Job Advert
NHS Scotland is committed to encouraging equality and diversity among our workforce and eliminating unlawful discrimination. The aim is for our workforce to be truly representative and for each employee to feel respected and able to give their best. To this end, NHS Scotland welcomes applications from all sections of society.
ARTS PSYCHOTHERAPIST - 0.2 WTE Band 6 | 1 day per week
MOTHER & BABY UNIT – ST JOHNS HOSPITAL: 12 month contract
An exciting opportunity to join the NHS Lothian Arts Psychotherapies Service – a team comprising of over 30 Arts Psychotherapists working across all age groups and all localities served by NHS Lothian.
What staff say about our team:-
- ‘It’s been a wonderful rich experience I’ll always greatly value’
- ‘My time working within the NHS Lothian Arts Therapies team has been incredibly rich and I have learnt so much.’
- ‘I would like to thank you .. for the incredible opportunities you have provided me within the NHS, I have learnt so much during my time as a student and as an employee and feel very lucky to have worked alongside such an inspiring team.’
The Arts Psychotherapies Service provides Art, Music, Drama Psychotherapy services to children, young people, adults and older adults with complex needs across all of NHS Lothian and specific additional partners (i.e. local authority social care and third sector organisations).
For this role, Arts Psychotherapy is provided to the Mother & Baby Unit - “The Mental Health Mother and Baby Unit (MBU) is a regional specialist mental health inpatient service. It can accommodate six mothers and their babies at any one time: the child must be under one year old. The unit provides specialist inpatient care and treatment for mental illness to mothers, whilst also supporting the development of the parenting role and relationship with their infant. This is an acute admissions unit with the ability to accept admissions 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.”
The successful applicant will be part of the Arts Psychotherapy team and embedded within the MBU ward team (open groups & I:I sessions). They will be expected to respond flexibly to the complex mental health needs of mothers, with their babies, and work as an active member of the wards multi-disciplinary team contributing to systemic care planning and risk management. The post-holder may also have opportunities to do other roles within the Arts Psychotherapy team as they arise.
This post may be of specific interest to clinicians with experience of working with adults with complex mental health needs. Training and development opportunities and regular clinical supervision and line management will be provided by the Arts Psychotherapy Team. HCPC registration is essential. We are looking for someone who is highly motivated and creative in their approach and has had previous experience of working adults using a range of verbal and non-verbal communication. The post holder will be expected to work independently using own initiative and as a team member, linking closely with other health professionals, visiting specialists, and families as appropriate.
If you would like an informal discussion, please contact:
Kate Pestell: Kate.Pestell@nhslothian.scot.nhs.uk (Mon-Thurs)
Jenni Johnston: Jenni.Johnston@nhslothian.scot.nhs.uk (Mon & Wed)
W: Arts Therapies – NHS Lothian | Our Services
This post requires the post holder to have a PVG Scheme membership/ record. If the post holder is not a current PVG member for the required regulatory group (i.e. child and/or adult) then an application will need to be made to Disclosure Scotland and deemed satisfactory before they can begin in post.
Please note: As this post is part-time the salary will be pro-rata.