Principal Clinical Neuropsychologist

North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust; Stoke-on-Trent; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 65,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading healthcare provider in Stoke-on-Trent is seeking a Principal Clinical Psychologist/Neuropsychologist. The ideal candidate will assess and treat psychological distress in critical care settings, provide neuropsychological assessments for patients undergoing awake craniotomies, and collaborate with a multi-disciplinary team. Commitment to staff wellbeing and sustainability is fundamental in this role.

Benefits

Wellness opportunities

Flexible working

Commitment to diversity and inclusion

Qualifications

• Proven experience in psychological assessment and interventions.
• Ability to work with patients and families dealing with PTSD, depression, and anxiety.
• Experience in a multi-disciplinary team environment.

Responsibilities

• Provide psychological assessments for patients undergoing awake craniotomy.
• Deliver psychological therapy and support to staff and families.
• Collaborate with multi-disciplinary teams for patient care.

Skills

Clinical assessment skills

Experience with cognitive and emotional therapies

Leadership skills

Neuropsychological assessment

Experience in physical health settings

Education

Completion of Academic component of the Qualification in Clinical Neuropsychology

Doctoral degree in Psychology

Job description

The post holder will join a highly specialist and motivated multi-disciplinary rehabilitation team at the UHNM Adult CriticalCare Unit (ACCU), in partnership with North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare Trust (NSCHT).

An emphasis will be on the clinical assessment and treatment of patients at high risk of psychological distress and difficulties as a consequence of the incident that brought them into ITU services and their experiences whilst receiving these services. This includes patients who may be experiencing mental health difficulties for the first time and those with a pre-existing history of such difficulties. There will also be a need to work with patients' families experiencing PTSD, depression and anxiety as a consequence of their experiences. Will also provide support, consultation and advice to staff working in the units.

The post holder will have expertise in working psychologically within physical health care settings, as well as within a wider clinical health psychological context. There will be a leadership component, with experience required in clinical assessment, interventions and signposting, as well as managing caseloads, risk assessment/management and individual/group psychology programmes.

The post holder will form a key function in providing consultation, liaison and support to other ITU team members, including consultants, junior doctors, nursing staff, AHPs, and non‑clinical staff, as well as providing training and education as required.

Due to expansion of our Awake Craniotomy service at the University Hospital of North Midlands (a Centre of Excellence in Neuro‑Oncology, doing awake surgery for 10 years), we are seeking a Principal Clinical Psychologist/Neuropsychologist to be trained as part of the team providing awake craniotomies to patients with a brain tumour.

The post‑holder would provide neuropsychological and psychological expertise pre‑, intra‑ and post‑operatively to patients undergoing an awake craniotomy for a brain tumour; and psychological and neuropsychological assessment, formulation, therapy and rehabilitation for patients with cognitive, emotional and behavioural difficulties relating to a brain tumour. If not already completed, this is an ideal post for someone who would like to complete the supervised practice component of the Qualification in Clinical Neuropsychology (QiCN). Applicants should have completed the Academic component of the QiCN. Those who have not yet completed the training could be considered for a Senior Clinical psychologist or preceptorship (8A to 8B) role.

The Neuropsychology service in Stoke‑on‑Trent is a large team, including several Consultant Clinical Neuropsychologists, Principal and Senior Clinical Psychologists and Assistant Psychologists working in various specialties. As a Trust we remain bold and ambitious with plans for both service and system collaborative transformation over the coming years to improve the health and wellbeing of our local people through high quality care.

We pride ourselves on ensuring our team has their wellbeing put first and as such provide a range of wellness opportunities including flexible working.

We are committed to the Greener NHS national ambition to becoming the world's first 'carbon net zero' national health system by 2045 (Greener NHS (england.nhs.uk)). As part of this, sustainability is embedded in our strategy as one of our four key enablers. In order to deliver on this commitment, we recognise that we need a workforce that is as passionate as we are about achieving these goals, for the benefit of our service users, workforce, local communities and the planet alike. For 2024/2025, we have launched our "Proud to be Green" engagement campaign which is aligned to the targets set out in our Green Plan. As a Trust, you can be assured that we will commit to supporting you in working towards our net zero ambitions, set out in our Green Plan, through our sustainability programme.

The Trust is committed to ensuring that a diverse workforce is representative and inclusive at all levels. We would very much welcome applications from all under‑represented groups including women, people with disabilities, people from global majority backgrounds, and those from the lesbian, gay, bi and trans communities.