Principal Clinician and Step 3 Lead

Job overview

We have an exciting opportunity for an experienced Clinical/Counselling Psychologist or CBT Therapist to join our Wandsworth Talking Therapies team as Principal Clinician and Step 3 Lead.  Wandsworth Talking Therapies is a primary care mental health service providing psychological, and wellbeing support to residents of Wandsworth, or those registered with a Wandsworth GP. It incorporates a Wellbeing and a Talking Therapies service. The Talking Therapies team provide evidence-based psychological treatments (CBT, IPT, DIT, BCT, EMDR) to people with common mental health problems including depression, anxiety disorders, and PTSD within a stepped-care model.

This is a new role which will involve working closely with the Head of Psychology and Psychotherapies for the Trust Talking Therapies services, the Wandsworth Service Manager, and the Wandsworth Talking Therapies Senior Management Team to ensure consistency in service provision and quality of clinical care across the Wandsworth Talking Therapies service.  The postholder will also be responsible for leading our Step 3/High Intensity team.

• Career Progression/development opportunities:

High quality supervision and CPD are a priority for our Talking Therapies teams. You will receive regular clinical supervision from either the the Head or Deputy Head of Psychology and Psychotherapies for Talking Therapies and have line management supervision from the  Talking Therapies Service Manager.

Main duties of the job

This key role within the Wandsworth Talking Therapies team requires a range of clinical, managerial and leadership skills. You will share responsibility for the smooth operation of the service, including ensuring that referrals are contacted in a timely fashion, that assessment and treatment protocols are adhered to, that appropriate decisions regarding stepped care are carried out efficiently, and that clinical data entries are completed accurately. You will ensure the assessments and interventions delivered by Wandsworth Talking Therapies are of the highest standard and support the service to meet the nationally agreed requirements around access, recovery and waiting times.

You will provide Step 3 diagnostic assessments and evidence-based treatment to clients aged 18 and over presenting with depression, anxiety disorders, and PTSD. You will provide professional and clinical supervision to clinicians within the service which will include ensuring that clinicians work towards their identified capacity target. You will be involved in screening referrals and liaising with other teams to support a smooth transition between services where required. You will support with the resolution of complaints and incidents. You will participate in staff recruitment and training, and lead and report on clinically related audits and data collection as required.

Flexible working:

We are happy to talk flexible working at the interview stage.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

NHS Talking Therapies services are required to provide a stepped care model of treatment for people experiencing common mental health problems in primary care. The post holder will work with the Head of Psychology and Psychotherapies for NHS Talking Therapies and the local service manager to:

• Oversee the clinical caseload of all clinical staff in their NHS Talking Therapies service and ensure safe and clinically effective case management of all patients.
• Oversee clinical outcomes and adjust delivery of clinical services to ensure that patients’ needs are met by the least intrusive intervention necessary to alleviate their conditions according to stepped care model of service delivery in line with NHS Talking Therapies guidance. Support the Head of Psychology and Psychotherapies, NHS Talking Therapies, to advise on resource required.
• Ensure all psychological wellbeing practitioners (PWPs) and High Intensity Therapists (HITs) adhere to standardised protocols and supervision standards to produce clinically safe triage assessments, enhanced assessments and interventions.
• Use a broad theoretical knowledge base and specialist clinical skills to develop and support the psychological skills of others (assistants, trainees, psychological therapists psychologists, psychotherapists and members of other staff groups) via the development and delivery of teaching, training, supervision, support and consultation across the service.
• Be responsible for developing and maintaining knowledge of local resources and developing working relationships with relevant provider structures, statutory, voluntary and community groups and organisations.
• Ensure that all clinical interventions are implemented in line with the latest NICE guidelines for psychological interventions.
• Ensure that protocols and arrangements are in place so that people can be stepped up and down to and from the service as required.
• Ensure that procedures are in place for the rapid assessment triage and appropriate choice of interventions for everyone referred to the service within their designated sector.
• Ensure that clinical governance arrangements are in place to cover all of the clinical activity.
• Ensure adequate supervision arrangements are in place for all elements of service delivery in compliance with NHS Talking Therapies supervision requirements
• Provide clinical supervision in the service.