ENGAGEMENT AND ASSESSMENT OF COMMON MENTAL HEALTH PROBLEMS - 2021/2

Module code: PSYM126

Module Overview

This module provides students with the opportunity to develop their skills and knowledge of undertaking patient centred assessments as appropriate to working clinically within an IAPT mental health service. Students are encouraged to develop their competencies as reflective practitioners who are able to critically engage with the literature that underpins their work and to use this to inform their practice. Trainees will be supported in this process through university led learning opportunities supported by work based supervised learning and directed independent study.

Module provider

Psychology

Module Leader

SINNOTT Sian (Psychology)

Number of Credits: 15

ECTS Credits: 7.5

Framework: FHEQ Level 7

Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A

Overall student workload

Independent Learning Hours: 58.5

Lecture Hours: 27

Practical/Performance Hours: 27

Guided Learning: 37.5

Module Availability

Semester 2

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

  • An undergraduate degree with a minimum 2:1 classification or equivalent
  • Relevant mental health work experience (voluntary or paid) as assessed at interview
  • Employment within an IAPT service that is able to meet the course training requirements

Module content

Indicative content includes:


  • Assessment

  • Diagnosis

  • Risk management

  • Common factor skills

  • CBT based specific skills

  • Clinical and case management supervision


Assessment pattern

Assessment type Unit of assessment Weighting
Practical based assessment AN OBSERVED STRUCTURED CLINICAL EXAMINATION OF A PATIENT CENTRED ASSESSMENT ASSESSED ACCORDING TO PREDEFINED CRITERIA Pass/Fail
Coursework A 2500 CRITICAL REFLECTION ON OSCE PERFORMANCE AND CRITICAL DISCUSSION OF HOW THIS WAS INFORMED 100

Alternative Assessment

None.

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge and practice in undertaking patient centred assessments.

Thus, the summative assessment for this module consists of:

1. A standardised role-play scenario(s) where trainee PWPs are required to demonstrate skills in undertaking both triage within an IAPT service and problem focused assessments. This will involve a single scenario, combining both triage within an IAPT service and problem focused assessments that will be video-recorded and assessed by teaching staff using standardised assessment measures.

2. An academic essay in which trainees provide a reflective commentary on their performance on the above.

Both assessments must be passed in order to pass the module.

Assessment will be marked at FHEQ level 7, with a pass mark of 50%.

Formative assessment

Ongoing written and / or verbal feedback provided by course tutors and / or supervisors from IAPT mental health services. Trainees will undertake a mock OSCE for which they are provided with written feedback from their observer who will be a course tutor and / or a qualified professional e.g. PWP / PWP supervisor. Trainees are able to request further one-to-one practice / support from their tutor or other course tutor as required both before and after (in the case of a failed first attempt) their OSCE.

Feedback

Written feedback is provided to students via SurreyLearn. 

Module aims

  • To equip trainee psychological wellbeing practitioners (PWPs) with the skills and knowledge that they need to undertake a range of patient-centred assessments so that they are able to identify the main areas of concern to the patient (relevant to the assessment undertaken).
  • To develop trainee PWPs' knowledge and competencies so that they are able to apply these skills in a range of different assessment formats and settings. These different elements or types of assessment include screening / triage assessment within an IAPT service; risk assessment; provisional diagnostic assessment; mental health clustering assessment; psychometric assessment (using the IAPT standardised symptoms measures); problem focused assessment; and intervention planning assessment.
  • To develop trainee PWPs' capacity to effectively engage patients and establish an appropriate relationship whilst gathering information in a collaborative manner.
  • To provide trainee PWPs with sufficient knowledge of mental health disorders and evidence-based therapeutic options so that they are able to communicate this knowledge in a clear and unambiguous way in order to enable their patient to make informed treatment choices. This element includes developing trainee PWPs' ability to use behaviour change models to inform their choice of goals and interventions.

Learning outcomes

Attributes Developed
001 Demonstrate knowledge, understanding and critical awareness of concepts of mental health and mental illness, diagnostic category systems in mental health and a range of social, medical and psychological explanatory models. K
002 Demonstrate knowledge of, and competence in applying the principles, purposes and different types of assessment undertaken with people with common mental health disorders KPT
003 Demonstrate knowledge of, and competence in using ‘common factors’ to engage patients, gather information, build a therapeutic alliance with people with common mental health problems, manage the emotional content of sessions and grasp the client’s perspective or “world view”. KPT
004 Demonstrate knowledge of, and competence in ‘patient-centred’ information gathering to arrive at a succinct and collaborative definition of the person’s main mental health difficulties and the impact this has on their daily living. KCP
005 Demonstrate knowledge of, and competence in recognising patterns of symptoms consistent with diagnostic categories of mental disorder from a patient centred interview. (C, K, P) 6) Demonstrate knowledge of, and competence in accurate risk assessment to patient or others. KCP
006 Demonstrate knowledge of, and competence in accurate risk assessment to patient or others. KCP
007 Demonstrate knowledge of, and competence in the use of standardised assessment tools including symptom and other psychometric instruments to aid problem recognition and definition and subsequent decision making. KCPT
008 Demonstrate knowledge, understanding and competence in using behaviour change models in identifying intervention goals and choice of appropriate interventions. KPT
009 Demonstrate knowledge of, and competence in giving evidence-based information about treatment choices and in making shared decisions with patients. KPT
010 Demonstrate competence in understanding the patients attitude to a range of mental health treatments including prescribed medication and evidence-based psychological treatments. KPT
011 Demonstrate competence in accurate recording of interviews and questionnaire assessments using paper and electronic record keeping systems. KPT
012 Demonstrates competency in undertaking and recording a range of assessment formats. This should include both triage within an IAPT service and problem focused assessments. KCPT
013 Demonstrates experience and competence in the assessment of presenting problems across a range of problem descriptor including depression and two or more anxiety disorders. PT
014 Demonstrates the common factor competencies necessary to engage patients across the range of assessment formats. PT

Attributes Developed

C - Cognitive/analytical

K - Subject knowledge

T - Transferable skills

P - Professional/Practical skills

Methods of Teaching / Learning

The learning and teaching strategy is designed to:

Enable trainee PWPs to develop and demonstrate their knowledge and competence in undertaking collaborative patient centred assessments.

The learning and teaching methods include:


  • Discussion

  • Tutor led lectures

  • Modelling

  • Supervised role play

  • Work based learning

  • Clinical and case management supervision

  • Simulation

  • Independent study (guided reading)

  • Directed study (tutor directed assignments)


Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.

Reading list

https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: PSYM126

Other information

This module is only available to students undertaking the Advanced Practice in Psychological Wellbeing PG Cert.

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2021/2 academic year.