Community Diabetes Dietitian

Job responsibilities

Key results from the job holder

To work as an autonomous and clinically competent practitioner within the Community Dietetic Team assessing and giving highly specialist dietetic advice, treatment and dietary counselling to patients in consultant clinics, community clinics and client homes.

To undertake autonomous assessment and review for the management of complex caseload of diabetes, complications of diabetes and general clinic providing dietetic advice to adults, adolescents, carers and staff within agreed protocols / guidelines based on medical condition, social, cultural, anthropometric analysis, clinical chemistry and psychological factors.

To request clinical chemistry data to assess nutritional status.

To develop, monitor and review appropriate care plans, to meet the needs of individuals using complex numerical calculations, interpretation of clinical, biochemical and psychosocial information and analysis of nutritional intakes using specialist IT systems.

To provide tailored nutritional treatment plans to include carbohydrate counting education with appropriate advice for dose adjustment for normal eating and therapy to enable optimal glycaemic control to be maximised.

To provide diet and lifestyle advice to promote a healthy lifestyle in adults and young people with long term conditions to prevent long term complications.

Develop and modify dietetic treatment and discharge plans referring to other specialists and agencies as appropriate.

Judge the appropriateness of referrals, action dietetic management and advise referring agents of inappropriate referrals.

To recommend appropriate ACBS nutritional products, changes to medication, diagnostic tests and procedures and monitor their use.

Communicate complex nutrition and dietetic information in an understandable form to staff, clients and carers, using negotiation, motivation and counselling skills including situations where there are barriers to understanding.

To act as a source of expertise on nutrition and dietetic topics relating to adults with long term conditions advising and supporting qualified and unqualified healthcare staff and other agencies who are in a position to provide nutritional advice, aiming to ensure accurate and consistent advice and treatment is provided.

Work in conjunction with medical, nursing, professional colleagues and other agencies attending and supporting vulnerable adults in various care settings to include community clinics, home visits, multidisciplinary working and liaising with hospital wards to support prompt delivery of dietetic care.

Produce timely reports to referring Health Care Professionals regarding patient care.

To identify opportunities to promote health and using innovative methods to develop initiatives to enable the promotion of health. Maintain expertise in other areas of dietetics to ensure continuity of care.

To meet the standards of best practice in accordance with relevant NICE Guidelines.

To manage a defined caseload, working to agreed standards and protocols which reflect evidence based practice and client centred principles to assess, plan, implement and evaluate interventions.

To collect and assimilate information necessary to undertake nutritional assessment and determine nutritional needs of the patient including referral to other disciplines as appropriate.

Assesses and interprets the medical diagnoses and changes in medical condition of individual patient and understands how this affects nutritional management.

To communicate effectively with patients, relatives, care staff, and health care professionals to negotiating and supporting decision making in relation to therapeutic management and evaluating outcomes.

To be able to adapt the communication skills within a variety of settings using various approaches including knowledge of learning theories and barriers to learning.

To take part in clinical supervision and seek advice around any complex situations or residents from Senior Dietitians within the Nutrition Service.

To provide clinical education, advice and support for Dieticians, junior therapy staff, support staff and students.

To supervise, educate and assess the performance of therapy students.

To contribute to service research and audit activities.

To propose any service changes within own professional speciality area.

Qualifications

Essential

• Recognised Degree In Dietetics
• Registered with HCPC
• Evidence of CPD through maintenance of a portfolio
• Post graduate training in Diabetes education

Desirable

• Diabetes Specialist Interest Group BDA
• BDA memberships
• Knowledge of other diabetes specialist interest groups and platforms
• Clinical Educators/Student Assessment Skills course or equivalent
• NHS Experience

Experience

Essential

• DAFNE or Equivalent training and experience
• Evidence of working in area of diabetes service
• Evidence of working within MDT
• Experience of participating in service development
• NHS experience

Desirable

• EXTOD or Equivalent training
• Experience of working in pregnancy
• Experience of assessing and treating patients who do not speak English or have other barriers to communication
• Community working and working with patients in their own homes

Skills

Essential

• Demonstrates effective organisation and leadership skills
• Access to car for work purposes
• Good IT skills
• has excellent leadership skills
• Ability to pass on knowledge and skills to others in both formal and informal environments using a variety of teaching methods.

Desirable

• Ability to analyse data and activity accurately and objectively
• Ability to command confidence of other health professionals

Additional

Essential

• Confident, enthusiastic and self-motivated
• Dynamic and reliable with the ability to work flexibly in accordance with service needs
• Ability to travel independently throughout north Manchester and the Trust, fulfilling the travel requirements of the post.
• Ability to undertake light physical activity in a range of healthcare settings (community clinics, home visits, carry resources and scales to sessions)
• Speak English to an appropriate standard relevant to their role, i.e. with confidence and accuracy, using correct sentence structures and vocabulary, and without hesitation

Knowledge

Essential

• Demonstrates good working knowledge of clinical conditions specific to role
• Evidence of current emerging evidence in diabetes
• Understanding of all Diabetes medications
• Knowledge, recognition and nutritional management of diabetes complications.

Desirable

• Evidence of audit and evaluation of practice

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).