Highly Specialist Clinical Psychologist

Job summary

An exciting opportunity has arisen in our highly specialised Psychology service, within the St Johns Dermatology Department at GSTT.

The clinical work will support patients from Vulval, Psoriasis, and Photobiology clinics as well as patients from other dermatology clinics. The appointee will have the opportunity to work with patients with a wide range of chronic inflammatory skin conditions and some more primary psychological conditions.

The appointee will have links with other psychologists working within the Specialist Ambulatory Services Directorate as well as with the wider psychology community in the Trust. There will be opportunities to attend Psychology meetings, training, and CPD opportunities.

The appointee will be registered with the HCPC as a Practitioner Psychologist. Experience of working with long-term medical conditions is essential and experience with dermatological problems is a preference.

Main duties of the job

The appointee will provide specialist assessment, individual and group interventions and contribute to the wider multi-disciplinary team approach within the department. The post holder will also have the opportunity to contribute to innovation and service development in conjunction with the lead clinical psychologist in medical dermatology and along with dermatology colleagues. In addition there will be opportunities to take a role in more formal staff training as well as indirect working as part of multidisciplinary clinics.

The appointee will receive one to one clinical supervision and line management from the lead clinical psychologist in medical dermatology and have the opportunity to attend group supervision in the Trust. The post holder will work autonomously within professional practice and Trust guidelines. Flexible working on and off site is available.

Job responsibilities

1. To provide specialist psychological assessments of patients referred to the team based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources including psychological tests, self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews with patients, family members and others involved as necessary.
2. To collaboratively formulate and implement plans for the psychological management of a patients psychological adjustment and mental health problems using a range of approaches, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of their problems, and employing methods based upon available evidence of efficacy and effectiveness, across the full range of care settings.
3. To be responsible for implementing a range of psychological interventions for individuals, carers, families and groups, within and across teams employed individually and in synthesis, adjusting and refining psychological formulations drawing upon different explanatory models and maintaining a number of provisional hypotheses.
4. To evaluate and make decisions about treatment options taking into account both theoretical and therapeutic models and highly complex factors concerning historical and developmental processes that have shaped the individual, family or group.
5. To exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the assessment, treatment and discharge of patients whose problems are managed by creative and flexible psychologically based care plans.
6. To provide specialist psychological advice guidance and consultation to other professionals contributing directly to clients formulation, diagnosis and treatment plan.
7. To contribute directly and indirectly to a psychologically based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all clients of the service, across all settings and agencies serving the client group.
8. To undertake risk assessment and risk management for individual clients and to provide advice to other professions on psychological aspects of risk assessment and risk management.

Person Specification

Knowledge/Qualifications

• HCPC Registration as Practitioner Psychologist
• Doctorate level qualification in clinical psychology, counselling psychology or health psychology (or its equivalent for those trained prior to 1996) as accredited by the BPS)

Desirable

• Experience of working with clients with complex dermatological conditions

Previous experience

Essential

• Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
• Well developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, complex, highly technical and/or clinically sensitive information to clients, their families, carers and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS.
• Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups.

Desirable

• Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in relation to those who show chronic and complex inter-personal ways of relating that may make it difficult for them to engage with medical teams/receive medical treatment/care.
• High level knowledge of the theory and practice of at least two specialised psychological therapies. Additional qualification in either CBT/Mindfulness/ACT or Systemic approaches

Skills

Essential

• Formal training in supervision of other psychologists.
• Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the British Psychological Society and other relevant recognised organisations (e.g. British Association of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies).
• Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate, to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.

Desirable

• Experience in working with patients with appearance concerns as part of their clinical presentation
• Experience of working with people from culturally and ethnically rich and diverse communities.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications.

Employer details

Employer name: Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust

Address: Guys Hospital, Great Maze Pond, London, SE1 9RT

Employer's website: https://www.guysandstthomas.nhs.uk/careers/careers.aspx (Opens in a new tab)