Job responsibilities
Key Areas of Responsibility
Clinical
To hold and manage, a delegated caseload and to be legally accountable for all clinical decisions and professional actions.
To provide assessment, differential diagnosis and appropriate and clearly planned Speech and Language Therapy intervention and discharge planning for patients with a wide range of disorders referred to the Service, in line with Communicating Quality 3, RCSLT Clinical Guidelines, and standards set by Team Leader and Head of Adult SLT Service, in conjunction with Principal SLTs.
To adapt assessment and intervention techniques to the needs of individual patients on an ongoing basis including the provision of augmentative and alternative communication systems as appropriate.
To identify need for second opinions, referring to senior colleagues/Principal SLTs as appropriate.
To contribute to assessment and information gathering of a patients mental capacity in relation to their ability to consent with support from senior colleagues. To also enable patients to maximise their independence in decision making and their ability to communicate their wishes.
To work closely with all appropriate agencies and MDT colleagues to ensure comprehensive management of the patients SLT needs, providing written and verbal reports as appropriate to ensure that all parties involved fully understand the nature of the patients communication/swallowing disorders.
To participate in case conferences and undertake multi-disciplinary working, to enhance patients functional abilities.
To devise, monitor, supervise and evaluate the implementation of communication and swallowing intervention programmes carried out by others, e.g. SLT assistants, other health professionals, volunteers and carers.
To provide information that may be complex to patients, carers and families in a manner that enables and ensures their understanding (patients will frequently have communication and or cognitive difficulties as well as emotional difficulty accepting the information being provided), observing data protection guidelines.
To adapt practice to meet individual patients circumstances, including due regard for cultural and linguistic differences, including utilisation of translation services where appropriate.
With support from senior colleagues, to sensitively negotiate patient led goals with the patient, family, carers and MDT in situations, in order to enable the patient to engage in treatment and ensure that patients are involved in the planning and prioritisation of their care plans wherever possible.
To recognise the possible emotional consequences of working with patients and families in distressing circumstances, such as delivering bad news about prognosis, and to know where to seek appropriate assistance.
To demonstrate empathy with patients, carers and families, and colleagues, ensuring that effective communication is achieved, particularly where barriers to understanding exist.
To contribute to the teaching and training of family members, carers and other professionals as relevant to the needs of individual patients and patient groups, in agreement with Team Leader.
To audit the clinical effectiveness of interventions specific to own caseload, applying the principles of Evidenced Based Practice and outcome measures as determined by specialist Speech and Language Therapists.
To keep up-to date with current clinical and technological advances in liaison with senior colleagues.
To work closely and flexibly with SLT colleagues in order to provide a seamless service to patients.
To develop resources to meet patient requirements and for departmental use.
Professional
To represent the Adult Speech and Language Therapy Team as requested by the Head of Adult Speech and Language Therapy or Team Leader and report back as appropriate.
To adhere to the SLT departmental supervision policy.
To participate in Clinical Governance, Research and Development and Audit activities as required by line manager and MDT colleagues.
To provide observation opportunities for prospective SLT career candidates, students from other health professions and non-health related individuals as requested by Team Leader.
To assist in the clinical training of Speech and Language Therapy Undergraduates on placements and contribute to clinical training of medical students in agreement with Team Leaders and Student Placement Co-ordinator.
To support the work and contribute to the development of assistants and volunteers as relevant, when working in own clinical area.
To assist the Specialist SLTs in providing training and updating to other relevant professionals in the specialist clinical area.
Organisational
To collect, input and monitor own caseload data and report to Team Leader and specialists as required by the SLT service, Trust and DoH.
To inform the Team Leader of any variations to service delivery, changing priorities and needs, and their likely impact in relation to the need for service development.
To monitor stock levels in own service area and request new equipment as appropriate. To maintain a yearly stock-take of equipment in conjunction with SLT colleagues and administrative staff.
To keep assessment, treatment materials and equipment up-to-date, safe (following infection control procedures) and in good order, informing the Principal SLTs/Team Leaders and Head of Service of needs and opportunities identified.
To maintain an up to date record of communication equipment loaned to patients
To assist the Specialist SLTs and Team Leader in the development of clinical standards, policies, procedures and further service developments.
To be aware of and adhere to service and team plans and policies.
To comment on proposed service/policy developments as appropriate.
- Maintain appropriate patient and clinical records in line with the Trusts policies and procedures, and in line with the agreed service specification.
