We are looking for a candidate with experience and/or a real interest and passion for working with older people and with people living with dementia.

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an enthusiastic and compassionate Assistant Psychologist to join Bromley Older People’s Mental Health Service. The post holder will work in our Memory Service Team providing the best possible care and support for people in the borough living with memory difficulties and dementia. The Assistant Psychologist will work as part of a multi-disciplinary team under the supervision of a Clinical Psychologist.

The role involves providing assessment and psychological interventions to clients and carers. The role will include facilitating workshops and groups, conducting neuropsychological assessments and providing individual therapy for people with cognitive difficulties and their family members. There are opportunities for training, consultation and developing supervision skills. The role will include clinically related administration, conduct of audits, collection of statistics, and development of audit and/or research projects, teaching and project work.

This post provides a very supportive and well-rounded experience for psychology graduates who plan to apply for further training in clinical psychology.

Main duties of the job

To support and enhance the professional psychological care of clients within the Bromley Memory Service part of the Older People’s Mental Health Service providing psychological assessment, neuropsychological assessment and psychological interventions under the supervision of a qualified professional

To assist in the coordination and running of therapeutic and/or psycho educational workshops and groups.

Working closely with multidisciplinary team colleagues

Undertaking audit and service evaluation work.

Previous experience of working with people with mental health problems or dementia . Applicants should have a 2:1 degree in Psychology. Please see the person specification for further details.

Oxleas offers a wide range of NHS healthcare services to people in community and secure environment settings. Our services include community health care such as district nursing and speech and language therapy, care for people with learning disabilities and mental health care such as psychiatry, nursing and therapies. Our multidisciplinary teams look after people of all ages and we work in close partnership with other parts of the NHS, local councils and the voluntary sector and through our new provider collaboratives. Our 4,300 members of staff work in many different settings including hospitals, clinics, prisons, secure hospitals, children’s centres, schools and people’s homes.

We have over 125 sites in a variety of locations in the South of England. In London we operate within the Boroughs of Bexley, Bromley Greenwich and into Kent. We manage hospital sites including Queen Mary’s Hospital, Sidcup and Memorial Hospital, Woolwich, as well as the Bracton Centre, our medium secure unit for people with mental health needs. We are the largest NHS provider of prison health services providing healthcare to prisons within Devon, Dorset, Bristol, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire, Kent and South London. We are proud of the care we provide and our people.

Our purpose is to improve lives by providing the best possible care to our patients and their families. This is strengthened by our new values:

We’re Kind

We’re Fair

We Listen

We Care

Key Task and Responsibilities

• To undertake psychological assessments of clients applying psychological theory, including neuropsychological tests; risk assessment; self-report measures; rating scales; direct and indirect structured observations and semi-structured interviews with clients, family members and others involved in the client’s care, under the supervision of a qualified clinical psychologist.
• To develop formulations and deliver therapeutic interventions involving the psychological treatment and/or management of a client’s problems as part of a care plan, under the supervision of a qualified professional psychologist.
• To assist in the coordination and running of therapeutic and/or psycho educational groups, training, or clinical projects.
• To work with other staff within the team and contribute to multi-disciplinary discussions or care guidelines as agreed with the clinical psychologist providing supervision.
• To assist in the development of a psychologically based framework of understanding and care to the benefit of all clients of the service, across all settings where care takes place.
• Provide a range of information and support for evidence based low – intensity psychological treatments and indirect interventions, including psycho-social interventions for dementia. This work may be face to face, telephone or via other media.
• Educate and involve carers, family members and others in treatment and interventions as necessary.
• Adhere to an agreed activity contract relating to the number of client contacts offered, and clinical sessions carried out per week.
• To create graphs or charts to collate or summarise data.
• To assist in producing visual material or user-friendly information for interventions with clients.
• To update the RIO and/or any other patient records database in relation to contact with clients.
• In common with all clinical psychologists, to receive regular clinical supervision in accordance with professional practice guidelines
• To gain wider experience of professional psychology within the NHS over and above that provided within the principal service area where the post holder is employed.
• To develop skills and competencies that assist in the delivery of current duties.
• To contribute to the training and support of other staff in provision of psychological care.