Mental Health Practitioner

Essential

• Professional qualification in mental health e.g. Occupational Therapy, Social Work or Mental Health Nursing (RMN) with current NMC/HCPC / SW England registration or Psychology as accredited by the BPS.
• A recorded/registered qualification in one of the following - psychology, nursing, social work, occupational therapy, arts therapy and registration with the appropriate body for that profession

Desirable

• 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. CBT or DBT, Trauma Informed Care, Group Approaches)

Essential

• 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.
• Experience of working with Complex Emotional Needs (previously termed Personality Disorders) 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
• Work in multi-cultural settings and work with interpreters

Desirable

• Evidence of experience in a Band 6 position or equivalent
• Experience of case finding
• Experience of working in GP
• Experience of working within a multi-disciplinary team
• Experience of conducting audit, evaluation or research
• Work with behaviours that challenge services
• 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

Essential

• 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
• Ability to engage challenging and/or acutely distressed patients in potentially hostile and/or antagonistic situations and use de-escalation techniques effectively
• 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

• Ability to interpret research and apply to practice
• Specialist knowledge of mental health conditions as well as their relationship to physical disorders
• Understanding of NHS England's plans with regard to Primary Care Networks.

Essential

• Computer literate including use of IT packages - word processing, e-mail and internet, Excel and Access
• 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.
• Ability to use or learn NHS clinical systems such as SystmOne and EMIS
• 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

Essential

• Ability to influence without authority
• Work as part of a team spread across multiple locations operating with a matrix structure
• 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.
• Personal experience of a mental health condition