Occupational Therapy Assistant

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Post: Occupational Therapy Assistant

Salary: £29,642.55 moves to £30,186.45 after probation and after 18 months goes to £30,730.35

Base: Cygnet Hospital Maidstone, Gidds Pond Way, Weavering, ME14 5FT

Responsible for: Supporting Occupational Therapists to perform their role in the assessment, treatment and development of individuals in our care.

Responsible to: Head of Occupational Therapy (Line manager).

Hours: 37.5 hours per week

Location: Cygnet Hospital Maidstone, Gidds Pond Way, Weavering, ME14 5FT

Service Line: Roseacre Ward, Female Personality Disorder Unit

Summary of the site: Cygnet Hospital Maidstone is our state-of-the-art, 63 bed mental health facility for adults situated in the Kent Medical Campus in Maidstone.

Cygnet Hospital Maidstone is purpose built to meet the latest national specifications for improving mental health within a therapeutic environment. The hospital will provide an important and much-needed service for local patients from Kent.

The hospital is split into four distinct wards, each offering specialist mental health services:

• Roseacre Ward Highly Specialised Personality Disorder service for women
• Kingswood Ward High Dependency Rehabilitation service for men
• Bearsted Ward Specialist PICU Service for Men
• Saltwood Ward Male low secure ward

The hospitals services have been requested and agreed by local and regional NHS bodies to meet the urgent demand for specialist mental health services within Kent. The aim is to ensure that local people can be treated close to home and as near as possible to their friends and family.

Summary of the ward: Roseacre is Cygnet Hospital Maidstones Personality Disorder service for Women. Roseacre supports women with a history of Personality Disorder, self-harm and trauma. You do not need experience in Personality Disorder services; however a willingness to learn new skills.

By combining a collaborative, multi-disciplinary approach and state-of-the-art facilities, we deliver high-quality care within a community atmosphere, while focusing on discharge planning from the moment individuals arrive.

Our recovery programme is delivered in a culture that balances risk management with therapeutic optimism, where men have the opportunity to learn and practice the skills they will need in a completely safe environment.

MDT: There is a highly experienced Multi-Disciplinary Team made up of a consultant psychiatrist, specialty doctor, occupational therapist, psychologist, assistant psychologist, social worker, registered mental health nurses and healthcare assistants.

In this role you will:

• Deliver planned activities for patients under the direction of the ward Occupational Therapist (OT) and Multidisciplinary Team
• Assist the OT in the day to day duties and running of the department
• Undertake assessment and intervention programmes with clients as delegated by a senior occupational therapist underpinned by appropriate experience / knowledge
• Contribute ideas, create and facilitate events and activities safely and support people to structure their time through meaningful activity
• Have involvement in the delivery of one to one and group interventions
• Implement individual care plans during activity sessions and take into account specific interests and opportunities to promote choice and independence

If you feel you suit the criteria and have an interest in mental health and Occupational Therapy, then please make an application today.

5 reasons why you should make an application today

• We care about people in our services
• We are a very supportive and friendly team
• You will be an integral part of a large, well established MDT with extensive experience to draw from
• We offer lots of in-service training in OT assessments and interventions
• We support the learning and professional growth of our staff members and offer e-learning and training opportunities on a multitude of mental health topics

The Successful Candidate should be/have:

• A good understanding of mental health diagnosis
• Knowledge of recovery approaches and social inclusion
• Experience of supporting service users with mental illness
• A relevant healthcare qualification is desirable

What next?

If you care about making a difference – we want to talk to you.

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