Occupational Therapist - Home Treatment Team

Job overview

About the role

We are looking for a dynamic Occupational therapist to join the Lewisham home Treatment Team to cover maternity leave until December 2025.

This role involves working within a Multi Disciplinary Team to support people in an acute phase of mental illness while they are recovering at home. There is protected time for focussed occupational therapy which will address barriers to function and therapeutic activity.

There is an emphasis on helping people make an effective transition through services and may include working with people newly discharged from the wards, or preventing admission with proactive engagement

Main duties of the job

The role includes shift work across a 7 day period with  flexibility in relation to your own work life balance.

As a Practitioner you will undertake assessments and treatment, as required. You will participate in the assessment, co-ordination, planning, implementation, evaluation and delivery of high quality home treatment for people in acute psychiatric crisis, including occupational therapy assessment and  interventions.

The role will involve responsibility for an allocated group of mental health service users in crisis, with the aim of promoting their recovery and maintaining them in a community setting rather than in hospital.

The role requires a sound foundation in generic responsibilities such as safety/ crisis planning, assessment of risk and mental state as well as some shift coordination. You will be working within a very experienced and highly supportive MDT team and leadership committed to excellent care.

There is a close Occupational Therapy network SLaM and locally in Lewisham. The recent transformation initiatives afford scope for group work and joint working with other OTs and experts by experience as well as Community providers across the borough, and has a well-established supervision and profession specific support structure

You will be based at  Ladywell Unit, Lewisham Hospital, Lewisham High Street, Lewisham, SE13 6LW

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• To provide rapid, crisis assessments for clients in a mental health crisis in order to ensure the right intervention is provided at the right time for service users presenting with mental health diagnoses and any comorbid conditions In addition, to support early discharge from the inpatient wards.
• To deliver a range of effective, service user-centred interventions aimed at crisis resolution and promoting recovery. Supporting service users to adopt recovery strategies that promote their wellbeing, healthy lifestyle, independence and self-care
• To undertake thorough risk assessment of all service users in line with policy standards in order to manage risk safely and effectively.
• To undertake the safe and effective discharge of patients and ensure the smooth transition of care from HTT to other services.
• To operate within the legal requirements of the Mental Health Act and be able to exercise independent judgement in the assessment of mental health conditions.
• To escalate and refer the needs of service users presenting with complex long term conditions (e.g. diabetes, asthma,)