Job responsibilities
Key responsibilities Clinical practice
Assess, diagnose, plan, implement and evaluate
treatment/interventions and care for patients presenting with an
undifferentiated diagnosis.
Clinically examine
and assess patient needs from a physiological and psychological perspective,
and plan clinical care accordingly.
Assess, diagnose,
plan, implement and evaluate interventions/treatments for patients with complex
needs.
Proactively identify, diagnose and manage treatment plans for patients
at risk of developing a long-term condition (as appropriate).
Diagnose and manage both acute and chronic conditions,
integrating both drug- and non-drug-based treatment methods into a management
plan.
Prescribe and review medication for therapeutic
effectiveness, appropriate to patient needs and in accordance with
evidence-based practice and national and practice protocols, and within scope
of practice.
Work with patients in order to support compliance with and
adherence to prescribed treatments. Provide information and advice on
prescribed or over-the-counter medication on medication regimens, side-effects
and interactions.
Prioritise health problems and intervene appropriately to
assist the patient in complex, urgent or emergency situations, including
initiation of effective emergency care.
Support patients to adopt health promotion strategies that
promote healthy lifestyles, and apply principles of self-care.
Communication
Utilise and demonstrate sensitive communication styles, to
ensure patients are fully informed and consent to treatment.
Communicate with and support patients who are receiving
bad news.
Communicate effectively with patients and carers,
recognising the need for alternative methods of communication to overcome
different levels of understanding, cultural background and preferred ways of
communicating.
Anticipate barriers to communication and take action to
improve communication.
Maintain effective communication within the practice
environment and with external stakeholders.
Act as an advocate for patients and colleagues.
Ensure awareness of sources of support and guidance (eg. PALS) and provide information in an acceptable format to all patients,
recognising any difficulties and referring where appropriate.
Delivering a quality service
Recognise and work within own competence and professional
code of conduct as regulated by the NMC/HCPC. Produce accurate, contemporaneous
and complete records of patient consultation, consistent with legislation,
policies and procedures.
Prioritise, organise and manage own workload in a manner
that maintains and promotes quality.
Deliver care according to NICE guidelines and
evidence-based care.
Assess effectiveness of care delivery through self and
peer review, benchmarking and formal evaluation.
Initiate and participate in the maintenance of quality
governance systems and processes across the organisation and its activities.
Utilise the audit
cycle as a means of evaluating the quality of the work of self and the team,
implementing improvements where required.
In partnership with other clinical teams, collaborate on
improving the quality of health care responding to local and national policies
and initiatives as appropriate.
Evaluate patients response to health care provision and
the effectiveness of care Support and participate in shared learning across
the practice and wider organisation.
Use a structured framework (eg root-cause analysis) to
manage, review and identify learning from patient complaints, clinical
incidents and near-miss events.
Assess the impact of policy implementation on care
delivery.
Understand and apply legal issues that support the
identification of vulnerable and abused children and adults, and be aware of
statutory child/vulnerable patients health procedures and local guidance.
Leadership personal and people development
Take responsibility for own learning and performance
including participating in clinical supervision and acting as a positive role
mode.
Support staff development in order to maximise potential.
Critically evaluate and review innovations and
developments that are relevant to the area of work.
Enlist support and influence stakeholders and
decision-makers in order to bring about new developments in the provision of
services.
Take a lead role in planning and implementing changes
within the area of care and responsibility.
Contribute to the development of local guidelines,
protocols and standards.
Market the role of the advanced nurse practitioner/advanced
paramedic practitioner in general practice.
Team working
Understand own role and scope and identify how this may
develop over time.
Work as an effective and responsible team member,
supporting others and exploring the mechanisms to develop new ways of working.
Delegate clearly and appropriately, adopting the
principles of safe practice and assessment of competence.
Create clear referral mechanisms to meet patient need.
Prioritise own workload and ensure effective
time-management strategies are embedded within the culture of the team.
Work effectively with others to clearly define values,
direction and policies impacting upon care delivery.
Discuss, highlight and work with the team to create
opportunities to improve patient care.
Manage and lead on the delivery of specifically identified
services or projects as agreed with the practice management team. Agree plans and outcomes by which to measure success.
Management of risk
Manage and assess risk within the areas of responsibility,
ensuring adequate measures are in place to protect staff and patients.
Monitor work areas and practices to ensure they are safe
and free from hazards and conform to health, safety and security legislation,
policies, procedures and guidelines.
Apply infection-control measures within the practice
according to local and national guidelines.
Advocate for policies that reduce environmental health
risks, are culturally sensitive and increase access to health care for all.
Interpret national strategies and policies into local
implementation strategies that are aligned to the values and culture of general
practice.
Managing information
Use technology and appropriate software as an aid to
management in planning, implementation and monitoring of care, presenting and
communicating information.
Review and process data using accurate Read codes in order
to ensure easy and accurate information retrieval for monitoring and audit
processes.
Manage information searches using the internet and local
library databases.
Understand responsibility of self and others to the
practice and primary care trust regarding the Freedom and Information Act.
Learning and development
Undertake mentorship for more junior staff, assessing
competence against set standards.
Disseminate learning and information gained to other team
members in order to share good practice and inform others about current and
future developments (eg courses and conferences). Assess own learning needs
and undertake learning as appropriate.
Provide an educational role to patients, carers, families
and colleagues in an environment that facilitates learning.
Equality and diversity
Identify patterns of discrimination and take action to
overcome this and promote diversity and equality of opportunity.
Enable others to promote equality and diversity in a
non-discriminatory culture.
Support people who need assistance in exercising their
rights.
Monitor and evaluate adherence to local chaperoning
policies.
Act as a role model in the observance of equality and
diversity good practice.
Accept the rights of individuals to choose their care
providers, participate in care and refuse care.
Assist patients from marginalised groups to access quality
care.
Undertake any training required in order to meet the needs
of the practice.