Lead First Contact Physiotherapist Practitioner

Job description

Job responsibilities

Clinical Practice

1. Act as an autonomous, expert clinician in the assessment, diagnosis, triage, and non-surgical management of MSK conditions, as a first point of contact for patients, without prior GP referral.

2. Utilise differential diagnosis skills to rule out serious pathology, formulate management plans, and refer appropriately (e.g. for imaging, specialist opinion, red flag conditions).

3. Use clinical reasoning to decide on investigations, interpret results, and integrate findings into management plans.

4. Provide a mix of interventions: manual therapy, exercise prescription, activity advice, injection if qualified, pain education, self-management strategies.

5. Integrate Phio digital pathways into clinical workflows e.g. review and act on Phio-generated triage outputs, ensure digital assessments feed into clinical decision-making, and ensure seamless transitions between digital and face-to-face care.

6. Monitor patient progress, adjust management plans, and discharge or refer on when clinically appropriate.

7. Maintain accurate, timely clinical records consistent with organisational, legal, and regulatory standards.

8. Support continuity of care, including collaboration with GPs, community services, and secondary care teams.

Service Development, Integration & Improvement

1. Lead the design, development and expansion of the FCP service across the PCN, aligning with neighbourhood care strategies and the pioneer neighbourhood model.

2. Embed and optimise Phios digital triage and treatment pathways within the broader MSK service identifying opportunities for improving patient flow, reducing duplication, and enhancing efficiency.

3. Work collaboratively with PCN leadership, GP practices, ICB/ICS, community services, and specialist providers to co-design integrated MSK pathways.

4. Monitor activity data, clinical outcomes, patient experience, waiting times and other performance metrics; use this data to drive continuous quality improvement.

5. Lead audits, service evaluations, and project work (e.g. pilots, pathway redesign).

6. Provide oversight of resource allocation, capacity planning and service resilience.

Leadership, Supervision & Team Development

1. Provide clinical leadership, mentorship, supervision, and performance support to other FCPs, physiotherapists, and MSK staff within the PCN.

2. Lead or facilitate regular team meetings, case reviews and clinical governance forums.

3. Support recruitment, induction, and ongoing professional development of MSK staff.

4. Act as a role model, promoting innovation, evidence-based practice, and quality improvement culture.

Education, Training & Knowledge Sharing

1. Deliver training and educational sessions to GPs, practice teams, allied health professionals, and other ARRS roles on MSK assessment, pathways, use of Phio/triage tools, referral criteria, etc.

2. Act as a clinical supervisor or mentor to FCP trainees, students or less experienced physiotherapists.

3. Contribute to the development of learning materials, guidelines, protocols and standard operating procedures.

4. Keep abreast of emerging evidence, best practice, and innovations in MSK care and digital health, and disseminate learning across the PCN.

Governance, Quality & Risk Management

1. Lead on clinical governance for the FCP service: incident reporting, complaints handling, audit, risk management, safe practice, and escalation processes.

2. Ensure compliance with regulatory and professional standards (HCPC, CSP, data protection, equality & diversity, safeguarding).

3. Participate in peer review, quality assurance, and continuous professional development.

4. Ensure that service protocols, policies, and pathways are up to date, evidence-based, and aligned with local and national guidelines.

5. Support risk assessments and ensure proactive mitigation of clinical, operational or digital risks (e.g. in the interface between Phio and face-to-face care).

Population Health & Strategic Contribution

1. Use population-level data and intelligence to identify MSK needs and inequalities in the PCN population, helping to target services or outreach.

2. Contribute to strategic planning, commissioning processes, and system-level decision-making around MSK services and digital innovation.

3. Engage with patient and public involvement (PPI), feedback loops and co-design principles to refine the service.

4. Represent the FCP service in forums, meetings or committees across the PCN, neighbourhoods, and ICS/ICB structures.

Person Specification

Skills and Abilities

Essential

• Highly developed clinical reasoning and advanced MSK assessment, diagnosis and treatment skills.
• Ability to work autonomously, making safe, evidence-based decisions under pressure.
• Strong leadership, coaching and mentoring skills with the ability to support a team.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to engage and influence patients, colleagues and system partners.
• Competent IT skills with electronic record systems, audit tools and digital platforms.
• Ability to manage competing priorities, deliver outcomes to deadlines, and adapt to changing service needs.

Desirable

• Proven ability to integrate digital solutions (e.g. Phio) into clinical pathways and workflows.
• Advanced skills in clinical supervision and education delivery.

Experience

Essential

• Significant post-registration experience in MSK physiotherapy, including primary care or community settings
• Experience of leading service development or quality improvement initiatives.
• Track record of working collaboratively in MDTs across health and care.
• Experience of providing clinical supervision, mentorship or education to physiotherapists or other clinicians.

Desirable

• Experience of working within a Primary Care Network, GP practice, or equivalent primary care environment.
• Involvement in pathway redesign, digital integration projects or population health approaches.

Knowledge, Qualifications and Training

Essential

• Degree in Physiotherapy (BSc/MSc or equivalent).
• Current registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).
• Evidence of advanced MSK practice - e.g. MSc in Advanced Clinical Practice, Stage 3 FCP Roadmap to Practice, or equivalent portfolio of evidence.
• Demonstrated knowledge of MSK pathology, red flag recognition, imaging and pharmacology relevant to advanced practice.
• Evidence of continuous professional development (CPD), maintaining up-to-date knowledge of MSK practice, digital health and national policy.
• Understanding of clinical governance, safeguarding, information governance and professional accountability.
• Independent Prescribing qualification (V300) or commitment to achieving this within a defined timeframe.

Desirable

• Postgraduate training in injection therapy, imaging interpretation, or other extended scope skills.
• Leadership or management training/qualification.
• Research training or published work relevant to MSK/primary care.
• Training in digital health applications (e.g. triage platforms such as Phio) or service redesign.

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).

Employer details

Employer name

Midlands and Lancashire Commissioning Support Unit

Address

South Sefton Primary Care Network

Ground Floor, Biz Hub, 36 Canal Street, Bootle

Bootle

L20 8AH

Employer's website

https://www.midlandsandlancashirecsu.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)