Mental Health Practitioner for ED

This is an autonomous role for an accountable practitioner within a mental health team to offer mental health support within an acute hospital.

This post offers Mental Health expertise within an acute hospital at The Royal Wolverhampton Trust to support the care provided to patients who present with mental health issues.

The post holder will aim to support throughout the hospital with the management of patients who may present in crisis or have complex vulnerabilities.

The post holder will be based with the wider mental health team and integrate within the emergency department, AMU and acute medical wards when required, to ensure a joined approach, supporting the needs of those presenting with mental health issues in the hospital and expediting appropriate discharge.

The Post Holder will support colleagues in developing and building effective communication between all stakeholders, working across community and partnership agencies to provide excellent clinical care to patients with mental health issues and complex presentations.

The job will be based at The Royal Wolverhampton Trust; however there is the expectation that the post holder may be required to work or attend meetings/training at Walsall Manor Hospital.

Job description

To manage and support quality performance and clinical activity by providing professional nursing leadership and guidance, clinical advice and management in relation to the key dimensions of health care quality:

Patient safety

The effectiveness of all health care interventions

Patient experience

The environment in which care is delivered

Demonstrate a high level of skill in assessing and managing risk, including clinical as well as generic risk assessment.

To support the Emergency Department staff in the management of risk presented by patients presenting with mental health needs including completing and contributing to robust risk assessments and risk management plans.

Based on the assessment, to formulate and convey sensitive, complex and sometimes unwelcome information to clients and other professionals and manage this as constructively as possible.

To provide a good working knowledge of safeguarding skills and supporting complex patient presentations.

To work as a competent practitioner providing clinically effective advice about interventions for patients considering the complexities of their mental health problems. This requires an awareness of the potential impact of wider systems on service provision, staffing, patients and families.

To be able to assess and provide the appropriate guidance and advice to departments and staff.

To provide the delivery of excellent nursing care in accordance with up-to-date evidence based professional practice

To provide the acute trust with advanced mental health expertise

To act as a resource in caring for mental health patients and liaising with stakeholders to ensure excellent patient care is delivered.

To offer advice and guidance on the use of the Mental Health Act and Mental Capacity Act including the use of Section 136 of MHA 1983/2025

To work with the Matron for Mental Health and Mental Health Clinical Governance Manager to monitor and respond to Clinical Incidents involving Mental Health within the acute trust.

To support the embedding of lessons and develop new and innovative ways to improve patient care, patient journey and treatment within the acute trust.

To monitor standards, ensuring quality and consistency and to act where any shortfall occurs.

To design and participate in clinical audit procedures.

To develop and contribute to the service practice by participating in the development, implementation and evaluation of quality initiatives and research.

To reduce the risk of vulnerable patients absconding or otherwise coming to harm, working with department staff in developing systems that reduce this risk.

To work closely with the Emergency Department team in ensuring timely and appropriate attendance by the Mental Health Liaison Teams and Approved Mental Health Practitioners and other professional bodies as required.

To support the Emergency Department nursing team in the development of mental health guidance including policies and procedures pertaining to patients with mental health issues.

To work as an autonomous practitioner without direct supervision

Maintain timely data collection and regular inputting of information using data collection systems

Ensuring that confidentiality is always maintained in accordance with legislation and Trust policy and utilising Safe Haven procedures and adhering to Data Sharing Agreements

Support and facilitate the discharge or transition of the patient to other services where appropriate.

To liaise with, and where appropriate, participate in joint work with other specific teams.

Continually delivering and maintaining high standards of service provision that is evidence based and in line with recognised best practice.

To provide consultation, specialist advice and training to professionals who come into contact in the Department with those presenting with mental health issues.

To be a resource of specialist advice relating to mental health, to professionals in other agencies/organisations working in the field of mental health who have contact with patients.

To demonstrate expertise in analysing and reflecting upon own clinical practice and that of others, in all aspects of care provided to people, their families/carers and those impacted by mental health issues who present to the acute trust.

Taking responsibility for own continuous professional registration and professional development, ensuring you remain up to date with all mandatory training requirements.

Providing mentoring and supervision to junior staff and students on placement.

Adopting a professional approach to all aspects of the post and being prepared to adapt to changing service needs as required by a high performing service and organisation.

To fully integrate the use of routine outcome measures to evaluate the support interventions, treatment and the provision of the service.

Support Mental Health Matron in monitoring evaluating the service.

Responsible for participating in setting of quality standards including the auditing, monitoring and review of practice in line with current clinical guidance practice and policy

Provide reports to the Mental Health Steering Group including performance against Key Performance Indicators

Participate in aiming towards RCEM standards

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Registered Mental Health Nurse Level 1
• Evidence of post graduate qualifications
• Evidence of continuing professional development

Desirable

• Non-Medical Prescriber or working towards this

Experience/Skills

Essential

• Substantial knowledge in specialist clinical area
• Experience of working in front line mental health services
• Working knowledge of the application in practice of Mental Health Act 1983/2025
• Experience of working with specific professional nursing and service objectives and KPI's

Desirable

• Experience of working in a mental health service within an acute trust setting and understanding the needs of acute hospital services

About the employer

The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust is one of the largest NHS trusts in the West Midlands providing primary, acute and community services and we are incredibly proud of the diversity of both our staff and the communities we serve. We are building a workforce that can help us to fulfil our values, improve the quality of care for patients, and solve the health care problems of tomorrow. We're passionate about the value that diversity of thinking and lived experience brings in enabling us to become a learning organisation and leader in delivering compassionate care for our patients.

We are delighted that we have been rated as "Good" by CQC. We have achieved numerous awards; The Nursing Times Best Diversity and Inclusion Practice and Best UK Employer of the Year for Nursing Staff in 2020.

The Trust is a supportive working environment committed to creating flexible working arrangements that suit your needs and as such will consider all requests from applicants who wish to work flexibly.