Principal Clinical Psychologist Childrens Residential Services, Dublin North East

Job Summary

The Child and Family Agency was established on 1 st January 2014 and is responsible for a range of statutory functions including provision of child protection, alternative care, specified regulatory services and a range of family support services. The Agency has commenced a major improvement programme with significant focus on Practice, Culture and Structure.

The Agency currently has responsibility for a budget of circa €1.2billion and delivers its services through over 5,500 people in 259 locations across the Country.

The Child and Family Agency has responsibility for the following range of services:

• Child Protection and Welfare
• Parenting, Family Support and Early Help Services
• Alternative Care
• Birth Information & Tracing and Adoption
• Tusla Education Support Services (TESS)
• Children's Service Regulation
• Counselling and Therapeutic Supports

Further information is available on www.tusla.ie

NIAPP is a national specialised clinical service which provides multidisciplinary advice, consultation, assessment and treatment interventions to children and young people who have exhibited harmful sexual behaviour and their families/carers. These therapeutic inputs are provided in a flexible, timely and responsive manner with a focus on prevention of further exhibition of sexually harmful behaviour, safety planning/managing risk and improving outcomes for children young people and their families.

NIAPP also supports other professionals in their ongoing work with children and young people who have exhibited harmful sexual behaviour and their families. This includes:

• Delivering ongoing training to MDT
• Supporting residential centres

Job Objectives

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Professional / Clinical
• Support the development of an integrated specialist harmful sexual behaviour residential

unit.

• Deliver training, workshops, and other inputs to staff re working with this population,

trauma informed care, and treatment modules which residential staff will provide under

NIAPP's guidance.
• Work in conjunction with the National Interagency Prevention Program (NIAPP) DNE

team.

• Conduct assessments of Harmful Sexual behaviour in line with TUSLA NIAPP practice

guidelines.
• Deliver group and individual therapeutic interventions for Harmful Sexual Behaviour in

line with TUSLA NIAPP Practice Guidelines.

• Work as part of the CRS psychology service nationally and build on the overview

developed over the past two years
• Deliver the CRS psychology service in line with best practice as set out in the Welltree

model of care, with a focus on trauma informed care, the management of risk and the

promotion of wellbeing.
• Be responsible for the delivery of professional psychology assessment, intervention and

consultation appropriate to the post in line with best practice when working with Tusla's

other Residential Services.

• Liaise with the Social Care Managers and staff of the DNE residential centres around the

promotion of effective residential care delivery

• Facilitation of trauma-informed and evidence-based social care practice within the

residential centres through educational and reflective inputs to the social care teams and

engagement through other fora, as required
• Carry a clinical caseload appropriate to the post
• Provide psychological assessments for the client group based upon the appropriate use,

interpretation and integration of data from a variety of sources including psychological

tests, self-report measures, direct and indirect observation and interviews with clients,

family members and/or carers and the wider professional system.
• Formulate and implement treatment plans for psychological therapeutic intervention or

management in consultation with the MDT team based on an appropriate conceptual

framework, working in home and clinical settings as appropriate
• Provide clinical supervision to other Psychology/Psychotherapy staff members if

necessary.

• Exercise professional responsibility for the assessment, treatment, monitoring, follow-up

and discharge of clients whose problems are managed using psychologically based care

plans
• Contribute a psychological perspective to case planning and multi-agency case working

and review and call multi-professional meetings when appropriate
• Provide professional reports as required in accordance with professional standards
• Communicate effectively and work in co-operation with team members and others to

ensure integrated service provision
• Ensure co-ordinated interdisciplinary and inter-agency service delivery, to include
• Develop and maintain close liaison with TUSLA service users' Social Work teams and

other key stakeholders.
• Liaise with Psychologists and other disciplines within TUSLA Therapeutic services to

maximise integrated service delivery.
• Develop and maintain close liaison with key stakeholders
• Ensure co-ordinated interdisciplinary and inter-agency service delivery
• Participate in meetings, committees and/or conferences as required
• Work within limits of professional competence in line with principles of best practice,

professional conduct and clinical governance
• Represent and advocate for the psychological needs of service users

• Work in and promote an ethical and professional manner at all times
• Be aware of and refer the service user to other services as necessary
• Initiate and participate in needs assessment and health promotion as appropriate
• Promote a culture that values equality, diversity and respect in the workplace.
• Operate to the highest ethical standards

• Ensure anti-discriminatory practice and cultural competence at individual and service levels.
• Provide as required, in relation to his/her designated area of responsibility, the NIAPP National Manager with such information and professional advice and guidance it may require in the preparation, monitoring and evaluation of services.
• Encourage and initiate psychological research and, where appropriate, to initiate and/or participate in multi-disciplinary research programmes.
• Deputise for the NIAPP National Manager, other Principal Psychologists and other MDT managers that are associated with NIAPP DNE.
• Participate in the selection process for staff for TUSLA Psychology Services and other services as required.

Management

• Provide line management supervision to assigned staff as required
• Manage and co-ordinate service delivery in their area of responsibility
• Assign duties and responsibilities as appropriate to ensure effective service delivery
• Ensure the maintenance of appropriate service user records and statistics in accordance

with Tusla requirements and local guidelines, Freedom of Information Acts, Data

Protection Acts and other relevant legislation
• Act as a person mandated under Schedule 2 of the Children First Act 2015.
• Provide service reports / data as required
• Contribute to the development and implementation of information sharing protocols,

audit systems, referral pathways and integrated care arrangements
• Contribute to policy development, performance monitoring, business / service planning

and budgetary control in conjunction with the Service Manager and relevant others
• Keep up to date with organisational developments within Tusla

• Provide clinical supervision to Tusla Psychologists, trainees and assistant psychologists. Co-ordinate and manage psychology service delivery for NIAPP DNE.

• Report and advise on Psychology staffing needs
• Participate in the overall development of psychology services in Tusla and contribute to the membership of the Tusla Psychology Managers Forum.
• Contribute to policy development, performance monitoring, business / service planning and budgetary control in conjunction with the NIAPP National Manager and the NIAPP management team.
• Keep up to date with national and organisational developments within the Irish Health Service/ Youth Justice Services and TUSLA as necessary.
• Keep abreast of and ensure service delivery corresponds to developments in national policies and strategies and best national and international practice.
• Contribute to the development of policies, procedures and guidelines in relation to the psychology service, engaging staff as appropriate.
• Participate in and contribute to service planning and development.
• Provide service delivery reports as required e.g. service plan, annual report.
• Undertake responsibility for service evaluation to facilitate improved services and integrated care
• Contribute to the development and implementation of information sharing protocols, audit systems, referral pathways and integrated care arrangements
• Actively participate in the development and continuing improvement initiatives of psychology services.
• Ensure the maintenance of a high standard of service user records and statistics in accordance with TUSLA requirements and local guidelines, Freedom of Information Act, Data Protection Acts, GDPR and other relevant legislation
• Maintain professional standards with regard to service user and data confidentiality.
• Ensure that the Psychology services makes the most efficient and effective use of developments in IT.
• Ensure the Implementation of the Tusla Youth Participation Strategy.

Education & Training

Engage in specialised training appropriate to the post with a particular focus on harmful

sexual behaviour and crisis support intervention
• Receive regular clinical professional supervision
• Provide post-graduate teaching and training to professional postgraduates including

Doctoral Psychology trainees
• Provide support to the work of non-psychologists in delivery of psychologically-informed

interventions as appropriate
• Provide psychological training, advice and consultation to staff from Tusla and other

agencies in areas relevant to direct clinical work and to psychology service provision
• Provide professional and clinical supervision of Tusla psychologists
• Provide advice, consultation and training to staff working with the client group across a

range of agencies and settings where appropriate
• Attend mandatory training programmes
• Be informed of advances in professional knowledge and practice
• Be informed of and distribute developments in national policies, strategies and legislation

and provide feedback on impact on practice
• Take responsibility for continuous professional development and ensure compliance with

statutory registration requirements
• In collaboration with the Service Manager, attend training courses as informed by service

requirements and career & personal development planning
• Be responsible for the induction of new staff as appropriate

• Build and communicate an understanding of the role and contribution of psychology within TUSLA Services.

Research & Evaluation

The Prinicipal Grade Psychologist will:
• Utilise evidence-based literature and research to support effective practice
• Undertake project management including audit and service evaluation with colleagues

within the service to help develop service provision.
• Participate in evaluation of all clinical activity within the post and provide such

information as required by the Service Manager for the purpose of service monitoring and

evaluation
• Conduct, encourage and support service-related research and provide research advice as

appropriate
• Publish research outcomes in professionally recognised journals and share information on

outcomes at professional conferences where appropriate
• Represent a professional viewpoint in relation to nationally accepted good practice and to

ensure a high level of ethical standards and professional conduct

Health & Safety

• Comply with and contribute to the development of policies, procedures, guidelines and safe professional practice and adhere to relevant legislation, regulations and standards.

• Have a working knowledge of the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) Standards as they apply to the service for example National Standards for Child Protection and Care and comply with associated Tusla - Child and Family Agency protocols for implementing and maintaining these standards as appropriate to the role.
• To support, promote and actively participate in sustainable energy, water and waste initiatives to create a more sustainable, low carbon and efficient health service.

The above Job Description is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all duties involved and consequently, the post holder may be required to perform other duties as appropriate to the post which may be assigned to him/her from time to time and to contribute to the development of the post while in office.

Skills Requirement

Applicants must by the closing date of application have the following:

A recognised University QQI Level 8 degree (or equivalent) obtained with first or second class honours in which psychology was taken as a major subject and honours obtained in that subject.

And
• A recognised postgraduate professional psychological qualification in

Clinical, Counselling or Educational Psychology, as appropriate to the area of professional psychology in which the position is designated and accredited by the Psychological Society of Ireland.

Or
• Qualification(s) from another jurisdiction confirmed by the Department of Health to be equivalent to the above.

And
• Have at least eight years satisfactory post graduate clinical experience, inclusive of anytime spent in pursuing a course leading to the postgraduate qualification and including at least two years full-time satisfactory experience as a staff grade psychologist (or at a more senior grade with a psychologist title) in the area of professional psychology in which the position is designated.

And
• Possess the requisite knowledge and ability (including a high standard of suitability and management ability) for the proper discharge of the duties of the office

Health

A candidate for and any person holding the office must be fully competent and capable of undertaking the duties attached to the office and be in a state of health such as would indicate a reasonable prospect of ability to render regular and efficient service.

Character

Each candidate for and any person holding the office must be of good character