Specialty Doctor in Forensic Psychiatry

Go back Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

The closing date is 11 February 2026

We are inviting applications, having a full-time Specialty Doctor post in Forensic Psychiatry available for recruitment.

Full registration with the General Medical Council is a requirement for appointment to the Specialty Doctor grade. Post-holders must have held a hospital appointment in the Senior House Officer / Core Trainee / Specialty Doctor (or equivalent) grade, including at least two years' experience in psychiatry.

Any Specialty Doctor who is unable for personal reasons to work full-time will be eligible to be considered for the post. If such a person is appointed, modification to the job content will be discussed on a personal basis with the Trust in consultation with colleagues.

There is a resident on call rotation between the Specialty Doctor and core trainee posts in the Hospital.

The Specialty Doctor provides both psychiatric and physical health care to in-patients under the supervision of a Consultant Psychiatrist. One Consultant Psychiatrist acts as a "supervisor" for the Specialty Doctor, meeting on a regular basis for feedback purposes / clinical supervision and mentoring.

The Specialty Doctor will work with Consultant led multi-disciplinary teams.

The post-holders will review the patients' psychiatric care at regular intervals, update the medical records and liaise with all members of the multi-disciplinary team. This includes attendance at ward rounds and CPA Reviews in consultation with the patient's Consultant and providing reports as required. In particular the Specialty Doctor will deputise for the Consultant in meetings where appropriate.

The post-holder will provide day to day medical care to patients under his / her care; this will be in collaboration with the Wathwood Physical Health Centre.

There will be an opportunity to perform assessments of patients who have been referred from prisons or other hospitals.

Previous experience in Forensic Services is an advantage, but not essential as you will receive support, training and supervision from Forensic Consultants. There is a weekly Postgraduate Programme with Journal Club, Case Conference and internal or visiting speakers and Specialty Doctors are encouraged to participate. The Forensic Division of the Trust sponsors a Trent Forensic Study Day twice yearly. Specialty Doctors are encouraged to be involved in research and audit and are supported in appraisal and revalidation.

Resident on-call duties are included in the appointment; the on-call rota is currently 1 in 12. Colleagues provide cover for each other during annual leave and short unplanned leave.

We have a huge variety of opportunities in our expansive Trust covering geographically from South Yorkshire, Nottinghamshire to Leicester, providing mental health inpatient and community services, community health services, forensic mental health services and secure prison healthcare across the East Midlands.

We have more than 100 sites and a huge scope of unique opportunities to develop your career and gain some amazing experiences. We strive to be a great place to work and offer many staff benefits and tailored staff support and wellbeing programmes.

- Provides psychiatric and medical care to inpatients under Consultant supervision within a multi-disciplinary team.

- Review psychiatric care regularly, updating records and liaise with MDT. Attending ward rounds and CPAs.

- Provide day to day medical care for patients under their care, confined to urgent matters as the Health Centre deal with chronic and minor conditions.

- Accompany Consultant on assessments of patients referred from prison / other hospitals.

- Deputise from time to time for absent colleague

• Full registration with GMC
• 3 Years SHO/CT3/Specialty Doctor or equivalent (not necessarily in psychiatry)

• 2 Years Experience in Psychiatry
• Experience in Forensic Psychiatry
• Membership of Royal College of Psychiatrists
• Section 12(2) Approval
• Risk management linked to the provision of mental healthcare
• Publications

• Ability to manage own time, workload and prioritise clinical work
• Multi-disciplinary Team player
• Ability to appraise own performance
• Excellent written and oral communication skills. In particular it is essential that the post-holder will be able (with support) to write high quality correspondence and reports for Care Programme Approach Meetings, the Ministry of Justice, Hospital Managers and other purposes
• Experience in writing reports for legal purposes

• Experience in use of Care Programme Approach
• Knowledge of recent developments and treatment advances in the care of offenders
• Knowledge of HCR-20, PCL-R and other risk assessment tools
• Knowledge of NHS systems

• Interest in welfare of mentally disordered offenders
• Flexible approach to working practice
• Ability to deal effectively with…