Assistant Psychologist

You will be part of the National Problem Gambling Clinic team, and some of your working week will be spent at the Clinic's base in London. The National Problem Gambling Clinic is a highly specialist national NHS service for problem gamblers. We pride ourselves on having acted as a centre of excellence and as a training clinic, having influenced policy and obtained a proven track record of publications.
This role will also provide the opportunity to contribute to the ongoing development of a unique project, delivering gambling interventions across the Surrey prison estate. You will also provide training to prison staff and residents and support research into gambling prevalence in prisons.
The role includes completing assessments, assisting qualified staff in delivering individual and group therapy, and conducting audit and evaluation. Post-holders will also have the opportunity to contribute to the delivery of the specialist psychological intervention programmes offered in the service, which are primarily motivational interviewing and CBT based. The post will also include exposure to research endeavours being undertaken.
To support and enhance the professional psychological care of clients within the service, providing psychological assessment and interventions of a routine nature, under the direct supervision of a qualified professional psychologist drawing on their supervisor's expertise and intervention as and when advised and directed. To work according to a plan agreed with a qualified psychologist and within the overall framework of the team's policies and procedures. To assist in clinically related administration, conduct of audits, collection of statistics, development of audit and/or research projects, teaching and project work. To assist with the daily operation of the clinic as required, including liaising with referrers and maintaining an oversight of client progress from first contact to discharge.
The Addictions Directorate within CNWL Foundation Trust is a large, well-established provider which offers a wide range of specialist NHS drug and alcohol treatment interventions to the diverse and multicultural populations in Central and North West London. Our drug and alcohol services include community services, A&E liaison services, Peripatetic nurses, Family Therapy, a National Problem Gambling Clinic and a Club Drug Clinic.
Our substance misuse services are dedicated to helping reduce the harm caused by substance misuse dependency; helping people overcome their dependency on substances and helping clients and their families rebuild their lives and enable recovery. We are committed to working in partnership with other providers and service users in local systems of treatment and recovery.
CNWL is committed to providing high quality, evidence-based treatment options and is a learning organisation which promotes staff competence and training and values clinical governance, audit and research. We are linked with Imperial College, University of London and are committed to evaluating our services and developing new and innovative approaches.
The successful applicant may have contact with patients or service users. As an NHS Trust we strongly encourage and support vaccination as this remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course patients and service users when working on our healthcare settings.
To plan and undertake assessments of clients. This may include using motivational interviewing techniques, self-report measures, risk assessment, rating scales, direct and indirect observations and semi-structured interviews with clients including family members. Assessments will involve making judgements involving complex facts or situations, which require the analysis, interpretation and comparison of a range of options, as well as requiring prolonged concentration
To write clinical summaries and care plans based on information gleaned at assessment and present these to the multi-disciplinary team
To provide motivational interventions to clients waiting to commence CBT
To work in a highly emotive atmosphere with clients with gaming problems and their families on a regular basis, and be able to communicate sensitive and complex information, whilst maintaining a high degree of professionalism at all times. May be subject to verbal aggression in individual sessions
To assist in the co-ordination and running of therapeutic groups, under the supervision of a qualified member of staff
To liaise with referrers and clients and facilitate the referral process along with administrative staff. To maintain an oversight of client engagement from first contact to discharge
To assist managers and senior staff as required to ensure the safe daily operation of the clinic
To assist in the design and implementation of audit and research projects on a regular basis in order to help develop and improve service provision. This may include complex audits / service evaluation using qualitative or quantitative methods
To undertake production of questionnaires, data collection, setting up of databases and spreadsheets, data analysis, and the production of reports and presentation of summaries to colleagues using IT and statistical programmes, including Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint) and SPSS.
The post holder will input and maintain appropriate clinical records and statistical data using SystmOne
The post holder will work with Admin colleagues to ensure clinical records are accurate and up to dat

We are looking for an enthusiastic Assistant Psychologist to join our team.
We are seeking applications from enthusiastic Psychology graduates with graduate basis for registration with the BPS. Previous clinical or research experience in the field of psychology is preferred.