Band 6 Mental Health Practitioner - South Bristol PCN inSouth Bristol inSouth Bristol PUBLISHED MON 11 NOV 2024

Calling all Mental Health Practitioners! An exciting opportunity has arisen to provide your expertise working in Primary Care as part of a General Practice team. This role will be based in Swift Primary Care Network practices in South Bristol. Working pattern will be full time, Monday to Friday, with flexible working hours considered.

We are redesigning our community mental health services so that, in future, people receive a personalized, preventative and proactive integrated approach. Primary Care, voluntary services and AWP are working together to provide a one team approach for our local populations and your role as a Mental Health Practitioner in is key to the success of this approach.

This post is open to newly qualified social workers. In line with AWP trust policy all newly qualified social workers (NQSW) will be recruited initially at Band 5 level, regardless of advertised role banding. All NQSW's are expected to successfully complete their ASYE within 2 years of employment, unless there are exceptional circumstances in which case it may be extended for a further 2 years.

If you have been appointed to an advertised Band 6 role this will be an automatic progression, following confirmation of your successful ASYE completion. If you have been appointed to a Band 5 post you will then be eligible to apply for a subsequent Band 6 vacancy upon successful ASYE completion.

You will be working alongside our communities and local authorities with patients and their families making sure that issues such as housing, debt, carer fatigue and addictions are addressed at the same time as mental health problems.

As a Mental Health Practitioner (social worker/occupational therapist/mental health nurse) you will be working with a range of other professionals including care navigators and peer support workers to combine the existing services and provide a one team approach. Delivering care from GP's surgeries ,this is an exciting opportunity to help shape the future of local service provision moving forward.

Swift PCN & AWP are committed to providing high-quality care for our population and work collaboratively to provide excellent care and reduce the impact of health inequalities across our patient population. We are also committed to being good employers. Staff have the right to be treated fairly in recruitment and career progression. Staff can expect to work in an environment where diversity is valued, and equality of opportunity is promoted. Staff will not be discriminated against on any grounds including age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation. We expect all staff to treat patients and colleagues with dignity and respect.

About us

Primary Care focus

1. Contribute to delivering and co-developing the primary care mental health service model. This includes care pathways for the provision of integrated physical and mental health care in a designated Primary Care Network within the Division.
2. Be the point of contact for patients that are directed from primary care via an agreed route, promote early assessment / treatment, and ensure robust relationships and links with other community-based services.
3. Work closely with and become a part of the primary care team, including social prescribers and recovery navigators, to support adults (18+) with mental health needs, whose mental health needs can be best met within primary care and whose difficulties are best understood within a biopsychosocial model.
4. Work closely with colleagues in specialist community mental health services to ensure smooth transitions between teams and services and facilitate an easy in, easy out approach to improve access to evidence-based interventions.
5. Connect people to appropriate community and voluntary sector support working alongside Social Prescribers.
6. Facilitate mental health and strengths-based assessments in Primary Care and support the Primary Care Team in accessing appropriate level of services.
7. Build and facilitate closer links between Primary Care Networks (PCNs) and Community Mental Health Teams (CMHTs), Social Care teams, community services and a wide range of voluntary sector organisations, to achieve seamless transitions and support for people with mental health challenges.
8. Promote understanding and confidence in the delivery of mental health care and collaboration with all agencies involved in the care of service users.
9. Provide targeted formal and informal learning opportunities for all staff within the primary care teams to develop their knowledge and capabilities within the mental health component of holistic care.
10. Provide information, sign posting and support for service users and their relatives/carers with mental health needs.
11. Foster strong collaborative and trusting working relationships with the referring agent/Primary Care Health Professionals underpinned by an educative and solutions focused philosophy whilst providing credible clinical expertise.
12. Facilitate the development of safe and effective mental health care practice within the primary care setting.
13. Where required, train and supervise AWP junior staff in line with own role.

Clinical practice

1. Promote the importance of working with strengths and aspirations of the person referred.
2. Provide succinct formulations and recommendations (inclusive of risk management advice) to support patient safety planning.
3. Assess and advise on the impact of culture and diversity alongside colleagues from Primary Care.
4. Give best practice advice and support in a broad range of conditions for people with both functional and organic mental health needs.
5. Promote the needs of family and carer/s, including various support networks and third sector agencies.
6. Advise and support on evaluating risk from a positive risk-taking perspective.
7. Support and advise within safeguarding and public protection procedures where the issues are complicated by mental health problems, alongside Primary Care colleagues.
8. Provide a prompt response to all contacts following jointly agreed procedures and within agreed time frames.
9. Ensure, where needed, that people experience a seamless transfer into AWP provider/treatment services via trusted assessment processes.
10. Following assessment, provide short- term follow up of patients where appropriate.
11. Contribute evidence-based expertise to multi-disciplinary team processes.
12. Promote positive attitudes, mutual understanding and collaboration between non-mental health staff and mental health services, users, carers, voluntary agencies, primary care and social services.
13. Demonstrate responsibility for developing own practice in line with professional qualifications and for contributing to the development of others, by making use of and providing, effective feedback, supervision, coaching and appraisal.
14. Adhere to the relevant professional code of conduct ensuring required skills and competencies required are maintained.
15. Monitor and maintain health, safety and security of self and others, undertaking assessments and taking appropriate action where required.
16. Develop own knowledge and practice, and contribute to the development of others, making use of available feedback, supervision and appraisal to identify appropriate areas of development for this work role, taking responsibility for accessing identified learning and training opportunities.
17. Maintain appropriate health record, in accordance with professional and organisational standards.

AWP values its staff and makes investment in their development a priority. Currently we offer the following development opportunities for staff:

• Development pathways for registered staff in bands 5, 6, 7 and 8.
• Leadership programs.
• Coaching and mentoring.
• Access to training via the Workforce Development Fund.
• An induction program tailored to your needs.
• Strong on-boarding and a buddy system.

Rewards and benefits

As an AWP member of staff you will be able to access the following:

• Discounts available from retailers, UK hotels and main attractions often up to 15% savings.
• NHS Pension Scheme.
• Cycle to work scheme (scheme available several times a year).
• Flexible working options considered.
• Relocation package may be considered for the right candidate.

Please see attached job description and person specification for full details.