County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust
Job summary
A rare opportunity
has arisen for a clinical psychologist to play a pivotal role in the
development of a new adult psycho-oncology service for people affected by
cancer in County Durham and Darlington (CDDFT): building pathways and
supporting patients.
This post will begin with a focus on supporting Breast cancer
patients who are at particular risk in our area, and with sharing learnings
regionally.
At the heart of CDDFT’s psychological approach is the
critical nature of proximity, listening, involvement in systemic issues and how
service design can either entrench or challenge inequality.
We want to shape a psychologically informed service that
genuinely reaches all types of people in all manner of locations – so that no one is left behind.
If this approach sounds exciting to you, you
have experience of working in phsyical health settings, and are motivated to
build a service that makes a difference. We want to hear from you.
Main duties of the job
This role wil begin with scoping and developing
psychological support with a focus on breast cancer population needs. It will
involve speaking with patients, MDTs, charities, external stakeholders to help
develop ways to provide specialist psychological assessment and evidence-based
interventions that are appropiate for the population in all their variety.
You won’t be alone, this is part of a servicewide approach
so you will work directly with the head of service. A key aspect of the role
will be to share learnings across the wider breast cancer region to support
dissemination of best practice.
To really enjoy this job you will need to be
creative and innovative, but also a real completer finisher with an eye for
detail and evaluation.
Person Specification
Special Requirements
Essential
- Knowledge of working in a cancer service or other health setting
- A finisher- completer with an eye for detail and strong organisational and planning skills
- Interest in addressing social inequalities
- Skills in the use of complex methods of psychological assessment, intervention and management frequently requiring sustained and intense concentration.
- Skills in the ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, complex, highly technical and/or clinically sensitive information to clients, their families, carers and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS.
- Emotional resiliance in maintaining a high degree of professionalism in the face of highly emotive and distressing problems and hospital environment.
- Able to transport equipment.
- Able to travel to multiple hospitals across the Trust and regionally.
Desirable
- Evidence of continuing professional development as recommended by the BPS
Statutory Registration
Essential
- Registered with appropriate professional body – HCPC
Desirable
- Member of BPS or ACP
Special Skills & Knowledge
Essential
- Skills in providing consultation to other professional and non-professional groups
- Able to provide a culturally sensitive service.
- Able to have a flexible and dynamic approach to working in terms of the ability to work collaboratively and/or independently as required.
- Able to work flexibly and using a range of therapeutic approaches in response to individual clients needs.
- Able to work flexibly within the service according to clinical demand and manage competing priorities and deliver reliable outcomes
- Able to contain and work with organisational stress, hospital triggers and to have resilience in holding the stress of others.
- Highly developed skills in the ability to communicate effectively, orally and in writing, complex, highly technical and/or clinically sensitive information to clients, their families, carers and other professional colleagues both within and outside the NHS
- Ability to sit and concentrate for extended periods
- Ability to use clinical governance procedures to support and maintain good clinical practise
- Ability to use computer packages for statistical analysis, presentations
- Training in the supervision of psychologists
- Well-developed knowledge of the theory and practice of specialised psychological approaches applied in physical health care settings.
- Knowledge of legislation and implications for clinical practice
- Ability to teach and train others, using a variety of complex multi-media materials suitable for presentations within public, professional and academic settings.
- Ability to identify and employ mechanisms of clinical governance as appropriate, to support and maintain clinical practice in the face of regular exposure to highly emotive material and challenging behaviour.
Desirable
- Experience in design and delivery of group work
- Experience of the application of psychology in different cultural contexts
- Experience of working with couples and families
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working in the NHS.
- Experience of working in a health psychology setting
- Experience working with patients in hospital or cancer care settings
- Experience of working with a multidisciplinary setting and liaising with external stakeholders
- Experience of working with a wide variety of client groups
- Experience of undertaking research or service evaluation or audit within the NHS and the verbal and written dissemination of findings
- Experience of the application of clinical psychology in different cultural contexts
- Experience of providing assessment/ therapy/ supervision/teaching & training
Desirable
- Experience in working with pathway development
- Experience of working with hard to engage populations
- Experience of running groups
- Experience of consultation work to health professionals and MDT working
- Experience of teaching and training other health professionals
- Experience of working in partnership with community and voluntary sector organisations.
Qualifications
Essential
- Post-graduate doctorate level training in Clinical Psychology as accredited by the BPS including specifically models of psychopathology, psychological therapies
- HCPC registered Clinical Psychologist
- Post-doctoral training in one or more additional specialised areas of clinical practice
- Evidence of continuous professional development including relevant specialist courses, training and experience
Desirable
- Post Qualification in staff supervision
Closing Date: 27 August 2026
To apply for this job please visit www.jobs.nhs.uk.