Team Manager Step 3.5 NHS Stockport Talking Therapies

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Main Duties and Responsibilities
To attend regular operational meetings with the Service Manager, Clinical Lead, Data Quality Analyst, Senior Cognitive Behavioural Therapist, Administration Manager and other Team Managers to ensure consistency of approach across the service.

To ensure comprehensive risk and suicide risk assessments and care planning is delivered by all clinicians. To support staff working in local borough SPOE and to act as interface leader in the case of disputes or negotiations with secondary care colleagues and psychiatrists.

Establish and maintain effective communication with colleagues within the service, and other mental health professionals both within and outside the organisation. Ensure therapists maintain a caseload of defined ‘therapeutic hours’ whether this be 1:1 therapy or group work, and ensure this is adequately supervised both managerially and clinically by an appropriately qualified person.

Encourage effective, innovative and creative use of time, with particular emphasis on reducing lost time due to DNAs and CNAs. Ensure staff work collaboratively with colleagues within primary care, plus other primary, secondary and third sector colleagues such as MIND and drug and alcohol services, in the provision of an efficient and effective seamless mental health service for the borough.

Ensure appropriateness of referrals to the teams using specific clinical decision making criteria.
Establish and sustain individual working relationships with all staff within the designated team.
Provide regular case management supervision for staff.
Engage with both Service Manager and Clinical Lead to ensure strategic direction of primary mental health care.
Ensure all staff maintain professional standards as outlined by their professional codes e.g. BABCP, BACP.
Ensure all therapists work to brief therapy models, or if longer therapy is needed, this is done in consultation with post holder. Provide, when requested, advice and guidance to colleagues within the service regarding the psychological services, ensuring the appropriateness of referrals and effective management of clients.
Ensure all staff are compliant and timely in delivering performance management statistical information to Performance & Information Manager on clinical activity e.g. number of clients seen, DNA rate, waiting list numbers, discharge numbers.
In collaboration with the Service Manager and Clinical Lead provide training/professional development for staff in terms of general and specialist knowledge of a range of subjects relevant to in house primary mental health services.
Ensure each member of the team has a training and personal and professional development plan in place.
Ensure safe working environments for self and all staff, liaising with Practice / Clinic managers and other room providers in the event of problems which cannot be rectified by staff.
Ensure safe provision of mentoring / supervision to trainees, volunteers, students, and pre-registration staff by self or other appropriately trained therapists.
To act up for Service Manager if requested and attend meetings or represent the service when required
Manage requests for study leave, TOIL, annual leave, travelling and other expense claims in line with departmental specifications.
Ensure staff provide statistical and audit information, plus evaluation of clinical activity and other information necessary for monitoring the service.
Ensure the service provides diversity sensitive therapies to the local community and works with BAME Community Development Workers to deliver health promotion activities and develop innovative practice.
Ensure all areas outlined in IAPT 4 Year plan e.g. long term conditions, older people, SMI (serious mental illness) are given sufficient work planning in consultation with Service manager and Clinical lead.

Clinical
It is important to note that the role does not include many or any clinical hours as it is primarily a management role. However, it is recognised that those who apply may wish to develop in a management role and not lose their clinical competence. If this is the case, the following applies for a maximum of 4 clinical hours per week.
Assess clients non-judgementally and using appropriate assessment tools, including comprehensive general and suicide risk assessment, and provide short-term therapy to patients allocated.
To have a very small caseload to enable service management to be delivered.
To have awareness and understanding of models, methods and working protocols of other teams within service.
Provide assessments and triage for the team and refer on to other mental health services either within Psychological Therapies or within secondary care services e.g. Community Mental Health Teams, Complex Needs, Crisis Services.
Maintain own professional standards of practice in line own professional code.
Maintain accreditation status or work towards achieving this.
Recognise the differing needs of clients and refer on to more appropriately qualified practitioner or therapist if necessary e.g. Cognitive Behavioural Therapist, Councillor, 
Assess client (using an agreed format) needs and refer on to other services as appropriate.
Liaise, as appropriate, with the wider mental health service, including Secondary Care Services and Psychiatry, regarding individual clients and policy matters.
Maintain client records and clinical notes, plus provide assessment and discharge letters to the GP as a minimum requirement of each case seen.
To keep a Trust Diary as per policy and to keep separate copy on Outlook calendar for data input purposes.
Organise own workload and maintain appropriate records and reports.
Develop skills and knowledge within chosen regulatory body.
Participate in appropriate supervision and training as directed and keep abreast of current practice and developments in the field.
Participate in a formalised system of clinical supervision.
Develop skills and knowledge in establishing, organising and facilitating group therapies.
Be aware of the current policies on ‘risk’ and share with the GP any information which identifies a particular client as being ‘at risk’.
Be aware of referral criteria for Secondary Services and be able to feel confident of making that referral.
Work with interpreters where necessary.

Additional information
All employees have a duty and a responsibility for their own health and safety and that of colleagues, patients and the general public.
All employees have a responsibility and legal obligation to ensure that information processed for both patients and staff is kept accurate, confidential and secure in line with the Data Protection Act (1998) and Security and Confidential policies.
This job description does not provide an exhaustive list of duties and may be reviewed in conjunction with the post-holder in light of service developments.
The work of Primary Care Psychological Therapies Service provides a service for people with mild to moderate mental health problems. One of the aims of the service is to prevent the need of secondary care service. Consequently some clients may present more complex needs e.g. survivors of sexual abuse/rape. The work of the team will need to be overseen by post holder and supervised effectively.
Dealing with depressed, anxious clients and those with complex lives can be frequently very distressing. It is possible that the therapist may be subjected to angry responses when clients are in a heightened state of anxiety. It is important that the post holder is emotionally resilient to cope with these challenges.

This job description is not exhaustive, but is intended to give an overall picture of the role. 

Other duties within the general scope of the post may be required from time to time. The duties of the post and job description can be reviewed through the agreed process.