Job summary
Are you passionate about food, nutrition and health? Do you like supporting patients that are unwell in hospital with eating and drinking? Then this may be the post for you. The nutrition and dietetic department at University Hospitals Birmingham has an exciting opportunity for a Dietetic Assistant to join the dietetic team.
We are seeking an enthusiastic, highly motivated team player to join our busy Dietetics department. The post will involve working with head and neck cancer patients' post-surgery, throughout radiotherapy, and post radiotherapy under the guidance of head and neck Dietitians. The successful applicant should be flexible and adaptable with good time management ability, as well as having excellent organisational skills and a friendly manner.
The role will include liaison with a wide range of multidisciplinary staff, patients and relatives so the successful post holder will have excellent interpersonal skills. In addition to supporting the inpatient Dietetic team on the wards, completing anthropometrics, and telephone reviews, there will be additional administrative and audit work. Whilst no previous nutrition or dietetic training is required for this role an interest in this area is required.
The dietetic department at QEHB has a robust CPD program, and is committed to providing excellent line management, supervision/support, specialist training and other forms of continuous professional development.
Main duties of the job
Main duties include:
-Completing anthropometrics on inpatients and outpatients and supporting outpatient clinics.
-Support patient reviews and follow up calls under dietitian supervision
-Providing administrative support to dietitians and maintaining databases
-Assisting with home enteral feeding equipment when needed
-Contributing to audits when required
-Work with other members of the wider MDT
About us
University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust strives to have an inclusive culture where everyone feels like they belong, can thrive, knows that they add value and feels valued. We do this by developing compassionate and culturally competent leaders, being values driven in all that we do and by creating a welcoming and inclusive workplace that thrives on the diversity of our people. As such we want to attract and recruit talented individuals from all backgrounds, and for each of you to feel supported for the diversity you bring, to achieve your full potential. For those staff with a disability, including physical disability, long term health condition, mental health or neurodiverse condition, this also means being committed to making reasonable adjustments needed for you to carry out your role.
Job description
Job responsibilities
*Please Note : For a detailed job description for this vacancy, please see attached Job Description*
Job description
Job responsibilities
*Please Note : For a detailed job description for this vacancy, please see attached Job Description*
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Educated to GCSE level or equivalent in Maths / English / Science
- Educated to N.V.Q. level 3 or equivalent eg: completion of a BDA validated on the job dietetic assistant training programme or equivalent comparable experience
Experience
Essential
- Significant experience of working in an acute healthcare setting either
- -as a dietetic assistant
- or
- -significant experience of working in a clinical environment and with Neurosurgery or similar patients
- Significant experience of working with the general public
- Experience of working as part of a team
Desirable
- Experience of using a full range of NHS computer programmes
- Background knowledge of nutrition and its importance in patient treatment
- Basic knowledge of nutrition and the importance of dietary treatment
- Basic understanding of the impact of diagnosis and potentially lifelong treatment for patients with Long term conditions patients
- Awareness of local needs of specific patient group e.g. ethnic groups, learning difficulties, young people
- Knowledge of computer programmes e.g. email, spreadsheets, data bases, patient information programmes and appointment systems
Additional Criteria
Essential
- Good written and verbal communication skills -- able to deal with complex sensitive issues on a one to one basis, with people who may have communication difficulties, in a group setting or via interpreters
- Good interpersonal skills showing care and sensitivity to the needs of patients, carers, staff and colleagues
- Ability to reassure, motivate and persuade patients to change
- Good time management skills with the ability to prioritise own workload and meet deadlines
- Good organisational skills
- Ability to work as part of a team
- Ability to use own initiative and deal with non-routine issues in relation to patient care
- Demonstrates interest and enthusiasm for nutrition
- Enthusiasm and motivation to work at UHB
- Commitment to CPD
- Motivated to develop the service
- Ability to work weekends as part of a 7 day working pattern (when appropriate service delivery allows and commences)
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Educated to GCSE level or equivalent in Maths / English / Science
- Educated to N.V.Q. level 3 or equivalent eg: completion of a BDA validated on the job dietetic assistant training programme or equivalent comparable experience
Experience
Essential
- Significant experience of working in an acute healthcare setting either
- -as a dietetic assistant
- or
- -significant experience of working in a clinical environment and with Neurosurgery or similar patients
- Significant experience of working with the general public
- Experience of working as part of a team
Desirable
- Experience of using a full range of NHS computer programmes
- Background knowledge of nutrition and its importance in patient treatment
- Basic knowledge of nutrition and the importance of dietary treatment
- Basic understanding of the impact of diagnosis and potentially lifelong treatment for patients with Long term conditions patients
- Awareness of local needs of specific patient group e.g. ethnic groups, learning difficulties, young people
- Knowledge of computer programmes e.g. email, spreadsheets, data bases, patient information programmes and appointment systems
Additional Criteria
Essential
- Good written and verbal communication skills -- able to deal with complex sensitive issues on a one to one basis, with people who may have communication difficulties, in a group setting or via interpreters
- Good interpersonal skills showing care and sensitivity to the needs of patients, carers, staff and colleagues
- Ability to reassure, motivate and persuade patients to change
- Good time management skills with the ability to prioritise own workload and meet deadlines
- Good organisational skills
- Ability to work as part of a team
- Ability to use own initiative and deal with non-routine issues in relation to patient care
- Demonstrates interest and enthusiasm for nutrition
- Enthusiasm and motivation to work at UHB
- Commitment to CPD
- Motivated to develop the service
- Ability to work weekends as part of a 7 day working pattern (when appropriate service delivery allows and commences)
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.
