Job overview

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an Assistant Psychologist to be appointed on a permanent basis to work with the Hiraeth Service.
The Hiraeth Service was developed to provide an innovative, psychologically informed, approach to working with people with long-term, complex mental health difficulties, who have not been able to engage with, or benefit from intervention provided by core, Tier 2 services. The Hiraeth Service aims to offer a whole systems approach to developing a cohesive and consistent care pathway for individuals who present with complex mental health needs, ensuring the ability to engage in the delivery of shared care and promote partnership working. The service has been developed to support individuals who have become ‘stuck’ in the cycle of increasing expression of risk behaviours, and the resulting increase in control measures taken by services in order to manage this risk e.g. ongoing hospital admission, increase in levels of observation, detention under the Mental Health Act, and placements in secure settings. Hiraeth aims to work extensively with the individual, and existing teams and providers, in order to develop a thorough psychological understanding of an individual’s ongoing distress, and to understand the function of risk behaviours, to implement positive risk management plans.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will support the provision and evaluation of an innovative approach to delivering mental health care for individuals with severe,
enduring and complex mental health needs. This will involve conducting psychological assessments and the delivery of appropriate individual and
group therapeutic interventions under the guidance and supervision of a qualified clinical psychologist. The post holder will need to work
autonomously and use their initiative and will need to be a good representative of the profession.

Professional support and clinical supervision will be provided by the Principal Psychologist and the Clinical and Strategic Lead for Hiraeth.
Opportunities for peer support are also available through the adult psychology speciality and wider psychology network.

The post holder will be responsible for
• Undertaking psychological assessments and interventions as part of the multi-professional team and as delegated by the Clinical
Psychologist.
• Forming and maintaining a relationship with service users with highly complex mental health needs
• Undertaking clinically relevant research, service evaluation and audit as guided by the Clinical Psychologist.
• Supporting the Clinical Psychologist to undertake teaching and training.

The ability to speak Welsh is desirable for this post; Welsh and/or English speakers are equally welcome to apply
Please note that we will only accept applications from staff currently employed by Aneurin Bevan University Local Health Board.

Working for our organisation

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Aneurin Bevan University Health Board is a multi-award winning NHS organisation with a passion for caring. The Health Board provides an exceptional workplace where you can feel trusted and valued. Whatever your specialty or stage in your career, we have opportunities for everyone to start, grow and build your career. The health board provides integrated acute, primary and community care serving a population of 650,000 and employing over 16,000 staff.

We offer a fantastic benefits package and extensive training and development opportunities with paid mandatory training, excellent in-house programmes, opportunities to complete recognised qualifications and professional career pathways including a range of management development programmes. We offer flexible working and promote a healthy work life balance, provide occupational health support and an ambitious plan for a Wellbeing Centre of Excellence to support you at work.

Our Clinical Futures strategy continues to enhance and promote care closer to home as well as high quality hospital care when needed. This includes the Grange University Hospital which provides specialist and critical care and is the newest addition to the clinical futures strategy opening in November 2020.  Join us on our journey to pioneer new ways of working and deliver a world-class healthcare service fit for the future.