Job responsibilities: Clinical Nursing Practice Work as part of a multi-disciplinary team to deliver safe and high quality care. Carries out clinical nursing practice at an advanced level using expert clinical skills, critical judgements & knowledge to deliver appropriate and safe care. Delivery of care in line with NSF, NICE guidelines and evidence-based care Triage and treat patients, performing specialist assessment of their needs and make referrals as necessary to other members of the primary and secondary health care teams as appropriate. Co-ordinate the planning and delivery of care ensuring patients and carers/relatives are involved. Prescribing and reviewing medication that is appropriate to patient needs and in accordance with latest evidence-based practice, national and practice protocols and within the scope of qualified practice. Diagnose and manage acute and chronic conditions, including drug and non-drug based treatment methods into a management plan. Request diagnostic investigations and interpret within agreed protocols e.g. x-ray, blood tests, scans, etc.Assess, diagnose and treat patients in practice premises or their own home who require medical attention and/or refer to appropriate agency. Refers patients to other members of the multi-disciplinary practice teams, secondary care organisations and other organisations as necessary. Care Management Communicates confidential and sensitive information to patients, relatives and carers in relation to their condition. Provide highly specialised care advice beyond the scope of normal Nursing practice e.g. care treatment plans, making referrals as appropriate (including fast track referrals). Contribute to local and national practice targets clinical remit e.g. QOF, prescribing incentive scheme, National benchmarking. To monitor and meet care outcomes against standards and recommend or initiate changes as necessary. Health Improvement Management of health screening programmes and ensures other team members are aware of health priorities and screening objectives and programmes. Innovation in practice to meet ongoing demands on the practices delivery of care. Improve health outcomes for patients by introducing new developments, and can demonstrate them as reports and presentations where appropriate. Supports practitioners in reporting the practice population to promote health improvement and disease prevention. Makes referrals to appropriate agencies (statutory and voluntary) where necessary Providing assessment, screening services, health education advice: These may include (but not restricted to); Blood pressure checks Urinalysis Ear syringing Dressings Contraception/ fitting contraceptive devices Routine immunisations and vaccinations Removal of sutures / clips First registration checks / health surveillance / general health advice Assisting with minor procedures in the treatment room Organise and plan the provision of nursing services for the practice to include the delegation of duties to other members of the practice nurse team as appropriate Administration and professional responsibilities Produce accurate, contemporaneous and complete records of patient consultation, consistent with legislation, policies and procedures Participate in the administrative and professional responsibilities of the practice team Accurate and legible notes of all consultations and treatments are recorded in the patients notes Ensure clinical systems kept up to date, recording and/or amending accurate details Ensure appropriate items of service claims are made accurately, reporting any problems to the practice administrator Ensure accurate completion of all necessary documentation associated with patient health care and registration with the practice Attend and participate in practice meetings as required Restocking and maintenance of clinical areas and consulting rooms Training and personal development Maintain up to date skills and knowledge, maintaining awareness of professional issues at an advanced level. Training needs will be monitored by yearly appraisal and will be in accordance with practice requirements. Personal development will be encouraged and supported by the practice. Assess effectiveness of care delivery through self-reflection and peer review, as well as benchmarking and formal evaluation. Contribute to the identification and assessment of learning needs of staff and other professionals and assist in planning effective programmes of education. Participate in the education and training of students of all disciplines and the introduction of all members of the practice staff where appropriate. Develop and maintain an in house nurse-training programme reporting to the practice manager. Act as a mentor for junior staff, assessing competence against set standards. Taking responsibility for own development, learning and performance and demonstrating skills and activities to others who are undertaking similar work and ensure own educational commitment is at least sufficient to maintain revalidation requirements. Develop and maintain a Personal Learning Plan. Regularly participate in clinical supervision. Leadership personal and people development Act as a clinical leader in the delivery of practice nursing services ensuring that the needs of the patient are a priority Support staff development in order to maximise potential Actively promote the workplace as a learning environment, encouraging everyone to learn from each other and from external good practice Critically evaluate and review innovations and developments that are relevant to the area of work Work with practice management to ensure sufficient staffing to provide a safe service, and that staff have the appropriate ability, quality and skill-mix to meet current and future service delivery Take part in recruitment processes where appropriate. Maintain effective communication and active involvement in the planning and processes of practice-based commissioning or similar initiatives Promote the role of the advanced nurse practitioner in general practice. Confidentiality: In the course of seeking treatment, patients entrust practice staff with, or allow us to gather, sensitive information in relation to their health and other matters. Comply with Legislation with regards to data protection act and ensure confidentiality is maintained at all times.The post-holder must regard all information relating to patients and their carers, practice staff and other healthcare workers (as well as information relating to the practice as a business organisation) as strictly confidentialInformation relating to patients, carers, colleagues, other healthcare workers or the business of the practice may only be divulged to authorised persons in accordance with the practice policies and procedures relating to confidentiality, data protection legislation and the protection of personal and sensitive data, as well as other related healthcare legislation (e.g. the NHS Confidentiality Code of Practice) Health & Safety: The post-holder will comply with practice policies, procedures and clinical guidelines for self and others. This includes (but not limited to):Identifying, reporting, and correcting health and safety hazards and infection hazards immediately when recognised. Identifying issues and hazards / risks in relation to other work areas within the business Awareness of national standards of infection control and cleanliness, as well as ownership of infection control and clinically based patient care protocols and implementing them across the practice. Active observation of current working practices across the practice in relation to infection control, cleanliness and related activities, ensuring that procedures are followed and weaknesses / training needs are identified, escalating issues as appropriate. Identifying the risks involved in work activities, raising them with appropriate management and managing those risks across clinical and patient processes. Safe management of sharps procedures, including training, use, storage and disposal Keeping own work areas and general / patient areas generally clean, sterile, assuming responsibility in the maintenance of general standards of cleanliness across the business in consultation (where appropriate) with other managers Demonstrate due regard for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. Routine management of own team / team areas, and maintenance of work space standards; Waste management, including collection, handling, segregation, container management, storage and collection Spillage control procedures, management and training Decontamination control procedures, management and training, and equipment maintenance Equality and Diversity: The post-holder will support the equality, diversity and rights of patients, carers and colleagues, to include: Acting in a way that recognizes the importance of peoples rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with practice procedures and policies, and current legislation Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs and beliefs of patients, carers and colleagues Identify patterns of discrimination and take action to overcome this and promote diversity and equality of opportunity. Behaving in a manner that is welcoming to and of the individual, is non-judgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings priorities and rights. Support people who need assistance in exercising their rights. Quality: The post-holder will strive to maintain quality within the practice, and will: Alert other team members to issues of quality and risk Assess own performance and take accountability for own actions, either directly or under supervision Contribute to the effectiveness of the team by reflecting on own performance