Oncology Counsellor - MV Cancer ServicesNHS

Job summary

We are recruiting for a Oncology Counsellor who shares our vision to be trusted to provide consistently outstanding care and exemplary service to our patients.

The Lynda Jackson Macmillan Centre provides support and information to patients and carers attending Mount Vernon Cancer Centre for treatments such as chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy.

It is a valuable resource for people affected by cancer and is staffed by oncology trained health professionals, complementary therapists, counsellors, an art therapist and psychologist, and other volunteers with a wide variety of experience. The centre's status is part NHS and part charitable.

The successful candidate will assess patients, plan and implement an appropriate specialist psychological intervention for cancer patients and maintain associated records. You will liaise and provide specialist advice to the wider multi-disciplinary team and provide training to medical and non-medical staff and students, as appropriate.

You will assist the Lead by taking part in research and audit in the specialist area of cancer counselling. Also, you will act in accordance with, and undertake continued professional development, in line with their governing professional body and in house guidelines

At the heart of everything we do are our core values:Include,Respect, andImprove. We encourage you to embrace these values throughout the recruitment process and in your role with us.

Main duties of the job

Use highly specialised therapeutic skills and theoretical frameworks to assess suitability of patients and carers, for psychological interventions.

To autonomously plan and implement a course of counselling (up to six sessions) to meet the individual needs of patients and/or carers.

To plan and organise own caseload.

Able to run therapeutic groups for patients and carers.

To organise and make decisions regarding referrals to other services.

To be responsible for using clinical supervision to facilitate work with patient.

Maintain client case notes and write letters following counselling sessions in accordance with local policy and guidelines for best practice.

Communicate with the wider multi-disciplinary team regarding the outcome of psychological assessment and treatment.

To take part in training to provide specialist training to other staff and/or volunteers.

Job description

In addition, you will receive a High Cost Area Supplement of 15% of your basic salary, subject to a minimum payment of £4,314 and a maximum payment of £5,436 per annum pro rata.

Please see the attached Job Description and Person Specification applicant pack for further detailed information regarding this role.

About us

At East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust, we are proud of the range of general & specialist services we provide & our 6,000 or so dedicated staff ensure our patients get the best care. Our ability to be flexible & innovative in the way in which we work and deliver our services to our catchment has never been more important than it is now.

We run the following hospitals:

• The Lister Hospital, Stevenage
• New Queen Elizabeth II (New QEII), Welwyn Garden City
• Hertford County, Hertford
• Mount Vernon Cancer Centre (MVCC), Northwood

We have ambitious plans to become an outstanding, patient-led Trust where dedicated staff provide high-quality, compassionate care to our patients. We continue to undergo significant transformation; our staff & patients are at the heart of delivering this ambitious agenda.

We understand that finding and starting a new job is an important life decision. If you need reasonable adjustments for a disability, or a life event, such as menopause - so that we can consider your application fairly & to get the best out of you during the selection process, please let us know.

We are committed to a positive work life balance for our employees. Employees are entitled to seek to work flexible working patterns & we are committed to listen and consider all requests. Such requests, of course, have to be made & considered formally, & will need to be balanced against service needs, but our starting point will always be to find ways to support making them happen.