Clinical Duties Be professionally and legally responsible and accountable for all aspects of own work, including the management of patients in your care. Ensure a high standard of clinical care for the patients under your management. To work autonomously in a clinic, assessing, diagnosing, planning and implementing pathways of care for a highly specialist caseload. To work independently in the absence of the consultant, liaising if appropriate on their return. To work beyond the usual scope of practice to order diagnostics tests and implement treatments within individual skills and knowledge. Accept sole clinical responsibility for a designated caseload of patients and organise this effectively and efficiently with regard to clinical priorities and use of time. The caseload will include patients with diverse presentations, complex symptoms and where significant negative alterations to the patients quality of life exist. Undertake the specialist and comprehensive assessment of patients referred from a variety of sources, including those with a complex presentation, using investigative and analytical skills. Formulate individualised management and treatment plans, using clinical reasoning, and utilising a wide range of advanced treatment skills and options to formulate a specialised programme of care in conjunction with the patient and carers. To provide diagnosis, develop and negotiate an agreed individual and holistic programme of treatment options, incorporating inter-disciplinary team working. Provide advanced clinical expertise to colleagues within the team and referrers to the service. Communicate effectively with patients and carers to maximise rehabilitation potential and ensure understanding of condition. Communication skills of persuasion, motivation and explanation to encourage patients to undertake their treatment programme. Use verbal and non-verbal communication skills to gain informed consent with patients where there will often be barriers to effective communication e.g. loss of hearing, altered perception, expressive or receptive dysphasia, pain, fear. Assess capacity, gain valid informed consent and have the ability to work within a legal framework with patients who may lack capacity to consent to treatment. To be the lead therapist at MDT meetings, case conferences and to ensure therapeutic management of patients is integrated and rehabilitation potential is maximised and is central to overall assessment, audit and objective evaluation of treatment / management programmes. To refer patients onwards to relevant health care professionals To ensure robust clinical governance for service speciality, through supervision, audit and best practice through pathway development and evidence base. To work extended hours and weekends as service requires within own speciality, including emergency work as per service business continuity plan.