Clinical Psychologist

About this role

The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health is hiring a Clinical Psychologist for the UGU Health District Office in Port Shepstone. This is a 3-year contract post, with one vacancy. The work covers assessment and treatment, forensic mental health and outreach to clinics and hospitals across the district.

What you’ll do

• Assess, diagnose and treat clients, and keep accurate records and statistics.
• Run psychometric assessments and write up the reports.
• Help build clinical psychology services across the district, including SOPs that follow provincial and national Department of Health guidelines.
• Provide psychodiagnostic and psychotherapeutic services for general and forensic mental health patients, including court reports and court enquiries.
• Run individual, group and family therapy, and psychotherapy programmes for acute and sub-acute mental health care users.
• Visit Primary Health Care clinics and hospitals to offer outreach and psychology services, and help set up a district referral pathway.
• Teach and mentor junior psychologists, nurses, interns and students, and write monthly and quarterly performance reports.

What you need

• Senior Certificate (Grade 12).
• National Diploma or Degree in Clinical Psychology.
• Registration as a Psychologist with the Health Professions Council of South Africa (HPCSA), with current 2026 registration.
• A valid code B or C1 driver’s licence.
• Experience after HPCSA registration, depending on grade: none for Grade 1 (RSA-qualified, after community service); at least 8 years for Grade 2 and 16 years for Grade 3 (RSA-qualified). Foreign-qualified applicants have different requirements, as set out in the advert.
• Strong clinical knowledge of diagnosis, assessment and treatment.
• Skill in giving and interpreting psychological tests.
• Good communication and teamwork skills, and strong planning and problem-solving skills.
• Experience with medico-legal work, quality assurance and outreach services is advantageous.

Is this job for you?

This post suits a registered clinical psychologist who likes working in a team and enjoys both clinical and court-related work. It also suits someone who can teach and mentor junior staff, and who is happy to travel to clinics and hospitals across the district.

Tips before you apply

• Get proof of your experience ready. Include full dates (day, month and year) on your certificates of service and employment letters, as the advert says these decide your grade.
• Show your HPCSA registration and proof of 2026 registration with your application.
• In your CV, give clear examples of forensic, court or outreach work, and of any tests you have run and reports you have written.

”