Mental Health Practitioner | Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a band 6 mental health practitioner to work in the Home Treatment Team in Kendal.

The Home Treatment Team cares for people who are experiencing acute episodes of mental illness or emotional distress. The service is an alternative to admission and offers intensive support to service users and their families in the community.

The service works closely with the in-patient wards to support early discharges and with other parts of the mental health services as well as third sector providers, so great communication skills are essential.

The post is a full-time, permanent post covering the service over 7 days per week working long days and nights. The team covers Kendal and surrounding areas.

As a member of the team you would be working with a multi-disciplinary team consisting of Mental Health Nurses; Support Workers; Occupational Therapist; Psychologist and Consultant Psychiatrist.

You will provide a comprehensive assessment and triage service and, where necessary signposting or clear onward facilitation to a mental health pathway. Your referrers will include GPs, Police and Acute Hospital colleagues, self-referrals and referrals from carers. Service users will be triaged collaboratively and a decision will be made in consultation with the referrer and with the use of a clinical tool, the response time required.

This comprehensive, collaborative triage system will lead to comprehensive assessment clear onward facilitation of service users to the most appropriate care following assessment.

The post holder will provide evidence based mental health assessments and/or signposting to alternative service provision for people who present requiring a specialist urgent mental health assessment. The post holder may offer follow-up appointments within the agreed timescale for intervention as part of the on-going assessment process.

Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust provides a range of services including secondary mental health care across this area. Specialist provision comprises inpatient child and adolescent mental health services, perinatal mental health and forensic services including low and medium secure care.

The Trust also provides a range of physical health and well-being services in the community alongside a range of partners in the Lancashire, Cumbria and Sefton area.

Lancashire & South Cumbria Foundation Trust encourages flexible working, we believe that a positive work/life balance benefits NHS employees through improved health and wellbeing. We would consider working patterns such as; term time, part time, compressed hours, flexi-time and career breaks. We encourage applicants to state clearly on their application forms this request and discuss these options at interview.