Palliative Care Nurse Consultant

Job responsibilities

Reporting to the Director of Clinical Services (and working alongside other members of the Senior Clinical Team) the post holder will provide expert clinical leadership, advanced nursing practice, and strategic influence to ensure people in Milton Keynes experience high-quality, compassionate, coordinated end-of-life care.

Aligned to the Milton Keynes Dying Well Report (2024), this role will:

• Championequitableaccess to palliative and end-of-life care
• Enable more people to die in their preferred place, particularly at home or in hospice
• Strengthen advance care planning and early identification
• Reduce avoidable hospital admissions at end of life
• Build system-wide capability in palliative care across health, social care, and voluntary sectors
• Act as a senior clinical ambassador for Willen Hospice within the local system

This is a hybrid role, combining advanced clinical practice, education, service development, research, andsupport for Palliative and End of Life Care across the Health and Care system in Milton Keynes.

The role requires advanced specialist palliative nursingexpertise, underpinned by extensive clinical skills, to influence care across multiple settings including community, primary care, care homes, acute hospitals, ambulanceservicesand hospices.

The post holder will bring clinical credibility,a track recordinclinicalleadership, and highly tuned communication skills, to shape pathways, support integration and ensure people with a life limiting illness receivetimely,personalisedand culturally sensitive care. They will have a proven record in implementingor supportingsuccessful organisationalchange.

Key responsibilities:

Advanced Clinical Practice & Consultancy

The Nurse Consultant must be able to deliver high quality care to patients and those important to them; enable other practitionersmaintainprofessionalexpertise, and be able todemonstratea high degree of professional autonomy within their role as a specialist within palliative care as follows:

• Deliver hands on advanced clinical care (including non-medical prescribing within scope/governance), offering expert advice and direct support for complex palliative and end of life cases.

• Lead on complex symptom management, psychosocial and spiritual care, and ethical decision-making.

• Support early identification of palliative needs, including frailty and long-term non-malignant conditions.

• Promote high-quality personalised care planning, including Advance Care Plans, DNACPR

• Play an active role in the Joint Specialist Pall Care MDT to help promote discussion/inclusion of patients, modellingan open collaborativeapproach.

• Lead/support the development of clinical guidelines,policiesand standard operating procedures, collaborating with relevant stakeholders and specialists in the topic

• Lead/ support the creation and development of champions in several areas of palliative care e.g. dementia, motor neurone disease, medicines management etc.

• Provide clinical expertise to support the Hospice and related organisations in managing complex complaints and incidents, for e.g. where there are complex ethical issues, in alignment with PSIRF principles; fostering a positive, system-focused, non-blame culture.

• Ensure continuous learning and improvement by involving all providers in the processasrequiredand keeping patients and their families central to every investigation.

Hospice Leadership & System Influence

• Work collaboratively with leadership teams across the MK locality to develop the practice of all those delivering end of life care so that practices across the locality are robust, aligned with nationally recognisedPEoLCeducation competency frameworks.

• Provide visible senior clinical leadership role modelling advanced specialist palliative nursing practice

• Work with Service Leads, providingsupport for standard setting, clinical audits,benchmarkingand quality improvement to ensure safe, effective, evidence based,equitablecare and reduce unwarranted variation.

• Represent theHospice at system-level forums

• Influence clinical strategy and pathways, champion ACP, anticipatory prescribing, holistic assessment, and culturally competent practice.

• Advocate for hospice values, compassion, and patient choice across the wider system.

Education, Workforce Development & Culture Change

• Coach, mentor and supervise nurses and AHPs; embedding a learning culture and supporting others to work at the top of their licence.

• Lead/support education and training programmes related to PEoLC for Clinical Nurse Specialists, district nursing teams, care/ nursing homes and ambulance teams to build confidence in difficult conversations,advance care planning; recognition of the dying phase; symptom management at end of life and culturally sensitive and inclusive care.

• Act as educational Supervisors for trainee Advance Clinical practitioners or as DPP for those undergoing non-medical prescribing.

• Mentor senior nurses and support succession planning for advanced and consultant-level roles.

Service Development & Quality Improvement

• Leador supportservice improvement initiatives aligned to:

• MK Dying Well recommendations

• Willen Hospice strategic priorities

• Use data, audit, and patient experience to improve quality and outcomes.

• Support pathway redesign, innovation, and new models of care delivery.

• Contribute to business cases, pilots, and evaluations that strengthenprovision ofPEoLCin the MK place.

Research, Audit & Evidence-Based Practice

• Promote evidence-based palliative care practice across the hospice and partner organisations.

• Lead or support audit, evaluation, and research projects.

• Disseminate learning locally and nationally to enhance Willen Hospices reputation as a centre of excellence.

Governance, Safeguarding & Professional Practice

• Practicein accordance withthe NMC Code of Professional Conduct.

• Uphold safeguarding, consent, and mental capacity principles.

• Contribute to clinical governance, quality assurance, and risk management.

• Promote independence, selfmanagementand wellness; support carers, bereavement needs andprovidepracticalguidanceon theseas part of expert practice and support for others.

• Maintain advanced clinical competence through CPD and revalidation.

Qualifications

Essential

• Registration with the NMC
• Degree or equivalent experience
• MSc in Advanced Practice, Palliative Care, or related discipline
• Independent Prescriber
• Evidence of Advanced Communication Skills Training
• Quality improvement qualification or evidence of training
• Evidence of professional and personal development within the last two years

Desirable

• Previous Nurse Consultant or Advanced Clinical Practitioner role
• Teaching/ coaching/mentoring qualification
• Management qualification or Training
• Project management qualification

Knowledge and Skills

Essential

• Commitment to equity, dignity, and patient choice.
• Ability to lead change and quality improvement.
• Evidence of analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to manage a complex workload under pressure and delegate in order to deliver to deadlines.
• Clear understanding of national NHS strategy and policy.
• Familiarity with current political, legal and business developments that impact upon service development in the NHS and hospice movement.

Experience

Essential

• Significant experience (at least 10 years) in specialist palliative and end-of-life care acquired in hospice, community, and/or acute settings.
• Proven senior clinical leadership experience.
• Experience influencing practice beyond own organisation
• Experience of leading on service improvement and transformation within healthcare.
• Evidence of involvement in management of significant sustainable change.
• Evidence of ability to deliver key performance targets, whilst maintaining quality standards.
• Evidence of developing and implementing sustainable strategic plans.
• Experience of interpretation of national policy, leading to local policy development and implementation.
• Advanced clinical assessment and decision-making skills.
• In depth understanding of policies and practices within Specialist Palliative Care.
• Exceptional communication skills (written and oral), including sensitive end-of-life conversations.
• Strong leadership, facilitation, and system-working capability.

Desirable

• Experience contributing to ICS or place-based strategies.
• Research, audit, or publication experience.
• Proven senior clinical leadership experience.

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).