Band 6 Specialist Practitioner - HMP Eastwood Park, Falfield

Job description

Job overview

We have an opportunity for an enthusiastic, motivated Mental Health Professional to join the Wellbeing Team (Mental Health and Psycho-Social Substance Misuse) at HMP Eastwood Park.

If you are a friendly, compassionate and empathetic individual, who would like to work with vulnerable and chaotic individuals in a recovery focused model, then you may well be extremely suited to working in our Team.

You will be based with our multi-disciplinary team within the prison and will work closely with a variety of other professionals, including Psychiatrists, Psychologists, Non-Medical Prescribers, Social Prescriber, Social Workers, Neurodevelopmental Practitioners and Recovery Co-ordinators.

NOTE: This post is open to newly qualified social workers. In line with AWP trust policy all newly qualified social workers (NQSW) will be recruited initially at Band 5 level, regardless of advertised role banding. All NQSW's are expected to successfully complete their ASYE within 2 years of employment, unless there are exceptional circumstances in which case it may be extended for a further 2 years.

If you have been appointed to an advertised Band 6 role this will be an automatic progression, following confirmation of your successful ASYE completion. If you have been appointed to a Band 5 post you will then be eligible to apply for a subsequent Band 6 vacancy upon successful ASYE completion.

Main duties of the job

This role is focused on providing appropriate, effective interventions and treatments to women with a range of mental health needs, and their carers (including friends and relatives) and their supporters in the community, enabling and assisting them to meet daily health, social care and wellbeing needs, in line with personal recovery goals, and facilitating engagement with mainstream services.

The post holder will work autonomously to undertake emergency assessment in a wide range of locations, planning and delivering defined, intensive, specialist interventions in line with the CPA framework to people with severe and enduring mental health needs, who maybe distressed and in crisis. Where appropriate the post holder will work alongside other services to plan, deliver and review effective "wrap around" intensive interventions to manage risk and prevent hospital admission for those with the most complex needs. This role necessitates working a shift pattern.

The prison houses up to 442 women. In addition to the specialist unit for substance misuse, the prison offers a Drug Recovery Community, Mother and Baby unit and health care clinic. The role offers a wonderful opportunity to learn about a variety of psychological strategies and the post holder with be involved in liaison with a wide range of external and internal agencies.

Please refer to the full Job Description and Person Specification attached to this advert which will provide further information on this role.

Working for our organisation

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 1.8 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.

Our outstanding people promote mental health and wellbeing. The expertise and resources within AWP are dedicated to a person-centred approach for those who use our services and for all employees. We recognise that happy and fulfilled employees give better 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.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

1. In a wide range of situations and locations to undertake the full range of activities required to deliver comprehensive mental health assessment, in an emergency for service users, who may be distressed and in crisis. This will include:

a. The use of standardised assessment tools i.e. Cluster Allocation Support Tool (CAST), KGV

b. Recovery Star

c. History, strengths and aspirations

d. Mental state

e. Impact of culture and diversity

f. Functional needs

g. The needs of family and carer

h. Evaluation of risk

i. Physical health

j. Complicating factors

k. Identifying and ensuring specialist involvement where required.

l. The interventions and treatments required to enable positive change.

m. Social Care

n. Safeguarding and public protection

o. Capacity under the Mental Capacity Act

2. To be responsible for developing delivering and reviewing comprehensive and complex treatment programmes using appropriate frameworks in line with evidence- based practice, including strategies to manage risk for service users with complex needs and carers, bringing in other resources as required.

3. To act as care coordinator for service users as appropriate, also providing defined interventions to individuals on other workers caseloads.

4. To plan, deliver and evaluate defined, specialist therapeutic interventions as indicated in the assessment process ,in line with personal recovery plans, including to service users who maybe on other caseloads. This might include: a. Individual or group therapeutic intervention b. Psychological treatments such as CBT, DBT approaches, family interventions c. psychosocial interventions d. Motivational and coping enhancement strategies. e. Medication management f. Interventions under the Mental Health Act.

5. To deliver a range of defined activities/interventions to improve the carer's ability to support the service user and to enable them in their relationship with the service user.

6. To develop and maintain good partnership working with other services throughout all treatment episodes, including regular liaison within Primary Health Care Team, inpatient and intensive services, day services, voluntary sector and with nominated carers/advocates.

7. In collaboration with service users and carers, to be responsible for facilitating the development of comprehensive crisis plans, rapid access plans, advance statements etc., involving other agencies such as primary care etc. where appropriate.

8. To personally build and lead others to build, hope inspiring relationships with service users, which acknowledge the personal journey of each person, and focus on strengths and aspirations to allow the creation of meaningful personal recovery plans.

Please refer to the full Job Description and Person Specification attached to this advert which will provide further information on this role.

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria

• Diploma level/Degree in relevant Health/Social Care Profession

Desirable criteria

• 2 years experience of acute mental health

Qualifications

Essential criteria

• Current registration with NMC or HCPC

Experience

Essential criteria

• Substantial post qualification experience in front line

Desirable criteria

• Experience in a wide range of settings

Skills

Essential criteria

• Is able to deliver from a range of possible key therapeutic interventions

Skills

Essential criteria

• Excellent risk assessment and risk management skills

Skills

Essential criteria

• Excellent communication skills

Knowledge

Essential criteria

• Knowledge of relevant legal framework MHA MCA

We are proud to be fostering a diverse workforce that reflects our communities. A key commitment to this is improving staff representation from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities, those from the LGBTQ+ communities, people with 'lived-experience' of mental health conditions and people living with disabilities,- we are a 'Disability Confident Employer' offering a guaranteed interview to Disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria. This includes people with a variety of disabilities and neurodivergent conditions (for example autism, ADHD, sensory, physical and learning disabilities).

We encourage applications from people who wish to work on a flexible basis, recognising that flexibility may mean a range of different working patterns and hours, we do our utmost to work with our staff to meet their needs and the needs of our service users.

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