Assistant Psychologist London, England
Job description
The CYP Neurodevelopmental Assessment Team is one of three dedicated services formed from the 2014 service transformation model which features dedicated and local services in the directorate.
We are an expanding, highly specialist team, combining expertise in CYP neurological disorders with specialist mental health assessment skills.
Career Progression pathways and development opportunities:
We are committed to getting the very best out of our staff and support staff in their career aspirations. We have career pathways available, where you will be able to develop your skills and build on your experience to progress into other roles across different specialties.
We are looking for an Assistant Psychologist (1.0 WTE) on a 12 month fixed term contract who is looking to gain experience within clinical psychology. As the successful post holder, you will be supporting the clinical team by contributing to diagnostic assessments both ASD and ADHD under the supervision of a qualified clinician. This role also includes administrative duties.
You will join a multi-disciplinary team made up of psychologists, psychiatrists, nurses, speech and language therapists and occupational therapists and work alongside assistant psychologists in the team. There is hope the service will continue to expand to meet the demand. The successful post-holder will have access to individual and group clinical supervision from a specialist clinical psychologist. There will be opportunities for school observations and research activity.
We particularly welcome applications from those underrepresented in psychology, such as individuals from BAME backgrounds.
Flexible working:
We are proud to offer agile and flexible working opportunities as part of our new ways of working, and we are happy to talk flexible working at the interview stage.
We are Proud to Belong at South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust.
We have expert services, a rich history and a clear commitment to providing the best quality care for those with mental ill-health. The Care Quality Commission already rates our services as ‘good’ - we aspire to be ‘outstanding’.
This is a great time to join us. We are transforming the way we care for our communities to support our mission of Making Life Better Together. We have built two brand new mental health facilities at Springfield University Hospital, which are amongst the best in the world. More developments are planned across our sites and services.
We are inclusive and diverse and strive to be actively anti racist. We want to attract people from all backgrounds and experiences to enrich the work we do together. We are proud to co-produce and involve our local communities in all that we do.
We offer flexible working, career development and a variety of benefits to enable a positive, welcoming environment in which our people and their careers can thrive.
About our location:
Springfield University Hospital, Tooting
Our largest, 19-ward site is in Springfield Village, created following our £150m investment into two new world class mental health facilities. A 32-acre public park, shops and cafes are coming soon. Close to shops, cafes and Tooting Bec on the Northern Line plus Earlsfield and Tooting rail stations and bus routes.
Clinical - Under appropriate supervision from a qualified clinician.
1. To assist qualified clinicians to provide specialist diagnostic assessments of young children and their parents/carers referred to the service based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complexdata from a variety of sources including psychological and where appropriate, self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews in line with CYP IAPT methodology.
2. To assist in the formulation of plans and recommendations for evidence-based interventions, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework, and employing methods based upon evidence of efficacy, to improve the parent/child relationship.
3. To assist in the coordination and running of parent support ASD/ADHD groups.
4. To assist in the development of a psychologically based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all clients of the service, across all settings where care takes place.
5. To attend and contribute to appropriate multi-disciplinary meetings.
6. To assist the qualified clinician in drafting and preparing clinical reports.
7. To participate in service-related and small-scale research/audit, including data collection, preparation of databases, analysis of service development data, literature searches and conducting qualitative interviews with children, young people and parents/carers.
8. Preparation, distribution, monitoring, and completing questionnaires and other materials related to assessment and research with young people and their families/carers.
9. Any other duties appropriate to the grade as directed by team, or in line with CAMHS Service requirements.
10. To communicate in a skilled and sensitive manner, information concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plans of young children and their parents/carers who are under the care of a qualified clinician.
11. To maintain accurate and accessible health care records according to Trust policy and Information Governance requirements.
12. To demonstrate high level communication skills, both written and verbal.
Teaching, Training, and Supervision
1. To receive regular clinical professional supervision from a clinical psychologist / psychotherapist and, where appropriate, other senior colleagues.
2. To gain additional experience and skills relevant to the service (as agreed with the responsible professional and team manager) in accordance with the CAMHS Directorate’s common expectations for band 4 junior psychology staff.
3. To develop skills and competencies that assist in the delivery of current duties.
Management, Recruitment, Policy and Service Development
1. To contribute to the development, evaluation and monitoring of the service’s operational policies and services (as directed).
2. To contribute to a culture that is therapeutic, productive, accessible, inclusive and flexible to meet the needs of the local population.
3. To assist in the design and implementation of service development projects within the service as required.
4. To attend meetings in which service developments are planned and discussed.
Research and Service Evaluation
1. To assist in the design and implementation of audit and research projects.
2. To undertake data collection, analysis, the production of reports and summaries, using IT and statistical programmes.
3. To undertake searches of evidence-based literature and research to assist qualified clinical psychologists in evidence-based practice in individual work and work with other team members.
