East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust

Out-Patient Neuro Occupational Therapist and Hand Therapist

This job is now closed

Job summary

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Band 6 Neuro Occupational Therapist to join the Out-Patient Neuro Therapy service at EKHUFT and the Musculoskeletal Hand Therapy Service. This is a split post between two services where skills will be transferable. This exciting and new role within EKHUFT, will require service development knowledge and skills required for the post.

The successful candidate will have the opportunity to further develop and explore their Neuro Occupational Therapy and rehabilitation skills in an out-patient setting, to include thermoplastic splinting and group work including upper limb rehab.

The service treats a wide range of neurological conditions including Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson's Disease and Functional Movement Disorders. It is currently based within the out-patient therapies department at the William Harvey Hospital, Ashford and Buckland Hospital, Dover.The post holder will therefore be required to work across sites when needed, with the possibility of service development at other sites within the trust.

The Hand therapy service offers a wide range of experiences and conditions to expand your clinical hand treatment skills.

Main duties of the job

To be an autonomous practitioner who is able to independently and effectively self-manage a caseload of patients with complex needs within the specialty, in a time limited period.
To use evidence based, patient centred principles to assess, plan, implement and evaluate interventions, in order to minimise disability and maximise independence. The ability to empower our patients to self-manage their long-term neuro condition, is vital within this role
To provide 1:1 Neuro Occupational Therapy and group sessions.
To provide leadership, supervision and appraisal for junior, non-qualified staff and students.
To work collaboratively with the wider healthcare community in East Kent to integrate care for patients and to overcome challenges and barriers to rehabilitation.
Be able to use treatment media, signpost and recognise when to complete onward referrals to specialist teams, including tertiary centres.
To lead on and participate in the planning, development and evaluation of Occupational Therapy Services within the Out-Patient Neuro Therapy Service at East Kent Hospital University Foundation Trust, holding responsibility for defined projects.
To be forthcoming with innovative ideas for service development, in line with NICE guidance and local and national policies/procedures, for a sustainable, evidence based service
To deputise for Team Leader on clinical and managerial duties within the team.

About us

While working with us you can benefit from opportunities such as professional development to further education. We strive to offer a supportive environment for our staff and regularly run In-Service training; from supporting literature research to developing knowledge and up to date practice. The post holder will have access to regular supervision, including case reviews, supervised assessment and treatment sessions, in-service trainings and external courses.

EKHUFT is registered under The National Parkinson's Disease Audit, which the service has participated and completed twice over the last 4 years. This allows us to to share good practice and to shape the future of our services in line with national recommendations.

The successful candidate must have previous experience of working with neurologically impaired patients. So if you have what we are looking for and are keen to learn and develop get in touch & apply today.

Applications for this role should be written by the applicant. If artificial intelligence (AI) programmes are used then the application may be rejected due to this document being an important part of the assessment process. This does not prevent applicants seeking appropriate support with applications should they need to for the purposes of any declared disability.

Date posted

26 February 2024

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 6

Salary

£35,392 to £42,618 a year pro rata per annum

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time, Part-time, Job share, Flexible working

Reference number

344-8178DCB

Job locations

William Harvey Hospital

Kennington Road

Ashford

TN24 0LZ

Job description

Job responsibilities

To be professionally and legally accountable for all aspects of own practice, including the management of individuals in your care.

To effectively self manage a complex caseload within the Out-Patient Neuro Occupational Service.

To effectively self manage a musculoskeletal hand therapy caseload within the Hand Therapy Services.

To know the professional and personal scope of own practice and make onwards referrals, where indicated to GP/Specialist nurses/Consultants/External agencies.

To demonstrate specialist knowledge and understanding of the key concepts of biological, physical, social, psychological and clinical sciences in relation to Occupational Therapy and Neurological rehabilitation.

To provide a timely specialist Neuro Occupational Therapy/Hand therapy assessment using a high level of clinical reasoning skill to formulate an appropriate plan, working on the individuals goals.

To be flexible to work across sites to address service need, where required.

To triage referrals, providing specialist Neuro Occupational Therapy clinical reasoning skills to appropriately manage referrals into the service.

To complete timely discharge reports to the referring clinician, following an episode of intervention.

To be responsible for the assessment, prescription and evaluation of specialist equipment and adaptations for patients with multiple and complex needs.

To demonstrate a detailed clinical knowledge of a wide range of medical and neurological conditions

Spasticity management; to be able to advise, treat and recognise when onward referrals are required for further support with medication, Physiotherapy referral or BOTOX.

Splinting; To be able to fabricate and provide thermoplastic splints to address tonal changes and reduced activity within the upper limb.

To be able to use research, clinical reasoning and problem-solving skills to identify the therapeutic benefit of client centred interventions.

To use specialist knowledge, training and experience to plan and implement patient centred individual and/or group treatment programs for early intervention Parkinson's Disease patients and other neurological condition's

To be able to provide group therapy sessions for Parkinson's Disease, fatigue management and the Neuro upper limb.

To be able to formulate specific and appropriate treatment plans, goal setting, including setting of realistic time scales, for your own caseload and for patients referred to therapy assistants.

To lead on and participate in regular in-service training within the department.

Service development; as this is a new role the post holder will be required to develop the service in-line with evidence-based, local and national guidance. To provide a modern and sustainable Neuro Occupational Therapy Service in secondary care.