Are you seeking to provide an opportunity for significant change in the lives of individuals impacted by substance use who are homeless?
If you aspire to work for a compassionate organisation that believes in people and possess the energy and determination to deliver healthcare interventions to the people most in need, this opportunity is for you.
We are recruiting for a Street Healthcare Outreach Nurse based in Croydon.
This is a new exciting project commissioned by The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government formally known as Department of Levelling Up Housing and Communities (DLUHC) and Centre for Homelessness Impact (CHI) to evaluate evidence of what works to end rough sleeping and reduce homelessness.
The CHI are looking to place 8 Street Healthcare Outreach Nurses in services that presently don't have this offer to evaluate the impact on the health of the local homeless population compared to areas that don't have this provision. As directed by the Lead Nurse, the post holder will be embedded within outreach services offering healthcare and clinical interventions as appropriate to the homeless population.
Full Time Hours: 37.5 per week
Full Time Salary Range: £43,814.50 - £48,183.48 Dependent on experience (pro rata for part time hours).
Main duties of the job
The post holder will be embedded within outreach services offering healthcare and clinical interventions as appropriate to the homeless population.
This Nurse is expected to be:
1. a full-time member of the team
2. complete regular shifts with the outreach team, which will consist of unsociable hours including 5am/6am starts or late shifts from 10pm/11pm. The post holder will also participate in street counts which can take place during the night. They will work in extreme weather conditions such as winter/summer severe weather emergency protocol.
3. have sufficient qualifications and experience to deliver episodes of care, manage a caseload and support access to mainstream health services.
Job responsibilities
* To develop therapeutic alliances with people experiencing homelessness using the principles of trauma informed care, as a way forward to enabling relationship building, assessment and treatment for people experiencing homelessness.
* To undertake specialist homeless health care at an advanced level. The post holder will be able to make high-level clinical decisions, and initiate and carry out complex interventions based on their own interpretation of the clinical situation.
* To act as a health case manager for individuals identified with high levels of unmet health need, and work towards individual health outcomes as defined by the project goals.
* To undertake holistic physical and psychosocial health assessments on the street for people experiencing homelessness, in order to identify unmet physical, mental health, addictions, safeguarding, housing and social care needs.
* To carry relevant equipment on street shifts which enables the assessment of clinical risk, and can be used to provide immediate and necessary care.
* To proactively identify immediate clinical risks to life and limb when seeing individuals on the street and take appropriate action to enable the individual to access appropriate and timely care.
* To independently undertake mental capacity assessments if an individual refuses necessary care, and to make consequent, best judgment decisions on whether someone has mental capacity to refuse.
* To provide immediately necessary clinical / therapeutic primary care treatments on the street if needed that will improve health outcomes for people experiencing homelessness.
* To ensure that there is good communication of any treatments offered, treatment progress and outcome of any investigations to other healthcare agencies, including GPs.
* To proactively identify when individuals are not in contact with relevant primary health care services and advocate for and support individuals to access these services appropriately.
* To identify when individuals are frequently attending emergency services and take steps to resolve this.
* To identify all ongoing safeguarding concerns around abuse, neglect and self-neglect, and refer to safeguarding appropriately.
* To understand the barriers to housing and work to get people into housing solutions alongside outreach workers.
* To proactively develop and maintain close working relationships with homeless and inclusion health services.
* To call and lead case conferences with partner agencies for case managed individuals as necessary.
* To provide screening and deliver vaccinations on the street when indicated if safe and appropriate.
* To undertake phlebotomy, if required and safety can be maintained.
* To use blood results to support the assessment of the current health status of individuals, and refer for onward care as needed.
* To contribute to CGL Naloxone Strategy by training staff and individuals who use our services in the use of naloxone.
* To act as an advocate for people experiencing homelessness, supporting the individuals' own choices regarding their care.
* To document all clinical activity thoroughly and contemporaneously.
* To attend meetings that are appropriate to the development and maintenance of the role.
* To engage with training and clinical networks as required by the manager.
* To manage own workload in such a way as to ensure there is enough time to undertake clinical work, reporting data and commitments and project meetings.
Person Specification
Qualifications
* First level registered nurse with a current PIN.
* Trained in phlebotomy.
* Qualification in substance misuse.
Experience
* Experience of working as a clinical practitioner in an inclusion health setting.
* Broad knowledge and experience covering primary care, acute, mental health and addictions.
* Experience of independently managing a caseload.
* Experience of delivering services in partnership with multiple partners.
* Experience of being an autonomous practitioner making independent decisions.
* Possession of advanced assessment qualification.
* Possession of nurse prescribing qualification.
* Experience of directly delivering nurse-led health street outreach to people who are rough sleeping.
* Good understanding of legal literacy and safeguarding issues in respect to health street outreach.
* Experience of independently managing projects and leading audit/quality improvement projects.
* Experience of being involved in research and report writing.
* Experience of delivering training.
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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