Mental Health Practitioner

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

 Professional Functions:

• Provide comprehensive assessment, care and safety planning for patients attending the Urgent Care Department ensuring their care pathway is purposeful and promotes recovery.
• Ensure accurate and timely clinical documentation in line with your professional Code and Trust policy.
• Develop and maintain specialist clinical skills and expertise in the assessment and treatment of people with mental health needs.
• Receive, triage and assess patients attending the Urgent Care Department, ensuring nursing triage, assessment, care and support of each person is appropriate to their individual needs
• Offer advice on management of patients with mental health issues other health care professionals, advocating for best practice in line with Trust and national guidance.
• Assess, investigate, treat and discharge or refer patients attending the department with a diverse range of minor injuries/illnesses, within the parameters of the Urgent Care Department guidelines and scope of practice.
• Feedback outcomes of assessments to the department clinical leaders and agree and implement the management plan
• Ensure that patients requiring further assessment and help are referred on appropriately.
• Implement effective joint care planning for people who repeatedly attend throughout the urgent care pathway
• Arrange admission to the mental health services in conjunction with the Urgent Care Department psychiatrist
• Support and participate in the introduction and delivery of short-term psychological interventions for a specific cohort of individuals.
• Liaise effectively with staff in local systems and maintain accurate patient records that provide assessment reports to GP’s and other allied agencies.
• To provide advice and monitor the use and provision of the Mental Health/Capacity Act (1983/2005) and other relevant legislation.
• To provide clinical advice/expertise health education, consultation and staff support to other health professionals
• Have knowledge of how to access appropriate services and develop effective networks and channels of communication
• To actively participate in the achievement of clinical outcome measures and accreditations for the servic

Managerial:

• Support the Clinical Lead in ensuring the effective provision of care, service developments of the urgent Care Team
• In the absence of the Clinical Lead ensure that referral, assessment and workload allocation happens in a timely, flexible and responsive manger, taking into account the wishes of the patients and their carers.
• On a daily basis, support and manage the patients within the urgent care department, providing appropriate prioritisation of the workload within agreed timeframes depending on the nature of the presenting needs and patient safety risks.
• Participate in team meetings, initiating and discussing new methods/models of care using QI methodology and contribute in the introduction of research or trials within the area.
• Participate in the multi-disciplinary and multi-agency decision-making process through team meetings and team building.
• Undertake duties as assigned by senior staff to ensure that all agreed patient quality, safety and operational performance outcomes are delivered within the area of responsibility
• To promote the understanding of urgent mental health care through formal and informal teaching
• To support the induction of new staff to the team as required
• To supervise students as part of their training, either on placement or providing information/teaching sessions
• Act as role model at all times, able to demonstrate leadership skills
• Provide specialist advice, support and consultation to staff within the team, outside teams and other agencies.
• Undertake professional, clinical and managerial supervision in line with Trust policies and procedures, discussing the overall nature of the workload, work methods and techniques whilst evaluating clinical practice.
• The post holder will support the introduction of outcome measures to measure patient experience.
• Contribute towards team education and development providing opportunities for exchange of ideas, experience, techniques and interventions.
• Ensure that all junior staff are fully conversant with the physical health needs agenda of all patients. A holistic approach to care is required that encompasses physical health, mental health and social care.
• Take part in service development and review.

Communication and Working Relationship:

• Establish and maintain professional and effective working relationships with allied professionals
• Develop and ensure effective communication and relatives and carers and all appropriate agencies, especially when patients are admitted or being prepared for discharge from hospital, allowing continuity of care and effective care planning
• Ensuring effective and confidential communication between medical, nursing, social care and health care agencies
• Ensure proficient communication and documentation of risk to maintain the safety of others
• Positively support the concept of change within the team by contributing ideas for improvement of patient care.
• Participate in the maintenance of a constructive learning environment, encouraging enquiry and teaching and able to demonstrate physical and mental health clinical skills.

Responsibility for Patient/Client Care:

• Work flexibly to meet the needs of patients
• Develop and maintain effective individualised care by ensuring the following areas are proactively undertaken at all times:
  • Triage and assessment of client mental, physical and social care needs
  • Planning, implementation and evaluation of clinical interventions
  • Clear, accurate and concise documentation of individualised patient care and reflect the changing needs of the patient
  • Ensure risk assessment and management is an integral part of everyday practice
• The post holder will be approachable and develop good working relationships with the patients and carers providing them with adequate information on services
• Contribute to department patient review procedures to ensure timely clinical decisions and departmental flow are maintained
• Use research findings when designing care programmes and develop and awareness of the significance of nursing research that underpins evidence based practice.