ORGANISATIONAL OVERVIEW

At the Department of Corrections our goal is to reduce re-offending, and underlying this is a strong commitment to public safety.

Our people care about our communities and want to make New Zealand a safer place to be. We do this by helping people lead crime-free lives, which means fewer victims and safer communities.

Corrections’ core role of managing the custodial and community-based sentences imposed by the Courts gives us the opportunity to change lives and shape futures. Of the 8,000 people who work at Corrections, the majority work directly with offenders in a variety of roles including probation officers, corrections officers, case managers, programme facilitators, nurses, community work supervisors, instructors and psychologists.

The Department of Corrections manages 18 prisons located from Northland to Invercargill and 160 Community Corrections sites in towns and cities across New Zealand where probation staff manages people serving non-custodial sentences and orders such as community work, home detention or parole.

The vast majority of the offenders the department works with live in the community, and most of those sentenced to a term of imprisonment will be released at some stage. Therefore it is in all our interests to ensure that when people leave Corrections they have the support and skills they need to live a crime-free life. We do this through targeted rehabilitation and reintegration, treatment, education and trade-training opportunities for offenders that will reduce the likelihood of re-offending.

You can help change lives and shape futures too.

Role Purpose

The Psychologist provides a full range of secondary mental health psychological services including triage, a comprehensive and systemic assessment and treatment based on best practice in the delivery of psychological services within a multi-disciplinary team. The psychologist will monitor, promulgate and promote best practice in the delivery of mental health services within the ARU and wider prison environment. The psychologist will demonstrate accountability for directing, monitoring and evaluating psychological care that is provided by others and will understand their responsibility in leading colleagues and foster team work to optimize care.

Specifically, the functions this position is accountable for includes:

• Providing quality psychological services including clinical and risk assessment and treatment services to patients and referral to appropriate services where necessary.
• Providing advice, education, supervision and training to other members of the multi-disciplinary team, Corrections staff and community agencies.
• Develop and deliver treatment.
• Developing working relationships with other services, agencies, groups and whanau.
• Undertaking research work where necessary.
• Take part in systems interventions such as are typically found in therapeutic communities.
• Senior Psychologists are also responsible for providing professional supervision and oversight of some psychologist

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES

Key Accountability Areas:

Clinical Services and Related Advisory Services

• Provide assessment and treatment services for patients to required standard and based on best practice
• Administer and interpret psychometric tests
• Treat a range of mental health disorders
• Run group treatment programmes in the Intervention& Support Unit and across the prison as appropriate
• Provide training to correctional staff and community groups dealing with patients
• Monitor and evaluate the scope and delivery of own services to ensure they are to required standards
• Use IOMS, and other administration systems e.g. COBRA, to required standard
• Contribute to the resolution of issues affecting the provision of services

Report Writing, Research and Advice

• Write assessment and treatment and contribute to the creation of other treatment and planning reports within the ISU and greater prison context.
• Complete psychological research projects and programmes in accordance with the priorities of the department
• Provide psychological case management and treatment advice
• Participate in Service and Departmental working parties

EEO/Bicultural Awareness

• Incorporate bicultural awareness and EEO policies into own practices and processes.

Training and Education

• Develop and conduct training programmes/seminars for multi-disciplinary team, Corrections staff and community groups

Supervision and Administration

• Participate in own clinical supervision
• Fully use all patient and administration information systems
• Manage referral intake and triage systems

Team Work and Participation

• Contribute to team development and foster co-operation
• Provide timely, open and honest communication
• Participate in regular performance feedback, both formal and informal
• Identify development opportunities for staff under direct supervision and ensure performance is maximised through regular feedback, both formal and informal
• Support high professional standards within the psychological service team

Relationship Management

• Ensure strong working relationship with the Chief Psychologists Office
• Develop and maintain sound working relationships with other services, groups and agencies
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with other staff within the Psychological Service

Health and Safety

• Help maintain a safe working environment within Corrections by:
• Reporting any hazards, and any accidents or near misses that occur
• Adhering to departmental safety standards and processes
• Participating in health and safety programmes as required, including own rehabilitation if a work injury is sustained.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Ability to build and maintain effective working relationships with a wide range of people including external stakeholders to facilitate the accomplishment of work goals.
• Ability to be flexible and adapt behaviour to reflect diverse situations and people, and deal positively with difficult situations and people.
• Exhibit well-developed communication skills that enable clear, relevant and appropriate presentation of ideas, opinions, views and recommendations.
• Produce written communication that is clear, concise and logical, and of a high standard that is easily understood by the reader.
• Use verbal communication that is respectful, non-threatening, delivered in a manner appropriate for the audience and appropriate for a learning context.
• Effectively use technology to improve communication.
• Recognise the need for and is able to make appropriate recommendations to improve systems and processes based on sound logic, analysis and reasoned argument.
• Apply knowledge of policies and procedures and practical experience when developing solutions to field problems.
• Know when to seek guidance from others on matters of operational policy and procedure.
• Recognise and appropriately escalates issues for wider consideration and national implementation.
• Ability to provide psychological assessment and treatment services based upon evidence of what constitutes best practice in a Corrections setting.
• An understanding and awareness of recent psychological literature.
• Psychological report writing skills, in particular risk assessment.
• Self-Management/ Planning Skills
• Able to identify opportunities and take responsibility for making things happen.
• Able to plan and organise at a detailed level to ensure the most effective utilisation of available resources.
• Effectively manage time and workload, taking responsibility for learning and development, while maintaining a balance between work and personal life.
• Open to the assessment of own skill levels and seeks opportunities for skill development and enhancement.
• Demonstrate an awareness of own limits.

Qualifications

• Registration as a Psychologist and hold a current practicing certificate
• Minimum of Masters Degree in Psychology.

Other requirements

• Travel nationally as required to fulfil the requirements of the position.
• A current clean driver licence (desirable).