Job responsibilities
JOB
PURPOSE
Provide
advanced, highly specialised dietetic care to patients at local and regional
level. This will include advice to patients and all healthcare staff. Provide
and lead aspects of clinical training of dietetic students. Support Clinical
dietetic Manager in co-ordinating activities of the team and providing
support and supervision to staff. Lead in research and audit within
specialised clinical area and disseminate findings.
3. JOB DIMENSIONS
The
post holder will:
3.1 Lead in a clinical specialist area.
3.2 Manage own caseload and supervise the
caseloads of the other dietetic staff.
3.3 Assist and support the Clinical
Dietetic Manager/line manager in the day to day management of the team of
dietitians and students.
3.4 Deliver and supervise training to
healthcare staff, dietitians and students at local and regional level, acting
as a resource in the specialist area.
3.5 Be a core member of the
multidisciplinary care team, liaising with other members of the team to
provide integrated dietetic care.
3.6 Initiate and co-ordinate research and
audit projects within specialised area and disseminate findings at conference
level.
3.7 Be an active member of the out of
hours service.
KNOWLEDGE,
SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE REQUIRED
5.1 BSc (Hons) Nutrition & Dietetics
or equivalent
5.2 HCPC Registration as a Dietitian.
5.3 Experience of working in a senior
dietetic role.
5.4
Willing to undergo any training
as required to enable performance in the
job.
5.5 Advanced knowledge of current issues
in clinical specialist area.
5.6 Able to work within a team,
demonstrating leadership, initiative and confidence.
5.7 Good written, oral and interpersonal
communication skills.
5.8 Able to demonstrate excellent time
management and organisational skills.
5.9 Proactive in day to day clinical and
non-clinical management.
5.10 Good presentation skills in delivering
training to large multidisciplinary groups of staff or members of the public.
(this may involve groups of more than 50 people).
8. CORE BEHAVIOURS AND SKILLS
8.1 Demonstrate excellent office practice
in accordance with departmental policies and procedures.
8.2 Be a pro-active team member of the of
the Dietetic department at LTHT by participating in departmental development
projects, attending and participating in department meetings and clinical
updates.
8.3 Demonstrate the ability to communicate
highly complex specialised and sensitive information with empathy and
understanding.
8.4
Demonstrate the ability to
provide highly complex nutrition counselling to patients, requiring cognitive
behaviour therapy skills to overcome barriers to change.
8.5 Demonstrate the ability to analyse,
investigate and assess highly complex clinical and non-clinical information
to form accurate nutrition care plans in highly complex and specialist area.
8.6 Demonstrate analytical skills in
prioritising the best course of dietetic treatment in patients with highly
complex clinical conditions, where nutritional goals may conflict with other
on-going physical, emotional, psychological and medical problems and a range
of treatment options must be assessed and considered.
8.7 Be a recognised resource in a
specialist clinical area at a regional level.
9. CORE KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING
9.1 Ability to perform advanced
nutritional assessments in respective clinical area, interpret and plan
relevant dietetic care programmes for patients with highly complex
nutritional and medical needs which requires judgement and consideration of a
range of treatment options.
9.2 Advanced knowledge of biochemistry,
physiology and specialised pharmacology.
9.3 Understanding of the calculations
required in dietetic assessment.
9.4 Ability to correctly interpret complex
nutritional impairments, biochemical parameters and fluid balance. This will
involve nutritional diagnosis including interpretation of biochemistry,
anthropometrics, clinical condition, social factors and diet histories in
patients with highly specialised and complex nutritional needs.
9.5 Highly specialist knowledge in
interpreting complex clinical information to develop and monitor nutritional
care plans in a specialised dietetic area. This will include the prescription
of dietary treatment, prescribable nutritional products, enteral and total
parenteral nutrition qualified supplementary or independent prescribers
annotated on the HCPC register, may prescribe medicines within scope of
practice. This will be within a defined clinical speciality and will be as
per LTHT non-medical prescribing policy.
9.6 Responsible for safe discharge
planning, including co-ordination of discharge of patients on home enteral
feeding.
9.7 Able to evaluate, develop and
implement practice using evidence based practice and critical appraisal.
9.8 Ability to advise and suggest
nutrition-related medications.
9.9 Knowledge of clinical governance,
quality of care and evidence based practice in specialist area.
9.10
Awareness of national guidance and
driving factors in specialist area.
10. PRINCIPAL DUTIES & AREAS OF
RESPONSIBILITY
10.1 Clinical and professional
10.1.1 Be an autonomous practitioner, clinically,
legally and professionally responsible for own caseload.
10.1.2 Responsible for undertaking dietetic
clinical duties in specialised clinical area, managing and prioritising own
clinical caseload.
10.1.3
Collect analyse and record relevant patient information from clinical and
patient sources to develop effective nutritional care plans.
10.1.4 Communicate complex dietetic treatment and
advice of patients to healthcare staff, professionals and patient carers.
This will involve co-ordinating nutritional care with other Trusts and
regional centres.
10.1.5 Undertake advanced assessments of patients
with diverse and highly complex nutritional issues where investigative and
analytical skills are required to formulate accurate treatment plans.
10.1.6 Responsible for providing highly
specialised dietary advice within an in-patient and out-patient setting, to
patients in a distinct specialist area. Eg advice to renal dialysis patient
on calcium and phosphate management, oncology patients on enteral feeding,
cystic fibrosis patient on fat intake and enzyme replacement therapy.
10.1.7 Responsible for developing and maintaining
own expertise and agreed level of expertise of team members by updating own
specialised clinical knowledge and skills. This will include developing
regional networks within the specialist and attending local, regional and
national professional interest group meetings.
10.1.8 Participate in the appraisal process as an
appraiser and appraise, developing a strategy for personal and continuous
professional interest group meetings.
10.1.9 Responsible for implementing clinical
governance and risk assessment in respective specialised clinical area as
part of continuing quality improvement e.g. advise patients and staff on
infection control issues around enteral feeding.
10.1.10Undertake
research and audit within specialist area using research methodology. This
wills involve identifying, co-ordinating and evaluating research and audit
projects to measure clinical effectiveness and promote evidence based
practice.
10.1.11
Expectation to attend regional and national conferences as a delegate and
presenter. This will include both verbal and poster presentations.
10.1.12
Undertake any other duties appropriate to the grade as requested by line
manager.
10.2 Education and training
10.2.1 Devise and implement
specialised nutritional care plans for inpatients and outpatients by
interpreting national guidelines, standards and National Service Frameworks
for use in specialist area. This will involve advising patients, relatives or
carers, individually or in a group setting.
10.2.2
Provide effective oral and written specialised dietetic advice and
information to patients, and their carers, to enable achievement of dietary
aims.
10.2.3 Lead the development of resources used in
the education and training of patients, health professionals and the public
at local and regional level.
10.2.4
Provide postgraduate training on a
range of subjects within specialist area to multidisciplinary groups and
audiences at local and regional level. This will involve medical, dietetic,
nursing staff and other healthcare professionals.
10.2.5
Train ward staff to use dietetic, nursing staff and other healthcare
professionals.
10.2.6
Use developed communication and
teaching skills to educate a diverse and multicultural population with
barriers to understanding the essential, highly complex dietary exchange
systems. This may be on an individual or group basis.
10.2.7
Be an active member of the in-service
training programme through delivery of training sessions and tutorials at
staff meeting and by attending external courses and demonstrating reflective
practice.
10.2.8 Responsible for aspects of student
training. This will include liaison with training provider, allocation of
student to members of staff, involvement in programme design, clinical
supervision and acting mentor as required
10.2.9 To develop, implement and audit innovative
methods of delivering education sessions e.g. group workshops for patients
and their carers.
Managerial
10.3.1 Lead and disseminate expert clinical
information to other members of the multidisciplinary team by attendance and
participation in ward rounds and case conferences as required.
10.3.2 Involved I the planning, setting and
monitoring of departmental and team objectives and standards. This will
include contributing to the adaptation of national BDA special interest group
standards for use in the local setting.
10.3.3 Undertakes research and audit. Recommends
and implements changes to practice.
