Occupational Therapist

Job overview

We are pleased to offer an opportunity f or an experienced and dedicated individual to apply for this permanent role. The Cancer Psychological Care Team provides emotional and psychological support for patients, family members and carers. The service was originally established in 2019 as part of a fixed-term partnership project between King’s College Hospital and Macmillan Cancer Support, with permanent status agreed in 2021. Enhanced service provision has enabled an increase in the number of psychology positions in the service structure and helped to secure the continued delivery of evidence-based psychological care for the future. The team not only offers clinical services, but is involved in liaising with existing services in the community to help integrate secondary and primary care in order to better share resources and enable access to services in the most culturally and practically acceptable location for the population that we serve.

Main duties of the job

This is an exciting time to join a team which has been recently established and developed, offering excellent service development opportunities. The main objective of this post is to provide, coordinate, support and continually develop the integrated cancer psychological support services across KCH. The successful post holder will be supported by an 8B principal practitioner psychologist service lead, and will work alongside two other 8A Practitioner Psychologists, two Band 7 psychologists, Trainee Clinical Psychologists, and a dedicated Medical Secretary. You will be joining a friendly and innovative group of psychologists and psychotherapists working across various medical specialities in a busy hospital setting that serves a diverse inner-city population. The post-holder will be expected to cover services at Kings College Hospital and Princess Royal University Hospital, and allocation of their time between sites and cancer MDMs will be guided by senior colleagues, commensurate with the needs of the service. Kings College Hospital and Princess Royal Hospital offers a vibrant and supportive working environment.

Working for our organisation

King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is one of the UK’s largest and busiest teaching Trusts with a turnover of c£1 billion, 1.5 million patient contacts a year and more than 15,000 staff based across South East London. The Trust provides a full range of local and specialist services across its five sites. The trust-wide strategy of Strong Roots, Global Reach is our Vision to be BOLD, Brilliant people, Outstanding care, Leaders in Research, Innovation and Education, Diversity, Equality and Inclusion at the heart of everything we do. By being person-centred, digitally-enabled, and focused on sustainability, we aim to take Team King’s to another level.

We are at a pivotal point in our history and we require individuals who are ready to join a highly professional team and make a real, lasting difference to our patients and our people.

King’s is committed to delivering Sustainable Healthcare for All via our Green Plan. In line with national Greener NHS ambitions, we have set net zero carbon targets of 2040 for our NHS Carbon Footprint and 2045 for our NHS Carbon Footprint Plus. Everyone’s contribution is required in order to meet the goals set out in our Green Plan and we encourage all staff to work responsibly, minimising their contributions to the Trust’s carbon emissions, waste and pollution wherever possible.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

If you would like further information about these posts please contact Dr. Mark Groves, Principal Clinical Psychologist and Service Lead for the Cancer Psychological Care Team on [email protected] .

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria

• • Entry-level qualification in Applied Psychology (professional Doctorate, or combination of MSc plus PG Diploma level additional training) that has been accepted by the HCPC for purposes of professional registration.
• • Additional training in a specialised area of psychological practice through formal post-qualification training (PG Diploma or equivalent), OR a combination of specialist short courses, or an evidenced portfolio of supervised practice–based learning in a specialist area of clinical practice, assessed by an experienced clinical supervisor to be of equal level to a Postgraduate Diploma.
• • Completed training course in clinical supervision.
• • Registered with the HCPC as Practitioner Psychologist, and evidence of continuing professional development as required by the HCPC.

Desirable criteria

• • Competence and/or specialist training in models of health psychology and/or behaviour change (e.g., motivational interviewing)

Knowledge

Essential criteria

• • Advanced knowledge of psychological assessment and clinical psychometrics.
• • Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological assessments and interventions including for those living with complex medical conditions.
• • Knowledge of legislation in relation to the client group and mental health issues, child and adult protection, and equalities.
• • Doctoral level knowledge of psychological research methodology and complex statistical analysis.

Desirable criteria

• • A good understanding of models of health psychology in addition to models of psychopathology.
• • Knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological therapies in cancer.

Experience

Essential criteria

• • Evidence of having worked with people with medical conditions as a clinical specialist under supervision
• • Experience of working in multidisciplinary teams with colleagues from a range of disciplines.
• • Experience of specialist psychological assessment and treatment of clients with a range of complex psychological and physical health needs.
• • Experience of supervising assistant and trainee psychologists having completed the relevant training.

IMPORTANT

• Check your email account regularly as this is how we will communicate with you
• If you delete the job from any of your accounts, you may be prevented from accessing further communications
• To enquire about your application or inform us of any changes in your circumstances, please contact the named person on this advert
• Please provide email addresses for referees where possible
• Please review the documentation on our recruitment microsite, particularly the Trust’s criminal records checking policy
• All staff have a responsibility for safeguarding children and vulnerable adults and for ensuring they are aware of the specific duties relating to their role.
• Please note that the closing date is given as a guide. On occasion, we might close a vacancy early due to a high number of applications being received. You are advised to submit your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

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