Consultant Liaison Psychiatrist

Go back Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust

Consultant Liaison Psychiatrist - Addenbrookes

The closing date is 30 October 2025

Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust are inviting enthusiastic and dedicated Liaison Psychiatrists to apply for a unique opportunity to join the Liaison Psychiatry Service based at Addenbrookes Hospital to provide excellent care to the population of Cambridgeshire.

The CUH Liaison Psychiatry Service (LPS) is an award-winning, multi-disciplinary, integrated lifespan service. The CUH LPS delivers a comprehensive service model consistent with the profile of CUH as a large university teaching hospital and tertiary treatment centre for the East of England. The service is broadly divided into functional 'sub-teams':

- Adults Liaison Psychiatry (17-65 years)
- Older Adults Liaison Psychiatry (65+)
- Substance Misuse Service (17+)
- Emergency Department core 24 team (17-65 years)
- Psychological Therapies
- Paediatric Psychological Medicine
- Individual Specialisms - there are a number of posts which have specific links to specialist medical or surgical service

While the functional sub-teams have specific areas of focus, we operate as a single service working jointly around the needs of patients. In-patient work covers the medical & surgical wards and the Rosie Maternity Hospital.

Main duties of the job

Clinical:

- Along with LPS colleagues, to provide a Liaison Psychiatry service focussed on the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of patients with psychiatric and psychological co-morbidities in the general hospital.
- Along with another consultant colleague you will provide clinical leadership to the Core 24 Emergency department team and within the ED
- To provide clinical care and treatment on wards
- To deliver evidence-based treatments.
- Along with other liaison colleagues, to provide leave cover or specialist advice for patients at Royal Papworth Hospital
- To provide clinical supervision for other team members.
- To liaise with statutory and non-statutory sector agencies concerning the treatment and management of patients.
- To work closely with other LPS consultants to provide appropriate Consultant cover for weekday daytime, 9 am to 5 pm and for periods of annual/study/special leave.

Administration:

- Work with the clinical and management team to achieve the key performance indicators set for the service.
- Contribute to the collection and monitoring of clinical outcome data
- Participate in the administration of patient information systems and ensure that data are entered in accordance with CPFT policies and guidance.

About us

CPFT is a health & social care organisation dedicated to providing high quality care with compassion to improve the health & wellbeing of the people we care for, as well as supporting & empowering them to lead a fulfilling life.

Our clinical teams deliver many NHS services not only via inpatient and primary care setting but also with the community. These services include Children, Adult & Older Peoples mental health, Forensic & Specialist mental health, Learning Disabilities, Primary Care & Liaison psychiatry, Substance misuse, Social care, Research & Development.

To achieve our goal, we look to recruit high calibre candidates that share our vision & values. As an equal opportunities employer, we encourage applications from all sectors of the community, particularly from under-represented groups including disabled people & members of our BAME & LGBTQ+ communities.

For further information on CPFT please visit our website www.cpft.nhs.uk

Job responsibilities

Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

The post is employed by CPFT and based at the Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (CUH), one of the largest and best-known university teaching Trusts in the country. CUH aims to be one of the best academic healthcare organisations in the world.

CUH has over 1,000 beds and approximately 11,000 members of staff and comprises Addenbrookes and the Rosie Maternity Hospital:

- Addenbrookes provides emergency, surgical, and medical care for local people and is also a national centre of excellence for specialist services such as organ transplantation, neurosciences, paediatrics and genetics.
- Based on the same site, the Rosie is a womens hospital and the regional centre of excellence for maternity care.
- A new cancer research hospital and a stand-alone childrens hospital are currently in development. The latter is a partnership between CUH, CPFT and the University of Cambridge to provide integrated physical/mental health care for children and young people. https://www.cambridgechildrens.org.uk/
- CUH is based on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus (CBC). It encompasses an international healthcare community with global leaders in medical science, research, education and patient care (eg. it is the site for the global headquarters of Astra Zeneca). The co-location of world-leading academic, industry and health partners creates an environment for the rapid translation of research into routine clinical practice. https://cambridge-biomedical.com/

Teaching

- To contribute to the teaching, training and mentoring of any junior medical staff and, where appropriate, of other team members.
- To contribute to training initiatives for acute hospital staff.
- To contribute to broader teaching initiatives where possible e.g. medical undergraduates, MRCPsych, etc.

Research

- The post-holder is expected to support the broader CPFT research endeavour. Cambridge offers unrivalled opportunities for research. A wide range of research is currently conducted by the University Department of Psychiatry and by NHS staff.
- Option of research PAs as above.

Clinical Governance

- The post-holder will be aware of, and act within, locally and nationally agreed protocols and will be actively involved in clinical governance within the service.
- The post-holder will ensure any issues of concern are appropriately escalated and that any incidents are appropriately reported

Accountability

- The post holder will be accountable to Clinical Director for Adult and Specialist Services. Professional accountability is to the Trust Board through the Trust Medical Director.
- The post-holder will ensure that they are in good medical standing for CPD, that their practice is up-to-date and in line with the GMCs Good Medical Practice Guidelines and will be able to evidence this for the purposes of annual appraisal.
- Job Plans are reviewed with the Clinical Director.
- Consultants are required to take part in the annual appraisal process under the supervision of the Medical Director Dr Walsh and appraisal lead Dr Syed. New consultants are encouraged to arrange a suitable mentor.

On-call

- All consultants, unless there are health reasons or exceptional circumstances, are required to contribute to the rota. Two consultant rotas are in operation: North and South. They are both approximately 1 in 18 WTE and this post holder is likely to be on the South rota covering Cambridge city and south of the county.

Working ArrangementsThere is secretarial support from the Admin Hub, and shared consultant office space with access to PC. Remote IT access facilities are available, including mobile phone and remote working laptop.

The Trust encourages new consultants to have a mentor and a list of names is available from the Chair of the Royal College Regional Development Group.

Due to the expected demands of the post, the postholder will be offered weekly individual supervision in addition to monthly peer supervision. This will be reviewed after 3 years.

Continuous Professional Development (CPD) and Study Leave

The successful applicant is expected to keep up to date with Mandatory Training and to participate in professional continuing medical education; study leave is provided for this purpose, up to 30 days every 3 years, as agreed with the Clinical Director. The appointee will be entitled to apply to the Trust Study leave Committee for a contribution to funding this activity.

Arrangements for Leave

The successful applicant will receive pro rata 33 days annual leave plus bank holidays, or 35 days annual leave plus bank holidays if they have completed over 7 years service in the grade.

This is arranged with and requires the approval of the Clinical Director, in accordance with standard Trust/NHS regulations. It is essential, except in exceptional circumstances, that six weeks notice is given to allow for proper planning and prevent cancellations of patients' appointments. This includes all forms of leave.

So far as it is consistent with the proper discharge of the above duties the post holder undertakes to deputise from time to time for absent colleagues. The post holder undertakes, exceptionally, to perform additional duties in occasional emergencies and unforeseen circumstances.

Pension and Life Insurance

NHS contributory pension scheme. Life Insurance covered with NHS superannuation scheme. There is an alternative scheme available and employees have the option to have their own arrangements.

Person Specification

Education/Qualifications

- Full GMC registration and licence to practice
- MRCPsych or equivalent
- Postgraduate thesis
- MRCP

Experience

- Dual CCT in general adult and old age psychiatry or within 6 months of attainment of Higher Training CCT at time of interview
- Approved Clinician Status or eligible to attend training
- Experience in the assessment and management of patients in acute medical setting including experience of working with older adults
- Endorsement or equivalent experience in Liaison Psychiatry
- Relevant research experience
- Management and leadership experience as relevant to acute care (in the ED)

Skills/Knowledge/Ability

- Ability to work in a multi-disciplinary team.
- Good interpersonal skills.
- Caring attitude to patients.
- Ability to demonstrate an understanding of the context of the service within the wider landscape of the current NHS
- Candidates need to be effective teachers and trainers and also be able to guide their own continuing education and training.
- Experience of delivering and developing services in a constantly changing environment

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust

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