Job Overview

This role will involve a number of elements which will support the management of people with mental health conditions in primary care, who may be new or known previously to secondary care mental health services.

The post holder will provide assessments, formulation and delivery of psychological intervention in primary care, secondary to this, supporting access to Community Mental Health Teams or other services such as Third Sector and IAPT where needs can be better met by these services. The post holder would be expected to work closely with experts by experience, local communities and will also be involved in raising the awareness of mental health difficulties in the general population.

The post holder will contribute to the provision of psychological interventions in the PCN, which will be under the direction of a qualified clinical psychologist who will retain clinical responsibility for clinical work carried out.

Main duties of the job

You will be part of the Primary Care MDT team assisting case reviews, triage of those presenting with mental health needs, support GPs with referring clients to MH Services as appropriate and ensure the delivery of physical health checks. For those with SMI and where applicable to the skilled professional, the post holder will support antipsychotic medication management. You'll be embedded within a PCN working with several GP surgeries and within the local Community Hub to enable safe transfers of care:

Facilitate people with long term mental health conditions to access mental health services and transfers of care back to their GP from Community Hub teams.
Screen, Triage and deliver short term interventions based on clients’ needs and enable access to therapeutic activities working closely with voluntary, Community and third sector organisations.
Provide an enhanced level of support to PC clinicians through advice and training to improve skills and capacity in responding to the needs of people with MH conditions discharged back to them
Work within an agreed process for safe transfer of care from Community Mental Health Hubs to GPs as well as and rapid re-referral, when appropriate
Ensure that patients transfer to their GP under this process have good clinical outcomes
Ensure that patients transfers to their GPs under this process have access to appropriate advice, advocacy, vocational support to access social networks
Ensure that the Public Sector Equalities Duty is met

Working for our organisation

Maintain and provide service activity data/statistical information as required inc CIS Audit of Mental Health Patients
Demonstrate respect, empathy and understanding of all patients and colleagues within the service, in accordance with the Trust policy for promotion of equal opportunities and cultural awareness.
Adhere to all Central and North West London Mental Health NHS Trust policies e.g. Human Resources policy, Health and Safety Policy, all Clinical Policies and Procedures
There is an expectation to work flexibly across a range of bases throughout the working week, including Trust buildings and GP surgerie

The successful applicant may have contact with patients or service users. As an NHS Trust we strongly encourage and support vaccination as this remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course patients and service users when working on our healthcare settings.

Detailed Job Description And Main Responsibilities

MH Link Worker will

work with patients to support shared decision-making about self-management; facilitate onward access to treatment services; and provide brief psychological interventions, where qualified to do so and where appropriate.
Supervise and oversee the triage function within the mental health teams, being a point of reference for difficult decisions the triage team need to make on a daily basis, and supervising members of the triage team (where dedicated triage teams are the model) and ensuring the integration of the triage process as a part of the team’s function.
work closely with other PCN-based roles to help address the potential range of biopsychosocial needs of patients with mental health problems. E.g. PCN clinical pharmacists for medication reviews, and social prescribing link workers for access to community-based support.
operate without the need for formal referral from GPs, including accepting some direct bookings where appropriate, subject to agreement on volumes and the mechanism of booking between the PCN and the provider.
be supported through the local Community Hub teams by robust clinical governance structures to maintain quality and safety, including supervision where appropriate.

Person specification

Qualifications And Training

Essential criteria

Professional qualification in mental health (Mental Health Nursing (RMN); Chartered Psychologist Occupational Therapy, Social Work (must have HCPC registration); Pharmacist
Attained at least Level 2 Maths and English (equivalent to GCSE grade 9-4 (A*-C))

Desirable criteria

Educated to degree or Diploma level with other courses relevant to primary care mental health services e.g. CBT, Brief Solution Focussed Therapy etc.
RGN/physical health qualification
Evidence of recent and on-going relevant further professional development
Attendance at specialist short courses relevant to the post (e.g. MBT or DBT, Trauma Informed Care, Group Approaches)

Experience

Essential criteria

Experience of work in the NHS, PCNs or outreach work, or local engagement work (e.g. youth worker, mentoring, peer support etc.), experience of working in voluntary sector, working in community groups.
Work with client groups with serious mental health problems:
mental health care and/or
working with carers and/or
delivering therapeutic group interventions and/or
working in MDTs and/or
audit, evaluation or research
Work in multi-cultural settings
Mental health issues as a service user or carer

Desirable criteria

Evidence of experience in a Band 6 position or equivalent
Other relevant post registration experience
Work with interpreters
Work with behaviours that challenge services
Work with people with complex emotional needs (personality disorder)
Conducting service-related research and or audit experience
Experience of teaching/training in a formal or informal setting
Experience of working in a primary care setting/ social care/ voluntary sector
Experience of supervising junior staff within own and/or other disciplines

Knowledge

Essential criteria

Basic understanding of health care systems and structures: staffing, roles and responsibilities, the role of hospitals, primary care and community care
Team/self-management and organisation skills that enable a number of complex activities and clinical work to be undertaken, revising and adjusting these according to the needs of individual patients and the service
Knowledge of counselling skills/cognitive behavioural skills, psychosocial interventions
Knowledge of recovery approaches as used with those with mental health conditions
Work with people from a wide range of backgrounds
Contain and work with organisational stress and able to hold the stress of others
Manage effectively exposure to distressing/highly emotional circumstances
Manage effectively verbal aggression from service users, families, etc. and the risk of physical aggression
Respectful and collaborative approach to service users, families, carers, colleagues and other professionals
Able to negotiate and ability to handle confrontation effectively and professionally
Able to negotiate and ability to handle confrontation effectively and professionally
Assessment and treatment of Deliberate Self Harm
Risk assessment/management and crisis intervention skills
Use of psychosocial assessment methods
Higher level communication skills, both written and oral
Sufficient clinical knowledge to be able to make autonomous decisions, based on an analysis of complex presenting problems and judgement about available options, with senior clinical support/supervision

Desirable criteria

Ability to interpret research and apply to practice
Specialist knowledge of mental health conditions as well as their relationship to physical disorders

Operational

Essential criteria

Computer literate
Being able to work flexibly across local environments
Awareness of diversity of cultural norms and being able to respond to this appropriately
Concentrate intensely for a substantial proportion of working time, during client contact, teaching/supervision sessions, team meetings, preparing written work etc.
Use IT packages – word processing, e-mail and internet, Excel and Access
Ability to use or learn NHS clinical systems
Work cross-culturally and/or in different languages
Work to professional guidelines
Accept accountability for own work, and of working towards defined results
Plan, organise and prioritise own workload
Record and report on clinical information as required

Desirable criteria

Experience in using SystmOne

Personal Qualities

Essential criteria

Ability to work effectively, timely and independently
Ability to frequently work under pressure and maintain intense concentration, particularly in unpredictable situations where there will be exposure to highly distressed and/or disturbed patients, often exhibiting challenging behaviours and the risk of physical violence
Ability to meet deadlines
Commitment to equal opportunities
Ability to accept constructive feedback
Self-motivated, able to work autonomously and independently with confidence when required.
Exercise initiative, flexibility and tact and self-awareness
Willing to use peer and group supervision creatively
Be able to work flexibly if required
Be aware of the limitations in your competencies and seek appropriate senior advice and leadership.

Desirable criteria

Personal experience of a mental health condition

Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust

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Mental Health Link Worker