Forensic Mental Health Practitioner

Sussex Partnership Nhs Foundation Trust; Worthing; On-site; GBP 32,000 - 40,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading mental health service provider in Worthing seeks a Mental Health Practitioner to support service users with complex health needs. The role involves promoting well-being, developing care plans, and providing clinical interventions. Ideal candidates will be registered professionals with significant experience in mental health settings. The position offers a values-driven environment with robust training opportunities and generous benefits.

Benefits

Fully funded lifelong learning opportunities

Supportive supervision programmes

Reimbursed parking and NHS discounts

Generous holiday entitlement

Qualifications

• Registered professional with significant post-qualifying experience in mental health.
• Experience working with complex health problems.
• Evidence of continuous professional development.

Responsibilities

• Assess, plan, implement, and evaluate care for service users.
• Develop holistic care plans focused on outcomes.
• Engage with service users to support their health management.

Skills

Clinical interventions

Risk assessment

Team collaboration

Client engagement

Education

Registered Nurse/Social Worker/OT with current registration

Job description

Overview

The role of the Mental Health Practitioner is to work in partnership with individual service users who are presenting with complex health presentations, whilst under the care of the Forensic Outreach and Liaison Service (FOLS). The post holder will promote the safety and well-being of service users, developing packages of care and recovery plans to enable the service user to lead a fulfilling life. The post holder will assess, plan, implement care, and provide discharge planning, while working closely with carers, families and partner agencies to facilitate this. The post holder will demonstrate an understanding of clinical interventions relevant to the service, including delivering specialist advice, consultation, education, training and implementing evidence-based practice.

Responsibilities

• Be a core member of the team, using specialist health assessments.
• Provide a highly specialised range of clinical interventions relevant to the service and have knowledge of evidence-based models of practice.
• Deliver care under the Care Programme Approach (CPA), taking on the role of care co-ordinator/lead practitioner and working within the CPA policy delivering standards set out in the Trust CPA policy.
• Manage a caseload of service users with complex health needs.
• Work in partnership with the individual service user and their families and carers as appropriate to ensure the delivery of the care plan, and enable development of a plan to facilitate safety, wellbeing and independence in the community, using age-appropriate self-management tools where applicable.
• Develop holistic care plans that meet the needs of the individual and their family/carers, focused on strengths and outcomes.
• Plan and implement service-user centred individual, family and group interventions, using graded activity to achieve therapeutic goals.
• Monitor, evaluate and modify treatment to measure progress and ensure effectiveness of intervention.
• Be aware of prescribed medication for each service user; refer to medical and nursing professionals for advice/treatment as appropriate.
• Discuss health problems with the service user and, where appropriate, with their carers, to develop understanding and maintain hope for the future.
• Promote empowerment of service users to manage their health, including use of Self Directed Support/direct payments as indicated.
• Work with carers and family members, offering assessments and providing support and information; signpost to third sector agencies as needed.
• Assertively engage with service users to develop good therapeutic relationships.
• Monitor risk, progress and compliance, including service-user views, and work in partnership with family and carers when appropriate.
• Carry out assessments of work/education/vocational and housing needs/aspirations and ensure they are met where appropriate.
• Carry out carers assessments and implement a plan of care where appropriate.
• Collaborate with colleagues across the Trust to ensure the best care and a seamless pathway.
• Know how to access appropriate services and develop effective networks and communication channels.
• Keep abreast of local resources; third sector partners, primary care, housing, education, social care and other statutory organisations to help service users navigate the health and social care system.
• Establish robust communication networks with clients’ carers and other health workers and agencies.
• Attend meetings and case conferences as relevant; promote awareness of the professional role within the team and across the service.
• Demonstrate ongoing personal development through participation in internal and external development opportunities; record learning outcomes in a portfolio.
• Practice development, including professional development of others; ensure best practice is promoted and disseminated; support a team-based learning culture; facilitate local multidisciplinary learning groups and practice development initiatives.
• Contribute to induction and training of students and other staff; supervise and provide written assessments of students on placement; act as Practice Supervisor/Assessor/Mentor/Preceptor as appropriate.
• Participate in the Trust’s performance review, appraisal and personal development planning; achieve and demonstrate agreed standards of development; review practice through supervision and appraisal; provide guidance, supervision and appraisal for junior staff.
• Assist in staff selection and induction; provide leadership within the team and represent the professional lead/senior manager at meetings as required.
• Engage in research and development: undertake research and/or audit projects relevant to the service; broaden skills through local audit and research projects; participate in policy and service development within the team; contribute to delivery of the Trust strategy and professional strategy in Forensic Healthcare.
• Apply research in practice and develop research from one’s own practice.
• Governance and quality: maintain up-to-date written and electronic records; provide specialist reports; complete outcome measures; adhere to Code of Conduct, Professional Standards and Ethics; respect diversity; contribute to governance and quality agendas; apply national guidelines and legislation; participate in governance forums; ensure performance targets and standards are met; complete clinical outcome measures (e.g., HoNOS); maintain professional standards among junior staff.

Qualifications

• Registered Nurse/Social Worker/OT with current registration [mental health/LD/Adult], appropriate to the job role.
• Evidence of continuous professional development; significant post-qualifying experience in the relevant care group.
• Experience of working with people with complex health problems in the designated care group.
• Experience of supervising staff.
• Experience of providing a range of clinical interventions to people in the designated care group with various health problems.
• Experience of working consultatively with professionals.
• Experience of conducting clinical assessments including risk assessments.
• Experience of partnership working across statutory and non-statutory teams and agencies.
• Experience of working within the CPA process.
• Understanding of clinical governance.
• Previous experience of working in the community; appropriate UK professional registration.

Benefits and About Us

We offer a values-driven environment (compassion, accountability and optimism) and provide NHS mental health and learning disability services. We are committed to creating a diverse workforce reflective of our communities.

• Fully funded lifelong learning opportunities from GCSE to Masters level.
• Supportive supervision programmes, ongoing training and development opportunities.
• Reimbursed parking and NHS discounts (gyms, shopping, restaurants, cars).
• A position within a trust rated 'Outstanding' for caring and 'Good' overall by the CQC.
• Generous holiday entitlement (27 days + 8 bank holidays, dependent on NHS service length) and NHS Pension contributions.

Travel, location and contact details: The Trust is committed to safeguarding and expects staff to adhere to safeguarding procedures. Interviews may be conducted with consideration of the budgetary and staffing needs. If you have not heard within three weeks of the closing date, please assume you have been unsuccessful. The Trust reserves the right to close the vacancy early if there is an excessive number of applicants.