Senior Learning Disability Nurse/Mental Health Professional

Job overview

Learning Disability or Mental Health Nurse - fixed term post

We are looking for an experienced Band 6 Learning Disability / Mental Health Nurse or senior Allied Health Professional to join the Intensive Support Team in Suffolk.

As an all age service we would like to hear from people with experience in working with  adults or children who have a Learning Disability and/or Autism.

The Intensive Support Team forms part of the Acute Mental Health Services for people with Learning Disabilities or Autism in partnership with the Assessment and Treatment Inpatient Unit who are co-located in Ipswich.

The role will be to support prevention of hospital admission or care breakdown by understanding the function of behaviour that challenges, using Applied Behavioural Analysis and a Positive Behavioural Support approach.

We also support timely and secure discharges from inpatient units by working across into the Inpatient Service during stays in hospital.

The Intensive Support Team is  forms part of the  Learning Disability and Autism Pathway, which has a fresh approach to ideas and service delivery being supported by the Trust. We are confident our new model of care is the very best for the people we care for.  We are a vibrant,  creative, multi-disciplinary team that works closely with other services, both statutory and in the private and voluntary sector.

Main duties of the job

Following a period of induction, the main duties of the role will be:

-responding to referrals by conducting holistic initial assessments with service users in their homes.

-forming an initial plan to help support avoidance of unnecessary admission to hospital or care/accommodation breakdown

- form longer term plans by participating in functional assessments of behaviour

-participation in analysis of assessment findings

-participation in formulation, conclusions and recommendations

-working with people directly in their homes or in hospital settings

-reviewing risk assessment and crisis response if required

-helping both paid carers and families implement recommendations (this can also include delivering  training)

-acting as the Shift Co-ordinator - taking responsibility for the smooth running of the shift, delegation of duties, making decisions in relation to issues that arise, reviewing risk.

-Supervisory responsibilities

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The successful candidate will have the opportunity to work directly with service users in their homes, hospital or educational provisions.  The area of coverage is across Suffolk.

You will have an opportunity to establish relationships with carers, service users and other involved professionals, as well as undertaking longer term assessments around functions of behaviour and participating in formulation and analysis.

Our overarching aim is to try to understand the function of behaviour that presents challenge to others.  Often these behaviours risk care or education breakdown and impact negatively on service users' quality of life.

We aim to implement strategies and recommend approaches that either avoid or lessen the impact or help service users put in place different ways of getting their identified need met.  Improving the quality of life for people with learning disabilities or autism is at the heart of what we do.

There will be some supervisory responsibilities for Clinical Support Workers or Assistant Practitioners within the team.

IST is a welcoming and vibrant multi-disciplinary team who work on a shared team caseload basis.

This is a fixed term role to cover Maternity Leave.  applications can be considered for

• full time (37.5 hrs per week) for 8 months
• part-time (30 hrs per week) for 10 months
• part time (25 hrs per week) for 12 months

Please find attached our Job Description and Person Specification for more detail on your Key Accountabilities, then if you feel you have what it takes to make a difference in your local communities, click APPLY!