Job responsibilities
We
are looking to recruit an enthusiastic, experienced and motivated Healthcare
Assistant to join us at Carlton Group Practice.
With
previous experience of working in primary care and a commitment to further
training, education and development along with excellent inter-personal skills,
verbal and written skills. You will be working under supervision as part of the
wider nursing team on supporting our patients at our busy GP Practice.
The
HCA will assist the practice clinical team in the provision and delivery of
prescribed programmes of patient care which may include assisting with minor
surgical procedures and vasectomy / carpal tunnel operations.
The
post will include some administrative duties as well as phlebotomy duties.
We
are a large, friendly Practice close to the centre of Burton caring for over
16,500 patients from our two sites, Carlton Street Surgery and King Street
Surgery.
Our
clinical team consists of 5 GP Partners, 5 Salaried GPs, Clinical Pharmacists, Paramedic,
Practice Nurses, Health Care Assistants and Care Coordinators who are all
supported by an experienced management, administrative and reception team.
JOB
RESPONSIBILITIES
The
following are the core responsibilities of the Healthcare Assistant. There may
be on occasion, a requirement to carry out other tasks; this will be dependent
upon factors such as workload and staffing levels:
- Undertake new patient health checks
- Support the practice nurse with
health promotion programmes
- Carry out baseline observations
such as pulse oximitry, blood pressure, temperature, pulse rate, recording
findings accurately
- Facilitate routine and 24-hour BP
monitoring, advising patients accordingly
- Undertake wound care, dressings and
other clinical tasks as required
- Support the Practice Phlebotomist
during periods of absence.
- Support the practice nurse team with
the management of chronic disease clinics to include phlebotomy
- Carry out BMI checks as directed
- Act as a chaperone as required
- When trained, administer flu
vaccinations, B12 injections etc.
- Carry out ECGs as requested
- Ensure specimens are recorded and
ready for onward transportation
- Provide support during minor
operations as required
- Ensure all clinical rooms are
adequately stocked and prepared for each session
- Manage clinical consumable stock
including ordering and rotation
- Ensure fridges are cleaned
routinely in accordance with extant guidance
- Ensure clinical waste is removed
from clinical areas and sharps bins replaced in accordance with the
practice IPC policy
- Deliver opportunistic health
promotion where appropriate
EDUCATIONAL
- Identify personal
development and training needs
- Participate in
clinical supervision
- To participate in
continuing education and maintain a contemporary level of professional
knowledge and skills
PERSONNEL
- Maintain good
relations
- Take reasonable
care of his/her own safety and that of other persons who may be affected
by his/her act or omission
- Co-operation with
the Practice to ensure all members of the team adheres to statutory
regulations/policies and codes of practice and departments safety rules
- Offer innovative
ways of working and opportunities to facilitate learning
- Facilitates a
learning environment within the team
- Maintains a caring
environment through the support of colleagues
CONFIDENTIALITY
In the course of seeking treatment, patients
entrust us with, or allow us to gather, sensitive information in relation to
their health and other matters. They do so in confidence and have the right to
expect that staff will respect their privacy and act appropriately.
In the performance of the duties outlined in this
Job Description, the post-holder may have access to confidential information
relating to patients and their carers, Practice staff and other healthcare
workers. They may also have access to information relating to the Practice as a
business organisation. All such information from any source is to be regarded
as strictly confidential.
Information 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 and the protection of personal and
sensitive data.
HEALTH AND SAFETY
The
post-holder will assist in promoting and maintaining their own and others
health and safety and infection control as defined in the Practice Health &
Safety Policy, the Practice Health & Safety Manual and the Practice
Infection Control Policy and Published procedures. This will include (but will not be limited
to):
- Using personal
security systems within the workplace according to Practice guidelines
- Awareness of
national standards of infection control and cleanliness and
regulatory/contractual/professional requirements, and good practice
guidelines
- Responsible for
the correct and safe management of the specimens process including
collection, labelling, handling, use of correct and clean containers,
storage and transport arrangements
- Management and
maintenance of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for the Practice
including provision, ordering, availability and ongoing correct usage by
staff
- Responsible for
hand hygiene across the Practice
- Ownership of
infection control and clinically based patient care protocols and
implementation of those protocols 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 and undertaking such activities in a way
that manages those risks across clinical and patient process
- Making effective
use of training to update knowledge and skills and initiate and manage the
training of others across the full range of infection control and patient
processes
- Monitoring
practice facilities and equipment in relation to infection control,
ensuring that provision of hand cleansing facilities, wipes etc are
sufficient to ensure a good clinical working environment. Lack of
facilities to be escalated as appropriate
- Safe management of
sharps procedures including training, use, storage and disposal
- Using appropriate
infection control procedures, maintaining work areas in a tidy, clean,
sterile and safe way and free from hazards. Initiation of remedial/corrective action
where needed or escalation to responsible management
- Actively
identifying, reporting and correction of health and safety hazards and
infection hazards immediately when recognised
- Keeping own work
areas and general/patient areas generally clean, sterile, identifying
issues and hazards/risks in relation to other work areas within the
business and assuming responsibility in the maintenance of general
standards of cleanliness across the business in consultation (where
appropriate) with other sector managers
- Undertaking
periodic infection control training
- 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
- Maintenance of
sterile environments
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
- Behaving in a
manner which is welcoming to and of the individual, is non-judgmental and
respects their circumstances, feelings priorities and rights.
PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
The
post-holder will participate in any training programme implemented by the
practice as part of this employment, such training to include:
- Participation in
an annual individual performance review, including taking responsibility
for maintaining a record of own personal and/or professional development
- Taking
responsibility for own development, learning and performance and
demonstrating skills and activities to others who are undertaking similar
work
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 and team activities and
making suggestions on ways to improve and enhance the teams performance
- Work effectively
with individuals in other agencies to meet patients needs
- Effectively manage
own time, workload and resources
COMMUNICATION
The post-holder
should recognize the importance of effective communication within the team and
will strive to:
- Communicate
effectively with other team members
- Communicate
effectively with patients and carers
- Recognize peoples
needs for alternative methods of communication and respond accordingly.
CONTRIBUTION AND IMPLEMENTATION OF SERVICES
The
post-holder will:
- Apply practice
policies, standards and guidance
- Discuss with other
members of the team how the policies, standards and guidelines will affect
own work
- Participate in
audit where appropriate.