Perinatal Clinical Psychologist

To provide highly specialist psychological assessments requiring theoretical and practical knowledge of the full range of moderate to severe perinatal mental health issues, including issues relating to the mothers own mental health and to her relationship with her baby .To provide this service in a variety of locations including acute hospital settings, mental health outpatients or the service users home. To complete these assessments based upon the appropriate use, interpretation and integration of complex data from a variety of sources including psychological and neuropsychological tests, self-report measures, rating scales, direct and indirect structuredobservations, and interviews with clients, family members and others involved in the clientscare. To formulate and implement highly specialist psychological intervention plans for the formal treatment and/or management of a patients physical and psychological health problems, based upon an appropriate conceptual framework of the patients difficulties employing evidence-based methods of efficacy, across the full range of health-care settings. To be responsible for implementing a range of psychological interventions for individuals, including members of staff, families and groups, within and across teams, adjusting and refining psychological formulations drawing upon different explanatory models andmaintaining a number of provisional hypotheses. To evaluate and decide on treatment options utilising physical and psychological theoreticaland therapeutic models and highly complex factors, based on past psychological and mental health history and ongoing psychological developmental processes that have shaped the individual, family or group. To analyse, interpret and make appropriate judgements regarding a range of highly complex Perinatal Clinical issues and presentations where there are highly complex facts and situations to consider, and where expert opinion may not concur. To exercise autonomous professional responsibility for the assessment, treatment and discharge of clients whose problems are managed by psychologically based intervention plans according to a professional code of conduct. To provide highly specialist psychological advice, guidance and consultation to other MDT professionals contributing directly to clients formulation, diagnosis and treatment plan. To facilitate a psychologically based framework of understanding and care across all settings and agencies serving the patient group. This includes the provision of advice and consultation to external agencies supporting families in the perinatal period. To undertake risk assessment and risk management for individual patients and to provide advice to other professionals on psychological aspects of risk assessment and risk management. Where appropriate, to act as care co-ordinator, taking responsibility for initiating the planning and review of case conferences, advising on psychological management and reviewing psychological care for the individual with their family, carers, referring agents and others involved the network of care. To receive and communicate highly complex information which may be sensitive and/or contentious in a highly developed, skilled and sensitive manner (respectful of patient confidentiality as appropriate) concerning the assessment, formulation and treatment plansof patients and their families/carers. This is to include situations that may present with hostility and high emotion or that involve overcoming major barriers to acceptance, and to monitor and review progress during the course of both uni- and multi-disciplinary care. To provide clinical assessment and therapy, involving sitting still for substantial periods of time requiring intense concentration, exposure to aggression and highly emotive or distressing situations. To work face-to-face without staff nearby, with any associated risk ofdealing with people with mental health problems such as challenging behaviour and self neglect. This is in addition to the regular hazards of seeing inpatients, including exposure to infectious agents (such as MRSA, c.diff or norovirus) and offensive odours.