Job summary
An exciting opportunity has arisen for an activity co-ordinator on The Vales. The Activity Co-ordinator role is a fast-paced, highly rewarding, patient facing role integral to the smooth running and holistic offer of care and treatment on the female mental health rehabilitation ward. You will need to be creative and possess determination to continually improve / adapt, and mould the offers of therapeutic, recovery, and skill-based groups in order to promote recovery and independence amongst our service users.
The Vales provides assessment and intervention for women with severe and enduring mental ill-health in a locked environment to support their ongoing recovery and social integration. The service is focused on working towards independence and recovery to enable service users to regain health and mental wellness before moving on to live as independently as possible in an open environment or their local communities.
Main duties of the job
Do you have a passion for health care?
Do you have creative skills that you can use to engage patients in an acute setting.
If so, there is an exciting opportunity for you to join our team as an activity coordinator to work along side occupational therapists, nurses, and other members of the multidisciplinary team.
We are looking for a creative individual who can use their own skills along with our resources to engage patients and support them in their recovery journey.
The aim of the role is to provide interventions in order to improve the service users quality of life. The role includes facilitating a program of social, creative, and skills-based activities.
Duties
1. The activities coordinator will be responsible for the planning, implementation, and evaluation of a range of group and individual social and recreational activities on and off the ward on a consistent basis.
2. The activities coordinator will ensure that a range of activities and suitable resources are available for other staff to utilise in their absence to ensure continuity of activity provision.
3. Participate in delivering, monitoring, and evaluating individual care plans in relation to individuals' participation in activity.
4. Actively involve patients in deciding and planning their participation in activities and ensure that this reflects patients assessed needs.
About us
Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust provides mental health services and a number of learning disability, autism and social care services in the county of Lincolnshire. Employing around 2,800 staff, and serving a population of over 766,000, our people lie at the heart of everything we do.
You could be part of a Trust rated by staff as one of the best mental health and learning disability trusts in England, in an area heralded as a fantastic place to live and work. We firmly believe the key to high quality care is a contented workforce. This is reflected in our Care Quality Commission rating of 'outstanding' for well-led and 'good' overall. In the most recent National NHS Staff Survey, our staff rated us as the number one trust nationally for staff morale and one of the top scoring NHS Trusts in the Midlands for being compassionate and inclusive. We're really proud of this!
We are also leading the way in transforming care, with multi-million-pound transformation of patient environments and radical redesign of community services.
This is the time to join and help redesign our services of the future. We offer options for flexible working and provide a wide range of training and promotion opportunities in all professions. We support and celebrate diversity, have active staff networks groups and are always looking at what more we can do to support our staff.
Job description
Job responsibilities
The activities co-ordinator will be responsible for the planning, implementation and evaluation of a range of group and individual social / recreational activities on and off the ward on a consistent basis. The activities co-ordinator will ensure that a range of activities and suitable resources are available for other staff to utilize in their absence to ensure continuity of activity provision. Participate in delivering, monitoring and evaluating individual care plans in relation to individuals participation in activity. Actively involve patients in deciding and planning their participation in activities and ensure that this reflects patients assessed needs. Liaison with nursing staff, occupational therapy staff and the multidisciplinary team and patients to ensure a well structured time table of available activities. Work with occupational therapy staff to ensure that service users have access to meaningful occupation and create, evaluate, and maintain links with all relevant community resources to promote social inclusion opportunities. Be aware of and respond to needs which arise from cultural / differences. Be proactive in reporting to the Qualified Nurse /Occupational Therapist any changes in mental health, psychological or physical health of individual patients during activities. To objectively record patient participation and performance in multidisciplinary electronic notes. To work collaboratively, actively contribute to handovers and ward reviews, with all members of the multidisciplinary team fulfilling the requirements of the Care Programme Approach. Ensure that risk assessment is continuously carried out and individual concerns are identified before activities commence. Work hours per week on a full shift rotation as instructed by the ward manager as and when required. This will include working flexibly to reflect the needs of the service and include working weekends as well as evening shifts on a regular basis. Contribute to service development of activity provision on the acute wards, promoting and evaluating the service.
Person Specification
Skills & Competences
Essential
5. Ability to show an awareness and understanding of individual service users needs and choices in relation to activity participation
6. Ability to work effectively as a team member, being adaptable to changing demands within the service
7. Good planning and organising skills, ability to manage day to day tasks, being flexible to meet competing demands.
8. Able to work independently and use own initiative in relation to facilitating relevant social / recreational activities
9. Effective communication skills
Desirable
10. Basic IT Skills
Special Requirements
Essential
11. Able to carry out work with patients in community settings.
12. Understanding of diversity, cultural and ethnic issues.
Desirable
13. Ability to travel independently in a timely manner.
Qualifications
Essential
14. NVQ Level 3 or willing to work towards achievement
Desirable
15. Basic Food Hygiene certificate
Experience
Essential
16. Relevant experience working with people with mental health problems or demonstration of an understanding of people with mental health problems.
Desirable
17. Voluntary, or working capacity within mental health service or equivalent
18. Experience of planning and facilitating social / recreational activities