Job overview
An exciting opportunity has arisen for a dietitian to develop and enhance their knowledge and practice in providing nutrition for acute patients at Maidstone Hospital.
The successful applicant will join the friendly dietetic team at the Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells (MTW) NHS Trust and support the Acute Team Lead at Maidstone. Working with members of the MDT the team delivers a dietetic service to acute and critical care inpatients.
The Trust and our Department are committed to the provision of outstanding patient care by outstanding people. We are a friendly and supportive department which encourages innovation and is committed to professional development of staff.
This role could be a development opportunity for an experienced Band 5 Dietitian to progress to a Band 6 role.
Main duties of the job
You will be responsible for a varied and challenging caseload including general medicine and oncology. In addition, you will run regular outpatient clinics, contribute to the induction programmes for other health care professionals, deliver a regular cardiac rehabilitation session and participate in clinical audit.
You will have the support of senior dietitians and have the opportunity to develop and enhance your dietetic skills in a variety of specialties including critical care and ITU, respiratory and gastroenterology. We have an established student training programme for A, B and C placements in which you will be involved and there will be opportunities to contribute to audits and service development.
Please visit the video link below to provide you with an insight as to why you should come and join our fantastic therapy department at MTW!
Working for our organisation
MTW is a large acute hospital trust in the south-east of England.
We provide a full range of general hospital services and some aspects of specialist and complex care to around 600,000 people living in west Kent and East Sussex. We have a team of over 8,000 full and part-time staff. We also provide specialist cancer services to around 2 million people across Kent and East Sussex via the Kent Oncology Centre.
In the 2024 NHS staff survey, our employees ranked MTW among the top 10 NHS Trusts nationwide and the second-best Trust to work for in the South East.
Would you like to work flexibly? In the NHS, we are reminded every day of how important life is. As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for us, for our patients and for you. Speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Once your pre-employment checks have been completed you will be contacted by Recruitment to arrange your start date which will be in line with one of our Corporate Inductions.
Please note that appointment to this post will be subject to a satisfactory Disclosure & Barring Service Check at Enhanced Level. (Enhanced level now includes regulated checks against vulnerable adults and children).
At MTW, we seek to develop a culture where everyone can reach their full potential with opportunities to grow and develop their career. We recognise and value the unique contributions that each of our staff bring, delivering the best quality care and service to our patients. We are committed to being a diverse employer and strive to reflect everyone in our local communities. We welcome applications from people of diverse backgrounds, perspectives and experiences and celebrate the diversity of thought, viewpoints and ideas that will make our Trust the best place to work.
We support our staff with disabilities to ensure they have the adjustments they need to be the best they can be in the workplace. Collaborating with Access to Work means that our staff are assessed by experts in the workplace and we ensure that their recommendations are implemented as quickly as possible. You can find out more here:
Interview Date: To be confirmed.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
1. BSc.(Hons) or Postgraduate Diploma in Dietetics or equivalent qualification
2. Current state registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC)
Desirable criteria
3. Member of the British Dietetic Association (BDA) or other body conferring professional insurance
4. Member of a BDA Specialist Group and / or BAPEN
Experience & Knowledge
Essential criteria
5. Experience of working as a band 5 dietitian and seeing a variety of adult inpatients and outpatients
6. Experience of managing patients requiring enteral nutrition
7. Experience of managing enteral feed discharges
8. Experience of working as part of a multidisciplinary team
9. Experience working with groups of patients
10. Experience of teaching and training dietetic colleagues and other members of the MDT
11. Up-to-date clinical knowledge of the nutritional management of a wide variety of clinical conditions based on current best practice
12. Good knowledge of national policies and procedures relating to nutrition and dietetics
13. Good knowledge of the principles of clinical governance
Desirable criteria
14. Experience of training undergraduate dietetic students
15. Experience of manging patients with complex nutritional support requirements including enteral and parenteral nutrition
16. Experience of working with IBD patients, patients with disordered eating and IBS patients requiring the low FODMAP diet
17. Relevant post graduate training in clinical dietetics
18. Knowledge of the principles of clinical audit
19. Experience of contributing to service development initiatives and participating in clinical audit
Skills
Essential criteria
20. Excellent oral and written communication skills with people from a wide variety of backgrounds and excellent interpersonal skills, including observation, listening and empathy skills
21. Good analytical and reflection skills, and commitment to engage in CPD and the appraisal process
22. Able to prioritise and manage own workload to achieve deadlines
23. Ability to work independently and be self-motivated
24. Good time management and organisational skills
25. Good presentation skills, both written and verbal
26. Evidence of a high standard of record keeping
27. Competent and accurate IT skills with ability to use Microsoft word, PowerPoint, data collection tools, and willingness to develop these skills
28. Competent to use specialist equipment for anthropometric assessment
Desirable criteria
29. Counselling skills or post graduate training in behaviour change techniques
30. Experience of using dietary analysis packages
31. Supervisory and / or mentorship skills