Assistant Practitioner / Speech and Language Therapy Assistant
As an assistant practitioner in AAC WEST, you will work alongside a highly experienced multi-disciplinary team to deliver AAC services to people with communication difficulties living in the South West region.
Main duties of the job
The role of the Assistant Practitioner within the AAC WEST team is to:
* Prepare equipment as directed by the MDT for assessment and loan.
* Programme specialist AAC software as directed by MDT.
* Deliver software training sessions to those using AAC.
* Deliver 1:1 support sessions with patients as directed by MDT.
Job responsibilities
Duties within this role will include:
During Assessments
* Input into the assessment planning sessions by sharing knowledge of the software, hardware, and vocabularies contained within the various AAC devices used.
* Prepare equipment as requested by the MDT in equipment planning sheets.
* Programme equipment with relevant information as directed by MDT.
* Provide basic technical support during assessments to support MDT.
* Write clinical observations during assessments to feed back to MDT.
* Support the MDT with admin during assessments.
* Contribute to driving to and from patient visits with MDT.
Equipment Programming
* With guidance, prepare equipment for use during the trial loan period, which will involve personalising AAC vocabularies and occasional programming basic EAT operations.
* Liaise with local teams to collate relevant vocabularies.
* Maintain a broad knowledge of each of the commonly used specialist AAC software packages.
Training
* Provide training to patients and their carers on the care and programming of communication aids prior to the short-term loan of equipment.
* Contribute to the rolling programme of software training in conjunction with departmental peers.
* Support in the admin of delivering a rolling programme of AAC training.
* Deliver bespoke training on AAC where requested.
Support
* Support patients and their carers through the assessment process and provide feedback to the MDT regarding the progress of targets.
* Provide basic technical support to individuals during an equipment evaluation loan period.
* Partake in communication partner work to model good practice where required.
* Independently run support clinics either face-to-face or via remote platforms.
General
* Participate in and attend departmental meetings.
* Participate in the appraisal process in line with Trust policies.
* Identify own training needs and participate in appropriate training accordingly.
* Assist with the planning and delivery of awareness-raising events and training courses to professionals and members of the public as appropriate.
* Bring to the attention of the BCAS lead clinicians any issues appropriate to the post and the department.
* Report any service improvement suggestions to the line manager.
* Maintain up-to-date and accurate case notes and records in line with Trust Policy, as needed.
* Gather activity data accurately and record this in line with Trust Policy.
Person Specification
Qualifications
* GCSE/O levels including English and Maths.
* Apprenticeship, City and Guilds diploma, or foundation degree.
Skills
* Experience of working with people with disabilities, especially communication impairment, and an understanding of the difficulties encountered by them.
* Excellent communication skills both verbal and written.
* Ability to work on own initiative but also as part of a team.
* Ability to manage own time and prioritise tasks.
* Confident computer user with a current and working knowledge of Microsoft Word/Access/Excel/email/internet and social networking.
* Ability to reflect on own performance.
Experience
* Experience of working with people with disabilities, especially communication impairment.
* Experience of working in an environment where assistive technology is used.
* Experience of working as part of a multi-disciplinary team.
Personal Qualities
* Physically able to manually handle equipment.
* Ability to meet the travel requirements of the post.
* Ability to manage the emotional pressures of working with clients with complex disabilities and terminal illnesses.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975, and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
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