Occupational Therapy Assistant

Job overview

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an Occupational Therapist Assistant to join our team, to cover a fixed-term period of maternity leave for 9 months, at our Older Adults Inpatient Mental Health ward in Bedford (Fountains Court). Fountains Court is a 26-bed acute assessment unit for older adults with a functional mental health illness and/or cognitive impairment/dementia.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will be responsible for providing occupational therapy interventions under the guidance of the ward occupational therapists, within Fountains Court. The post holder will work within the already well-established MDT to promote and facilitate the OT programme both on the ward and in the community through 1:1 intervention, group work and enabling clients in accessing local community resources to support their discharge. We are looking for someone with a good understanding of mental health, dementia and the role of Occupational Therapy.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• To support the Occupational Therapy service in its’ provision of assessment, treatment and resettlement of service users within the Older Adults Mental Health service on the wards, in the OT department and in the community.
• Contribute to the planning, provision and evaluation of the OT therapeutic programme, including group work and 1-1 interventions.
• To develop specialist knowledge and skills in Older Adults acute mental health and dementia.
• To maintain positive key relationships with the following:
• Occupational Therapy colleagues
• Modern Matron, Clinical Practice Lead and nursing staff aligned to ward
• Multi-Disciplinary Teams working to aligned ward
• Service users and their families/ carers.
• Links with external agencies and other appropriate community services