Mental Health Practitoner

Job overview

Job overview

The Older People’s Intensive Home Treatment Team is a multidisciplinary team, providing a service seven days a week, 365 days per year to individuals in mental health crisis with the principal aim of providing an effective alternative to inpatient care. This involves intensive clinical work over short periods of time to prevent the need for admission or facilitate safe early discharge. The team also carries out 72 hour follow–up for individuals discharged from mental health inpatient units.

As a senior clinician, the post holder will play a key role in the gatekeeping of acute inpatient admissions, undertaking complex assessments to determine whether individuals can be safely and effectively treated in their own homes. This requires a high degree of clinical autonomy, advanced risk formulation skills, and the ability to make robust, evidence-based decisions under pressure.

Main duties of the job

Main duties of the job

The post holder will be expected to promote and develop clinical leadership and clinical practice and be a positive role model to junior members of the team through the practice of evidence based care. The post holder will be expected to support professional development through clinical appraisal and supervision and contribute to the ongoing educational programme for staff, fostering a positive learning environment. The post holder will be encouraged to foster collaborative cross organisational working.

The postholder may be expected to transfer to another CRHTT temporarily or permanently where there is a clear clinical need to do so.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Management responsibilities

Support and teach junior staff to develop understanding of mental health signs and symptoms and develop appropriate responses to these in practice.

Recognise and respond appropriately to challenging behaviour in line with Trust policies and training.

Lead and coordinate junior staff and the wider care team in the management of difficult situations and de-escalation, developing resilience and strategies to manage, including on leading staff and patient ‘de-briefing’ sessions.

Demonstrate an in-depth of knowledge and understanding of the fundamentals of the Mental Health Act, Mental Capacity Act and Deprivation of Liberty and other legislation applicable to the practice area and how they are implemented in practice ensuring adherence to legislation at all times.

Teach junior staff to understand the legal frameworks that support their practice

Leadership

Develop the clinical practice of junior members of staff, including newly qualified staff.

Act as shift co-ordinator when allocated to provide a point of contact for all enquiries, working in partnership with the team manager and the wider MDT to coordinate the shift.

Deputise for the team manager in their absence and be accountable for the care and management of team, including maintaining communication with the Borough Crisis Manager and other senior staff.

Assist the team manager in ensuring the team is safely staffed, prioritising, and deploying resources within budgetary parameters and escalating concerns to managers where appropriate in accordance with HR policies and procedures.

Support the team manager to investigate incidents and complaints: compile reports and disseminate this information to management.

Recognise practice that needs improvement and work in partnership with the team manager to ensure appropriate action is taken to address it.

Support the team manager to ensure mandatory and statutory training are up to date for all staff.

Facilitate the induction of new staff and students.

Support the team manager to ensure all newly qualified band 5 staff have undertaken their induction and preceptorship.

Support the team manager to ensure all qualified nurses are engaged with the revalidation process.

Maintain your status as a mentor/sign-off mentor and participate in training of students.

Encourage band 5 nurses to undertake and develop their mentorship skills.

Attend and participate in regular personal development, ensuring compliance with all mandatory training requirements. Maintaining a work development portfolio and complying with all requirements of NMC/ HCPC revalidation.

Clinical

Be able to conduct comprehensive mental state examinations.

Demonstrate and apply an enhanced understanding of Mental Health signs and symptoms and how these may present in practice, including recognition of impact on patient presentation and behaviour including risk factors, especially in the older adult population

Deliver a range of clinical interventions with patients.

Be able to conduct a detail risk assessment, with clear formulation of risk and suitable risk management plan.

Work autonomously within the parameters of the role, leading and supporting junior staff and wider care team to implement the delivery of quality care, contributing to the physical, psychological, social, recreational, and spiritual care in a recovery-focused way through therapeutic engagement and activities, and taking steps to address any issues that arise.

Be confident to take positive risks to support patients within the environment that most suits their needs.

Lead on and undertake activities to ensure that the fundamentals of care are met.

Co-ordinate and evaluate collaborative patient centred care; getting feedback and improving plans with the multi-disciplinary team (MDT).

Provide accurate information about care in an accessible format to patients and their relatives / carers.

Liaise and work positively with members of the multi- disciplinary team and partner organisations.

Administer, and monitor the side-effects of, medication and monitoring service user compliance.

Ensure safe custody of medicines, sharps, clinical equipment, report all incidents following trust policy.

Lead and support/teach junior staff on risk assessment and risk management that involves making decisions based on knowledge of the research evidence, knowledge of the individual service user and their social context, knowledge of the service user’s own experience and clinical judgment.

Support and supervise junior staff to develop the management of care needs through: Initial data collection; Monitoring of individual service user / patient progress; Feedback and discussion; Producing reports and in-care reviews; Devising a plan of care and interventions in partnership with service user, carer, and MDT.

Coordinate junior staff and the wider care team in providing hands-on care to service users and evaluating processes of care delivered. This will include undertaking 1-1 engagement with service users in an honest, open and non- judgmental way

Recognise and value patients as individuals, acknowledging the importance of maintaining the patient’s respect and dignity at all times and ensure that the care provided respects equality and diversity.

Develop care plans that reflect service user needs and relevant patient care documentation working in partnership with service users, wider MDT, and family/carers.

Ensure the monitoring and recording of patient clinical observations are undertaken, such as physical observations and vital signs and treating or escalating as appropriate any signs or symptoms of deterioration or that does not fulfil the personal parameters to the relevant professional for treatment.

Promote healthy lifestyles and give health promotion advice and support.

Implement the principles of ‘recovery’: encouraging and supporting service users to engage with healthy lifestyles, facilitating psychosocial activities and other activities of their interest.

Where appropriate contributing to psychological interventions

Escort service users, as required, in line with Trust policies.

Advocate for patients’ needs and rights within Trust policy.

Encourage and empower patients to have an optimum level of responsibility for their individual programme of care.

Applicant requirements

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.