Job responsibilities
Main Functions
Named responsibility and professional accountability for the management of a defined caseload including the delegation of tasks to other members of the team.
Prescribe using the Nurse formulary and ensure that nurse prescribing is undertaken in a safe, cost effective manner.
Develop a caseload profile, identifying those groups with specific health needs and implement and evaluate programmes of care to target groups taking a case management approach.
Act in accordance with current local Warwickshire Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults and Trust guidelines/policy to protect vulnerable adults.
Act within the NMC Code of Professional Conduct.
Contribute towards ensuring the AHP & Nursing Strategy is implemented.
Provide appropriate nursing care to patients on the defined caseloads.
Provide specialist advice appropriate to health and social care to patients, carers, relatives and other agencies.
Participate in the development, training and mentorship of pre-registration students/medical students and staff as required including induction and preceptorship programmes.
To provide assistance with the resolution of complaints within the clinical speciality, or sphere of responsibility.
Communication
Develop and maintain effective communication networks including complex situations, with service users, health care professionals and other statutory and voluntary organisations.
Participate in discharge planning meetings to ensure continuity of health care.
Assist and participate in delivery of presentations to a variety of staff.
Analysis and Judgement
Promotes and maintains accurate record keeping and conforms to NMC policy and data protection legislation.
Uses resources effectively and being aware of budgetary constraints including ordering of equipment.
Planning and Organisational Skills
Supervise and direct work undertaken by other members of the skill mix team on a daily basis.
Direct responsibility for the day to day supervision and performance of the district nursing team.
Responsibility for Patient Care
Take responsibility for the complex and holistic assessment or delegation of planning, implementation and evaluation of care on an individual basis, utilising recognised models and tools, e.g. end of life care and long term conditions.
Named responsibility for the management of a defined caseload.
Acts as patients advocate where appropriate.
Be proactive in offering health promotion and participate in health promotion activities for a defined caseload.
Utilise health needs assessment for the local population.
Policy and Service Development
Understanding of national policy and guidance with the ability to interpret and implement at service level.
Participate in and contribute to service redesign and policy development to benefit patient care.
Responsibility for Human Resources
To identify workforce planning issues and actively participate in the recruitment, selection and retention of clinical staff.
Ensure team members are up to date with mandatory and statutory training.
Responsible for Performance Development Reviews for staff within the team.
Professional Responsibilities and Freedom to Act
Interpret national guidance on NMC guidelines.
Promote and participate in clinical supervision.
Maintain clinical and professional competencies in accordance with relevant statutory legislation and guidance relevant to health professionals and their services.
Responsibility for Research & Development
Ensure standards, protocols and policies are evidence based and applied to practice.
Keep abreast of current clinical issues thus always promoting best practice.
Critique and use research to inform practice.
Participates and leads when appropriate in clinical audits.
General
The post holder will be required to have access to independent means of transport for work purposes to travel across the Trust and to other agencies.
The Trust endorses the principle of whether people smoke or not is a matter of personal choice but where they smoke is a matter of public concern. The policy on smoking and health protects non-smokers and requires that all Trust premises are smoke free.
Physical and Mental Effort
The post holder will undertake people moving and handling on a daily basis. The handling of equipment e.g. hoists is integral to the post and may be required to be undertaken in confined spaces within patients homes.
The post holder will be required to operate as a lone worker in accordance with Trust policies and procedures.
The post holder may come into contact with bodily fluids including urine and faeces and exudate from wounds e.g. blood and pus.
Organisational Responsibilities
Information Security and Confidentiality
During the course of your employment you may have access to, see or hear information of a confidential nature and you are required not to disclose such information, particularly relating to patients or staff. All person identifiable information must be held in the strictest confidence and should be disclosed only to authorised people in accordance with NHS Confidentiality Guidelines and the Data Protection Act 1998 unless explicit written consent has been give by the person identified, or where information sharing protocols exist.
Health and Safety
Under the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, as an employee, you must take reasonable care for the health and safety of yourself and for other persons who may be affected by your acts or omissions at work. The Act also states that you must not intentionally or recklessly interfere with or misuse anything provided in the interests of health, safety and welfare. As an employee you are required to make yourself aware of Trusts health and safety policies and to report all accidents.
Standards for Better Health
The Standards for Better Health works as a framework for continuous improvement in quality of the care that people receive. As an employee you will be expected to work within this framework and assist with the process of ensuring that the Trust offers effective and high quality services.
Risk Management
Staff at all levels has a responsibility for ensuring that risks are managed at work group and local level. This process will include the assessment and effective control of all acceptable risk situations.
As an employee you will be expected to maintain a high level of awareness and assist in the process of reporting incidents, assessing risks and reporting unsafe occurrences and co-operate with any investigations undertaken.
Employees will be required to adhere to all Trust policies and procedures and attend statutory and mandatory training.
Equality & Diversity Aims
As a member of staff at the Trust you have a personal responsibility to ensure you do not discriminate, harass or bully or contribute to the discrimination, harassment or bullying of any colleague(s), patients, carers or visitors or condone discrimination, harassment or bullying by others.
Development
All employees have a responsibility to participate in regular performance and development reviews with their manager where they will identify performance standards for the post. As part of the appraisal process there is a joint manager/staff responsibility to identify learning and development needs to meet the performance standards required of the post holder.
Standards of Business Conduct & Conflict of Interest
The NHS Code of Conduct and Standards of Business conduct for NHS Staff require all employees to declare all situations where you or a close relative or associate has a controlling interest in a business [such as a private company, public organisation or other NHS or voluntary organisation] or in any activity which may compete for any NHS contracts to supply goods or services to the Trust. All such interests must be declared in WCHs register of interests either on appointment or when such interests are gained.
