The Specialist Palliative Care Service based at the Priscilla Bacon Lodge is seeking a Psychological Therapist to join the team. The post holder will deliver evidence-based specialist counselling assessment and intervention for patients who have complex specialist palliative care needs from the point of diagnosis, throughout the illness, at end of life and into bereavement. This will also include providing specialist counselling support to the relatives of the patients as our service also extends to the wider family.
The post holder will manage their own supervised caseload primarily within an out-patient setting and maintain patient/client records accordingly. However, the post holder will also be able to apply their skills to meet the needs of in-patients, where the time frame may be shorter or in emergencies where there are high levels of distress.
A significant part of this role is the professional advice, consultation, clinical supervision and support for the wider Specialist Palliative Care Team. The focus of this is around the emotional impact of illness for the patient, their family and the staff caring for them with the aim of managing risk, noticing patterns of communication and harnessing alternative ways of coping.
Please note, the selection processes at East of England Community Health and Care NHS Trust are in place to ensure we recruit candidates with the right values and skills, please be advised that the use of AI in applications are monitored. We remain watchful of candidates who misuse these tools to generate an application that doesn’t accurately reflect their skills.
Deliver psychological assessment and intervention; demonstrating advanced clinical competence and knowledge, supported by appropriate professional registration. (UKCP,BACP,BPS) This will involve face to face, telephone and video contact with patients and family members to discuss and work through complex, sensitive and personal information at any point in the patient pathway from diagnosis, transition to palliative care, end of life care and bereavement.
To utilise a range of therapeutic tools/techniques to make decisions about treatment options which consider complex factors concerning historical, relational and developmental processes that have shaped the adult, family members and their difficulties, thus creating methods for client centred analysis of change.
To identify appropriate follow-up; this is to ensure continuity of care, facilitate early recognition of recurring or new problems and enable referral on to another agency/service if required.
To be able to work with clients and their families, where there may be a need for high levels of reassurance and empathy when there is acute distress; this involves using psychotherapeutic skills in a more responsive way outside of the routine and established contract of therapy.
To be accountable for own professional actions; the post-holder will be expected manage their own caseload effectively, making the most of the time available.
To work in collaboration with the wider Specialist Palliative Care Team on a regular basis to provide advice, support, debrief, consultation and supervision. This input may also extend to generalist colleagues across the Place. The focus of this aspect of the role is to acknowledge the emotional impact of illness and to harness effective resources for the patient, their family and the staff caring for them.
