Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Key Responsibilities:

KR 1      Clinical and Client Care

·       To provide specialist psychological assessments of patients and carers referred to the cancer and palliative care psychological support service based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources. 

·       To formulate and implement plans for the psychological treatment and/or management of a patient’s psychological concerns, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of the problems, and employing methods based upon evidence of efficacy, across the full range of care settings.

·       To implement a range of psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups, within and across teams employed individually and in synthesis.

·       To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options, considering both theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes that have shaped the individual, family or group.

·       To exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the assessment, treatment and discharge of clients whose problems are managed by psychologically based standard care plans.

·       To provide specialist psychological advice, guidance and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to clients’ formulation, diagnosis and treatment plan.

·       To contribute directly and indirectly to a psychologically based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all clients of the service, across all settings and agencies serving the client group.

·       To undertake risk assessment and risk management for individual clients and to provide advice to other professions on psychological aspects of risk assessment and risk management.

·       To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of clients under their care and to monitor progress throughout both uni- and multi-disciplinary care.

·       To provide culturally appropriate psychological interventions with carers or families of referred clients when required.

KR 2      Contributing to team or service clinical functioning

·       To contribute to the effective working of the cancer and palliative care psychological support service and to a psychologically informed framework for the service.

·       To contribute to the team or service’s delivery of accessible and acceptable services to diverse local communities.

·       To be proactive in challenging discrimination and support the development of culturally competent services.

·       To liaise with referrers, MDTs, GPs and other professionals involved with patients in order to develop and review supportive care plans.

·       To maintain continuous contact and communication with colleagues & teams through MS Teams

·       To attend and contribute to Departmental operational activities and initiatives (e.g. Away Days)

KR 3      Policy and service development

·       To implement policies and procedures in own area of work, and to propose improvements or beneficial changes.

·       To contribute to the consultation and engagement of service users in planning and delivering services which meet the needs of local communities.

·       To contribute to service development through undertaking and participating in appropriate projects.

KR 4      Care or management of resources

·       To take care of, and use carefully, the Trust’s equipment and physical resources.

·       To ensure that the post-holder has sufficient resources by estimating future needs and requesting or ordering supplies as needed.

KR 5      Management and supervision

·       To be responsible for the allocation and/or clinical supervision of the work of an assistant psychologist if required, under supervision from a more senior psychologist.

KR 6      Teaching and Training

·       To provide specialist training in psychological approaches to care to psychologists and other professions as appropriate, under the guidance of the clinical lead.

KR 7      Record-keeping and Information Governance

·       To ensure that all clinical and operational information is recorded as required by Trust policies and local procedures.

·       To maintain the highest standards of clinical record keeping and report writing, according to professional and Trust guidelines, including electronic data entry.

KR 8      Research and development

·       To contribute to service evaluation, audits or research relevant to service needs.

KR 9      Maintaining professional standards and continuing professional development

·       To receive regular clinical and professional supervision from a more senior psychologist according to HCPC and Trust guidelines.

·       To ensure own Continuing Professional Development in line with BPS and Trust Personal Development Plan requirements and the HCPC ‘Standards for Continuing Professional Development’.

·       To maintain an up-to-date knowledge of current developments in professional and clinical practice and of relevant legislation and policies.

·       To comply with the HCPC ‘Standards of Conduct, Performance and Ethics’ and ‘Standards of Proficiency’, and ensure professional development in line with these.

·       To adhere to the BPS’s Professional Practice Guidelines and Trust policies and procedures.

KR 10    General

·       To travel to patient homes for clinical visits and to other community settings for meetings, within the Borough of Hillingdon and occasionally in the wider NWL area.

·       To be aware of risk relating to aggressive and challenging behaviour amongst the client group and follow trust policies relating to its management.

·       To respond appropriately and professionally to emotionally distressing situations and to support others involved in such situations.

·       To be prepared to work in person in a hospital inpatient and outpatient setting, following all hospital policies and procedures (e.g. dress codes, infection control) on the same basis as all other hospital staff.