Job responsibilities
JOB DESCRIPTION
TITLE OF POST: Advanced Nurse Practitioner
ACCOUNTABLE TO: The
Partners
JOB SUMMARY
The post holder is an experienced nurse, who acting
within their professional boundaries, will provide care for the presenting
patient from initial history taking, clinical assessment, diagnosis, treatment
and evaluation of their care. They will
demonstrate safe, clinical decision-making and expert care for patients registered
with the Practice in the practices surgeries and in the patients home/care
home. They will work collaboratively
with the multi-disciplinary General Practice team to meet the needs of
patients, supporting the delivery of policy and procedures. In order to work at this level, NMC
requirements for advanced practice must be met.
1. SCOPE AND PURPOSE OF THE ROLE
- To deliver a high standard of patient care as a Nurse Clinician in General
Practice, using advanced autonomous clinical skills, and a broad and
in-depth theoretical knowledge base.
- To manage a clinical caseload, dealing with presenting patients
needs within the practice environment and in the community setting,
- To liaise with the key stakeholders to support patients to manage
their long term conditions enabling them to avoid unnecessary hospital
admissions.
2. JOB DIMENSIONS
- To manage own clinical workload in General Practice responding
effectively to patient need and ensuring patient choice and ease of access
to services.
- To use diagnostic tools to identify patients at risk of hospital
admission and support their treatment.
- To use referral pathways to support patient care and maintain
people at home/in the community as appropriate.
- To ensure the practice supports the needs of carers to ensure their
needs are also accommodated.
3. KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE REQUIRED
See person specification.
4. PRIMARY DUTIES &
AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY
A. CLINICAL ROLE:
The post-holder will:
- Make professionally autonomous decisions for which he/she is
accountable.
- Consult with patients presenting with undifferentiated, undiagnosed
problems, making use of skills in history taking, physical examination,
problem-solving and clinical decision-making, to establish a diagnosis and
management plan.
- Participate in the management of clinical document workflow streams
- Instigate necessary invasive and non-invasive diagnostic tests or
investigations and interpret findings/reports.
- As an independent prescriber prescribe safe, effective and
appropriate medication as defined by current legislative framework.
- Refer patients directly to other services/agencies as appropriate.
- Provide safe, evidence-based, cost-effective, individualised
patient care.
- Offer a holistic service to patients and their families, developing
where appropriate an on-going plan of care/support, with an emphasis on
prevention and self-care.
- Deliver
high quality care to patients in care homes, offering a responsive and
effective clinical service and developing good relationships with staff
within the homes. Support the care
homes staff to manage and improve the health of their residents.
- Promote health and well-being through the use of health promotion,
health education, screening and therapeutic communication skills.
- Work with the multi-disciplinary team within the Practice, and
across the wider clinical Commissioning Group to promote integrated and
seamless pathways of care.
Contribute to the practice achieving its quality
targets to sustain the high standards of patient care and service delivery.
Help
develop and set up new patient services and participate in initiatives to
improve existing patient services.
Supervision
of own role and of others within the Practice as required.
B. TEACHING AND
MENTORING ROLE:
The post-holder will:
- Promote
a learning environment for patients, nurses and other health
professionals.
- Contribute to the planning and implementation of teaching for staff
and trainees, such GP trainees, and all other staff working to support patients
within the Practice.
C. PROFESSIONAL ROLE:
The post-holder will:
- Promote evidence-based practice through the use of the latest
research-based guidelines and the development of practice-based research.
- Monitor the effectiveness of their own clinical practice through
the quality assurance strategies such as the use of audit and peer review.
- Maintain their professional registration.
- Participate in continuing professional development opportunities to
ensure that up-to-date evidence-based knowledge and competence in all
aspects of the role is maintained.
- Work within the latest NMC
Code of Professional Conduct.
- Record accurate consultation data in patients records in accordance
with the latest NMC guidance
and other pertinent standards.
- Keep up to date with pertinent health-related policy and work with
the practice team to consider the impact and strategies for implementation.
- Work collaboratively with colleagues within and external to the
practice.
- Demonstrate leadership.
- Pro-actively promote the role of the Nurse Clinician within the
Practice, and externally to key stakeholders and agencies.
D. MANAGERIAL ROLE:
The post-holder will:
Participate
in multi-disciplinary protocol and Patient Group Directions development.
Help
the practice operate in a cost-effective manner.
Identify
and manage nursing care risks on a continuing basis.
Participate
in practice meetings reporting progress as required.
Participate
in audits and inspections as appropriate.
5. HEALTH
AND SAFETY/RISK MANAGEMENT
The post-holder must comply at all times with the Practices Health and
Safety policies, in particular by following agreed safe working procedures and
reporting incidents using the organisations incident reporting systems.
6. EQUALITY
AND DIVERSITY
The post-holder must co-operate with all policies and procedures
designed to ensure equality of employment.
Co-workers, patients and visitors must be treated equally irrespective
of gender, ethnic origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, religion etc.
7. RESPECT FOR PATIENT
CONFIDENTIALITY
The post-holder
should respect patient confidentiality at all times and not divulge patient
information unless sanctioned by the requirements of the role. The post-holder
will comply with the Data Protection Act (1984) and the Access to Health
Records Act (1990).
8. COMMUNICATION &
WORKING RELATIONSHIPS
The post-holder will establish and maintain
effective communication pathways with the following:
The Partners
Nurse Clinician Colleagues
GPs
All Nursing Staff
Practice Pharmacists
Community Matrons
District nursing team
Care Coordinator
Team Leaders
Members of other external organisations
9. SPECIAL WORKING CONDITIONS
- The post-holder is required to travel independently between practice
sites, and to attend meetings etc hosted by other agencies.
- The post holder will consult with patients in their own home and be
required to travel independently between patients places of residence.
- The post-holder will have contact with body fluids i.e., wound
exudates; urine etc while in clinical practice.
10. REHABILITATION OF
OFFENDERS ACT 1994
Because of the nature of the work, this post is
exempt from the provisions of Section 4(2) of the Rehabilitation of Offenders
Act 1994 (Exceptions) Order 1995.
Applicants for posts are not entitled to withhold information about
convictions which for other purposes are spent under the provisions of the
Act and in the event of employment any failure to disclose such convictions
could result in disciplinary action or dismissal by the Practice. Any information given will be completely
confidential and will be considered only in relation to an applicant of a
position to which the order applies.
11. JOB
DESCRIPTION AGREEMENT
This job description is
intended to provide an outline of the key tasks and responsibilities only. There may be other duties required of the
post-holder commensurate with the position.
This job description will be open to regular review and may be amended
to take into account development within the Practice. All members of staff should be prepared to
take on additional duties or relinquish existing duties in order to maintain
the efficient running of the Practice.
