Psychology in Older People Services
Working collaboratively to enhance and innovate psychologically informed care for the benefit and wellbeing of all.
Psychological professionals in the Older People Care Unit work within different services across the city and county. Together, we are a psychology department that is committed to supporting, empowering, and developing both our team and each other.
Psychology in Older People Services is led by a Consultant Clinical Psychologist who is supported by a Lead Psychologist for Inpatient Services and a Lead Psychologist for Community Services. Most areas of Older People Services are commissioned to have a Psychologist (Clinical or Counselling), and some teams also have Assistant Psychologists working with them. We are also proud to have established new roles within some teams, such as our Integrated CBT Therapists and Mental Health and Wellbeing Practitioners.
We have close connections with the local doctorate training course and regularly welcome and support trainee clinical psychologists on placements.
Since each area has different needs, our psychological professionals work differently and do slightly different jobs depending on the part of Older People Services they are working in.
For more information about specific services in the Older People Care Unit, please see below.
Working with us
The opportunity to physically connect as a department and to learn and develop together is important to us, therefore our department regularly meets for CPD sessions (Continuing Professional Development) online and meets in person for away days and time out sessions. We have also recently been able to provide access to post-qualification specialist training and there are several spaces for support, advice and resource sharing.
Psychological professionals are essential to Older People Services, and we encourage our staff to help improve services and shape changes in the organisation. As a department, we are currently working on several projects including: developing clearer pathways for all psychological therapies (including those outside of Older People Services), SMI (Serious Mental Illness) and complex emotional needs management, and implementing Positive Behaviour Support in ward-based settings.
The Older People Care Unit is also reviewing the provision of psychologically informed care, training staff to deliver this work, and embedding new roles to deliver psychological support at different levels. Our psychological professionals are central to these processes and are helping to shape what this looks like in practice.
We are part of a wider network of psychologists across the Trust, led by an Associate Director. This network allows us to regularly connect, and our partnerships with local training programs and universities offer us more chances for research, supervision, and teaching.
Roles in the team
Psychology Services within Older People Services has a range of psychological professionals. The exact roles in each team will be different due to clinical need, however psychological professionals in Older People Services may include:
- Clinical and Counselling Psychologists (including trainees who work under the direct supervision of a qualified Clinical Psychologist)
- Integrated CBT Therapists
- Mental Health and Wellbeing Practitioners (including trainees who work under the direct supervision of a qualified Integrated CBT Therapist)
- Multi-Profession Approved Clinician
- Assistant Psychologists (who work under the direct supervision of a clinical psychologist, counselling psychologist, or Integrated CBT Therapist)
- Undergraduate Psychology students on placement (who are supervised by qualified members of the team)
Click here for more information on these job roles.
Multi-Profession Approved Clinician
Clinical Psychologists can complete further qualifications to work as an Approved Clinician. In this role, they take on responsibilities under the Mental Health Act and may act as a patient's Responsible Clinician. A Responsible Clinician is someone who is responsible for someone's care when they are formally detained under a section of the mental health act but can also be for people who are voluntarily admitted to hospital.
The Responsible Clinician leads the person's care, including assessment, treatment and discharge planning.
Other professionals, like nurses, social workers, and occupational therapists, can also train for this role, but Responsible Clinicians can only oversee treatments they are trained to manage. For example, only doctors or nurses who have completed additional training can prescribe medicines, therefore a medical doctor or correctly qualified nurse may assist a Psychologist Responsible Clinician with these parts of patient care.
Undergraduate psychology students on placement
Undergraduate Psychology students are usually University students completing a year of work experience placement as part of their degree. Students have typically completed two years of a four year degree (including the year of work experience) and work under the supervision of the qualified Psychologist in the team.
Students may support psychology groups or assist with non-clinical tasks. Since this is a training role, they may also observe meetings or appointments to learn more, but only with the patient's permission.
Help in a crisis
Should your concern relate to a service user currently known to one of our teams then please contact the team directly during our regular opening hours.
If you have concerns about the mental health of a person not currently open to services, please contact the person's GP for advice.
Alternatively, please contact the Clinical Access Line via 111 and choose Option 2 for mental health advice and signposting to the most appropriate service to meet your needs.
If your concerns relate to a person in mental health crisis and requires an immediate emergency response, please contact the local crisis team or the police.
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