Practitioner Psychologist in Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia

An exciting opportunity has become available for an enthusiastic and experienced practitioner psychologist within our Department of Haematology. The successful candidate will aid in the provision of specialist inpatient and outpatient psychological support to adults with sickle cell disease or thalassaemia. King's College Hospital Foundation NHS Trust is a designated specialist centre for the care of patients with haemoglobinopathies. On register, we have approximately 850 adults with sickle cell disease and 40 with thalassaemia. The service works closely with the paediatric team, including paediatric psychologists, and approximately 15 patients per year will transfer from the paediatric haemoglobinopathy service. There is regular collaboration with other medical specialities and a number of joint specialist sickle clinics are held regularly. Haematopoietic stem cell transplants and exagamglogene autotemcel (gene therapy) for adult patients with sickle cell disease have been commissioned at King's for eligible patients. The post holder will have the opportunity to provide psychological input to those undergoing these treatments. Specialist clinical health psychology input has a long tradition at King's and you will be joining a group of psychology and psychotherapy professionals across various medical specialities who are dedicated and supportive. The successful candidate will provide specialist psychological therapy to adult haemoglobinopathy patients and their families and carers, in a timely manner and tailored to patients' needs. This includes specialist assessment, treatment, planning, implementation and monitoring of outcomes. The post holder will also contribute psychological expertise to a multidisciplinary team consisting of three consultant haematologists, specialist nurses, a social worker and a team of junior doctors. The psychology service is led by a Band 8a Highly Specialist Counselling Psychologist who will support the successful candidate through the provision of professional supervision and operational line management. The Trust provides a full range of local and specialist services across its five sites. In June 2026, we launched our new strategy for 2026-31. Our vision is to transform healthcare, and we have agreed six strategic ambitions to help us improve care for patients, and the working lives of our staff. Our six strategic ambitions are delivering high-quality patient care; creating a great place to work; leading pioneering research, innovation and education; building strong and successful partnerships; providing timely and efficient care; and ensuring long-term financial sustainability. We have also agreed four new organisational values – Caring, Collaborative, Inclusive, Innovative – and these underpin everything we do, and how our teams interact with the patients under our care. We are at a pivotal point in our history and we require individuals who are ready to join a highly professional team and make a real, lasting difference to our patients and our people. King's is committed to delivering Sustainable Healthcare for All via our Green Plan. In line with national Greener NHS ambitions, we have set net zero carbon targets of 2040 for our NHS Carbon Footprint and 2045 for our NHS Carbon Footprint Plus. Everyone's contribution is required in order to meet the goals set out in our Green Plan and we encourage all staff to work responsibly, minimising their contributions to the Trust's carbon emissions, waste and pollution wherever possible. For further details / informal visits contact: Name: Dr James Andrewes Job title: Highly Specialist Counselling Psychologist Email address: j.andrewes@nhs.net Telephone number: 02032995108