Technical Instructor

Livewell Southwest; South Hallsands; On-site; GBP 28,000 - 36,000; Full time

Job summary

Livewell Southwest’s Lee Mill site in Plymouth invites an Occupational Therapy Technician to join an inpatient team supporting adults with mental health needs through tailored activities and group sessions. The role partners with OT staff to deliver a timetable of therapeutic activities such as arts, sports, budgeting, and daily living skills in a secure recovery unit.

You will plan and run self-directed activities, work within risk guidelines, and contribute to assessments and MDT

Qualifications

• Experience working with adults with mental health needs.
• Experience with group work in hospital settings.
• Ability to plan and run activity-based interventions.
• Good communication with MDT members and carers.
• Understanding of risk management and safety protocols.

Responsibilities

• Contribute to planning, monitoring and evaluating patient-centered activities.
• Engage patients in therapeutic activities to promote well-being.
• Lead or co-lead individual and group activities and treatments.
• Maintain accurate records and liaise with the MDT as appropriate.
• Support induction and supervision of new staff and volunteers.

Skills

Teamwork

Communication

Creativity

Risk assessment

Education

Health & Social Care qualification

Tools

IT literacy

Job description

Job summary

37.5 hours per week. Do you have an interest in occupational therapy and how engaging in occupation can increase wellbeing and provide structure and activity to a service user's day?

Are you interested in activities such as sports, arts, music and skills of daily living, and how you can support others to engage in these interests to improve their lives?

Are you a positive, solution focused and creative person who would like to work with individuals who have often not had the opportunity to explore different activities in a supportive and nurturing environment?

We have an exciting opportunity for a motivated and proactive person to join our award winning team at Lee Mill working alongside our Occupational Therapists to provide individual tailored care and group activities to our patient group at Lee Mill.

Lee Mill is a secure recovery unit looking after adult males from Plymouth and the surrounding areas. The OT department comprises of two Occupational Therapists and two technical instructors who provide a timetable of therapeutic activities and occupation to our patient group. Activities include sailing, walking, catering, relaxation, support with education, budgeting etc. alongside any special interests or skills that the team possesses.

Main duties of the job

To use specialist technical and creative skills to assist in the provision of a flexible, inpatient based therapeutic activity programme as part of the occupational therapy service provision to adults with a mental illness, Learning Disabilities and related issues.

To provide self-directed, individual activities for specified patients both on and off the unit, working within risk management guidelines, as this may include working alone in the unit for periods of time.

To be responsible for planning and implementing specialist activities and other appropriate interventions; both individual and group activities and treatments in accordance with identified needs, as sole or co-facilitator at Lee Mill or in the community. This may include developing additional, specialist therapeutic interventions and opportunities in line with service needs as directed by Senior OT.

Participate in the team which responds to any untoward incidents and undertake associated training.

To work closely with OTs and Nurses in the unit to ensure restrictions and escort arrangements are communicated and understood in order to comply with the agreed management of individual patients on the unit.

This role may not be eligible for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker route.

Please note that Livewell may close the job advertisement earlier than the specified deadline.

All Livewell staff are expected to be able and willing to work across a 7 day service.

About us

Livewell Southwest is an independent, award-winning social enterprise delivering integrated health and social care services across Plymouth, South Hams, and West Devon, with specialist services in parts of Devon and Cornwall. Our teams work in community hospitals, GP practices, sports centres, and health hubs.

As an organisation with a strong social conscience we are guided by our values, kindness, respect, inclusivity, ambition, responsibility, and collaboration. We focus on transforming services to ensure sustainability, while empowering staff and those we serve.

We involve the people we care for, along with their families and carers, in shaping the care they receive, striving to deliver the right care at the right time and place. Centering our work on individual needs helps people lead healthy, independent lives.

We prioritise employees' development, offering protected CPD time, training pathways, leadership programs, and funding for qualifications like the Care Certificate and Nurse Training Scholarships. Our induction and preceptorship programs ensure a smooth transition into our organisation.

Livewell Southwest values diversity and encourages applications from all sections of the community, including those with armed forces experience, lived experience of mental health, neuro-diverse conditions and learning disabilities. If you need assistance or reasonable adjustments during the application process, contact the Recruiting Manager listed in the job advert.

Job responsibilities

Main Duties

Clinical

• To be responsible for contributing to the planning, monitoring and evaluating of patient centred individual and / or group activities as part of a regular review of the service requirements.
• To use technical and creative skills to engage patients in therapeutic activities to promote healthy psychological and physiological well being.
• To develop observation, reporting and recording skills in relation to individual priorities and activity programmes, working with the patient, carers and other members of the multi-disciplinary and OT team as appropriate.
• To develop own knowledge base of the principles and practice of the use of technical and creative group work and individual activities in relation to people with mental illness and associated issues.
• To contribute to the assessment of patients; to report presentations, changes, performance and progress etc in relation to formal OT assessments.
• To form professional relationships with patients, maintaining clear boundaries for effective working practices.
• To participate in policy and service developments as appropriate.
• To participate in induction and support programmes in relation to new staff and volunteers as directed by the Senior OT.
• To ensure that contemporaneous, written and electronic records, and activity data are maintained in accordance with professional and Organisational standards.
• To liaise and communicate with patients, carers, other professionals and other agencies as appropriate.
• To actively engage in clinical supervision.

Administration

• To adhere to all policies and standards of Livewell Southwest in general and of the Mental Health Service in particular. To comply with the COT Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct and national policies and procedures.
• To plan and prioritise own workload under direction of Senior OT.
• To participate in the planning and implementation of operational policies, projects and service development within the occupational therapy team.
• To be aware of, and adhere to, the correct procedures for ordering, maintaining and using materials and equipment as directed by Senior OT.

Self Development

• In line with local guidelines review, reflect and develop own practice and performance through effective use of professional and operational supervision and appraisal.
• To demonstrate ongoing personal and professional development through participation in internal and external development opportunities, reflecting and recording learning outcomes in a professional portfolio. This would include support groups and induction opportunities.

Notes

• Although the post holder is an inpatient based member of staff they will be expected to travel around Plymouth in the course of their duties as appropriate.
• The post holder may be exposed to unpleasant working conditions including exposure to vomit, sputum and body fluids.
• The post holder may be exposed to emotionally distressing situations on a frequent basis as some people with mental illness have physical disabilities and complex health needs. These include challenging and unpredictable behaviour and learning disability issues. Also there is a need to develop rapport and effective therapeutic working in a pressured environment with a high turnover of patients whose needs are many and varied.
• The postholder will be exposed to a working environment that is challenging because of systems and procedures that are in place to protect patients and staff. The postholder may be exposed to the risk of physical assault and injury and will have to carry an alarm with them at all times and work within the constraints of the safety procedures in the unit.
• The post holder may, on occasions, be required to assist with other duties to cover periods of staff absence.
• This job description is a guide to the main duties and is not exhaustive. These duties may change as services develop and the job description will be reviewed annually as part of the post holders performance review. Appropriate training will be provided for new duties.

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

• Experience working with adults experiencing mental health needs.
• Experience of working with service users in groupwork
• Experience working within a hospital environment particularly mental health
• Experience working as part of a team and under own initiative

Desirable

• Experience of working with adults with learning and physical disability
• Evidence of continuing professional development

Qualifications

Essential

• Technical Qualifications e.g.
• City & Guilds or
• NVQ3 in Health & Social Care or
• Equivalent technical / life skills gained through work or personal experience.

Desirable

• Sports and recreation qualification
• Music, art, photography,
• Nutrition,
• Physical health, personal training

Knowledge

Essential

• Interest and the ability to learn, practice and apply the role of Occupational Therapy TI with clients with mental health needs.
• Knowledge and application of a variety of practical activity-based interventions within a variety of internal and external environments
• Demonstrates knowledge related to Low Secure service users
• Ability to identify risk and explore safe solutions with the MDT to ensure positive risk taking
• Demonstrates knowledge of the roles of the MDT members
• Has computer literacy skills, experience of IT
• Demonstrates effective written, verbal & non-verbal communication skills
• Ability to pass on skills to others and evaluate their competence.

Desirable

• Knowledge of MOHO (Model of Human Occupation)
• Mental Health Act 1983
• Knowledge of government initiatives that shape mental health practice

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.

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. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).