Junior Sister

Job responsibilities

KEY PERFORMANCE AREAS

1.0 OPERATIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES

1.1 Responsibilities for establishing and maintaining communication and relationship both

internally and externally.

1.2 Establish and maintain effective communication and foster good working relationships with all multidisciplinary teams, both internal and external.

1.3 Provide and receive complex and / or sensitive information from patients and staff. For example, breaking bad news to patients, giving complex information about procedures and their outcomes, dealing with performance issues, holding staff meetings. Able to support and talk to distressed patients, visitors, and staff members.

1.4 Responsible for cascading information to ward staff and chairing staff meetings from which minutes are provided.

1.5 Make use of electronic internal / external mail and Internet systems as appropriate and

necessary.

1.6 Deal effectively with comments, complaints, or incidents that affect staff and users of the ward in accordance with complaints, risk management, or human resources procedures.

1.7 Bring to the attention of the Senior Sister/Charge any factors which may adversely affect patient care or service provision.

1.8 Report all serious incidents to the appropriate Manager/Director within 24 hours; these include Never Events, serious falls, and grade 3 or 4 pressure ulcers.

2.0 KNOWLEDGE SKILLS & EXPERIENCE (also see person specification)

2.1 Be knowledgeable about the specific care requirements of patients who may be admitted to the area.

2.2 Be knowledgeable about current infection control procedures and policies and ensure all staff and visitors adhere to these at all times.

2.3 Be knowledgeable about the risks of infection and take responsibility for minimising cross infection within the clinical environment, assist in giving information and placing patients appropriately.

2.4 Be knowledgeable about all aspects of Acute Medical care.

2.5 Ensure that patient care is evidence based and that the patients journey is streamlined.

2.6 Use a wide range of knowledge in determining at the time of assessment or admission, the most appropriate and safe patient pathway.

2.7 Identify, assess, and act accordingly at any point on the pathway including discharge when patients are no longer meeting the agreed appropriate and safe patient pathway.

2.8 Assess and act upon potential problems or issues to ensure a safe, effective environment for staff, patients, and visitors.

2.9 Identify, analyse, and act upon staff situations when there is conflict and / or deviation from Trust or local policies and procedures.

2.10 Identify, analyse, action and discuss with Senior Sister/Charge Nurse as appropriate any change management issues that arise.

Planning and organisational skills

2.11 Assist in planning of duty rotas or alter planned rotas to ensure maximum service delivery, standards of patient care and human, and resource management. Use e-rostering as it becomes available.

2.12 Assist Senior Sister/Charge Nurse by utilising available resources to ensure safe and effective patient care e.g. periods of unplanned staff absence and / or equipment failure.

2.13 Be aware of Trust financial position and target objectives and ensure that ward area is as effective as possible in meeting these objectives.

2.14 Work with the multi disciplinary team to streamline care and shorten patient length of stay.

12.15 Work with the multi disciplinary team towards protocol led discharge for suitable patients.

2.16 Participate in Directorate/Departmental Sisters meetings

2.17 Be involved in practice development and patient experience issues.

3.0 RESPONSIBILITIES FOR PATIENT CARE THERAPY & TREATMENT

3.1 Oversee set patient care programmes in accordance with agreed policies, using expert nursing experience and skills.

3. 2 Ensure that safe and effective nursing care is delivered, this to be in accordance with Trust policies and best practice guidelines, also Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) Codes of Practice and guidelines.

3.3 Act as a role model when carrying out and demonstrating demonstrating nursing care and procedures.

3.4 Ensure all staff carry out all appropriate general risk assessments within 24 hours of admission document and plan care accordingly e.g. manual handling, pressure risks, slips trips and falls, nutrition.

3.5 Ensure clinical staff assess the conditions of patients within the clinical area, ensuring that signs and symptoms are acted upon accordingly and in a timely fashion.

3.6 Ensure clinical area staff effectively manage the admission, transfer, and discharge of patients while incorporating other relevant Trust policies, for example Patients Property.

3.7 Ensure clinical area staff carry out appropriate nutritional risk assessments and follow current policies as indicated e.g. red tray policy, protected mealtimes.

3.8 Ensure clinical area staff participate in delivery of meals to patients and take responsibility for monitoring and recording dietary and fluid intake for group of patients.

3.9 Undertake nurse led services which will include autonomous nurse led discharge within defined protocols where appropriate.

3.10 Supervision of, and participation in the discharge planning system and process and deal with speciality or complex plans of care by liaison with community nursing services and other agencies.

3.12 Work with patients, carers/relatives, nursing and other healthcare professionals in secondary care to promote timely discharge, through appropriate discharge planning.

6.13 Provide telephone advice to patients and / or their carers as appropriate

6.15 Provide expert advice and support to colleagues in the care and management of patients within speciality.

6.16 Actively contribute to the health and well being of patients by promoting health through a number of methods e.g. healthy eating, exercise and smoking cessation.

6.17 Ensure accurate, comprehensive contemporaneous and clear documentation of patients care.

6.18 Ensure that own and others written reports are in accordance with Trust policy and NMC guidelines

6.19 Be familiar with the policy for safe administration of prescribed therapies, including Medicines Management, Intravenous Therapy, Patient Group Directives, clinical guidelines for example Diabetes, Warfarin.

6.20 Demonstrate the ability to safely monitor and provide care for the patient once therapies have been administered.

4.0 RESPONSIBILITIES FOR DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF POLICY AND/OR SERVICES

4.1 At all times act in accordance with Trust policies, procedures and guidelines and NMC Codes of Practice standards and guidelines.

4. 2 Be aware of and support policies and procedures existing and being introduced throughout the Trust

4.3 Assist Senior Sister/Charge Nurse by cascading information and new policies and guidelines to staff in the clinical area

4.4 Represent clinical area at forums and meetings as requested by Senior Sister/Charge Nurse.

4.5 Assist Senior Sister/Charge Nurse in staff appraisal and the progress of staff while completing goals and development plans.

4. 6 Assist Senior Sister/Charge Nurse in the formulation of induction and training programmes and assist in the delivery of these to staff and learner nurses.

4.7 Undertake agreed mandatory training and to seek out opportunities to enhance knowledge, skills and develop practice.

4.8 Participate in the teaching and development of staff and ensure records kept of all training activities within the department. Ensure these records are sent to the Training department to maintain the ESR (electronic staff record).

4.9 Ensure risk assessment of working environment and conditions, equipment, chemicals and activities is routinely carried out within the department.

10.1 Work with the team to ensure written patient information is current, evidence based and available for patients and their relatives.

10.2 Assist Senior Sister /Charge Nurse in ensuring internal staff records are updated on a regular basis e.g. staff absences.

10.3 Assist Senior Sister /Charge Nurse in entering all the required key performance indicators (KPI) (e.g. commode audits) onto the web based system on a regular basis.

10.4 Assist Senior Sister/ Charge Nurse in ensuring reviewing incidents that occur within or relating to the ward and produce reports as required Disseminate the learning that arises from the reports and subsequent actions.

10.5 Assist Senior Sister/ Charge Nurse in ensuring all staff have basic computer literacy and are able to access results, admit and discharge on PAS, enter data onto the electronic handover sheet.

10.6 Assist Senior Sister/ Charge Nurse in ensuring all clinical area resources are up to date, organised and available for inspection during assessments and visits e.g. CQC,SHA, Commissioners etc.

10.7 Assist in implementation of e rostering and use of the new format to produce

the monthly rota.

11 RESPONSIBILITIES FOR INFORMAL AND FORMAL RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT

11.1 Assist Senior Sister /Charge Nurse with auditing and monitoring of all activities within the clinical area to ensure services are delivered effectively within a safe environment.

11.2 Assist Senior Sister in ensuring audit documentation is kept up to date and collated as required. To include all the current audits for the KPI and CQuins such as timely nutrition assessments, pressure ulcer prevalence, numbers of slips, trips and fall etc.

11.3 Recommend any necessary policy changes following audit by discussion with Senior Sister /Charge Nurse and once agreed to ensure their implementation.

11.4 Assist Senior Sister /Charge Nurse in ensuring that staff participate in agreed research to benefit the departments development and patient care.

11.5 Support the Senior Sister /Charge Nurse by providing regular reports

Qualifications

Essential

• Registered Nurse on sub part 1 or 2 of the professional register.
• First degree or willingness to undertake
• Evidence of continuing education
• NMC recognised Mentorship qualification.
• Specific speciality related qualification/equivalent experience

Desirable

• Teaching and Assessing
• Qualification
• Higher Degree
• Completed leadership & management programme

Experience

Essential

• Can demonstrate a specific interest in area of work
• Experience of managing and supervising staff

Desirable

• Proven knowledge base/experience in speciality
• Experience of appraising staff

Skills and knowledge

Essential

• Good organisational/time management skills
• Ability to record and deal with accurate facts, figures and information
• Able to interpret and adhere to Trust and departmental policies protocols, procedures and guidelines
• Effective communicator both written and verbal
• Ability to problem solve
• Ability to prioritise work
• Flexible to change in demands of service
• Willing to learn new skills
• Ability to identify personal development needs.
• Computer literate
• Ability to support unregistered staff/students
• Ability to identify and manage risk
• Competent to administer intravenous medication.

Desirable

• Competent to undertake Venepuncture/Cannulation if appropriate

Personal Qualities

Essential

• Able to work in a team.
• Ability to think clearly under pressure
• Ability to provides leadership and support to junior members of the team.
• Able to deal with the emotional aspects of the post e.g terminal illness, trauma, chronic/critical illness
• Able to deal with exposure to bereavement and challenging behaviour
• Enthusiastic & assertive.
• Demonstrates attention to detail.
• Motivated.
• Able to work under own initiative within boundaries of role

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).