Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Clinical:

To provide highly developed specialist psychological assessments of clients referred to the service, based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources including psychological (and neuropsychological) tests, self-report measures, rating scales direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews with clients, family members and others involved in the client’s care.

To formulate and implement plans for the formal psychological treatment and/or management of a client’s psychological problems, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of the client’s problems, and employing methods based upon evidence of efficacy.

To be responsible for implementing a range of psychological interventions for individuals/carers/families and/or groups employed individually and in synthesis, adjusting and refining psychological formulations drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses.

To make highly skilled evaluations and decisions about treatment options taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes that have shaped the individual, family or group.

To exercise full responsibility and autonomy for the psychological treatment of and discharge of clients whose problems are managed as a psychologically based care plan, ensuring appropriate assessment, formulation and interventions, communicating with the referral agent and others involved with the care on a regular basis.

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

To ensure that all relevant staff have access to a psychologically based framework for the understanding and care of clients of the service, through the provision of advice and consultation and the dissemination of psychological knowledge, research and theory in an appropriate specialist area.

To undertake risk assessment and risk management for relevant individual clients and to provide both general and specialist advice for psychologists and other professionals on psychological aspects of risk assessment and management.

To act as keyworker / named person, only where it is clearly appropriate for this role to be undertaken by a psychologist, in which case, ensuring the provision of a care package appropriate for the client’s needs, co-ordinating the work of others involved with care, taking responsibility for arranging client’s reviews as required and communicating effectively with the client, his/her family and all others involved in care; and to monitor progress during the course of multi-disciplinary interventions.

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

To provide expertise and advice to facilitate the effective and appropriate provision of psychological care by all relevant staff.

To provide consultation about the psychological care of the client group to staff and agencies outside the Division and Trust in an appropriate specialist area. Time spent on clinical activities as defined above will be no less than 50% of the post holder’s time.

Teaching, Training and Supervision

To ensure appropriate systems for the clinical and professional supervision of qualified and unqualified psychological services staff across the service.

To provide clinical and professional supervision to qualified and assistant psychological services staff working in the service.

To provide specialist clinical placements for trainee clinical psychologists and/or other trainee professionals from psychological services where appropriate. To ensure that they acquire the necessary clinical and/or research skills to doctoral level where appropriate and achieve competencies and experience to contribute effectively to good psychological practice. To contribute to the assessment and evaluation of those competencies.

To provide specialist advice, consultation and training and (where agreed locally) clinical supervision to other members of staff for their provision of psychologically based interventions to help improve clients’ functioning.

To provide pre- and post-qualification teaching of clinical psychologist and/or other trainee professionals from psychological services as appropriate.

To continue to develop expertise in the area of professional pre- and post-graduate training and clinical supervision.

Management, Recruitment, Policy and Service Development:

To take specific line management responsibility for all psychological services staff within the service as determined by the Divisional Lead Psychologist. This will include recruitment, PACE and implementing service governance principles and Trust policies as applied to staff management.

As line manager, to attend relevant meetings as determined by the Divisional Lead Psychologist.

To participate as a senior clinician in the development of a high quality, responsive and accessible service for clients, their carers and families within the service, including advising both service and professional management on those aspects of the service where psychological and/or organisational matters need addressing.

To exercise delegated responsibility for managing the psychological resources available to the service both in terms of psychological staff and psychological materials employed in clinical assessment and treatment.

To exercise responsibility for the systematic governance of psychological practice within the service, including maintaining systematic records of appraisals, clinical record keeping standards and the transcribing of minutes and records of appropriate professional meetings.

To initiate and implement service developments and projects within the service.

IT Responsibilities:

To use email and local electronic patient information systems, in accordance with Department and Trust requirements adhering to confidentiality guidelines, to enable effective communication, recording and data collection.

Research and Service Governance:

To be the Consultant Psychology lead, as a senior clinician, in planning and implementing systems for the evaluation, monitoring and development of the service, through the deployment of professional skills in research, service evaluation and audit and ensuring incorporation of psychological frameworks for understanding and provision of high quality care.

To utilise theory, evidence-based literature and research to support evidence-based practice in individual work, work with other team members and across the service.

To undertake research as appropriate and as agreed with the Divisional Lead Psychologist and provide research advice to other staff undertaking research within the service.

To initiate and implement project management, including complex audit and service evaluation, with colleagues within and across the service to help develop and improve services to clients and their families.

To undertake a defined role in Divisional governance structures as agreed.

General:

To ensure the development, maintenance and dissemination of the highest professional standards of practice, through active participation in internal and external CPD training and development programmes and to provide evidence of CPD undertaken, e.g., in form of CPD logbook.

To ensure the development and articulation of best practice in psychological services within the service area and contribute across the service by exercising the skills of a reflective scientist practitioner, taking part in regular professional supervision and appraisal and maintaining an active engagement with current developments in the field of clinical psychology and related disciplines.

To ensure the highest standards of clinical record keeping including electronic data entry and recording, report writing and the responsible exercise of professional self-governance and/or in accordance with professional codes of practice of the Health and Care Professions Council, British Psychological Society, other professional bodies and Trust policies and procedures.

To contribute with other consultant psychologists and other consultant staff and heads of service to the development and articulation of best practice in psychological services across the Trust.

To ensure that all psychological services staff within the service maintain up to date knowledge of legislation, national and local policies and issues in relation to both the specific client group and the area of clinical specialty.

To perform other duties of a similar kind appropriate to the grade, which may be required by the Divisional Lead Psychologist.