Community Mental Health Practitioner

The Methodist Church in Britain; Banks; On-site; GBP 34,000 - 45,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible working

Wellbeing resources

Team-friendly balance

Job summary

Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust seeks a Band 6 mental health professional for the Adult Community Mental Health Team in the Chorley area. The role focuses on core assessment, specialist treatment and care planning for people with complex mental health needs, including medication management with clozapine and lithium.

The post involves supervision of practitioners, working with families and carers, and contributing to service-wide collaboration and back-up duty coverage as part of

Qualifications

• Registration as mental health nurse (NMC) or Social Worker (Social Work England).
• Post-qualification experience in mental health, some in acute settings.
• Experience across the full range of mental illness and care planning.

Responsibilities

• Provide comprehensive assessment, advice and treatment for people with highly complex needs in community services.
• Deliver specialist interventions in line with care pathways for the specialism.
• Work closely with other professionals inside and outside the community team.
• Support the Team Leader/Advanced Practitioner to meet KPI, CQUIN and County Council targets and to maintain professional registration.
• Lead on specific objectives as directed by the Team Lead and Clinical Team Lead.
• Provide supervision and direction to practitioners and support staff, undertaking appraisals and supporting their development.
• Take part in the duty system on a rotational basis as back-up duty officer.
• Work regularly without direct supervision, being adaptable and resourceful.

Skills

Knowledge of mental illness impact on

Pharmaceutical knowledge of psychotrop

Collaborative multidisciplinary team

Risk assessment and safety management

Education

Nurse registration or Social Worker registration

Job description

Band 6 post in the Adult Community Mental Health Team at Chorley Health Centre, part of Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust, with rotational back-up duty. The core work is comprehensive assessment, specialist treatment and care planning for people with complex mental health needs, alongside supervising practitioners and support staff. What sets it apart is the medication expertise required, particularly clozapine and lithium, and the team's collaborative approach with service users, families and carers. Candidates need registration as a mental health nurse or social worker, plus post-qualification experience, some of it in acute settings.

What the job involves

• Provide comprehensive assessment, advice and treatment to people with highly complex needs referred to community services, following care pathways for the specialism
• Deliver specialist interventions in line with care pathways for the specialism
• Work closely with other professionals inside and outside the community team
• Support the Team Leader/Advanced Practitioner to meet KPI, CQUIN and County Council targets and to maintain professional registration
• Lead on specific objectives as directed by the Team Lead and Clinical Team Lead
• Provide supervision and direction to practitioners and support staff, undertaking appraisals and supporting their development
• Take part in the duty system on a rotational basis as back-up duty officer
• Work regularly without direct supervision, being adaptable and resourceful

What’s required

Qualifications

• Qualification as a mental health nurse or equivalent registered social worker

Registration & licences

• Professional registration as a mental health nurse (NMC) or as a social worker (Social Work England)

Experience

• Post-qualification experience within mental health services, some in acute settings
• Experience working clinically across the full range of mental illness
• Experience assessing, planning, implementing and reviewing care for complex mental health needs
• Experience of risk assessment and care and safety management
• Experience of providing clinical supervision

Skills & knowledge

• Knowledge of mental illness and its impact on quality of life
• Pharmaceutical knowledge of psychotropic medicines, including clozapine and lithium, and how to monitor them
• Understanding of how health and social needs affect mental health and wellbeing
• Working as part of a multidisciplinary team
• Working regularly without direct supervision
• Ability to work with service users, families and carers in a collaborative way

Other

• Demonstrable interest in continuing to develop own knowledge

What’s offered

• Flexible working considered, including term time, part time, compressed hours and flexi-time
• Family-friendly team where individual caseloads are considered to support work-life balance
• Wellbeing resources, tools and support in and out of work