An opportunity for a Consultant Old Age Psychiatrist to join an established community older adults team, as part of the Memory and Later Life Services. This is a replacement post due to the retirement of a full-time Consultant. CESR, Section 12 and AC training and development are supported in this NHS post.
Based in one of the trust main hospitals, this full time old age psychiatry job would be part of the community services which are organised into two teams. Each of these teams delivers: Memory clinic function (all ages); Hospital liaison; and CMHT functions for patients with dementia (all ages) and people who have functional disorders with age related needs and/or frailty issues.
This is a really exciting opportunity to work with patients and their families as part of a passionate multidisciplinary team and a very supportive NHS Trust. Overseas applications are welcomed and the trust has in place numerous support measures to make all new recruits career change a success.
Experienced Specialty Doctors or Associate Specialists will also be considered for the role, a good level of experience in Old Age Psychiatry would be essential.
WHAT IS THE TRUST LIKE?
In this NHS Trust they are proud of their traditions around research, education and development of the Medical Workforce. They have within their Medical workforce, the RCPsych CESR Evaluator of the year, the RCPsych NW Trainer of the Year and the RCPsych Researcher of the Year!
They have an extremely active education/teaching programme which our Consultants enjoy supporting.
The Trust specialises in secure, inpatient and community mental health services and covers the whole of the county, employing around 7,500 members of staff across more than 420 sites, working with a multitude of partners to provide health & wellbeing services. The Trust’s vision is to provide high quality care, in the right place, at the right time, every time.
WHAT IS THE THE OLD AGE PSYCHIATRY TEAM LIKE?
As a consultant in the Community Mental Health Team for Older Adult Psychiatry, you would be joining an enthusiastic supportive team of Consultant Old Age Psychiatrists covering the 3 clusters that provide specialist assessment and care for Older Adults with moderate to severe mental illness. The total team case load at present is around 700 (none on CTOs). Consultants do not regularly carry their own case load as each patient has a care co-ordinator in the CMHT.
You will work with a large number of partners and stakeholders both in mental health services, universal services and specialist mental health practitioners and health visitors.
For community clinic work adequate time, at least one hour, is allocated for the assessment of a new patient, or typically half an hour for a follow-up appointment. Current medical staff will tend to see 3 or 4 patients in a typical clinic (1PA) as a mixture of new and followup.
In the past few years the older adult CMHTs have started to work through ‘virtual clinics’. This model is to manage the increasing demand of new referrals with suspected dementia. These referrals are seen initially by a nurse who conducts an enhanced assessment including a cognitive evaluation. Neuroimaging is then typically carried out prior to the ‘virtual clinic’. In these clinics a psychiatrist will meet with the nurses and discuss the assessments carried out in order to try to reach a diagnosis and management plan, which is followed through by the nurse. This way of working has improved doctor time efficiency by 300% and allowed nearly 75% of new dementia referrals to be diagnosed this way.
The Trust is responsible for community and mental health services. Having specialists such as neurologists, neurophysiologists, speech and language therapists, physicians and many others within the same Trust has made for a much more collaborative way of working, breaking down barriers that sometimes exist when these services are within differing NHS Trusts.
WHAT IS LIFE LIKE IN THE REGION OF LANCASHIRE AND SOUTH CUMBRIA?
The NHS Trust operates in an area that includes the Lake District National Park with World Heritage Centre status. It provides opportunities for living in beautiful places and accessing a wide range of outdoor pursuits.
State and private schools have excellent reputations with a number of secondary and primary schools having outstanding Ofsted reports, being ranked as some of the highest in the country. Housing is affordable with many areas being significantly more competitive than the rest of the UK.
The region offers a county of contrasting landscapes, with wide, open spaces, diverse heritage and plentiful food and drink, covering 3,075 km2 of England’s North West. There is something for everyone, with countryside, canals, coast and towns. Enjoy stunning views, quiet lanes, rare wildlife and our famous Lancashire coastline.
There is the unique, wildlife rich bays in the north to the flat and fertile coastal plain around the estuaries. Parts of the area have been voted as the best places to live in the UK by Channel 4 show Best Place to Live in the UK.
While most people might think Manchester, London and Leeds would be the ideal spots for people to settle down - this area perhaps beats them all, certainly according to a new study!
WHAT OPPORTUNITIES ARE AVAILABLE TO YOU AT LCSFT?
With an extremely active education/teaching programme supported by the consultant team, there is opportunity to work towards and complete CESR, RCPsych exams, get involved in active research and many aspects of CPD.
ARE YOU ELIGIBLE FOR THIS ROLE?
EEA Candidates:
Experience of working in Old Age Psychiatry
Board Certified Specialist in Psychiatry
Non-EEA Candidates:
MRCPsych
Experience of working in Old Age Psychiatry
UK based applicants
Experience of working in Old Age Psychiatry
Within 6 - 12 months of completing CCT