to-one guided self-help using telephone, video conferencing and face-to-face formats.
3. To maintain the relevant Professional Registration required for the post.
4. Provide a service that is comprehensive and accessible to a broad range of patients who are experiencing mild to moderate common mental health problems, who are over 16 years of age and registered with a GP Practice/Health Centre in the Wiltshire area.
5. To provide a service that is equitable and non-discriminatory in terms of age, gender, ethnicity and disability.
6. To support GPs and other Health Care Professionals to make decisions regarding appropriateness of patients for primary care Talking Therapies interventions and in carrying out the mental health aspects of their own roles.
7. To make appropriate referrals to other service providers in the statutory and voluntary sectors and redirect patients to others sources of appropriate support within the local community as required.
8. To develop a local knowledge of the locality and its services and facilities, particular in relation to mental health issues.
9. To educate and involve family members and others in treatment as necessary, conveying Low Intensity CBT formulations with sensitivity in easily understood language.
10. To liaise as appropriate with secondary care mental health services and social service departments.
11. To conduct risk assessments, prepare risk management plans and initiate appropriate action where indicated.
12. To be flexible in terms of clinical hours, enabling at least one clinic to be run outside of normal working hours.
13. To participate in the services Duty system offering support and guidance to practitioners, administrators, other professionals and to clients and their families as required.
14. To take a lead on the development, planning and promotion of courses/workshops, teaching new and existing staff members in facilitating these courses/workshops as required.
15. To take a lead on the computerised CBT offering within the service ensuring patients are being referred to and entering this therapy in a timely manner, supporting and training practitioners in the effective delivery of digitally enabled therapy.
16. To take a lead in the recruitment, induction, planning, ongoing supervision and management of Trainee PWPs, supporting trainees as they progress through their training enabling them to gain their qualification, and as they transition into Qualified PWP positions.
17. To work proactively with Senior PWP colleagues towards shared objectives, ensuring the constant effective functioning of CBT and group interventions, and the supervision and training of practitioners.
Supervision and Training
18. To undertake appropriate clinical supervision on a regular basis on accordance with the relevant professional guidelines and policies.
19. To provide Step 2 case management and clinical skills supervision.
20. To contribute to the planning and facilitation of internal training to the wider service.
21. To offer training about the service and its offerings to other local services
22. To attend internal and external (local and national) training as appropriate to the role.
Professional
23. To adhere to an agreed activity contract relating to the number of client contacts offered in order to minimise waiting times and ensure treatment delivery remains accessible and convenient.
24. To develop an area of interest, to the level whereby the post-holder could become a resource of information for the whole service.
25. To maintain appropriate clinical records in keeping with service operational policy.
26. To participate in setting and reviewing personal professional objectives on an annual basis, performance reviews and response to agreed objectives.
27. To participate in activities of Continued Professional Development on an annual basis
28. To attend professional meetings as appropriate.
29. To ensure that client confidentially is protected at all times.
30. To co-ordinate and liaise between different staff groups within the team.
31. To exercise personal responsibility for the systematic clinical governance of your own professional practice.
32. To pro-actively take responsibility for attending case management, clinical skills and line management supervisions.
33. To be aware of and comply with the policies, procedures and standards of service within the service.
34. To promote and contribute to the development and maintenance of a healthy therapeutic culture within the service amongst colleagues and Service Users.
Management
35. To provide line management for Qualified PWPs, Trainee PWPs or Assistant PWPs.
36. To ensure that line managed staff maintain appropriate clinical records and outcome data in keeping with service operational policy.
37. To ensure that line managed staff participate in setting and reviewing objectives on an annual basis.
38. To ensure that line managed staff participate in activities of Continued Professional Development on an annual basis.
39. To ensure that line managed staff maintain Professional Registration required for their post.
40. To participate in audits of clinical activity and evaluative research as required.
41. To manage an aspect of the service at the level of direct service delivery. This might include one or more (depending on available time) of: keeping a central resource file of clinical resources for general use, acting as the key liaison with an identified group of professionals/organisations.
42. To support Senior PWP colleagues, Lead PWP, the Senior Management Team and Clinical Lead to ensure the effective operation of the service.
Communication and Working Relationships
43. Staff within the Wiltshire Talking Therapies Service
44. GPs and other Primary Care teams
45. Other AWP mental health teams including but not limited to: Safeguarding, Primary Care Liaison Service, Community Mental Health Team, Intensive Service, Early Intervention, Perinatal Mental Health Team
46. Community and Council teams
47. Third sector organisations
48. To provide and receive information related to mental health and CBT to individual or groups of services users, relatives, carers, members of the public and professionals.
49. To develop and maintain close professional therapeutic relationships with Service Users using Low Intensity CBT skills to bring about psychological change.
50. To communicate as appropriate with external agencies (including housing, police, local authority, employers, employment support workers etc.).
51. To proactively develop robust professional relationships with the Primary Care team supporting the active integration of Talking Therapies modality provision into primary care.
52. To develop and maintain good professional relationships with mental health workers in primary and secondary care.
Most Challenging Part of This Role
53. To make an active contribution to pursue the aims, objectives and overall strategy of the Wiltshire Talking Therapies Service thereby contributing to the development of clinical services provided within the organisation.
54. Frequent exposure to distressing or emotional circumstances arising from therapeutic contact with Service Users (including relatives and carers) requiring emotional engagement with the material discussed, the delivery of a therapeutic response within professional boundaries and the emotional self-regulation by the therapist.
55. Supporting the Low Intensity workforce to provide good quality, outcome-based, effective care and building good working relationships when the team are working across the locality.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
56. Talking Therapies Low Intensity CBT Therapies Practice/Psychological Wellbeing Practitioner qualification
57. Recognised training in Low Intensity Supervision
Desirable
58. Recognised training in adapting Low Intensity interventions to those with Long-Term Health Conditions or Medically Unexplained Symptoms.
Knowledge
Essential
59. Knowledge and understanding of how common mental health problems may present in primary care
60. Knowledge and understanding of the Stepped-Care model and evidence-based brief psychological intervention
Desirable
61. Knowledge of the Talking Therapies Positive Practice Guides and ability to adapt care to meet diverse need
62. Knowledge of national strategies and priorities for Talking Therapies, the NHS and mental health care
Skills
Essential
63. Able to work under pressure, manage competing demands, deal effectively with a high volume caseload and recognise the limitations of the role
64. Possess high levels of enthusiasm, motivation and a strong desire to contribute to service improvement
Experience
Essential
65. Evidence of significant, consolidated, reflective and supervised post-qualifying experience working with people with common mental health problems
66. Experience of developing, updating and facilitating CBT-based psycho-educational courses and computerised interventions
Desirable
67. Experience working in a service with agreed targets in place to demonstrate clinical outcomes