Nurse Associate

Job responsibilities

Nurse Associate Job Description

Reports to: Lead Nurse Practitioner

Hours: 37.5 per week

Job Purpose

The Nursing Associate is an integral member of the registered nursing workforce within primary care. The role is designed to bridge the gap between Health Care Assistants and Registered Nurses, supporting the delivery of high-quality, patient-centred care under the direction of a Registered Nurse or Registered Healthcare Professional.

As a registered professional regulated by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), the Nursing Associate works within the NMC Code and Standards of Proficiency and contributes to safe, effective, and compassionate care within the practice.

Key Duties and Responsibilities

Clinical Practice

• Deliver delegated care to patients in line with agreed and defined care plans, within individual scope of practice.
• Work independently to prioritise and manage own workload within defined parameters, under the direction of a Registered Nurse or Registered Healthcare Professional.
• Contribute to the monitoring of patients with long-term conditions and support care that meets Quality and Outcomes Framework (QOF) targets.
• Undertake clinical activities such as wound care, health monitoring, and other delegated procedures appropriate to competence and training.
• Accurately document care delivered and report changes in patient condition to the supervising Registered Nurse or healthcare professional.

• Ensuring that samples are dispatched to the appropriate laboratories in a timely fashion
• Ensuring that anomalies are reported to a senior member of staff
• Notifying the GP/Nurse of any significant patient issues
• Undertake basic patient observations to include blood pressure reading, weight and height
• Monitoring, recording, ordering and re-stocking of clinical supplies and equipment as directed
• Vaccine/cold chain storage and vaccine re-stocking and stock rotation
• Stock rotation, clearing and re-stocking of consulting rooms
• Liaising with and assisting members of the administrative team

Professional Practice

• Practice in accordance with the NMC Code, maintaining professional registration and completing revalidation every three years.
• Recognise the limits of own competence and escalate concerns appropriately.
• Maintain patient confidentiality and uphold safeguarding responsibilities at all times.
• Engage in continuing professional development (CPD) to maintain and enhance clinical skills and scope of practice.

• The Nursing Associate must not independently assess, plan, coordinate, or evaluate care delivery.
• The role does not include running independent clinics or working in isolation without supervision.

Education, Supervision and Support

• Act as a practice assessor and role model for nursing associate students, health care support workers, and staff new to care roles (where appropriately trained).
• Provide supervision, feedback, and support to learners, promoting reflective practice and quality improvement.
• Participate in team meetings, training, and service development activities.

Service Development and Workforce Contribution

• Support Registered Nurses in delivering leadership and continuity of care within the nursing team.
• With additional training, extend scope of practice (e.g. cervical cytology screening, vaccination and immunisation) in line with RCN guidance and local governance.

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 & Safety:

The post-holder will implement and lead on a full range of promotion and management 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 and sterile, and safe way, 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 (minimum twice annually)
• 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 recognises 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-judgemental 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 recognise the importance of effective communication within the team and will strive to:

• Communicate effectively with other team members
• Communicate effectively with patients and carers
• Recognise 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

Experience

Desirable

• Experience of working in Primary care setting
• Additional competencies such as long-term condition management, wound care
• Cervical screening
• Use of system one

Personal Qualities

Essential

• Polite and approachable
• Flexible and co- operative
• Motivated and passionate about your role
• High level of integrity
• Commitment to ongoing professional development
• Able to use resources effectively
• Ability to work under pressure in stressful situations

Qualifications

Essential

• Registered Nurse Associate on NMC register
• Ability to work under the direction of a Registered Nurse or Registered Health care Professional
• Effective communication

Clinical Skills and Knowledge

Essential

• Understanding of local Health promotion
• Good communication style, clear and concise
• Ability to follow clinical policy and procedures
• Effective time management
• Able to recognise your level of competence within your scope of practice and when to refer to others

Desirable

• Good IT skills
• Assisting in clinical Audit

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.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).