Job overview

We have an exciting full time opportunity (37.5 hours per week) for an Occupational Therapist to join Gateshead’s Community Older Person Mental Health Team. We welcome applications from experienced Occupational Therapists or those who wish to progress into a Band 6 role.

We are looking for a motivated and flexible Occupational Therapist to join our team. The post is fortunate to sit within a well-established and supportive Community Mental Health MDT and benefits from excellent support from the OT department. Here in Gateshead we encourage and support continuing professional development and have robust supervision processes.

The post holders will work in collaboration with the occupational therapy team lead and mental health colleagues to deliver and shape services. There will be opportunities to develop a wide range of clinical and non-clinical skills. You will work closely with team members and share responsibility for developing band 5 staff and unregistered staff and students. A UK Driving License and access to a vehicle for work purposes will be required for this post for community working. You will be based at one of the Gateshead Health Locations as directed by your line manager.  

We welcome enquires so please don't hesitate to get in touch if you would like to know more about this exciting role. 

Main duties of the job

1. To act as an experienced autonomous practitioner, providing specialised occupational therapy assessment and treatment for client’s accessing the Older Persons Community Mental Health Service.
2. To independently manage a caseload, using evidence-based practice and patient centered principles to assess, plan, implement and evaluate interventions. 
3. To manage and supervise junior staff and students and support with training and development of staff within the mental health team.
4. To work as a key member of the MDT.
5. The post holder will assist in the delivery of the occupational therapy service across community and acute care settings, a range of health and social care locations and the patient’s own home.
6. To be involved in a variety of service improvement initiatives and support delivery of OT business plan as directed by Team/Service Lead. 

Working for our organisation

Based in the North East of England we provide a range of hospital and community health services from our leading facilities, including the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Blaydon urgent care centre and Bensham Hospital, all within Gateshead.

Established in 2005, we were one of the first foundation trusts in the country and since then have consistently achieved the highest levels of care for patients.

We now employ around 4,800 staff and currently provide 444 hospital beds across the Gateshead region.

Our values should be the ‘golden thread’ which runs through everything we do – they are the core of who we are. Our five values can easily be remembered by the simple acronym ICORE; Innovation, Care, Openness, Respect, Engagement.

We have a number of staff networks including the BAME network, D-Ability network, LGBTQ+ Network and the Women’s Network, to challenge us and help us to constantly improve. Our armed forces network is one of our emerging networks.

The health and wellbeing of our staff is one of our highest priorities, and we offer a range of support and initiatives as part of our ‘Balance’ programme balancegateshead.com to cater for our diverse workforce, so that your individual needs can be supported, allowing you a happy and healthy working experience with us.