Job responsibilities
Job Summary
To support health promotion and prevention activities across the PCN, including smoking cessation, weight management, and lifestyle interventions. Supporting patients with long-term conditions and health inequalities.
To assist and support medical personnel in the care of practice patients to include treatment, preventative care, screening and patient education. The post will also include some administrative duties.
To act as a focal point of communication between patients, doctors, nurses and other members of the primary health care team.
To undertake nursing and administrative duties as deemed suitable by the Practices.
To maintain a safe and effective level of practice and to bring any deficits in training to the attention of the Senior Nurse so these can be addressed.
General
The HCSW will be required to act in a professional manner at all times and adhere to practice policies, protocols and guidelines.
A uniform and name badge must be worn at all times, which will be supplied by the practice.
Full training will be given prior to any patient contact. There will always be a doctor or nurse available to refer to.
Although accountable to the partners of the practices through the practice manager as an employee, they are ultimately responsible for their own practice and must ensure that limitations are always acknowledged. Full training will be provided for any clinical procedures.
Training requirements will be monitored by yearly appraisal. Personal development will be encouraged and supported by the practices. Its the individuals responsibility to remain up to date with recent developments.
Safeguarding
Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility, and all employees are required to act in such a way that at all times safeguards the health and well-being of children and vulnerable adults. Familiarisation with, and adherence to, the appropriate organisational Safeguarding Policies and any associated guidance is an essential requirement of all employees as is participation in related mandatory/statutory training. All employees must ensure that they understand and act in accordance with this clause. If you do not understand exactly how this relates to you personally then you must ensure that you seek clarification from your immediate manager as a matter of urgency.
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 Practices 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. Please see staff handbook.
Health & Safety
The post-holder will assist in promoting and maintaining their own and others health, safety and security 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:
- Using personal security systems within the workplace according to Practice guidelines
- Identifying the risks involved in work activities and undertaking such activities in a way that manages those risks
- Making effective use of training to update knowledge and skills
- Using appropriate infection control procedures, maintaining work areas in a tidy and safe way and free from hazards
- Actively reporting of health and safety hazards and infection hazards immediately when recognised
- Keeping own work areas and general / patient areas generally clean, assisting in the maintenance of general standards of cleanliness consistent with the scope of the job holders role
- Undertaking periodic infection control training (minimum annually)
- Reporting potential risks identified
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/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 to the 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
Qualification and experience requirements
The post-holder is required to have:
- Completed the Care Certificate or equivalent qualification.
- Experience in health promotion and prevention
- Experience in supporting long-term condition management
