Senior Clinical / Counselling Psychologist

Job overview

Applications are invited from Clinical / Counselling Psychologists wishing to work in the Wigan Mental Health Liaison Team, based at Royal Albert Edward Infirmary. This well-established multi-disciplinary team supports service users within the hospital who are experiencing an interaction of physical health problems and mental health crises.

You will be joining our existing 8b Psychologist and Assistant Psychologist, as well as becoming part of a well-established network of psychologists within our in-patient and urgent care teams.

Clinical work will involve conducting psychological assessments, formulation and interventions. Applicants will need to have experience and passion for working with people with experiences of trauma and mental health needs. Experience of working within multidisciplinary environments will be an advantage. The post holder will need to contribute actively to team and multi-disciplinary working, so a high standard of written and verbal communication is required. Indirect work will involve the provision of consultancy, supervision and training to others. Regular clinical supervision will be offered by the Wigan MHLT Principal Clinical Psychologist.

This post is available on a permanent contract. Flexible working would be considered. Applications would be welcomed from more recently qualified psychologists who are interested in a Band 7-8a development post.

Main duties of the job

The postholder is required to collaborate and respond flexibly to a variety of clinical and service-level demands involving:

• Undertake rapid and highly specialist psychological assessments and formulations to guide the management and safe discharge of patients with mental health experiences including dementia, especially those who frequently attend the emergency department or are admitted to the acute hospital.
• Participation in multi-disciplinary decision-making regarding patients with psychological difficulties who are admitted to the acute hospital wards and emergency department.
• Development of the psychological elements of the Mental Health assessment of patients who are physically unwell.
• Delivery of appropriate brief psychological interventions as appropriate.
• Provision of appropriate information and education to families, carers and the care system.
• Use of psychological formulations to support resilience and reduce vulnerability in order to decrease the risk of repeated future crises.
• To deliver a continuing programme of training to Liaison service staff in psychological understanding of crises, assessment, formulation and interventions, as needed.
• To offer consultation and supervision to mental health liaison team staff in the development and utilisation of psychological and psycho-social formulations and in the delivery of any specific psychological or psycho-social interventions.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see attached job description and person specification

Staff benefits

• Pay Enhancements – 30% additional for Evenings (8pm onwards) and Saturdays and 60% additional for Sundays and Bank holidays.
• 27 days annual leave plus bank holidays rising to 29 after 5 years and 33 days after 10 years
• Excellent pension
• Cycle to work scheme
• Salary sacrifice car scheme
• Wellbeing programme
• Blue Light Card Discounts

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

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.