Health in Mind

With your mental health at heart

We have an exciting opportunity for someone to join our Midlothian Community Mental Health and Wellbeing Team. This post is funded by Midlothian Health and Social Care Partnership.

Health in Mind’s Midlothian team are looking to recruit an Access Point Development Worker. Access Point Development workers work in partnership with colleagues from NHS Lothian Primary Care and Psychological Therapies teams. Using a social prescribing approach to connect with and refer to a range of other services to promote positive mental health and wellbeing. In addition, Access Point Development Workers provide Guided-Self-Help, Psychoeducational groups, and other short-term interventions. Where appropriate they will provide an access point for people to access psychological therapies.

The successful applicant will maintain positive and effective working relationships with a range of stakeholders, key partners, and relevant professionals. Experience of delivering CBT interventions or psychoeducational groups is an advantage. All staff are working in a blended way with access to an office base for essential work, risk assessed community work, and homeworking. Travel is required across Midlothian. Flexibility in working hours will also be expected to meet the needs of people we support.

At present, there are an estimated 8,464 citizens living with dementia in Edinburgh. Around 300 of these people are under the age of 65 years old.

Would you like to make a difference to the lives of younger people living with dementia in Edinburgh?

Supporting individuals to keep connected to their communities, engage in their interests and hobbies and access peer support. Working between the hours of 10am and 4pm weekdays, using your own car to help people get around (mileage and expenses are paid).

Successful applicants will have a positive approach to dementia. You will also have good communication skills and a caring attitude. A willingness to learn and participate in training (including SVQ’s) is essential. Relevant qualifications and/or experience of working with people with dementia would be an advantage.

Full driving license and access to a vehicle during working time is essential for this post.

If you’re looking for a rewarding career and to work within inspirational teams that really does make a difference, this is your opportunity to join our Midlothian Services. You will work across two services - Mental Health & Resilience Service and Park Cottage Service in Midlothian.

Mental Health & Resilience Service (MHARS)

You will be working as part of a multi-disciplinary team, alongside Midlothian's Community Mental Health Team, providing a distress/crisis line, a single point of access to MHARS for residents of Midlothian. You will respond to calls in a manner guided by the service principles, being inclusive, sensitive and respectful.

From the moment you answer the telephone, you will listen and ensure that you understand the issues that has led to the person’s crisis or distress and provide an immediate response along with the support of the Community Mental Health Team establishing which is the best and most appropriate support for that person. By understanding each person's unique situation, enables a fast, tailored support and assists them to identify ways to successfully resolve their crisis and or distress and assists each individual to plan for their future.

Once the initial period of crisis has been addressed, you will support connections to additional statutory or community support and/or deliver a Distress Brief Intervention (DBI) response to those in distress. This will involve community-based problem-solving support, wellness and distress management planning, supporting connections and signposting for a period of up to 14 days. You will be flexible and responsive, offering the mode of support that the supported person feels most comfortable with. You will assist people using this service, to establish and maintain a meaningful and fulfilling life in their community.

Midlothian Park Cottage

Park Cottage is a community based mental health rehabilitation service for eight people with complex mental health needs. We offer 24 hour tailored person centred support, supported living and community rehabilitation. Support can be practical and emotional to help individuals lead an ordinary and fulfilling life in the community. The time, length and areas of activity covered are different for everyone, but structured support can include help with budgeting, life skills, confidence building and social inclusion for approximately 12-18 months. You will work alongside the Community Mental Health Team as part of the Wayfinder Model, to work collaboratively to support each individual and their needs. You will be flexible and responsive, offering the mode of support that the supported person feels most comfortable with. You will assist people using this service, to establish and maintain a meaningful and fulfilling life in their community

As an Assistant Service Manager, you will manage, support and supervise two diverse staff teams, alongside the Service Manager to ensure the needs of individuals are met and the service provided is run effectively. You will support individuals by delivering frontline work, to support you in understanding and promoting the service delivery requirements and the quality of service provided.

With the aim of equipping people with the skills needed to live independently and meaningfully within their local community, a strengths-based coaching approach to recovery is used to build confidence, maintain motivation and promote resilience.

Promoting participation and inclusion is a core value of the service, through working alongside people to deliver innovative, creative and personalised interventions and opportunities.

We want you to grow and thrive! We will support you on your own career path; developing new skills, accessing formal and informal learning experiences and providing opportunities to put your continual progress into practice.

Benefits

• Flexible working
• Cycle to work scheme
• Confidential Employee Assistance Programme
• Employee Discount Scheme with Vivup
• Death in Service benefits
• Full training and professional development

And so much more!

We are seeking to appoint a highly motivated individuals to join our DBI team. DBI Coordinators provide support, advice and personal support planning for people referred from front-line services, carrying out short-term work with people in distress to review the reasons for their distress, develop immediate coping strategies and link them into a range of appropriate community services and facilities.

The purpose of this role is to work with people in distress who are referred by front line services (including Police Scotland, Scottish Ambulance Service, NHS24 and Primary Care) to the Level 2 Distress Brief Intervention team. The work includes: reviewing the reasons for distress, working with individuals to develop their Distress Brief Intervention Management Plan and using supported referral to link individuals into a range of appropriate community services and facilities as appropriate.

Training in Level 2 Distress Brief Intervention, specific to the post, will be provided.

The post holders will be required to join the PVG Scheme, or update their membership record for regulated work with protected adults. (The cost are met by the employer)

These posts are part time, working 28 hours per week, office hours of 9am – 5pm with some weekend working on a rota basis (approx. every 6-8wks) and Regular travel will be required once travel restrictions are lifted.

About the DBI Project:

Change Mental Health is the lead partner in the Highlands for the Scottish Government’s Distress Brief Intervention project (DBI). The DBI is a Scotland-wide project, testing a ground-breaking approach to addressing the emotional and psychological pain experienced by people in distress.

Working in partnership with frontline services, including Police, Ambulance service, Primary Care and mental health teams, the project provides rapid referral to focussed, short-term support, with the option of onward referral to longer-term support if required. As a DBI Coordinator, you will join this major, high profile Scottish Government project in a key role.

For further information about DBI and our involvement in the project, head to our website and visit DBI.scot.

Why join us?

Change Mental Health is a leading national mental health charity providing unique support to people with severe and enduring mental ill health. With 50 years’ experience across Scotland, we believe people affected by poor mental health and illness deserve the highest quality of support in the community and that every person has the right to be valued and to share in the opportunities, challenges, and joys of everyday life.

Our person-centred approach puts the people we work with at the heart of what we do ensuring they have greater opportunity, can build confidence and social skills, and become more integrated into their communities. By building connections and support around individual needs, our team of nearly 200 staff and 800 members value the lived experience which informs the services we deliver. We look beyond illness by taking a holistic approach that ensures no one has to face mental ill health alone.

Benefits

• Professional development including funded opportunities.
• A generous 37 days’ holiday.
• A 35-hour working week, enhanced sick pay & season ticket loan.
• A great work life balance with flexible and blended working environment.
• 24/7 access to an award-winning Employee Assistance Programme providing free legal, financial and medical advice as well as support with life’s challenges.
• Enhanced sick pay and leave entitlements
• Paid Mental Wellbeing Days
• Cycle to Work Scheme
• Blue Light discount card