Alison Lyons

My role currently involves

• Managing a caseload of service users in the community in a recovery focused manner.
• Co-producing care with the MDT, service user and their family, in a professional manner and also being accountable for my practice.
• Assessing, planning, implementing and evaluating care is also an important part of my role while also being aware of the recovery principles.
• Risk assessment is an ongoing practice.
• Signposting our service users to appropriate outside services and organizations.

My role involved

• Managing a caseload of service users, providing mental healthcare while also advocating on their behalf.
• Working collaboratively with the MDT providing patient centered care, in a professional manner and being accountable for my practice.
• Assessing, planning, implementing and evaluating care for service users.
• Participating in health promotion
• Facilitating group work.

I was responsible for the management and running of an acute 33 bedded psychiatry of later life unit. It was both a clinical and managerial role

• Assessing risk was an ongoing practice.
• Coordinating patient care, ensuring the highest professional standards using a person centered planning approach.
• Working closely with members of the MDT, participating in team meetings and communicating effectively with staff, service users and their families.
• Delegating tasks and duties to nursing staff while being fully aware of their competencies and prioritizing care accordingly.
• Ensuring mandatory training for staff was up to date, was also one of my roles.

My role included

• Telehealth assessment, ensuring a prompt and appropriate service could be delivered.
• Triaging referrals and crisis management was also an important role of the position.
• Working closely with other disciplines and communicating with referring agents.
• Having a knowledge of outside agencies and supports and signposting service users to these appropriately.

My role included the management of a 35 bedded General Adult Psychiatry unit, again this was both a clinical and managerial role.

• Assessing risk was an ongoing practice.
• Participating in health promotion, therapeutic interventions, medication management and patient education.
• Coordinating and supporting a nursing team to provide 24 hour care and again delegating tasks and duties to nursing staff while being cognizant of their competencies and prioritizing care with this in mind. I also was responsible for the mandatory training for all staff working on the unit.
• Rostering was also one of my roles, ensuring the ward was fully staffed at each shift.

Upon qualifying and registering, I worked on a Psychiatry of later life unit caring for older adults with moderate to severe mental illness.

• Completing regular mental health risk assessments and fall assessments were part of my role.
• Facilitating ward based groups such as reminiscence therapy, medication management, maintain wellness and relaxation.
• Facilitating preceptorship training with student nurses and providing them with necessary support.
• Liaising with family and communicating effectively with members of the MDT
• Advocating for our service users
• Completing regular observations, daily vitals and weekly ECGs.