Assistant Team Manager Community Mental Health Team for Older People

Job/Role Summary

As Assistant Team Manager, I assist the Team manager in ensuring the smooth day to day running of the team. My role involves supporting and advising staff, carrying out clinical supervision and managing any difficulties that may arise. I am involved in weekly ward round and weekly multi-disciplinary team meetings. I screen referrals on a day to day basis and liaise with clinicians as necessary. I also manage staff sickness absence and annual leave as well as responding to requests for information to be sent to line managers. I liaise with allied health professsionals, GP’s, patients and their carers, nursing homes and all other stakeholders. My role is varied and can involve dealing with any issues that may arise in the provison of care for patients and their families.

Specific qualifications and experience required

I am a qualified psychiatric nurse for the last twenty years, I have a CPN qualification, a Specialist Practice Qualification in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy. I also have experience working with patients with a diagnosis of Dementia and those with a Functional Mental Illness. I have management experience and experience supervising staff.

Career Milestones

RMN , CPN qualification, Specialist Practice Qualification  in CBT and now I’m an Assistant Team Manager.

What attracted you to this job?

I feel my experience working in this area and the team I work within attracted me to this role.

Enjoyable aspects of the job/role

The variety of the work, helping patients, supporting staff and trying to ensure we are always improving the quality of the care we provide.

Challenging aspects of the job/role

Time is always a challenge, the increasing demands in relation to paperwork whilst ensuring we continue to provide a high standard of care.

Important success factors

Providing good quality, evidence based care to those we encounter. Positive feedback is important. Good team morale is also important and an ethos of constantly finding ways to improve what we do for those we care for.

Advice for those considering the type of job/role?

To be dedicated to high quality, person centred care. To invest in staff and acknowledge the wealth of experience they have. To work hard to improve quality of care.

Key skills that can be gained within this job/role?

Multi-tasking, enhanced communication, negotiation skills, ongoing learning and development and being flexible.

Career Profiles