Mental Health and Work Specialist WorkWell Norfolk

Mental Health and Work Specialist WorkWell Norfolk

Unfortunately NPC does not hold a license for Visa Sponsorship and cannot progress any applications for candidates without the right to work in the UK.

Base:NorfolkPrimary Care Head Office, 3rd Floor, Reed House, Peachman Way, Norwich, NR70WF, with regular travel to WorkWell neighbourhood delivery sites acrossNorfolk and some remote working.

Fixed Term Contract:Fixedterm to 31 March 2029

Working hours:15hours per week (0.4 WTE, Part Time)

Main duties of the job

Hosted byNPC and working within the WorkWell Norfolk service, the Mental Health and WorkSpecialist provides the specialist mental health challenges find, return to,and keep in paid work as part of their recovery within the WorkWellMultidisciplinary Team (MDT). Mental health is the most common primary reasonfor a fit note locally, and depression affects nearly half of people withrepeated fit notes, so most WorkWell participants will have a primary orco-existing mental health need. The postholder assesses mental health need andrisk, delivers brief, work focused interventions, and advises the ANP and Workand Health Coaches so that participants are supported safely and plans addresspsychological as well as physical and social barriers to work.

As a part-time post (0.4WTE), the role is designed to make a small amount of specialist time go a longway: a limited direct caseload of participants who need clinical mental healthsupport input, alongside case consultation, supervision and training that buildthe confidence and skills of the wider team. The role suits an experienced,registered mental health professional who works autonomously, understand thechallenges faced by people with enduring mental health challenges, manages riskconfidently and enjoys teaching and supporting non-clinical colleagues.

About us

Norfolk Primary Care (NPC) is a Community Interest Company (CIC)delivering clinical services across the Norfolk & Waveney region. Ourmembership consists of GP practices within the area. NPC’s purpose is to:

• Sustain the delivery of PrimaryCare by supporting workforce development and improving patient access.
• Strengthen and enhance PrimaryCare by working with, and on behalf of, local practices to drive qualityimprovement.
• Support practices in addressingkey challenges such as workload pressures, GP recruitment, best practicesharing, and opportunities for at scale working.
• Respond to the evolving landscapeof Primary Care by helping ensure services meet the needs of the localpopulation.
• Provide benefits to patients,clinicians, administrative teams, and practice organisations across Norfolk.
• Work collaboratively within thewider health system to deliver patient care in innovative, solution focusedways

Job responsibilities

1. Key Responsibilities

1.1 Mental Health Assessment and Risk Management

• Undertake mental healthassessments for participants identified at triage, by Work and Health Coachesor at MDT as needing clinical mental health input, jointly with theparticipant’s Work and Health Coach wherever possible so the participant onlytells their storyonce.
• Understanding of mental health recovery,secondary mental health services, and the challenges faced by people withsevere or enduring mental health issues
• Assess and manage risk whereparticipants express thoughts of suicide or self-harm (which is not anexclusion criterion), agreeing safety plans and advising whether WorkWell isthe most appropriate service at that time.
• Advise the ANP and SPOA on triagedecisions for referrals with significant mental health need, within the oneworking day triage standard on working days, with agreed arrangements forclinical cover on non-working days.
• Where a participant’s needs gobeyond a low-intensity offer, arrange a warm handover to the right service (forexample NHS Talking Therapies, community mental health or crisis services) andfollow up so that support is integrated into their WorkWell plan.
• Deliver care for acceptedparticipants in partnership with their GP and/or existing mental health worker,keeping them informed of assessment, risk and outcomes.
• Recognise neurodiversity andlearning disability and adapt assessment and support accordingly.

1.2 Brief, Work-Focused Interventions

• Hold a small, time-limitedcaseload (indicative size TBC) of participants needing clinical mental healthintervention within the WorkWell model of approximately eight weeks.
• Deliver evidence-based,low-intensity psychological interventions, one to one or in groups (for exampleCBT-informed approaches, behavioural activation, anxiety and stress management,sleep and self-management support).
• Focus interventions on work:confidence and anxiety about returning, managing symptoms in the workplace,disclosure and conversations with employers.
• Contribute the mental healthelements of the participant’s personalised care plan and SMART goals, embeddingMaking Every Contact Count (MECC).
• Advise participants, coaches and(with consent) employers on reasonable adjustments, phased returns and changesof duties for people with mental health conditions.
• Where professionally eligible andassessed as competent, certify fit notes (Med3) for participants under WorkWellcare in line with DHSC and DWP guidance, updating the clinical record andinforming the GP.
• Use outcome measures (includingEQ-5D and the Attitudes to Work and Health questionnaire) to review progressand inform discharge.

1.3 MDT Contribution and Case Consultation

• Attend the WorkWell MDT,providing the mental health perspective on case discussion, risk, onwardreferral and discharge decisions.
• Offer case consultation to Workand Health Coaches between MDT meetings, helping them continue to supportparticipants with mental health needs within their competence.
• Review complex or stalled caseswhere mental health is a barrier to progress and recommend next steps.
• Prioritise limited clinical timewith the ANP, balancing direct caseload, consultation, supervision and trainingso the role has the greatest impact across the six Norfolk neighbourhood areas.

1.4 Supervision, Training and Education

• Provide clinical supervision andreflective practice to Work and Health Coaches on the mental health aspects oftheir work, including the low-level interventions they deliver undersupervision of a registered clinician.
• Design and deliver training forthe WorkWell team on mental health awareness, risk conversations, safetyplanning and when to escape.
• Support education for employersand system partners on mental health and work, a priority identified byemployers in the ICB’s engagement survey.
• Advise on the content ofcondition-specific self-care resources used by the team.

1.5 Clinical Governance, Records and Partnerships

• Work within the WorkWell clinicalgovernance framework so that assessment, intervention and discharge areclinically safe, evidence based and in line with professional standards.
• Maintain accurate,contemporaneous clinical records, including updates to the participant’s GPrecord (SystmOne or EMIS), in line with the relevant professional codes, UKGDPR and NPC information governance policies.
• Identify and escalatesafeguarding concerns for adults and children, applying the Mental CapacityAct, in line with ICB and NPC policies.
• Report incidents and contributeto learning in line with the NPC Patient Safety Incident Response Framework(PSIRF) Policy.
• Build working relationships andclear referral routes with NHS Talking Therapies (including its employmentadvisers), Individual Placement and Support services, community mental healthand crisis services, and VCFSE mental health providers.
• Feedback themes on unmet mentalhealth need and gaps in local provision to the ANP and Clinical Lead to informservice improvement and ICB commissioning.

2. Communication and Stakeholder Engagement

• Communicate sensitively andeffectively with participants experiencing distress, and with carers andfamilies where appropriate.
• Liaise with GPs, mental healthservices and other professionals about participants’ care, risk and outcomes.
• Explain mental health need andits impact on work in plain language to non-clinical colleagues and, withconsent, employers.
• Contribute mental healthinformation to service reports, audits and evaluation as required by the ANPand WorkWell Service Manager.

2.1 Other Responsibilities

• Working with the ANP, WorkWellService Manager and wider team:
• Contribute to the development ofWorkWell pathways, protocols and risk procedures for participants with mentalhealth needs.
• Take part in clinical audit,including the quarterly Clinical Triage Audit where mental health cases aresampled.
• Participate in own clinicalsupervision and maintain professional registration and revalidation.
• Work flexibly within contractedhours to meet service need, by agreement.

Undertake other ad hoc duties as requested by the ANP or WorkWellService Manager.

Person Specification

Experience

• Substantial post-registration experience in primary care, community or NHS Talking Therapies mental health settings
• Assessing and managing people with common mental health problems, including depression and anxiety
• Suicide and self-harm risk assessment and safety planning
• Delivering brief, evidence-based psychological interventions, one to one and/or in groups
• Working autonomously within a multidisciplinary team and contributing to MDT decisions
• Supervising, teaching or supporting non-clinical or unregistered staff
• Applying safeguarding procedures and the Mental Capacity Act in practice
• Supporting people with mental health conditions to stay in or return to work
• Working with employers, occupational health or employment advisers
• Working with neurodivergent people and people with a learning disability
• Use of GP clinical systems (SystmOne and/or EMIS)
• Knowledge of local mental health services and pathways in Norfolk
• Delivering training to professionals or employers

Skills and Abilities

• Confident, autonomous clinical decision making and risk management
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, including with people in distress
• Ability to teach, supervise and build the confidence of non-clinical colleagues
• Ability to prioritise limited part-time hours across caseload, consultation and training
• Clear, accurate and timely clinical record keeping
• Good IT skills, including clinical systems and Microsoft Office
• Ability to manage own emotions and be resilient in a demanding environment
• Flexible, collaborative approach to working in a new and developing service
• Motivational interviewing or health coaching techniques
• Understanding of the relationship between work and health

Qualifications

• Registered mental health professional with current registration (e.g. Registered Mental Health Nurse (NMC), Occupational Therapist or Practitioner Psychologist (HCPC), or Social Worker (Social Work England)
• Degree or diploma level professional qualification in the relevant discipline
• Post-registration training in brief psychological interventions (e.g. CBT-informed approaches)
• Safeguarding adults and children training at Level 3
• Evidence of continuing professional development
• Postgraduate qualification in psychological therapy (e.g. CBT, PWP) or BABCP accreditation
• Clinical supervision qualification or training
• Fit Note and Work and Health e-learning (e-LfH)
• Training in vocational rehabilitation, IPS or employment support
• Suicide prevention or safety planning training (e.g. STORM, ASIST)

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

#J-18808-Ljbffr…