Vocational services (helping you retain your job or return to work)
Dorset Work Matters is a joint project between Dorset HealthCare and Dorset Mental Health Forum and helps people who are accessing mental health services across the county to find paid employment.
Since the project launched in 2018, employment specialists have been working with people to reconnect them with their passions, interests and skills, and use this as a focus for them to find employment.
Our employment specialists support individuals every step of their journey back to work, including:
- benefits counselling
- CV writing and interview skills
- job applications
- a personalised vocational profile to offer suggestions on work being an effective part of their recovery
- work with their clinical team to offer full support every step of the way
- job coaching to build confidence in the workplace
- work trials to take the pressure off of the interview process
- personalised return to work planning
- support and advice with disclosing their health conditions to the employer.
Employment specialists are skilled at working with employers to negotiate personalised reasonable adjustments and to ensure that the right support is in place to sustain work.
The service accepts any patient aged 18-plus, who is supported by a community mental health team and who is seeking paid work.
Our employment specialists can meet with the care co-ordinator to discuss and complete a joint referral, thereby ensuring the best possible sharing of relevant information, or referrals can be made via email, telephone call or a hand-delivered written referral.
We also accept self-referrals and would, in this instance, liaise and work closely with the treating clinician (with patient consent), to build a safe return-to-work action plan.