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Job overview
Psychological Services are a core element of multidisciplinary teams working across two weight management pathways – a surgical pathway (tier 4) and a non-surgical pathway (tier 3). We work closely with our dietetic, nursing, medical and surgical colleagues to deliver psychological informed care to patients requiring weight management services. As the Lead Psychological Practitioner in this area, you will lead a highly regarded service delivered by yourself and 1.4wte Clinical Psychologists. Alongside the direct delivery of psychological care you will have opportunities to develop the psychological pathways as Weight Management Services undergo exciting new developments across Coventry and Warwickshire.
You will join Psychological Services at UHCW which delivers psychological care within UHCW, outpatients and Coventry community health provision. We are a welcoming team the successful applicant will work collaboratively with psychological colleagues across GEH and UHCW.
Closing Date: Please be advised that this job advert will close as soon as sufficient applications have been received. Please apply for this job as soon as you can, if interested.
Successful applicants will be required to provide an immunisation and vaccination report, from either their current UK occupational health provider or their UK GP.
Main duties of the job
- To take full clinical responsibility for the provision of high quality psychological services to individuals referred to the weight management service for support to lose weight with and without bariatric surgery. This will predominantly be in an outpatient setting but may also include inpatient settings for those undergoing surgery.
- The post holder will be expected to have advanced theoretical and practical knowledge in order to deliver highly specialist psychological assessments of patients, based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex psychological and physical health information collected from a variety of sources including psychometric tests, self-report measures, rating scales, direct observations and semi-structured interviews with patients, family members and others involved in the care.
- To formulate, make decisions and implement highly specialist plans for the psychological treatment and/or management of a patient’s mental health/physical health problems, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of the patient’s difficulties, and employing evidence-based, effective interventions.
- To be responsible for devising and implementing a range of highly specialist psychological interventions for individuals, families and groups with the service, adjusting and refining psychological formulations drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
- To make highly skilled evaluations and decisions about treatment options taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical culture and developmental and physical health processes that have shaped the individual or system.
- To provide highly specialist psychological advice, guidance and consultation to other professionals and agencies outside the Trust when necessary, contributing directly to the patients’ formulation, diagnosis and treatment plan.
- To ensure that all members of the multidisciplinary team to have access to a psychologically based framework for understanding the issues for the patients under our care, through the provision of advice and consultation and the dissemination of psychological research and theory. This may include the provision of clinical supervision and reflective practice as appropriate.
- To undertake risk assessment and risk management for individual patients and to provide general advice to other professional on psychological aspects of risk assessment and management.
- To provide clinical supervision to qualified psychologist, trainee clinical/counselling psychologists on placement, assistant psychologists, volunteers and other colleagues, including doctoral and PhD research supervision as required.
For further details of the role please see the attached job description.
Person specification
Skills
Essential
- Skills in the use of psychological assessment, intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration. A high level ability to communicate effectively, at both a written and oral level, complex and clinically sensitive information to clients, their families, carers and a wide range of lay and professional persons within and outside the NHS. Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.
Desirable
- Ability to identify, provide and promote appropriate means of support to other team members and staff exposed to highly distressing situations.
Knowledge
Essential
- Doctoral level knowledge of clinical/counselling/health psychology theory and practice, including highly developed knowledge of lifespan developmental psychology, models of psychopathology, and two or more distinct psychological therapies. Knowledge of legislation in relation to the client group. Doctoral level knowledge of audit/research design and methodology.
Desirable
- Knowledge of the theory and practice of highly specialist assessment methods and therapeutic approaches in relation to long-term health conditions, weight management and bariatric surgery. Doctoral level knowledge of research design and methodology, including complex multivariate data analysis as practised within the field of clinical health psychology.
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working with a range of clients, presenting with a range of clinical severity and maintenance of professionalism in challenging circumstances. Experience of specialist psychological assessment, formulation and treatment of clients across the full range of care settings, including outpatients, community, primary care and inpatient settings. Experience of tailoring psychological assessment and intervention to individual needs. Experience of exercising full clinical responsibility for work. Experience of team working Experience of applying psychology in different cultural contexts.
Desirable
- Experience of working within a health setting, in particular, weight management/bariatric surgery. Experience of teaching, training and clinical supervision of psychological and non-psychological colleagues Experience in providing consultancy to colleagues.
Qualifications
Essential
- • Doctorate in Clinical, Counselling or Health Psychology (or recognised equivalent) • Registered as a Practitioner Psychologist with the Health and Care Professions Council.
Desirable
- • Evidence of continuing professional development in the area of health psychology.
Commitment to Trust Values and Behaviours
Essential
- • Must be able to demonstrate behaviours consistent with the Trust’s values. (As detailed in UHCW’s Values in Action document below) • Applicants applying for job roles with managerial responsibility will be required to demonstrate evidence of promoting equal opportunities through work experience
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Applying for this NHS job
This advert is for Principal Clinical / Counselling / Health Psychologist with University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust in Coventry, Midlands, England. It is listed as a Band 8 Psychologist role. The advertised salary is £66,582 - £77,368 per annum pro rata. The contract type is Permanent. The application deadline is 06 Aug 2026.
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