Job summary
Employer heading
Mental Health Practitioner
Band 4
Job overview
Interviews will be held on 16 August 2024.
Telephone Service Mental Health Practitioner Band 4 – Crisis Team, Berkshire West
Based in Reading at Prospect Park Hospital. You will work as part of the Crisis Resolution Home Treatment Team supporting patients in the community to avoid hospital admission. The post holder will provide brief clinical risk and mental state assessment, formulation and brief psychological interventions for people presenting in mental health crisis. Working via telephone, validating, de-escalating crisis and coaching people in distress tolerance and emotional regulation strategies. Using a range of brief psychological interventions, empower patients, carers and families to manage distress and crisis effectively. With experience working within Mental Health, you will enjoy working as part of a large team and thrive in a busy fast paced environment.
Main duties of the job
- The post involves working with clients of the Mental Health Crisis Service over the phone. The working environment includes exposure to high levels of distress in others. There is a requirement for substantial periods of concentration and sitting
- Work with supervision to deliver brief psychological interventions via telephone.
- Undertake clinical risk assessments, based on latest empirical evidence and compliant with local policies and procedures.
- Supervise and support Apprentice and Trainee staff.
- Ensure that individual episodes of care are delivered in a timely, effective and integrated manner.
- Promote a recovery model that empowers patients, carers and relatives to be at the forefront of decision making and ownership of their packages of care and treatment.
- Act as the patients and relative’s advocate.
- To be responsible for the accurate maintenance of clinical record keeping and the required communication of individual patient care packages for the post holder’s area of responsibility/specialism
Working for our organisation
Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is a specialist mental health and community health services trust. Rated ‘outstanding’ by the CQC, we’re committed to providing the best possible care to people across Berkshire.
We value diversity and are proud to be a Stonewall Top 100 Employer. We work hard to create an inclusive environment where you’ll be supported by friendly and professional colleagues to flourish.
Our values at Berkshire Healthcare:
- Caring for and about you is our top priority
- Committed to providing good quality, safe services
- Working Together with you to develop innovative solutions
We welcome people who share these values to come and work for us.
Benefits of working for us include:
- Flexible working options to support work-life balance
- 27 days’ annual leave rising with service + opportunity to buy and sell
- Generous NHS pension scheme
- Excellent learning and career development opportunities
- ‘Cycle to Work’ and car leasing scheme including electric vehicles
- Access to a range of wellbeing tools and services
- Discounts at hundreds of popular retailers and restaurants
- Staff networks for race, diversity, disabilities, the environment and armed forces community to support equality
- Generous maternity, paternity, adoption and special leave
- Free parking across Trust sites
If you share our values and would like to come and work for us, please submit your application as soon as possible as we'll occasionally close roles early that have a high number of applications.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
The “must haves” for this role:
The post involves working with clients of the Mental Health Crisis Service over the phone. The working environment includes exposure to high levels of distress in others. There is a requirement for substantial periods of concentration and sitting:
- Work with supervision to deliver brief psychological interventions via telephone.
- Undertake clinical risk assessments, based on latest empirical evidence and compliant with local policies and procedures.
- Supervise and support Apprentice and Trainee staff.
- Ensure that individual episodes of care are delivered in a timely, effective and integrated manner.
- Promote a recovery model that empowers patients, carers and relatives to be at the forefront of decision making and ownership of their packages of care and treatment.
- Act as the patients and relatives’ advocate.
- To be responsible for the accurate maintenance of clinical record keeping and the required communication of individual patient care packages for the post holder’s area of responsibility/specialism
For further information about the role, please see attached job description and person specification. We strongly encourage you to review how you meet the criteria in the person specification and write about this point-by-point in your supporting statement for the best chance of being shortlisted. For further application tips – see the help with your application document attached once you click apply.
If you’re someone who shares our passion for excellence and care, you belong at Berkshire Healthcare.
We welcome a conversation about flexibility and any other questions you may have. Please don’t hesitate to call: Please don’t hesitate to call: Anita Onovo on 0118 960 5995 or email: [email protected] who will be delighted to help.
We are committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from all sections of the community, regardless of any protected characteristics. Reasonable adjustments will be made for disabled applicants where required.
Person specification
Education/Qualifications/Training
Essential criteria
- Good general education including GCSE Maths and English or equivalent
- NVQ3 or equivalent qualification/experience
Previous Experience
Essential criteria
- Previous knowledge and experience of working in a care environment and with services users who have complex mental health needs.
Knowledge, Skills & Abilities
Essential criteria
- Knowledge of care related procedures and practices
- Basic level of healthcare knowledge, clinical observations and the Mental Health Act
- Good interpersonal, communication, observation and reporting skills.
- Able to empathise, be supportive and sensitive to the needs of others as well as being able to cope with distressing circumstances
- Ability to use a practical problem solving approach in everyday situations
- Basic IT skills and the ability to navigate around various systems and software packages (such as Outlook, databases, MS Office and the internet)
- Able to work flexibly on a shift pattern as required and the ability to travel independently between locations to fulfil the requirements of the position
- Ability to work effectively in a team, work on own initiative, work unsupervised and manage own workload
Additional Requirements
Essential criteria
- Ability to travel to multiple sites
- Assist and escort service users as required and provide basic care support to service users with challenging behaviours
Applicant requirements
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Anita Onovo
- Job title
- Clinical Nurse Specialist
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 01189605995
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