Neurodevelopmental Assessor

About Paloma

Paloma Health is a new technology-enabled provider of NHS mental and physical health services. We are driven by our mission to make high-quality NHS outpatient services accessible within 4 weeks, and to make those services more affordable for the NHS.

We are unique through:

• Being clinically-led, with a friendly and approachable team
• Our use of technology and innovation to improve patient and staff experience
• A strong culture, including transparency, a sense of community, and supporting staff career development
• The experience of our founders, who have previously built technology-enabled providers in NHS obesity, diabetes, and ophthalmology care treating over 1 million patients in the last 15 years
• Being backed by leading healthcare investors.

You will be part of our much needed NHS service, Neurodevelopmental Assessments for children and young people. We are actively delivering autism assessments and will be launching ADHD assessments early in 2025.

We need your help to innovate and tackle the crisis in NHS Neurodevelopmental Services as set out in the October 2024 Children’s Commissioner report, with over 200,000 children today waiting 2+ years for an autism and/or ADHD assessment.

The Opportunity

Paloma Health has developed a new gold-standard autism assessment pathway and our own Patient Record IT system, which allows us to offer:

• Our patients exceptional service and timely assessments. As well as clear, strengths and needs based outcomes, regardless of whether an autism diagnosis is made.
• High assessor role satisfaction by improving the experience of delivering assessments. For example, we are building a tool to partially automate diagnostic report writing, which we know is a pressure of the role.

You will work as a member of a multidisciplinary assessment team providing a mix of:

• In-person observations at our clinics across Devon
• Remote parental interviews (via videocall)
• Diagnostic decision making, with support of the senior clinical MDT where required
• Outcome report writing and outcome calls with parents and patients.

From a cultural perspective, you are:

• Comfortable working in a dynamic environment and embrace change
• Excited by using new technologies in your role
• Always looking for ways to improve our staff and patient experience

We commit to supporting your development and wellbeing including:

• Regular clinical supervision
• Protected time and budgets for Continuing Professional Development (CPD), reflection, and training, including formal autism qualifications if desired.
• Quarterly development conversations, with clear career progression pathways
• Clear weekly timetables that support a role mix across patient care, administration, development, and team building.

Responsibilities:

• Conduct neurodevelopmental assessments, in line with your skills and experience
• Respond to requests for information that will inform an EHCP
• Act in accordance with our Safeguarding Policy, including conducting a risk assessment where necessary.
• Keep up to date with mandatory training, and your professional qualification requirements including CPD.

Qualifications, experience and location:

Required:

• Either professional qualification and registration including any one of the following: Psychologist, including counselling psychologist, educational psychologist and clinical psychologist (HCPC), Speech and language therapist (HCPC), Occupational therapist (HCPC), Nurse, including mental health or learning disability nurse (NMC), Medical doctor (GMC), Social Worker (Social Work England)
• OR assistant psychologist (BPS registered)
• At least 6 months experience in children and young people's autism diagnostic assessments with specific knowledge including: Having a sound understanding of co-occurring conditions and differentials, Demonstrate an ability to present findings, including diagnostic formulation, concisely into a clinical report which is client-centred and includes a strengths and needs profile.
• Good time management skills including caseload management
• High quality parent and patient communication skills
• Enhanced DBS with barred list check (as you will be working with children)

Desirable:

• At least 2 years’ experience in a children and young people's autism diagnostic assessment service
• Formal training in autism developmental histories e.g. ADI-R
• Completion of a recognised ADOS-2 course
• Experience of conducting risk assessments within an autism assessment service
• Evidence of Safeguarding training (Level 3 and above)

Don’t meet every requirement? 

Studies have shown that women and people from ethnic minority groups are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. Paloma we are dedicated to building a diverse and top performing workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align with every qualification, we strongly encourage you to apply. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles!

Time commitment

Full time employment is preferred. We can offer part time roles, and bank (self-employed) roles.

Location

This is a hybrid role. Your main place of work is our Exeter clinic, with occasional travel to our Devon clinics (Plymouth and Barnstaple), as well as some of the week working from home.

Reporting to

Autism Service Team Manager

Benefits:

• Our strong and positive culture through our values and cultural recipe. This includes monthly staff wellbeing check ins, with clear company responses to feedback
• Being part of a 4-10 person clinical team, with protected time and budgets to come together, share learnings, support each other and build a community.
• £45,000-76,000 GBP annual salary, depending on clinical background and experience
• Annual salary reviews, 5% employer pension, and company laptop.
• Share options in Paloma Health we all benefit from our success!
• A unique benefits package including 26 days of annual leave per year plus bank holidays, plus a further 10 days of paid leave as a sabbatical for every 3 years of service.
• Access to NHS discount including the Blue Light Card (as we are an NHS provider)

Equality & Diversity

Paloma Health is an equal-opportunity employer that is committed to diversity and inclusion both within the workplace and throughout our application process. We do not discriminate based on race, religion, colour, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

We understand that applying for a new job takes a lot of work and we value your time. We are looking forward to reading your application.

Join us and be part of our journey to revolutionise access to Neurodevelopmental Assessments for patients in England!