Detailed job description and main responsibilities

To provide information, proportional assessment and sign posting to patients and their family and carers presenting with mental health problems/needs in community settings.

To foster strong collaborative and trusting working relationships with the referring agent/Primary Care Health Care Professionals underpinned by an educative and solutions focussed philosophy whilst providing them with credible clinical expertise.

This may include:

The promotion and use of additional standardised assessment tools.

Promoting the importance of working with, strengths and aspirations of the person referred.

The provision of succinct formulations and recommendations (inclusive of risk management advice).

Assessment of or advice on the impact of culture and diversity.

Consideration of the respective Primary Care HCP’s confidence and capability in relation to The 10 Essential Shared Capabilities (best practice in Mental Health Care). 

Best practice advice and support in a broad range of conditions for people with both functional or organic mental health needs.

Promotion and recognition of the needs of family and carer/s, including various support networks and third sector agencies. 

Advice and support on evaluating risk from a positive risk taking perspective. 

Support and clarity on formulations within a bio-psycho-social model, including people with medically unexplained symptoms. 

Identifying and ensuring specialist involvement where required.

Advice on interventions and treatments required to enable positive change.

Support and advice within Safeguarding and public protection procedures where the issues are complicated by mental health problems. 

Second opinion on complex capacity assessments. 

To facilitate the development of safe and effective mental health care practice within the primary care setting. 

To assist the primary care and secondary mental health teams in the delivery of safe and appropriate care planning processes. 

To provide a prompt response to all referrals following jointly agreed procedures and within agreed time frames.

To provide concise and effective liaison and feedback to clinical staff within secondary mental health services and Primary Care teams including advice on effective and appropriate management strategies for those patients referred to the service.

To ensure where needed that people experience a seamless transfer into AWP provider/treatment services.

To make effective use of the standard liaison approach and structure for assessments according to the SBAR (Situation-Background-Assessment-Recommendation) format. 

Following assessment, to provide short- term follow up of patients where appropriate.

To contribute evidence based expertise to multi-disciplinary team care planning processes.

To provide effective communication with service users, relatives and carers, Primary Care and Secondary health services.

To advise on medication management issues.

To ensure the active involvement of carers during all stages of the assessment process.

To provide a prompt response to requests for information and advice.

To ensure appropriate communication, both verbal and written, at all stages of the consultation process.

To promote positive attitudes, mutual understanding and collaboration between non mental health staff and mental health services, users, carers, voluntary agencies, primary care and social services.