An exciting opportunity is now available in Mental Health inpatient care of older adults. Over the last 12 months, the OT service has had a complete overhaul with the implementation of a band 7 manager and expansion of the OT team.
This is a unique role which provides the opportunity to work on functional and organic older adult wards. The OT service follows the VdtMOCA model and is now exploring specialist strands within this, including designing a sensory room.
Our current team consists of OT assistants, preceptor OTs, band 6 OTs, and Zoe Tippetts, the manager. We work closely together delivering OT provision across 4 wards. The team has regular CPD sessions, team meetings, and service development reviews.
We welcome all Occupational Therapists who have a keen interest in Mental Health and Dementia to apply for the job role. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch; we would welcome visits to meet the team and discuss the role further. We look forward to you joining our team.
You will work within the OT team to coordinate and support the day-to-day running of the OT service. You will supervise other OT staff and students. There will be an opportunity to develop within a specialty and progress your career journey in Occupational Therapy.
Within this post, you will complete comprehensive OT assessments to support independence, engagement in meaningful occupations, and discharge planning. This is carried out through 1:1 assessments, group sessions, and MDT work.
We believe that delivering person-focused care is central to helping our patients improve their mental health, recover independence, and return to their community. Our staff are pivotal to everything we do, and we are committed to involving them fully in the development of our services.
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.
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.
Clinical Practice
To provide high-quality, evidence-based occupational therapy assessments & interventions, treatment planning, and continued patient-centred care. We aim to enable service users to achieve their maximum level of function and independence in preparation for discharge.
This will include:
1. Undertaking comprehensive, person-centred OT assessment and interventions.
2. Preparing and implementing treatment plans and rehab programmes in consultation with the service users.
3. Reviewing the effectiveness of therapy provided in partnership with service users.
4. Ability to implement research-based practice.
5. Provide leadership and guidance to registered and non-registered staff and students.
6. Ability to undertake risk assessment and develop risk management strategies for individual service users, groups, and a variety of activities.
7. Have an understanding of the relevant mental health legislation and be able to apply it within practice.
8. To be able to provide advice on lifestyle changes and adaptations to the service users' social and physical environment.
Communications and Working Relationships
Establish and maintain effective therapeutic relationships with a client group that can be challenging due to their mental health issues, e.g., dementia or acute psychosis.
Establish and maintain effective exchanges of clinical information between relevant parties that may include MDT, carers, families, partner organisations, or voluntary third sector organisations.
To be responsible for communicating sensitive or complex information concerning service users to family and others involved in their care.
Provide professional advice and consultancy to the team manager, multi-professional team members, carers, and other services.
Be aware of Trust developments through the use of intranet and email.
Education and Health Promotion
To use skills, knowledge, and resources to provide learning opportunities for staff and promote positive attitudes towards mental health. This will include:
1. Providing clinical supervision through 1:1 and group-based for registered and unregistered staff.
2. Continued support of OT students on practice placements within the Trust.
3. Providing a positive learning environment for students, OT staff, and the wider MDT.
4. There will be opportunities for CPD development and training relevant to the role.
Continuing Professional Development Objective
To maintain and develop professional knowledge, skills, and expertise to ensure that therapy reflects best practice and remains evidence-based, ensuring it is current and responsive to meet service needs and NHS needs to include:
1. Abide by the Code of Ethics and professional conduct for Occupational Therapists and HCPC standards.
2. To take responsibility for post-registration education and for continuing professional development as outlined in HCPC standards.
3. To provide and receive clinical/professional supervision in accordance with Trust supervision policy.
Most challenging part of this role
Working with and motivating a patient group whose mental health problems can be challenging and emotionally draining for staff. Work with distressed, anxious, and aggressive service users and carers. Also, dealing with emotional situations when the person may have barriers to their understanding.
Maintaining links with other Occupational Therapists in a geographically widespread Trust.
Promoting the responsibilities and duties of an OT within an acute mental health setting.
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