Learning Disabilities and Autism Acute Liaison Practitioner

Job responsibilities

PLEASE REFER TO THE ATTACHED JOB DESCRIPTION FOR FULL DUTIES OF THE ROLE.

• The post holder will act in accordance with their active professional body, i.e. NMC, HCPC or SWE.
• The post holder will support the management of care for people with a learning disability and autism when an inpatient in an acute ward. This will be both through admission and discharge, working collaboratively with internal and external agencies such as Local Authority and community teams to plan and facilitate safe transitions.
• The post holder carries continuing responsibility for the holistic assessment of care needs, the development, implementation and evaluation of programmes of care and the setting of standards for those adults with Learning Disabilities and/or Autism.
• The post holder will provide specialist clinical care and advice to patients with a learning disability and autism or both, and to the professionals who support them offering advice and guidance on Health Passports and Reasonable Adjustments required to gain best outcomes for the patient.
• The postholder will contribute to the development of the Learning Disability and Autism Service alongside the learning disability community team by facilitating innovation and the development of evidence based nursing and multi-professional practice.
• The post holder will work within the acute Trust to help develop a culture that will support improvement and innovation in clinical practice and empowerment of practitioners.
• The post holder will be responsible for direct and indirect patient care, in line with Trust policies.
• The post holder will devise and deliver training to acute colleagues regarding supporting adults with learning disabilities and autism and the role of reasonable adjustments and the liaison nurse.
• The postholder will engage, enable and empower other professionals across the acute trust services to establish high-quality, compassionate, person-centred healthcare for our patients who have a learning disability and are autistic.
• The post holder must comply with the trusts vision, values and behavioural compact.

Qualifications

Essential

• Registered Learning Disability/Adult Nurse or Allied Health Professional or Social Worker.
• Current professional registration with professional body (NMC, HCPC or SWE)
• Evidence of continued professional development.
• Willing to undergo training relevant to role.

Desirable

• Trained in Total Communication methods.
• Evidence of post graduate study.

Skills

Essential

• Excellent interpersonal skills.
• Evidence of innovation within teams
• Flexibility, adaptable, capable of lateral thinking.
• Excellent communication skills, in a range of styles to suit the audience.
• Proven leadership within the workplace
• Excellent IT skills, including Microsoft office and clinical systems.
• Ability to use research and integrate the evidence base into practice.
• Complex reasoning and critical thinking skills, to inform decision making.
• Ability to write care plans, then monitor and evaluate outcomes.
• Ability to work under pressure across competing priorities.
• Ability to communicate empathetically with Patients, Relatives and/ or Carers when discussing/ explaining clinical conditions, including potentially distressing and sensitive information such as breaking bad news.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.

Experience

Essential

• Significant experience working at band 5 or above, with evidence of applying knowledge to a broad range of clinically and professionally challenging situations.
• Relevant and recent experience of providing clinical support to people with a Learning Disability and Autism as part of a multidisciplinary team (MDT).
• Experience of management and supervision.
• Experience of clinical audit and standard setting.
• Experience working with adults with additional needs.
• Experience delivering training in specialist area.
• Experience of service user involvement Groups.
• Robust knowledge of the MCA/ MHA frameworks and experience supporting decision making in a patients best interests.
• To understand the need for confidentiality in accordance with both the Data Protection Act and national / local guidelines.
• Experience of working in a team, the ability to work independently with self-motivation and without direct supervision.
• Experience of managing a team.
• Knowledge of health issues and health systems within the learning disabilities environment.

Desirable

• Service development and/or change management.
• Experience working with all aged clients.

Physical Skills

Essential

• Manual dexterity for accurate use of computer systems.
• Ability to move equipment required for training sessions e.g. laptop.
• Ability to navigate and walk within the trust main centres.
• Ability to travel across hospital sites where necessary.
• Ability to work at the patients level.
• May need to occasionally push wheelchairs.

Knowledge

Essential

• Current issues in healthcare, including health inequality.
• Awareness of national and local NHS plans for people with Learning Disability, Autism or both.
• Understanding of the wider health community Standards of professional practice.
• Understanding of the local and national agendas for learning disability and autism.
• Understanding of the Learning Disability and Autism Improvement Standards.
• Awareness of STSFT guidelines and policies.
• Understanding of STSFT organisational structures.

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

UK Registration

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