Job summary
Clinical Specialist Occupational Therapist - Neonates
Band 8a 0.4 wte/15 hours per week
A brand-new exciting opportunity has arisen at the Trust. We are looking for a clinical specialist occupational therapist to lead the service across our neonatal units. The post holder will act as an expert resource, support a small neonatal occupational therapy service and work in conjunction with the acute paediatric physiotherapy clinical lead to deliver expert neonatal therapy services.
You'll be supported by a friendly acute paediatric physiotherapy team and a supportive neonatal MDT which will include a small team of Speech and Language Therapists, Dietitians, Physiotherapists and OTs.
The level 3 unit at the Chelsea site is the surgical centre for North West London. We are looking for someone with expert skills in the acute neonatal environment who is enthusiastic about developing and integrating a new service for the units. The post holder will work with the neonatal MDT to deliver and evaluate family integrated care models and will report back to the operational delivery network leads on KPIs to evaluate the role and identify areas for service growth.
As this is a new role and service to the Trust, we would particularly welcome applications from someone interested in service design and development and service evaluation. Please don't hesitate to get in touch for more information.
Main duties of the job
- To work as a clinical expert in the occupational therapy management of infants on the neonatal units.
- To promote infant neurodevelopment on the neonatal unit.
- To take responsibility and be accountable for developmental care.
- To provide leadership, direction, teaching and support to facilitate high quality individualised care to infants and parents/carers in collaboration with the MDT.
- To develop the service in accordance with local and national targets and government directives.
- To provide specialist advice within the neonatal services across the Trust and within the national operational delivery network (ODN) as required.
- To carry out detailed neurodevelopmental and neurobehavioural observations of infants using advanced skills.
- To maintain good communication and relationships with London neonatal operational delivery network leads and maintain a profile within the network.
- To manage complex and vulnerable infants and any challenging family situations.
- To ensure occupational therapy clinical guidelines and referral criteria are in-line with latest evidence.
- To benchmark service provision against national recommendations and develop/advise on any service improvement projects.
- To provide clinical supervision and peer support to teams within the Trust and within local network.
- To be an expert resource for occupational therapy opinion to the neonatal MDT.
About us
About the Trust
Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust provide services from two main hospitals, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and West Middlesex University Hospital, and a number of clinics across London and the South-East.We have nearly 7,000 members of staff that are PROUD to Care for nearly one million people. Both hospitals provide full clinical services, including full maternity, emergency and children's, in addition to a range of community-based services across London, such as award-winning sexual health and HIV clinics.
We're one of the best performing Trusts in the country. We're also one of the top trusts to work for - our staff says they're engaged, motivated, and would recommend us as a place to work and receive treatment. Our Trust has been rated by the Care Quality Commission as 'Good' in all five of the main domains of safe, effective, caring, responsive and well-led, giving an us overall rating of 'Good'. We've also been awarded an 'Outstanding' rating for 'use of resources' by an NHS Improvement inspection.
Our facilities are some of the best in the country. We have been investing significant Capital year on year in our estate. We have recently completed a £30m expansion of our adult and neonatal critical care facilities at Chelsea and Westminster and are planning an ambitious £60m development of an Ambulatory Diagnostics Centre at West Middlesex.
Job description
Job responsibilities
- To be a clinical expert in the occupational therapy management of infants on the neonatal unit, ensuring appropriate referral criteria in place, appropriate time frames for review and smooth referral pathways to other services or transition to paediatric wards.
- To autonomously manage a highly specialised clinical neonatal caseload for neonates with complex medical, surgical, neurodevelopmental, social and emotional challenges throughout their admission.
- To carry out highly specialised assessments, acting as a source of expertise, using advanced and complex clinical reasoning skills, demonstrating critical thinking, reflection, evidence-based practice and analysis to implement and evaluate individualised infant and family-centred developmental care programmes.
- To use advanced clinical assessment skills (e.g. Prechtl, NBAS, NIDCAP) to formulated detailed neurodevelopmental and neurobehavioural observations of infants using advanced skills and to assess physiological, motor, sensory, state regulation and cognitive behaviours.
- To provide specialist support for colleagues and the families of babies in managing expectations around potential recovery, helping them to understand and plan for short/long term disability.
- To apply an advanced level of understanding to the effect of preterm birth, perinatal problems and congenital disabilities on the development and lifestyle of infants and their families and make appropriate recommendations for intervention and support.
- To apply an advanced level of understanding about the impact of the environment on the wellbeing of infants, families and staff, taking the lead in evaluating and adapting the environment for optimal benefit.
- To provide individual patient equipment as required. This will include evaluating and recommending developmental care aids and adaptations, and modifications to the environment at large. To issue any equipment with due regard to safety and in line with local and national guidelines.
- To be professionally and legally responsible for all aspects of your work, including the management of infants on the neonatal unit by other members of the occupational therapy team.
- To act as an expert opinion in neonatal occupational therapy for therapy teams both locally within the Trust and across North West London sector.
- To engage with national neonatal groups.
- To keep up to date with latest evidence and developments in neonatal care, and disseminate information within the Trust as appropriate.
- To provide peer support and clinical supervision to the paediatric/neonatal therapy teams and other members of the MDT as required.
- To support more junior therapy and other allied health professional staff, often in the most highly complex presentations, in the development of their assessment, treatment and clinical reasoning skills to ensure a high standard of care to neonatal infants and their families.
- To prepare, update and monitor developmental care competencies and induction training for medical, nursing and therapy staff.
- To provide accurate written records of assessment and input according to trust standards, including providing a high standard report/discharge summary as indicated.
- To be aware of boundaries of own scope of practice and to effectively manage associated clinical risk at all times.
- To work with the divisional therapy lead and neonatal physios, SLTs and dietitians in developing and implementing strategic and operational improvements to the AHP role in neonatal care. This will include evaluating and measuring impact of the AHP roles on the units.
For more details please see JD
Job description
Job responsibilities
- To be a clinical expert in the occupational therapy management of infants on the neonatal unit, ensuring appropriate referral criteria in place, appropriate time frames for review and smooth referral pathways to other services or transition to paediatric wards.
- To autonomously manage a highly specialised clinical neonatal caseload for neonates with complex medical, surgical, neurodevelopmental, social and emotional challenges throughout their admission.
- To carry out highly specialised assessments, acting as a source of expertise, using advanced and complex clinical reasoning skills, demonstrating critical thinking, reflection, evidence-based practice and analysis to implement and evaluate individualised infant and family-centred developmental care programmes.
- To use advanced clinical assessment skills (e.g. Prechtl, NBAS, NIDCAP) to formulated detailed neurodevelopmental and neurobehavioural observations of infants using advanced skills and to assess physiological, motor, sensory, state regulation and cognitive behaviours.
- To provide specialist support for colleagues and the families of babies in managing expectations around potential recovery, helping them to understand and plan for short/long term disability.
- To apply an advanced level of understanding to the effect of preterm birth, perinatal problems and congenital disabilities on the development and lifestyle of infants and their families and make appropriate recommendations for intervention and support.
- To apply an advanced level of understanding about the impact of the environment on the wellbeing of infants, families and staff, taking the lead in evaluating and adapting the environment for optimal benefit.
- To provide individual patient equipment as required. This will include evaluating and recommending developmental care aids and adaptations, and modifications to the environment at large. To issue any equipment with due regard to safety and in line with local and national guidelines.
- To be professionally and legally responsible for all aspects of your work, including the management of infants on the neonatal unit by other members of the occupational therapy team.
- To act as an expert opinion in neonatal occupational therapy for therapy teams both locally within the Trust and across North West London sector.
- To engage with national neonatal groups.
- To keep up to date with latest evidence and developments in neonatal care, and disseminate information within the Trust as appropriate.
- To provide peer support and clinical supervision to the paediatric/neonatal therapy teams and other members of the MDT as required.
- To support more junior therapy and other allied health professional staff, often in the most highly complex presentations, in the development of their assessment, treatment and clinical reasoning skills to ensure a high standard of care to neonatal infants and their families.
- To prepare, update and monitor developmental care competencies and induction training for medical, nursing and therapy staff.
- To provide accurate written records of assessment and input according to trust standards, including providing a high standard report/discharge summary as indicated.
- To be aware of boundaries of own scope of practice and to effectively manage associated clinical risk at all times.
- To work with the divisional therapy lead and neonatal physios, SLTs and dietitians in developing and implementing strategic and operational improvements to the AHP role in neonatal care. This will include evaluating and measuring impact of the AHP roles on the units.
For more details please see JD
Person Specification
Qualification
Essential
- BSc or equivalent in occupational therapy
- HCPC
- RCOT membership
- FINE 1 and FINE 2 completed
- Relevent post graduate courses or CPD
Desirable
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working in a neonatal unit
- Experience of MDT working and facilitating change
- Experience of teaching to a variety of audiences
- Expereince of audit/service evaluation
Skills and Knowledge
Essential
- Advanced understanding of OT role in neonates
- Advanced knowledge of newborn development
- Advanced clinical reasoning/problem solving skills
- Excellent communication skills including negotiation and influencing
Person Specification
Qualification
Essential
- BSc or equivalent in occupational therapy
- HCPC
- RCOT membership
- FINE 1 and FINE 2 completed
- Relevent post graduate courses or CPD
Desirable
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working in a neonatal unit
- Experience of MDT working and facilitating change
- Experience of teaching to a variety of audiences
- Expereince of audit/service evaluation
Skills and Knowledge
Essential
- Advanced understanding of OT role in neonates
- Advanced knowledge of newborn development
- Advanced clinical reasoning/problem solving skills
- Excellent communication skills including negotiation and influencing
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).
Additional information
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).