Consultant in Psychiatry of Intellectual Disabilities

South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust; Greater London; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

A prominent NHS trust is seeking a Consultant Psychiatrist for the Croydon Mental Health Learning Disabilities Team, aimed at delivering excellent care for adults with learning disabilities. This role offers the opportunity to work with a diverse patient group and contribute to multi-disciplinary assessments and treatment plans. The successful candidate will need strong clinical skills and experience in mental health care, with flexibility required to meet the local service's emerging needs. They are committed to equality and diversity in their hiring practices.

Qualifications

• Experience in mental health care and learning disabilities.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to lead a multi-disciplinary team effectively.

Responsibilities

• Provide clinical care as Responsible Clinician.
• Conduct outpatient clinics and home visits.
• Develop best practice in management of adults with learning disabilities.
• Ensure effective admission and discharge processes for patients.

Skills

Clinical care

Patient management

Multi-disciplinary teamwork

Diagnostic skills

Liaison with GPs

Record keeping

Education

Membership of Royal College of Psychiatrists or equivalent

Medical degree

Job description

We are seeking to appoint a substantive Consultant Psychiatrist within the Croydon Mental Health Learning Disabilities Team for 6 PAs per week. This new post was created to meet local service needs and is one of two consultant posts in the team.

Croydon MHLD is a specialist community mental health team for adults with a confirmed diagnosis of learning disability. It has a total caseload ranging between 115 and 125 patients and delivers patient contact in multiple modalities, including outpatient clinics, remote virtual consultations, community and home visits. The team has strong links with local children and adult mental health services as well as Croydon University Hospital.

The primary duties of this 8 PA consultant psychiatrist post are to provide clinical care for the patient on the caseload as the Responsible Clinician. The post holder will conduct outpatient clinics and home visits, attend CPA reviews, provide liaison work with GPs, multi‑disciplinary colleagues from the Croydon Community Learning Disability Team and other mental health services, and offer clinical cross‑cover for the other Trust MHLD consultants and vice versa. The post holder will be employed by the South London and Maudsley NHS Trust.

The Trust delivers Mental Health in Learning Disabilities (MHLD) services across the boroughs of Lambeth, Lewisham, Southwark and Croydon. These services underwent revision and modernisation to ensure a flexible local service response and to make best use of expertise across boroughs. The Trust’s MHLD services are linked with the Estia Centre, which is a training, learning and development hub for staff as well as a resource for adults with learning disabilities and additional mental health needs.

Our MHLD and wider neurodevelopmental services were rated “Outstanding” by the Care Quality Commission.

Responsibilities

1. Provide patients, referrers and carers with diagnostic and management advice.
2. Promote and develop best practice in the management of adults with learning disabilities and mental health problems, locally, regionally and nationally.
3. Make contemporaneous clinical notes on the electronic patient record system employed by the Trust and adhere to Trust/service requirements for electronic record keeping, including prompt verbal and written clinical and medico‑legal communications.
4. Lead the MDT in assessing, planning, implementing and evaluating treatment options, including liaison with the patient, carers and the wider multi‑disciplinary team.
5. Appropriately escalat[e] patients “at risk” to the Dynamic Support Register, which is led by the local Integrated Care Board.
6. Facilitate admission and discharge pathways for patients with learning disabilities who require mental health admission, either into adult mental health wards or into specialist inpatient services, working with the MDT, patients, carers, referrers and commissioners to ensure effective processes and good communication.
7. Act as a resource within the service and directorate, offering advice and support to colleagues to ensure safe and evidence‑based practice.

The Trust is committed to providing services which embrace diversity and promote equality of opportunity. We are a Disability Confident Employer, welcoming applicants from all sections of the community and people of all protected characteristics. We provide reasonable adjustments for candidates with a disability and are committed to treating people fairly with compassion, respect and dignity and to promoting equality and human rights.

Our values: We take pride in providing specialist care to our service users, guided by a dedication to caring, kindness, promptness, honesty and listening. When you join us, you’ll be part of something special.

We recognise the unique and valuable contribution that people with lived experience of mental illness can bring to a role. Therefore we welcome applications from those individuals.