Job summary
Employer heading
CAMHS Initial Assessment Practitioner
NHS AfC: Band 7
Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust provides specialist mental health, learning disability, and community healthcare services for the population of the Black Country.
Across the whole of the region we provide:
- Adult and older adult mental health services
- Specialist learning disability services
- Mental health services for children and young people
- Community healthcare services for children, young people and families in Dudley
Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust was formed on 1 April 2020, with the merger of Black Country Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and Dudley and Walsall Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust. Combining resources, strategies and talented workforce enables us to deliver a wider variety of outstanding services that are based on best practice and are continually improving.
We currently employ over 4,000 people and just like the population we serve, we are made up of diverse cultures and backgrounds. Whatever your role, working in a NHS Foundation Trust, like ours, is a demanding and extremely rewarding experience. Knowing that every day you can help to make a positive difference to someone’s life is a very powerful feeling. We know that our Trust runs on this desire to help and support people, and our Trust vision expresses this. Our vision is to improve health and wellbeing for everyone, especially our colleagues to achieve the best possible work/life balance.
We proudly offer supportive, inclusive and family friendly employment and flexible working policies. We have a wide range of professional services and employee networks to help our colleagues be at their best - and find support if they need it. To find more about our staff benefits, please visit our website: blackcountryhealthcare.nhs.uk.
Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and ethnic minority candidates are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At Black Country Healthcare we recognise and value all forms of knowledge and expertise, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification or criteria in the job description/person specification, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.
For further supporting information to help you apply for this role please see documents attached under ‘Additional documents’.
Job overview
An exciting opportunity has arisen for two fixed term contracts to support initial assessments in Sandwell CAMHS. The successful candidate will have an appropriate professional registration with a governing body such as NMC, HCPC or Social Work England and will have substantial experience in working in CAMHS or similar health/social care settings.
Main duties of the job
· To provide a quality specialist service to clients (and their families/carers) referred to CAMHS across all sectors of care
· To promote the reputation of CAMHS
· To provide specialist assessment and intervention for complex mental health needs and to work autonomously within professional guidelines and exercise systematic governance of practice within CAMHS
· Effectively assess and prioritise clinical complexity and risk
· Liaise with referrers and professionals in relation to clinical concerns and queries
· Be a clinical point of contact for children, young people and families
· Effectively liaise with referrers, professionals, partners and agencies in relation to referrals and/or assessments
Working for our organisation
Black Country Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust provides specialist mental health, learning disability, and community healthcare services for the population of the Black Country.
Across the whole of the region we provide:
- Adult and older adult mental health services.
- Specialist learning disability services.
- Mental health services for children and young people.
- Community healthcare services for children, young people and families in Dudley.
We are also the Lead Provider for mental health, learning disabilities and autism across the Black Country. As Lead Provider we work in partnership with health, social care, voluntary services and community organisations to collectively develop and deliver mental health, learning disability, and autism services that helps people to live their best lives as part of our Black Country community. The approach has a focus on prevention, health equity and inclusion.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
· To provide specialist systematic process for the assessment of children and young people referred into CAMHS. To assess, triage and prioritise referrals ensuring an equitable system and that those with urgent needs are clearly identified and needs are addressed in a timely manner. The post will require independent management of caseload with appropriate supervision and professional management, as per professional body guidelines.
· To provide highly specialist assessments of clients referred to CAMHS based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex information from a variety of sources including self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews with clients and their families/carers.
· To provide effective and safe assessment of safeguarding concerns. Liaising and reporting to other agencies where appropriate, including the completion of safeguarding referrals and safety planning.
· To consider the appropriateness of CAMHS referrals in relation to agreed referral criteria and organise safe signposting as appropriate to the needs of the child/young person referred.
· Ensure pathways into CAMHS are accessible for children, young people and families with additional needs e.g., a learning disability.
· To exercise professional responsibility for the assessment, treatment, signposting and discharge of clients.
· To undertake risk assessment and risk management for individual clients and their families/carers.
· To gather comprehensive information from a range of community children/young people’s services and to liaise with services around assessment outcomes and safeguarding concerns.
· To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner in both written and verbal form, information concerning the assessment and treatment plans of clients referred to CAMHS.
· To maintain and develop skills in the area of professional pre- and post-graduate training and clinical supervision.
· To provide advice, consultation and training to staff working with the client group across a range of agencies and settings, where appropriate.
· To participate as a clinician in the development of a high quality, responsive and accessible service, including advising both service and professional management on those aspects of the service where professional and/or organisational matters need addressing.
· To undertake any other duties of a similar nature consistent with the responsibilities of this post in order to provide a quality CAMHS service.
Person specification
Qualifications/Experience
Essential criteria
- Appropriate registration with a professional body
- Evidence of CAMHS experience or experience in similar health/social care setting
Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
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
- Grace Bird
- Job title
- Service Manager and Clinical Lead
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 0121 612 6620
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