First Contact Mental Health Practitioner - PCN

JOB LOCATION - Bishop Auckland/Dales
An exciting opportunity has arisen for a First Contact Mental Health Practitioner who is enthusiastic, motivated, and interested in working in primary care mental health to join our existing team. You will be part of a growing multidisciplinary service within County Durham Primary Care Networks. The role is fundamental to the development and leadership of innovative and integrated mental health services.
Together with Tees Esk and Wear Valleys (TEWV) NHS Foundation Trust, the PCN is working to transform local community mental health services for people with mental health problems. The PCN, alongside TEWV, consider this joint approach to be essential for the provision of high quality, sustainable care. By working co-operatively, we will be able to provide meaningful support for people with mental health difficulties in a way that meets their needs closer to their communities and their homes.

Main duties of the job
You will develop close working relationships with all our Clinical staff, including our existing Mental Health Practitioners and become a valued member of the Primary Care Team, collaborating with other professionals both internal to and external from the PCN.
Your role will involve offering specialist mental health advice and providing expert clinical care for people with a range of mental health needs, ensuring that those with serious mental illness do not fall between gaps in services. You will improve access by being a 'first contact mental health worker', undertaking triage, assessments, brief interventions, and reviews. You will contribute networking and navigation expertise, enabling access to a range of appropriate mental health support across the community system. You will ensure that, once assessed, each person receives the best possible care in the right place at the right time by the right supporting service., The PCNs are forward thinking, innovative and driven by a team of professionals who are focused on delivering high quality care for local people. You will be joining a diverse workforce made up of GPs, ANPs, Urgent Care Practitioners, Paramedics, Pharmacists, Nurses, Health Care Assistants, Care Coordinators, Link Workers, Well Being Coach, and Mental Health Workers., This is an exciting and innovative post to support the needs of the local population living with a range of mental health difficulties. The role holder will fulfil a 'first contact' specialist mental health role within GP Practices across the Primary Care Network (PCN), seeing patients who would otherwise have traditionally seen a GP. Within the primary care setting, the role holder will work in a collaborative and multi-agency way. This will contribute to the safe and effective day to day operation of the PCN and the efficient and timely management of clinical enquiries and decision-making.
The post will sit within the GP practices and will facilitate the interface between Primary Care and Secondary Mental Health Services to provide specialist advice and support, assessment, treatment, education and solution-focused approaches to the local Primary Care Teams, for patients and carers.
The role will offer expertise in networking and navigation to promote ease of access to a range of specialist mental health support services. This ensures that each person, once assessed, receives the best possible care in the right place at the right time and by the right supporting service.
The post holder will be an effective member of the multi-disciplinary team. They will be professionally accountable and responsible for patient care, undertaking initial assessment with signposting to appropriate services, or providing time-limited psycho-social therapeutic interventions directly, in e.g. GP surgeries, patient's homes and other primary care settings. This will include providing clinical advice to GPs such as specialist opinion or prescribing support (within the parameters of the Non-medical prescribing/NMP framework).
The post-holder will manage their daily clinics and act as a specialist advisor to GP's, fulfilling a pathway management function and providing short term interventions and support, in collaboration with GP's and other practice based mental health workers.
You will support the establishment of partnerships and networks with key stakeholders across the PCN and the wider mental health care system. You will offer advice to, or obtain advice for, the Primary Care Team on appropriate interventions and on-going patient care management.
You will develop links and foster a culture of 'partnership' between Primary Care Teams and Mental Health Services, promoting clear communication and access to specialist knowledge and advice. This will include the facilitation of joint working with PCN, Secondary Care providers, and Voluntary Care Sector to increase the range of services/interventions available to the communities served.
You will provide clinical advice, consultation, and support to other care providers within primary, secondary, voluntary and statutory services as required.
In line with the principles for community transformation, you will ensure systems/pathways are in place to enable smooth transition between primary care and secondary mental health services.
Due to the nature of the role it is essential that applicants can travel independently and have access to a suitable vehicle for business purposes. If necessary, adjustments can be considered in accordance with the Equality Act 2010.
Please refer to the attached job description and person specification for further detailed information to ensure that you meet the role criteria before applying.
If the contract type on the vacancy states 'Fixed Term' this would mean the vacancy is being advertised to address a temporary need for the duration stipulated on the advert, however, in the event that permanent funding is secured for the post the successful applicant will be confirmed in post on a permanent basis.
Internal applicants must ensure that prior to applying they have agreement from their current line manager that they can be released on a secondment basis., TEWV encourages and supports all staff to be vaccinated as this remains the best line of defence against COVID19.
Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust is committed to the protection of staff, service users and visitors to the Trust from second hand smoke and currently operates a no smoking policy which ensures all buildings and grounds are smoke free.
We are an equal opportunities employer and welcome applications from individuals who have experience of mental ill health or learning disabilities. Our service users and carers tell us our staff should be consistently concerned with maintaining and improving care with pride, empathy and compassion.
This job advert may close as soon as sufficient suitable applications have been received. If interested please apply for this post as soon as possible.
In order for your application to be successfully processed we will require references from your current and previous employer(s) which must cover a minimum period of three years. Please ensure that the reference section of your application is completed appropriately giving the address, telephone number and work email address of each of your current and previous line manager(s). If this section is not fully completed your application may not be processed.
If your application is successful, the information you give on your application form will be used to create and be retained on your electronic staff record and to provide access to core Trust systems.
Please note that if the post you are applying for requires a DBS check, you will be required to also subscribe to the DBS Update Service, if successful, and thereafter renew your subscription each year. The Trust will reimburse the subscription fee.
After applying via NHS Jobs, your submitted application will be imported into our preferred Third party recruitment system. All subsequent information regarding your application will be generated from apps.trac.jobs. You will not be able to track the progress of your application or receive messages through the NHS Jobs website, and furthermore, that as an employer, we will not be able to respond to any e-mails sent to us via the NHS Jobs website.
By applying for this post you are agreeing to Tees Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are offered a job, information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.
Candidates who are shortlisted for interview will be contacted by e-mail. You should check your SPAM folders as well as your inbox. If you have not been contacted within 4 weeks of the closing date you should assume your application has been unsuccessful.

We would welcome enthusiastic innovators with a strong desire to achieve the best possible outcomes for patients and have the motivation and flexibility to help develop the services as the team evolves to meet the needs of the population. The successful candidate will be well supported, work autonomously and have day to day responsibility for their clinics and workload. Primary Care experience is not essential; however, a good understanding of how Primary Care works would be beneficial., We are able to offer sponsorship for a Health and Care Worker or Skilled Worker visa, subject to candidate and position eligibility. Please review the job eligibility guidance for skilled workers here: Skilled Worker visa: Your job - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) and for the Health and Care Worker visa here: Skilled Worker visa: eligible healthcare and education jobs - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

We are the Mental Health & Learning Disability NHS Trust for County Durham and Darlington, Teesside, North Yorkshire, York and Selby.
From education and prevention, to crisis and specialist care -our talented and compassionate teams work in partnership with our patients, communities and partners to help the people of our region feel safe, understood, believed in and cared for.
We nurture the recovery journey of anyone in need of our help. In Our Trust, everyone has a say in how they are supported and treated because we listen to every person in our care until they feel understood. Our patients, their families and carers work together with us towards better mental health.
We're committed to new thinking that improves the wellbeing of our region. We connect with our communities and partners to get mental health care right, in areas that really need it.
We won't rest until everyone in our region has the mental health care they need, to lead their best possible life., Here at Tees, Esk and Wear Valley Foundation NHS Trust we want you to have a positive experience when you start your new role with us. To ensure you have great welcome, for all new starters joining the Trust, we offer two start dates per month on the 1st and 3rd Mondays of that Month.