HIV Health Adviser

Job description

Job responsibilities

Job Description

Post: HIV Health Adviser

Base: Courtyard Clinic, St Georges Hospital, and also working

at other service sites within Wandsworth

Grade: Band 7

Hours of Work: 33.5 Hours per week

Reports to: HIV Team Lead

Trust Vision & Values

Our missionis to provide excellent clinical care, education and research to improve the health of the populations we serve.

Our visionis to become an excellent integrated care provider and a comprehensive specialist centre for south west London, Surrey and beyond with thriving programmes of education and research.

We expect all our staff to share the values that are important to the Trust; being Excellent, Kind, Responsible & Respectful, and behave in a way that reflect these.

Job Summary

The main components of the role of the Health Adviser are counselling, health education, partner notification, advocacy and safeguarding.The post involves working closely as part of the MDT to care for our cohort of people living with HIV. The work will cover both the out-patient based service, the in-patient ward, and other departments within the hospital. The post holder will need to have had significant experience working as a Health Adviser in either a HIV or sexual health setting.

The post will involve working closely with other Health Advisers as part of a small, supportive and effective team and liaising closely with HIV/Sexual Health clinics nationally.

To provide counselling support and health education to patients attending the HIV clinic and to those who are in-patient on the ward in relation to any aspect of their HIV care. This will include attending ward rounds.

To provide crisis intervention and on-going support as appropriate.

To identify patient risk and work with patients in promoting a healthier lifestyles approach, using evidence based motivational and risk reduction techniques.

To work with local services to support patients facing challenges around their alcohol/drug use.

To provide support, where appropriate, to partners, significant others and family members.

To provide psychological support for in-patients under the Infection Care Group.

Patient Safeguarding

To attend and take a key role in organising and managing the monthly HIV patient MDT meeting and other meetings as needed in the service.

To organise and attend relevant internal and external safeguarding meetings as required.

To complete safeguarding referrals to social services and other organisations as necessary.

To attend relevant safeguarding meetings.

To ensure all potential vertical HIV transmission cases are handled according to national guidelines.

To identify sexual contacts of patients diagnosed with HIV or sexually transmitted infections and facilitate their attendance at a clinic for testing and treatment. To fully document partner notification outcomes.

To audit PN outcomes on a regular basis.

To liaise with other HIV and sexual health clinics nationally to facilitate partner notification.

Person Specification

Education/Qualifications

Essential

• RGN/RMN or CQSW/DipSW qualified or hold a relevant degree or have extensive experience in field
• To have undergone counselling training and/or had supervised counselling experience

Experience

Essential

• Significant experience working as a HIV/Sexual Health
• Experience of one-to-one counselling

Skills

Essential

• Ability to communicate well with people on sensitive subjects in a non-judgmental way

Knowledge

Essential

• Up to date knowledge of HIV

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).

Employer details

Employer name

St George's University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Address

St Georges hospital

Blackshaw Road

London

SW17 0QT

Employer's website

https://www.stgeorges.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)