Job Description
We are looking for an assistant psychologist to join our innovative Long COVID rehabilitation service, North Derbyshire Hub.
You will be joining a friendly and inclusive team and will have access to excellent supervision and mentoring opportunities.
The role will suit someone who approaches their work with colleagues and service-users with warmth and curiosity, and who can bring creativity and an analytic mind to their work.
We welcome applications from new graduates with a demonstrable interest in Health Psychology, particularly those currently under-represented in Clinical Psychology, and also from those with post-graduate experience wishing to expand their skills.
We prefer not to receive generic applications as we are looking for someone who is passionate about health psychology and the opportunities offered by this role. We would like to see this reflected in your experience to date and your main areas of interest. The application window will not close until the specified date.
As an assistant psychologist you will work closely with colleagues from other disciplines and contribute to the development, delivery and evaluation of psychological care across the rehabilitation pathway.
The role will include group and individual work with service-users, interdisciplinary working, literature searches, developing and co-creating resources, evaluating outcomes, and being a vital member of the evolving service. The work will be supervised by a qualified Clinical Psychologist, and would require both working within boundaries and innovative, creative approaches.
Our purpose is to provide community health services to a patient population of over one million people in Derbyshire and Derby, as part of Joined Up Care Derbyshire.
We employ around 4,200 substantive staff, caring for patients in 11 community hospitals and more than 30 health centres, as well as in clinics, GP practices, schools, care homes and, increasingly, in people’s own homes and via virtual consultations.
During the pandemic response we have led the implementation of public vaccination centres in collaboration with partners across health and social care.
Post-COVID Syndrome (‘long COVID’) affects 1.8 million people nationally and has a substantial impact on the day-to-day lives of 1.2 million. DCHS is committed to providing high quality care for our those in our patient population who need assessment and rehabilitation for their on-going symptoms following COVID or suspected COVID infection.
Please refer to the attached Job Description and Person Specification for full details.
Patient care
To support psychology input to the Long COVID Rehabilitation Hubs. Duties could include:
- Developing and implementing psychologically informed resources.
- Organising and co-facilitating psycho-education and peer support groups for service-users under clinical supervision and guidance.
- Supervised one-to-one psycho-education and guided self-help with service-users.
- Joint working with other disciplines (e.g. Occupational Therapy and Physiotherapy).
- Establishing and working within therapeutic boundaries.
- Basic cognitive assessment (with training and supervision provided).
- Being involved with patient and public involvement initiatives to help inform, develop, and promote the rehabilitation offer.
- Supporting audit, service evaluation and research activity.
- Encouraging and supporting the development of psychological knowledge and skills for multi-disciplinary colleagues.
- To assist in the delivery of training for colleagues and other staff groups on relevant psychological skills and perspectives.
- Contributing to multi-disciplinary team meetings.
In addition:
- To responsibly maintain and protect clinical records.
- To contribute to audit, service evaluation and research activity, as required.
- To receive regular clinical supervision in accordance with good practice guidelines.
- Reporting back to the Clinical Lead on matters of concern or which need a decision from Clinical Lead level.
- To contribute to Service and Trust objectives.
- To follow Trust policies and procedures.
- To provide information, as required, on performance and outcome measures.
- Analytical and judgement skills: To assess and judge service-user needs and decide upon appropriate interventions within group and individual work; and to analyse and make decisions based upon group dynamics.
- Planning and organisational skills: To plan and prioritise own workload; and to plan and organise structure and content of individual and group work with service-users; to travel between sites as necessary.
- Responsibility for Human Resources: May be required to demonstrate own duties to others, including other assistant psychologists and other health care professionals.
- Health and Safety: To adhere to the Trust health and safety policies and procedures and to have due regard in their practice to the health and safety of themselves, their colleagues and the general public.
Typical Day
This is a developing service, and the Assistant Psychologist role will adapt to respond to the service's evolving needs. However, a typical day might look something like this-
- Joining an Occupational Therapist colleague for a rehabilitation session with a client whose anxiety seems to be a barrier to their progress and gathering information about the client's difficulties / needs for further discussion with the Lead Psychologist.
- Co-facilitating a psycho-education / peer support group about managing cognitive difficulties in relation to Long COVID.
- Collating feedback and outcome measures from the group session and updating group materials as needed.
- Supporting an individual client to work through guided self-help material.
- Updating clinical notes on the electronic system.