Job Summary:
The Westminster Older Adults and Health Ageing Community Mental Health Team is a dynamic and integrated multidisciplinary service providing mental health and social care support to older adults in Westminster with functional disorders and dementia. It is co-located with the Westminster City Council mental health team, offering a holistic approach to care. The team is also involved in the CNWL Open Dialogue project, which promotes person-centred recovery-oriented care.
The team operates using a case management and recovery-focused model, offering multidisciplinary assessments and interventions for service users with complex needs, as well as their families and carers. Regular multidisciplinary meetings facilitate case discussions, initial assessments, and reflective practice. A key feature of the service is the integrated older adults home treatment team, which delivers intensive support, crisis management, admission prevention, and helps ensure timely hospital discharges. The CMHT and HTT teams collaborate closely, offering a responsive and flexible service to meet the needs of service users. Coordination with older adults' inpatient services allows smooth transitions of care.
The service promotes a friendly, respectful work environment where staff receive professional development, including supervision and appraisals. Involvement of service users and carers is a core element of the service's design and delivery.
Main Duties of the Job:
The successful applicant may have contact with patients or service users. As an NHS Trust we strongly encourage and support vaccination as this remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course patients and service users when working on our healthcare settings.
The postholder will provide older adults clinical leadership as part of the management team. Additionally, the role would focus on developing transformation agenda, integration and primary care pathways. The role would provide an exciting development opportunity for staff to interface across primary care and secondary care, and deliver more holistic and joined up care for older adults with multiple complex co-morbidities including frailty, functional mental health needs and/or dementia. It would also involve providing specialist advice, assessment and formulation and delivery of brief interventions for older adults with complex mental health conditions and dementia, who may be new or known previously to secondary care mental health services.
Developing clinical pathways across the mental health older adults, including clinical practice and standards, as well as supporting with organisational development and quality improvement strategies. Furthermore, the role would involve supporting workforce development, particularly community mental health nursing and allied mental health professionals ensuring that staff develop the skills and strategies required for their roles.
About Us:
* Flexible shift working opportunities for a healthier work-life balance
* Commitment from the team to develop you by offering coaching and in-house development sessions such as Leadership programmes, non-medical prescribing, CBT-P training and much more
* Free access to our Staff and Wellbeing service to ensure that you are always looking after yourself
* Commitment to career mapping to ensure continuous professional development including opportunities within the Trust
* Shadowing opportunities including HTT, Psych Liaison and many more
* Local Reflective Practice forums run by one of the senior leads
* An opportunity to work with a friendly, dynamic, passionate and diverse team who are committed to looking after each other as well as their patients
* Excellent staff benefits: our benefit packages are amongst the best in London and include: childcare vouchers, health and wellbeing services, season ticket loans, cycle to work scheme, blue light card, discounts at Nando's and Superdrug, mobile phone contracts and much more!
* Award-winning Staff Networks
* Hidden Gem & annual award ceremonies
Date Posted: 10 February 2025
Pay Scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 7
Salary: £54,320 to £60,981 a year p.a inc HCAS
Contract: Fixed term
Duration: 12 months
Working Pattern: Full-time
Reference Number: 333-J-WE-0739
Job Locations:
Westminster Older Adults CMHT
190 Vauxhall Bridge Road
Westminster, London
SW1V 1DX
Job Responsibilities:
Overview of Main Responsibilities:
* To provide the clinical lead for staff within the service.
* To assist the team manager in developing a model of working with service users with complex needs, ensuring that services are provided to the highest possible standard.
* To deputise for the team manager as needed.
* Participate in and lead meetings as appropriate.
* The postholder would be expected to show demonstrable experience of working with older adults/ those with complex physical and MH needs including functional and organic illness, an ability to work flexibly and collaboratively across local environments and strong interpersonal skills.
* The postholder will be expected to have well developed clinical skills of their own in order to enable them to practice at a high standard, appropriately guide and supervise staff at all levels.
* To manage a caseload as needed, including providing access and/or deliver a broad range of psychosocial interventions for individual patients, carry out robust risk assessments and care planning.
* To provide expert advice and consultation in professional matters relating to the postholder's discipline, and to ensure that expert information and advice is available for the other disciplines in the team.
* To work within the relevant legislative frameworks (e.g. Mental Health Act (1983), Mental Capacity Act (2005), Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards, Care Act 2014 etc).
* To ensure that the team works within the relevant frameworks and policies for safeguarding vulnerable adults.
* To ensure that services within the multidisciplinary team are well co-ordinated in order they are responsive and attuned to the needs of service users, carers and families.
* To demonstrate a high level of clinical competence both in relation to supervision of staff and direct face to face contact with service users.
* To ensure that the service works in co-ordination with other Community and Acute In-Patient services.
* To ensure effective liaison with other relevant agencies.
* To maintain and develop administrative procedures regarding the recording of case records.
* To ensure that service users are involved in the development of the team and local services.
Communication and Working Relationships:
* To work in partnership with all disciplines including medical staff, occupational therapy, support worker and social work workforce of Westminster City Council.
* To work actively in partnership with service users and carers.
* To engage directly with service users to ensure effective consultation regarding service standards and development.
* To facilitate and enhance good team working and promote reflective practice.
* To ensure the team maintains close liaison with all local agencies that support service users, including the Metropolitan Police Service, primary care and voluntary sector organisations.
* To spend sustained amounts of time with service users whose behaviour may be aggressive and hostile, who may have poor verbal communication skills and self-care and special physical and/or mental needs.
* To be mindful of the needs of individuals and families from a wide range of racial, cultural, sexual, religious and social backgrounds and, with service users and colleagues, co-produce innovative ways of communicating and working across language and cultural barriers.
* Where appropriate, provide expert advice regarding the pharmacological management of mental health patients to non-mental health professionals, seeking clinical guidance from the designated Consultant Psychiatrist/GP in relation to any specific prescribing advice.
* Be required to work in conjunction with individual members of the primary care team, patients and carers to develop personalised relapse/crisis plans.
* To ensure good working links with any other agencies who may be involved in referring service users or providing services for them.
* To disseminate professional developments and changes in policy or legislation, information regarding services and community resources, to ensure that staff utilise these services or developments for the benefit of service users.
* Maintain effective communication within the practice environment and with external stakeholders.
* Act as an advocate for patients and colleagues.
* Ensure awareness of sources of support and guidance and provide information in an acceptable format to all patients, recognising any difficulties and referring where appropriate.
* Report all complaints and/or incidents relating to patients, relatives and/or staff within area as directed in accordance with the Trust's Complaints Procedure, and ensure the Service Manager is informed. To co-operate with any investigations carried out.
* Maintain and update statistical information and submit appropriate returns as required.
Service Development:
* To support in a delivery and development of a sustainable, person-centred system of community mental health care, which delivers better access to a broader range of care options, reduced referral to specialist services, improved patient experience and outcomes.
* Developing clinical pathways across the mental health older adults, as well as supporting with organisational development and quality improvement strategies.
* To support and lead as needed on the practice, operational and system development of Peer Supported Open Dialogue and dialogical practice within the service.
* To be a member of the team management group.
* To take an active role in care quality forums.
* To ensure the service is service user centred and focuses on the service, and they are shown respect, courtesy and understanding.
* To support and lead as needed with audit and research opportunities.
Training:
* To ensure that accurate case recording occurs regarding all aspects of the work undertaken with service users and that this is reflected in the teams database, and that administrative systems are updated whenever there is any adjustment in service.
* To take an active role in care quality to ensure high standards.
* To ensure team members have the competence to undertake the work of the team and to participate in delivering in-house training.
* To ensure that the training professional and legal requirements are met.
* To promote development and training for students on placement.
* To ensure that forums in the team are developed that facilitate: team development, cross disciplinary learning and communication between team members, clinical professional dialogue and staff support.
Administrative:
* Manage and assess risk within the areas of responsibility, ensuring adequate measures are in place to protect staff and patients.
* Monitor work areas and practices to ensure they are safe and free from hazards and conform to health, safety and security legislation, policies, procedures and guidelines.
* Ensure you undertake mandatory and statutory training requirements.
* Apply infection-control measures within the practice according to local and national guidelines.
* Advocate for policies that reduce environmental health risks, are culturally sensitive and increase access to health care for all.
* Interpret national strategies and policies into local implementation strategies that are aligned to the values and culture of general practice.
Person Specification:
Educational and Qualifications:
* Professional qualification Mental Health Nursing (RMN) with current NMC/HCPC registration. / Occupational Therapist/ Social Worker Attained at least Level 2 Maths and English (equivalent to GCSE grade 9-4 (A*-C))
Previous Experience:
* Experience of working with older adults/ those with complex physical and MH needs including functional and organic illness
* Experience of work in the NHS, PCNs or outreach work, experience of working in voluntary sector, working in community groups
* Work with older adults with serious mental health problems.
Knowledge:
* Basic understanding of health care systems and structures: staffing, roles and responsibilities, the role of hospitals, primary care and community care.
* Knowledge of counselling skills/cognitive behavioural skills, psychosocial interventions.
Personal Qualities:
* Ability to work effectively, timely and independently.
* Commitment to equal opportunities.
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.
Certificate of Sponsorship:
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications.
UK Registration:
Applicants must have current UK professional registration.
Employer Details:
Employer Name: Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust
Address: Westminster Older Adults CMHT, 190 Vauxhall Bridge Road, Westminster, London, SW1V 1DX
Employer's Website
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