About this role
Job summary
An exciting opportunity has arisen within the Adult Autism Assessment Service for an experienced Clinical Psychologist to join our multidisciplinary team.
We are seeking a motivated and compassionate psychologist committed to improving outcomes for adults seeking an autism assessment through high-quality, neuroaffirming, person-centred practice.
Working within a dedicated multidisciplinary team, you will play a key role in the assessment and diagnosis of Autism in adults.
You will undertake comprehensive assessments integrate information from multiple sources and develop formulations that reflect individuals strengths, needs and life experiences.
You will lead and contribute to complex assessments where neurodiversity co-occurs with mental health difficulties, trauma, learning disability, physical health conditions or other neurodevelopmental differences.
The role includes providing specialist consultation on complex high-risk cases.
You will contribute to multidisciplinary decision-making, communicating outcomes sensitively to individuals, families, carers and professionals, while providing personalised recommendations.
The post holder will work autonomously within professional guidelines and Trust policies, supporting service development, quality improvement and the promotion of neuroaffirmative practice.
We welcome applications from all backgrounds and are committed to a positive, inclusive and supportive team culture.
Main duties of the job
To provide a specialist applied psychology service ensuring the systematic provision of highly specialised psychological services within the designated clinical service.
This includes the provision of specialist psychological assessment, formulation, offering advice and consultation on service users' psychological care to non-psychologist colleagues and other non-professional carers.
To work autonomously within professional guidelines and the overall framework of the CYP & Wellbeing division policies and procedures. To utilise research skills for audit, policy, service development and research within the CYP & Wellbeing division.
About us
Mersey Care is one of the largest trusts providing physical health and mental health services in the North West, serving more than 1.4 million people across our region and are also commissioned for services that cover the North West, North Wales and the Midlands.
We offer specialist inpatient and community services that support physical and mental health and specialist inpatient mental health, learning disability, addiction and brain injury services. Mersey Care is one of only three trusts in the UK that offer high secure mental health facilities.
At the heart of all we do is our commitment to 'perfect care' - care that is safe, effective, positively experienced, timely, equitable and efficient. We support our staff to do the best job they can and work alongside service users, their families, and carers to design and develop future services together. We're currently delivering a programme of organisational and service transformation to significantly improve the quality of the services we provide and safely reduce cost as we do so.
Flexible working requests will be considered for all roles.
Job description Job responsibilities
ClinicalTo provide specialist psychological assessment of service users based on the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources. This may include psychological and neuropsychological tests, self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews with service users, family members and others involved in the service users care.To formulate and implement plans for the formal psychological treatment and/or management of a service users psychological problems, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of the service users problems, employing methods based upon evidence of efficacy.To increasingly exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the assessment, and discharge of service users whose problems are managed by psychologically based standard care plans.To develop specialist psychological interventions, integrated into a multidisciplinary effective care coordination process.To provide specialist psychological advice, guidance and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to service users formulation, diagnosis and treatment plans, including risk formulation and risk managementTo contribute directly and indirectly to a psychologically based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all service users.To undertake risk assessment and risk management for individual service users and to provide advice, both general and specialist, to other professions on psychological aspects of risk assessment and risk management.To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of service users under their care and to monitor progress during the course of both uni and multidisciplinary care.Teaching, Training and SupervisionTo engage with regular supervision and management from senior professional colleagues.To continue to gain wider post qualification experience relevant to the clinical role in line with HCPC and BPS requirements.To develop skills in the area of professional post-graduate teaching and training and to provide supervision to other staffs psychological work, e.g., staff from other designations, as appropriate.
Management, Recruitment and Service DevelopmentTo contribute to the development, evaluation and monitoring of the psychology teams and wider Trust operational policies and services, through the deployment of professional skills in research, service evaluation and audit as requested by the service lead.To advise both psychology and professional management on those aspects of the service where psychological and/or Organisational matters need addressing as appropriate and requested by the service lead.
Research and Service EvaluationTo utilise theory, evidence-based literature and research to support evidence-based practice in individual work and work with other team members.To undertake appropriate research as agreed with the line manager and provide research advice to other team colleagues.To undertake as appropriate, project management, including complex audit and service evaluation, with colleagues within the service to develop service provision.
GeneralTo contribute to the development and maintenance of the highest professional standards of practice through active participation in internal and external CPD training and development programmes, in consultation with the post holders line manager, in line with the priorities of the service and PACE objectives, and to provide evidence of CPD undertaken, e.g., in the form of the CPD log book.To contribute to the development and articulation of best practice in psychology across the service by continuing to develop the skills of a reflective scientist practitioner, taking part in regular professional supervision and appraisal, and maintaining an active engagement with current developments in the fields of clinical psychology and related disciplines relevant to the service area.To maintain the highest standards of clinical record-keeping, including electronic dataEntry and recording, report writing and the responsible exercise of professional self-governance in accordance with professional codes of practice of the British Psychological Society and Trust policies and procedures.To maintain up-to-date knowledge of legislation, national and local policies and issues in relation to the specific client group.To perform other duties of a similar kind appropriate to the grade which may be required by the line manager or head of service.The post holder will be expected to make full use of IT packages available within the work area, e.g., Microsoft Office, Email, Internet and statistical packages.Responsibilities for all staff:
All post holders will agree to:
Commit to the vision of supporting Mersey Care in becoming a leading organisation in the provision of community services, mental health care and learning disability care.Role model the values of the Trust Continuous Improvement, Accountability, Respectfulness, Enthusiasm, and Support in all activities and interactions.Challenge the stigma associated with mental health and learning disabilities.
Comply with the Duty of Candour, working across professional and organisational boundaries to improve services.
Uphold and protect the reputation of the Trust both inside and outside of work, ensuring that actions and behaviours reflect the values and standards of Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust at all times.Value the contribution of the patient and service users voice, as well as the views of families and carers.Maintain their specific knowledge base and develop new skills.Observe statutory duties to safeguard and promote the welfare of adults and children.Actively participate in creating an inclusive culture where everyone feels equally valued, respected and empowered to contribute their unique perspectives.Commit to Mersey Cares mission of being an actively anti-racist health care provider and employer.Take responsibility for the accurate and timely collection and recording of data.Operate within organisational codes of practice, comply with all health and safety legislation, organisational policies and operating procedures.Understand and embrace the role of digital technology in the workplace.Comply with the NHS Constitution in relation to staff responsibilities.Support the creation of a positive environment and Restorative Just and Learning Culture, participate in related events, share concerns about safety and quality, and speak up against incivility while taking a collaborative approach to improve civility and respect.
Person Specification
Qualifications: Essential
Doctoral level training (or equivalent) in a professional area of psychology conferring HCPC registration as a practitioner psychologist. Registered or eligible for registration with the HCPC as a practitioner psychologist.
Desirable
Pre-qualification training and qualifications in research methodology, staff training and/or other fields of applied psychology.
Experience: Essential
Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of service users across a range of care settings. Experience of working with a wide variety of service user groups, presenting problems that reflect the full range of clinical severity. Experience of maintaining a highdegree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems, verbal abuse and the threat of physical abuse and utilising supervision systems to manage the impact of this.
Desirable
Previous experience working with autistic People. Experience of teaching and training. Experience of the application of psychology in different cultural contexts. Experience of working within a multicultural framework.
Knowledge: Essential
Research design and complex, multivariate data analysis as practiced within the applied fields of psychology.
Desirable
Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in specific difficult to treat groups relevant to the service in which the post is based. Knowledge of legislation in relation to the service user group
Skills: Essential
Well developed skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, incorporating a range of methodologies, e.g., clinical interview, psychometrics, structured clinical tools. Well developed intervention skills. Including at least one modality- specific clinical training to a high standard. Ability to assimilate complex information from a range of sources to complete psychological formulation and clinical risk assessment in order to develop effective treatment plans for service users with complex needs. Demonstrated ability to effectively engage service users who may present with significant clinical obstacles to engagement. Demonstrated ability to maintain clear and appropriate personal and professional boundaries and to recognise own limitations. Well -developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, complex, highly technical and/or clinically sensitive information to service users, their families, carers and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS. Demonstrated skills in providing consultation to other professional and non - professional groups. Knowledge of research design and methodology, including complex multivariate data analysis as practised within the field of applied psychology Ability to sit in a constrained position when working with service users. Ability to sustain intense levels of concentration responding and participating as required. Ability to self -reflect and use clinical supervision appropriately. Ability to cope and deal with highly distressing emotional circumstances. Ability to teach and train others, using a variety of complex multi -media.
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.
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Employer details Employer name Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust
Address Rathbone Hospital
Mill Lane
Liverpool
L13 4AW
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://www.merseycare.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)