Heart Therapy Team Assistant Practitioner
Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust
An exciting position has arisen to join the Heart Therapy Team at The Royal Brompton Hospital as an assistant practitioner for the Speech Therapy and Dietetics teams.
The post holder will carry out clinical tasks to support the dietetics and speech therapists including speech therapy and dietary reviews, being responsible for the procurement and distribution of dietetic stock. The post holder will need excellent communication and organisational skills.
Main duties of the job
* The post holder will work as an integral and active part of the Adult Heart Therapy Team, responsible for supporting the Therapy team in the provision of a patient-centred service, in an efficient and cost-effective way.
* Assist in the provision of care to patients, supported and supervised by senior therapists.
* Carry out clinical tasks to support the dietetics, speech therapists and occupational therapists, such as supervision of daily individual rehabilitation and developmental sessions and speech therapy and dietary reviews, delegated by qualified staff.
* Carry out clinical assessments independently, within their Assistant Practitioner competency framework, assisting in the initial therapy assessment of referrals to the adult heart therapy team.
* Provide a key role in the management of stable adult in-patients on oral nutritional support and inpatients with food allergy, including initial assessment and screening, regular reassessment and monitoring during the hospital stay, and organising discharge follow-up with local GP and community services.
* Act as lead for the distribution of dietary products.
About us
Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust comprises five of the UK's best known hospitals - Guy's, St Thomas', Evelina London Children's Hospital, Royal Brompton and Harefield - as well as community services in Lambeth and Southwark, all with a long history of high quality care, clinical excellence, research and innovation. We are among the UK's busiest, most successful foundation trusts, providing specialist care for patients including heart and lung, cancer and renal services as well as a full range of local hospital and community services for people in Lambeth and Southwark.
Job responsibilities
* Work as a core member of the Heart Therapy Team.
* Work effectively within the Multidisciplinary Team and commit to providing quality care and service development by participating in quality improvement initiatives.
* Perform complex aspects of patient care in the hospital, with direct and indirect supervision, such as carrying out daily supervised patient rehabilitation/developmental sessions.
* Perform complex aspects of assessment and patient care in the hospital or out-patient clinics.
* Use appropriate and safe manual handling techniques with patients requiring neuro rehabilitation and therapeutic facilitation to achieve set goals.
* Be responsible for performing given tasks and reporting any concerns to the Specialist Therapists or appropriate member of the clinical team through daily feedback.
* Adhere to the Trust policies and procedures, including infection control.
* Support the Therapy Team in managing electronic referrals and liaising with the appropriate senior therapist.
* Accept in-patients referred for oral nutritional support and food allergy, managing these via set protocols as their own caseload.
* Treat patients according to relevant allied health professional standards, monitoring and modifying care plans as required.
* Maintain accurate, comprehensive and up to date patient records and mandatory statistical information to reflect care provided, participating in audits as required.
Educational objectives
* Gain the required knowledge and skills in the relevant technical and clinical procedures, maintaining those skills under the supervision of Specialist/Senior Therapists.
* Develop and maintain knowledge of dietetics, rehabilitation, cardiology and cardiothoracics.
* Attend and participate in department in-service training.
* Continue to gain practical knowledge that will support the delivery of care to this particular group of patients.
* Support the day-to-day running of specialist rehabilitation from the therapy team.
Organisational and management objectives
* Take responsibility for the organisation and provision of Therapy equipment, ensuring patients have appropriate equipment and up to date guidance regarding cleaning and infection control.
* Undertake patient-related administration tasks for the therapy team.
* Manage and prioritise own clinical caseload as delegated by the Senior Therapist.
* Assist in the development of information for patients and their families, particularly around rehabilitation.
* Keep accurate and up to date clinical records in line with Trust and department standards.
* Participate in the Trust's appraisal and personal development plan schemes by meeting with the manager regularly and working towards set objectives.
Communication
* Demonstrate a courteous and helpful approach to patients and their families, ensuring patients feel reassured and supported.
* Carry out assigned administrative tasks as directed by a Senior Therapist.
Information management
* Participate in research, audit, and quality improvement programmes for the Therapy team.
* Use relevant IT systems in the support of patient care.
* Maintain strict confidentiality regarding patient information, adhering to trust policies and procedures.
* Manage and maintain personal diary and organise time autonomously and effectively.
Person Specification
Skills and Abilities
* Good level of IT skills
* Excellent organisational skills
Experience and Knowledge
* Experience of working in a healthcare environment
* Therapy or Health Care Assistant experience
* Experience of working in a multi-disciplinary healthcare team
* Basic knowledge of anatomy and physiology
* Previous experience in dietetics or speech therapy
* Previous experience of giving presentations to small groups
* Experience of carrying out audits
* Basic knowledge of food groups
Education and Qualifications
* A minimum of 5 GCSEs (or equivalent) at grade C or above including English language and mathematics
* BTEC or equivalent 'A' levels
* Clinical Assistant practitioner certificate/diploma
* Foundation Degree in Clinical Assistant Practice or Level III NVQ in Care or formal exercise training qualification or equivalent experience
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.
Salary: £31,944 to £34,937 per annum incl. HCA
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