Oncology Psychotherapist / Counsellor

Royal Marsden; Sutton; On-site; GBP 26,000 - 38,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Good CPD provision

Flexible working

Supportive MDT

Job summary

The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust in Sutton is seeking a Band 7 Oncology Counsellor/Psychotherapist (0.6 wte) to join our exploratory psychological therapy pathway. You will provide evidence‑based counselling to adults with cancer, work within a multidisciplinary team, and supervise other staff including nurses and AHPs.

The role requires BACP/UKCP accreditation and experience in oncology or complex health settings.

Qualifications

• Master’s level training in counselling or psychotherapy.
• Accredited with BACP/UKCP or other recognised body.
• Other health professional training (e.g., nurse, OT, physio).
• Recognised supervision qualification or training.

Responsibilities

• Provide a high‑quality specialist counselling/psychotherapy service to adult cancer patients within the Adult Psychological Support Service.
• Provide clinical supervision to health care professionals within the organisation.
• Work within the exploratory pathway using existential/person centred/psychodynamic/integrative therapies.
• Offer specialist psychological care input at MDT meetings and clinics when appropriate.

Skills

BACP/UKCP accreditation

Oncology counselling experience

Multidisciplinary teamwork

Supervision/training

Education

Master’s level counselling/psychotherapy

Accredited with BACP/UKCP

Other health professional training

Supervision qualification/training

Job description

Are you a BACP / UKCP accredited counsellor or psychotherapist wanting to work as part of a MDT in a psych-oncology service

We are looking for a Sutton based Band 7 0.6wte Oncology Counsellor/ Psychotherapist to work in our ‘exploratory’ psychological therapy pathway ( integrative, existential, person centred and psychodynamic approaches).AS well as OP and IP work with patients this role will include providing supervision to nurses/ AHPs within the trust. Experience working in an oncology, hospice or other complex physical health setting is essential. Additional training in another health care profession is desirable, e.g. nurse/ AHP/ medic.

You will be joining a supportive team of qualified and trainee psychological and psychiatry professionals including counsellors and psychotherapists, psychology (clinical and counselling), psychosexual therapists psychiatry and mental health nursing. There is good CPD provision.

We particularly welcome applications from people who identify as from Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic groups, as well as people who have a disability.

We encourage you to contact us to discuss the role. Please contact
Liz Carruthers, Senior Oncology Counsellor on [e-mail] or 020 7808 2777

Please note the provisional interview date is Thursday 8th October.

Main duties of the job

• To work within our ‘exploratory’ pathway providing existential/ person centred/ psychodynamic/ integrative therapies (our other pathways are: directive, family, sex therapy, psychiatry/ mental health nursing)
• Provide a high-quality specialist counselling/ psychotherapy service to adult cancer patients within the context of the Adult Psychological Support Service, including assessment and evidence based interventions associated with the complex physical and psychological impacts of a cancer diagnosis
• Work autonomously, within professional guidelines, code of conduct and the overall framework of the team/trust policies and procedures.
• Provide specialist advice and consultation on patients’ psychological care to colleagues through psychosocial meetings, multidisciplinary team meetings and attendance at clinics if appropriate.

Working for our organisation

The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust is a world-leading cancer centre. Our role is to offer our patients the best cancer care available anywhere in the world, and to continue to make a global contribution to finding better ways of diagnosing and treating cancer. We employ over 4,500 staff in a diverse range of careers including nursing, medical, science, radiography, pharmacy, occupational therapy, finance and administrative services. We have two hospitals – one in Chelsea, London, and one in Sutton, Surrey – as well as a Medical Daycare Unit in Kingston Hospital.

At The Royal Marsden, we deal with cancer every day, so we understand how valuable life is. When people entrust their lives to us, they have the right to demand the very best. That's why the pursuit of excellence lies at the heart of everything we do.

At the heart of the hospital is our dedicated team. We offer a stimulating and dynamic working environment, a wide range of staff benefits, learning and development opportunities and clear career pathways. There are opportunities to work flexibly across a range of areas and specialities and we welcome flexible working requests from point of hire to support employees work life balance. We are looking for employees who aspire to excellence, share our values and can play a crucial role in our on-going achievements.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

For further information please refer to the job description and personal specification

Clinical Responsibility – patient care

• To work as a clinician in the delivery of a counselling service to the Royal Marsden Hospital NHS Trust, working directly and indirectly with patients, and with members of the multi-disciplinary team involved in the care of cancer patients, to improve patients’ psychological wellbeing, quality of life and coping strategies.
• To provide specialist psychological assessments for patients referred to the Adult Psychological Support Service and make decisions about support options considering the individual needs and choice of the patient, their clinical treatment, prognosis and resources available; referring on to the most appropriate specialists if required.

Education and Development Responsibility – own as well as the development of other

• Maintain a personal programme of continuing professional development as required by professional body and participate in other activities designed to ensure the continuing development of specialized professional clinical skills. This should inform, update and expand practice and be disseminated as appropriate within the team.
• To provide clinical case supervision in both group and one to one format according to need for health care professionals within the organisation related to the psychological support of patients.

Policy and Service Development

In consultation with the Head of Pastoral Care Psychological Care and PALS as well as the Consultant Psychologist:

• Participate in the identification and recommendation of service priorities for psychological practice.
• Participate in appropriate developments in psychological practice.
• Participate in the development, evaluation and monitoring of the services’ operational policies through the deployment of professional skills in service evaluation and audit.

Research, Service Evaluation and Audit

• To routinely collect outcome data for service evaluation and monitoring purposes.
• To utilise theory, evidence based literature and research to support evidence based practice in individual work, work with other team members and to staff in the trust.

Administration and IT

• To undertake administrative duties appropriate to the tasks of the post including the specialized use of IT.
• To be familiar with computer use (e-mail, internet, Word, PowerPoint, Excel).

Person specification

Education/Qualifications

• Master’s level training in counselling or psychotherapy
• Accredited with BACP/ UKCP or other recognised counselling professional body
• Other health professional training, e.g. nurse, OT, physio, radiographer, medic
• Recognised supervision qualification/ training
• Training/ qualification in one or more specialised areas of clinical expertise

Experience

• Psychological Therapies experience in in a physical health/ acute settings
• Experience working with individuals with long term life threatening physical illness
• Experience working in an exploratory therapeutic approach pure or integrated (existential/ person centred / CBT humanistic / psychodynamic)
• Experience of working within multi cultural settings
• Experience of providing clinical supervision in a group or 1:1
• Professional clinical experience working in Cancer care/ Palliative Care/ HIV/ Critical Care
• Evidence of research productivity

The Royal Marsden values diversity and is committed to the recruitment and retention of underrepresented minority groups. We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates, LGBTQ+ candidates and candidates with disabilities.

As a Disability Confident Employer, we are working to create a workplace that enables all staff to reach their full potential. We are committed to this because we know that greater diversity and inclusion will lead to an even greater positive impact for the people we serve.

Due to the high volumes of applications we receive, we reserve the right to close any adverts before the published closing date once we have received a sufficient number of applications. We advise you to submit your application as early as possible to prevent disappointment. Please ensure your information is accurate to avoid errors with processing your application

All applicants will be contacted by email to the address supplied on your application. Applicants are advised to check their email accounts regularly and to ensure that email filters are set to allow our emails.

Flu Vaccination – What We Expect of our Staff

At The Royal Marsden we have an immune compromised patient population who we must protect as much as we can against the flu virus. Each year, seasonal flu affects thousands of people in the UK. Occurring mainly in winter, it is an infectious respiratory disease capable of producing symptoms ranging from those similar to a common cold, through to very severe or even fatal disease.

The wellbeing of our staff and patients is of the upmost importance to us, and it is the expectation of The Royal Marsden that all patient-facing staff have an annual flu vaccination, provided free of charge by the Trust.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.