Consultant Psychiatrist in Older Adult SDFS, Chelmsford

Job overview

Would you like to be part of leading health and wellbeing service in the provision of mental health for inpatient and community care?  Why not join Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust for the opportunity to flourish and excel in your career and be part of our dedicated medical team.

Shape the future of Dementia Care and join the service where your clinical insight will directly enhance the lives of older adults living with dementia. EPUT is seeking a compassionate and visionary Consultant Older Adult Psychiatrist to lead and provide medical leadership to the Chelmsford Specialist Dementia and Frailty Service based at the Crystal Centre, Chelmsford.

Main duties of the job

As a Consultant Older Adult Psychiatrist, the post holder will provide senior clinical leadership to the multidisciplinary team. The service aims to provide a comprehensive service for patients over the age of 70 years with mental health problems and for patients with an established or suspected diagnosis of dementia. The team may accept patients below the age of 70 years if they meet the criteria for frailty.

You must have full GMC registration and be on the Specialist Register, with an appropriate CCT or equivalent or be within six months of obtaining your CCT on the date of the AAC.

Essex has something for everyone, amazing scenery, great schools, adventurous outdoor activities, fantastic restaurants and a colourful history so why not contact us to discover why so many of our staff love living and working here.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• The Post Holder will be responsible for referrals from their own patch and will have a clinical leadership role within the team along with other senior clinical team members.
• The post holder will carry out new assessments for complex cases personally and support other team members to assess other referrals through supervision. Patients will be seen in outpatient clinics primarily and through home visits occasionally. The Consultant will be expected to conduct 3 outpatient clinics and 1 clinic for domiciliary visits.   In these sessions the Consultant will be approximately seeing 3 new patients and 10-12 follow up patients.
• They oversee the clinical management of patients within the service through weekly multidisciplinary team meeting.
• The post holder will conduct complex diagnostic memory assessments and provide supervision to the nurses who conduct less complex assessments.  The diagnostic process is supported by the psychologist when a neuropsychology assessment is required/ they will conduct disclosure appointments to inform patients of diagnosis, discuss and initiate treatment if appropriate.
• The post holder will also support the nurses in care coordinating people with complex problems and promote active case-load management. The post holder will attend multi-professional meetings and carry out Mental Health Act and Mental Capacity Act assessments for their patients when appropriate.
• The post holder will be available to team members for clinical advice during the working day. There is a well-functioning duty system in place covered by the nurses for triaging and emergency assessments. The post holder will be available to support the decision making by the duty system for complex cases and provide supervision for the urgent review of patients within the service.
• Cover for holidays and absences to colleagues with mutual consultation and agreement.