2SJT topic
Interprofessional Working
You work with psychiatrists, nurses, social workers, GPs and teachers, whose training and priorities differ from yours.
Practise Interprofessional Working12 scenarios
What makes these scenarios hard
Advocating for the client can mean challenging a colleague, which is uncomfortable and can damage the working relationship. But deferring when it leaves a client worse off is not professional.
What a strong answer usually does
- Raise concerns directly with the colleague first, unless doing so would put someone at risk.
- Tell a difference of professional opinion apart from a concern about safety. They need different responses.
- Share information that colleagues need, and no more than they need.
- Your duty under HCPC 6.2 is personal. Being told to do something is not a defence.
- Offer psychological thinking to the team as well as to the client, within your role and as agreed with your supervisor.
What the standards say
- HCPC 2.6, 2.7: work in partnership with colleagues; share relevant information
- HCPC 2.8: treat colleagues professionally
- HCPC 1.7: raise concerns about colleagues where service users may be affected
- HCPC 6.2: do not allow anyone else to put a service user at risk
- BPS, Expected standards for the recruitment and employment of assistant psychologists (June 2024): tasks decided with the supervising psychologist
Sources: HCPC, Standards of conduct, performance and ethics (2024), checked ; BPS, Expected standards for assistant psychologists (June 2024), checked .