CAS Support Worker London, England
Job description
We are looking for a dynamic and enthusiastic mental health support worker, to join our Community Access Service (CAS) in our Acute Inpatient Mental Health Services.
The CAS works alongside inpatients and the inpatient Multidisciplinary team to ensure that admission to hospital is purposeful and that discharge is planned in a timely way, thus reducing individuals’ long term stay in hospital and also repeated admissions.
We are seeking an enthusiastic and motivated individual who would be committed to supporting the recovery of the individuals being cared for in hospital. You must have experience of working in inpatient mental health services, and and / or some experience of working in a related health or social care field.
You will be responsible for working with individuals towards the best possible outcome, helping them to identify personal recovery goals and supporting them to fully embed into their local communities whilst working towards their own aspirations of a meaningful recovery.
You will need to be motivated, organised, energetic and a flexible team worker with effective communication and interpersonal skills in order to work with patients, carers, CAS team members, inpatient Multidisciplinary Team members, Bed Management Staff, Community Mental Health Teams, Home Treatment Teams and other professionals / community organisations.
The role of the CAS support worker will support the CAS team and adult inpatient service to address barriers to discharge and facilitate discharge from the ward.
As an integral and highly valued member of the CAS team, the support worker will provide practical assistance to patients in order for them to regain control over their lives and their own unique recovery journey. They will support the team to ensure admission to hospital is purposeful and help facilitate safe and effective discharge for the patient back to their homes.
The CAS support worker will take a role in embedding recovery values within the CAS and MDT Team. Theywill promote their role, through the provision of information and a range of learning opportunities for the Community Access Service, the multidisciplinary team and others across the trust.
As a core member of the CAS team, the CAS support worker will work alongside patients on a 1:1 basis, and also work alongside other colleagues in the CAS team and inpatient staff, andwill develop partnership working within the local community
The CAS team works with patients in order to achieve high quality care and best outcomes. Patients are assessed to ensure that treatment plans are personalised and are able to offer appropriate and purposeful care and support when people need it the most. The team works with people towards gaining greater independence and in managing their health and wellbeing.
We are passionate about delivering first-class patient-centred, safe and effective care, whether it is in a hospital setting, in a community clinic or in the patients own home. Patients are at the heart of everything we do. Providing top quality care depends on our ability to employ the best people. Were always looking to recruit outstanding people who will go the extra mile to support our patients, colleagues, teams and the Trust. With every new employee were hoping to find our future leaders and well support our staff by providing opportunities to develop your career.
With a diverse culture and equally diverse range of opportunities across mental health, community services, addictions, eating disorders, learning disabilities and more whatever stage of your career you're at, there's always a place for you at CNWL.
The successful applicant may have contact with patients or service users. As an NHS Trust we strongly encourage and support vaccination as this remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course patients and service users when working on our healthcare settings.
The successful candidate must have experience working with people with mental health problems. You must be enthusiastic, patient centred and able to provide a flexible and creative approach to patient care delivery. The pace of work is often fast, with a rapid turnover of patients in a limited period of time. You will be required to be a team player, enjoy working with a shared caseload and feel confident at delivering evidence based interventions.
You will work both alongside, but at times independently under the direction and supervision of qualified mental health professionals as part of a multi-disciplinary team with the opportunity of developing links with other professionals and teams in a wide variety of settings.
Clinical Responsibilities
1. To work as part of the Community Access Service in order to deliver support to individuals in inpatient settings, ensuring that the care and support that they receive on wards is purposeful and that there is a clear plan and projected discharge date, to ensure discharge from the ward at the earliest opportunity.
2. To support the CAS Team Manager in working towards reducing delays in transfer and unnecessary length of stay in hospital.
3. To carry out practical tasks where necessary in order to facilitate early discharge of the service user, including home visits, form filling, applying for benefits and negotiation with social services and other organisations to enable barriers to discharge to be identified and resolved.
4. To use professional, experiential knowledge in building safe, trusting relationships with patients, supporting them through admission and the discharge transition.
5. To assume a ‘coaching’ role supporting patients in developing personal recovery plans; this can be delivered individually or in groups.
6. To empower and enable each individual service user, in a non-directive, non-prescriptive way, to discover and make use of their own strengths and to build and strengthen positive connections with their peers, networks and wider communities.
7. To skilfully use experience of recovery to help motivate patients, and to provide opportunities for patients to direct their own recovery process.
8. To support patients to identify and overcome fears in relation to discharge from the ward within a relationship of empathy and trust.
9. To contribute to the assessment, planning, implementation and review of care with the Community Access Service and wider multi-disciplinary team, with particular emphasis on assisting with the process regarding discharge, and enabling discharge at the earliest possible opportunity.
10. To work together with the patient and also family members and carers in the drawing up of discharge plans, encouraging and motivating patients to take an active role in their own care plan and discharge planning.
11. To act as an interface with the inpatient wards, Home Treatment Teams and Community Mental Health Teams in order to support discharge, particularly for patients who have been on an inpatient ward for a lengthy period.
12. To handover any concerns to CAS team manager or ward staff in relation to risk, safety and safeguarding, following locally agreed procedures for risk and safety management.
13. To signpost and refer patients to various resources, opportunities and activities within the Trust and in communities to promote choice and informed decision making and social inclusion.
14. To positively promote and support independent living for patients in the community by maintaining extensive knowledge and links with community resources and actively supporting patients to access them e.g. in relation to employment, community living and leisure.
15. To respect and support the diversity of experiences and backgrounds of patients, enabling them to build connections and relationships, and access resources in the communities with which they identify and belong.
16. To accept and respect patients’ personal beliefs, uniqueness and identity.
17. Where appropriate and requested by patients, to accompany or ‘be alongside’ patients as they build and strengthen connections to services, people and places in the community.
18. To support patients in seeking to connect/ reconnect with family, friends, significant others and in learning how to improve or eliminate unhealthy relationships.
19. To assist patients to maintain a connection with their life outside of services.
20. To support the team in promoting a recovery orientated environment by identifying recovery focused activities and imparting information and education as required.
