ARFID Pathway Lead

Job summary

The post holder will provide senior clinical leadership of the ARFID Pathway, working closely with the General Manager and the wider CEDS-CYP leadership team to lead the day-to-day clinical operation of the pathway. This is a highly specialist, multi-professional leadership post and is open to applicants from a range of relevant clinical professional backgrounds, including Nursing (Mental Health or Paediatric/Child), Occupational Therapy, Dietetics, Psychological Professions, Social Work and other relevant Allied Health Professions. Applicants will be required to demonstrate highly specialist experience and/or knowledge relevant to ARFID, feeding and eating disorders, and neurodevelopmental and sensory presentations in children and young people.

The post holder will provide highly specialist assessment, formulation, triage and consultation for children, young people and their families presenting with ARFID or suspected ARFID, including those with complex, heterogeneous presentations such as learning disability, global developmental delay, sensory sensitivities, neurodevelopmental conditions and physical health comorbidities, in line with the pathway's inclusion and exclusion criteria.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will provide leadership, supervision and day-to-day coordination of the ARFID MDT (including Psychology, Dietetics, Nursing, Occupational Therapy, Speech & Language Therapy, Paediatrics and Psychiatry), ensuring the pathway operates safely, consistently and in line with the agreed clinical model, MEED risk framework and NICE guidance.

The post holder will lead on the development,implementation and audit of the ARFID pathway to ensure it remains in line with national and local strategies and priorities, and will support the delivery of agreed KPIs across access, clinical quality, outcomes, experience, system impact and equity.

The post holder will require a high degree of professional autonomy and self-management, will be required to account for their professional practice through appraisal and audit, and will contribute to the wider functions of the team including triage of new referrals and the duty rota.

The post holder will be responsible for the management, development and leadership of assigned staff within the pathway, including those from different professional backgrounds and training. They will be responsible for the recruitment, selection and retention of assigned posts, and will contribute to the investigation of complaints, grievances, capability and disciplinary procedures as required by senior managers.

About us

The East London Community Eating Disorders Service (CEDS-CYP) is a multidisciplinary team including Therapies (family therapy, clinical/counselling psychology, assistant psychology), Medical (psychiatry and paediatrics), Nursing (mental health and paediatric nursing), Dietetics, Occupational Therapy, Speech & Language Therapy, Support Workers and Administrative and Operational staff.

Our mission is to make a positive difference to people's lives by improving the quality of life for all we serve. Our values are: We Care, We Respect, We are Inclusive - so we are looking for people who live and breathe these qualities when supporting service users and carers, and in their relationships with colleagues in the Trust and our partner organisations.

Job responsibilities

The ARFID Pathway is a dedicated, community-based specialist pathway within CEDS-CYP for children and young people aged 818 years with Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder (ARFID) or suspected ARFID. The pathway delivers early, evidence-based, multidisciplinary assessment, consultation and brief intervention, addressing the gap between paediatric and mental health services, improving clinical outcomes, reducing fragmentation of care and preventing avoidable escalation to acute hospital or Tier 4 services. The model incorporates FBT-ARFID and CBT-AR approaches within a structured, time-limited (68 session) treatment model, supported by MDT formulation, and is aligned with system partners including North East London NHS Foundation Trust (NELFT).

• Toprovide highly specialist clinical leadership of the ARFID Pathway within EL CEDS-CYP, working across Nursing, Occupational Therapy, Dietetics, Psychology, Speech & Language Therapy, Psychiatry and Paediatrics.

• To provide highly specialist assessment, triage and formulation for children and young people aged 818 with ARFID or suspected ARFID, in line with the pathway's inclusion criteria (declining weight, nutritional deficiency, physical sequelae, MEED Red/Amber risk, ONS or NGT feeding) and exclusion criteria.

• To evaluate and monitor eating disorder-related clinical risk on an on-going basis, including physical and psychiatric risk, using the MEED risk framework, and to undertake or oversee basic physical health checks (e.g. height, weight) as part of risk assessment.

• To lead the MDT formulation process for children, young people and their families with complex ARFID presentations and comorbid.

Person specification

Knowledge

Essential

• ?Highly specialist knowledge and skills in the assessment and management of ARFID, feeding difficulties or eating disorders in children and young people, including physical health monitoring in conjunction with paediatric colleagues.
• ?Knowledge of, and skill in using, structured, evidence-based interventions relevant to ARFID (e.g. CBT-AR, FBT-ARFID, SOS approach) and the ability to apply these appropriately according to clinical need.
• ?Highly specialist skills in professional consultation, including offering consultation and advice to multi-disciplinary colleagues and external agencies.

Desirable

• ?Experience of supervising colleagues from other disciplines.
• ?Knowledge of quality improvement methodology.

Experience

Essential

• ?Minimum of four years' post-registration experience of working with children and young people in a multi-disciplinary team in a child and adolescent mental health, paediatric or community health setting, with at least two years at highly specialist level.
• ?Significant experience of working with children and young people with eating disorders, ARFID, or feeding/growth difficulties, including complex and heterogeneous presentations.
• ?Experience of working with children and young people with neurodevelopmental conditions, learning disability or sensory sensitivities, and adapting assessment and intervention accordingly.

Desirable

• ?Previous experience of managing or leading a clinical team or pathway.
• ?Experience of routine use of CAMHS or paediatric clinical outcome measures and facilitating their use across a service.
• ?Service development, quality improvement or audit experience.

Education, Training and Qualifications

Essential

• ?Masters or Doctorate level qualification in relevant field
• ?Current registration with the NMC as a Registered Nurse (Mental Health or Child/Paediatric field) OR current registration with the HCPC as an Occupational Therapist.
• ?Degree level qualification in Nursing or Occupational Therapy, or equivalent professional qualification.

Desirable

• stgraduate qualification or specialist training in eating disorders (e.g. CBT-AR, FBT-ARFID, CBT-E, FT-AN).
• ?Leadership or management qualification/training.