Dietician

Job description

Job responsibilities

The following are the core responsibilities of the Dietitian. There may be, on occasion, a requirement to carry out other tasks; this will be dependent upon factors such as workload and staffing levels. The Dietitian will work within their scope of clinical practice and:

a. To work as part of the Primary Care Network taking responsibility for the evidence based dietetic management of your specialist areas conditions and chronic disease.

b. To be involved in clinical initiatives, including reviewing, auditing, evaluating and making recommendations about dietetic input.

c. To lead on the development of departmental clinical guidelines, pathways and procedures for specialist area.

d. To participate in department (local and national) initiatives for identified clinical areas, particularly for specialist area.

e. To work as part of the relevant multi-disciplinary team. Working with internal and external health professionals in this area.

f. To facilitate group education courses in specialist area as required. Such as nationally recognised courses (e.g. Dose adjustment for normal eating (DAFNE), XPERT).

g. To undertake comprehensive assessment of patients including those with diverse or complex nutritional needs.

h. To plan and deliver individualised nutritional care plans based on comprehensive assessment of needs and a knowledge of evidence-based practice, modifying the care plan as required.

i. To negotiate and agree dietary or nutritional goals with individual patients and/or their carers using motivational interviewing, counselling and cognitive behaviour therapy tools as applicable. This will include identifying individual barriers to change and helping clients to manage them.

j. To manage clinical risk within own patient caseload.

k. To be responsible for planning and organising own caseload and other work priorities to meet service and patient priorities.

l. To be responsible for maintaining accurate and comprehensive patient records in line with the code of conduct and Trust policies.

m. Provide dietary support to patients of all ages (from early-life to end-of-life care) in a variety of settings including nurseries, patient homes and care homes

Secondary responsibilities

In addition to the primary responsibilities, the physician associate may be requested to:

a. To plan, deliver and evaluate training on nutrition to other professionals either individually or on a group basis

b. To plan, deliver and evaluate health education sessions for groups of clients on agreed topics

c. Support the PCN audit programme, undertaking audits when necessary

d. Support junior members of the team, providing guidance when necessary

e. Participate in local initiatives to enhance service delivery and patient care

f. To produce practical advice and resources by interpreting, translating and critically evaluating evidence and making this relevant to the intended audience

g. Continually review clinical practices, responding to national policies and initiatives where appropriate

h. Participate in the review of significant and near-miss events applying a structured approach, i.e. root cause analysis (RCA)

i. Take personal responsibility for own learning and development, including the requirement to maintain currency, achieving all targets set in their Personal Development Plan (PDP)

j. Work in accordance with PCN policies, including the equal opportunities policy and practice.

k. Participate in clinical governance activity and contribute to the improvement in quality of health outcomes through audit, risk management and the Quality and Outcomes Framework.

l. Work with due regard to the Health and Safety Policies across the PCN, ensuring that all practices and procedures are undertaken in accordance with issued guidelines

m. Contribute information to help PCN, commissioners and local partners identify unmet needs within the community and gaps in community provision.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• BSc or pre-reg MSc in Dietetics under a training programme approved by the British Dietetic Association (BDA)
• HCPC Registered
• BDA Post Registration training
• Member of British Dietetic Association

Experience

Essential

• Minimum 12 18 months working in Nutrition and Dietetics
• Experience of working flexibly and effectively within a multidisciplinary team
• Experience of having to prioritise caseload/manage own time effectively
• Sound knowledge and application of up-to-date evidence based clinical trends and practices

Desirable

• Experience of developing, implementing and evaluating projects and audits
• Understanding of current changes within NHS, particularly those affecting Primary Care
• Experience of chronic disease management ie diabetes

Clinical Knowledge

Essential

• Understand the importance of evidence-based practice
• Broad knowledge of clinical governance
• Ability to record accurate clinical notes
• Ability to work within own scope of practice and understanding when to refer to GPs

Desirable

• Knowledge of public health issues in the local area
• Awareness of issues within the wider health arena
• Knowledge of health promotion strategies
• Experience of developing, implementing and evaluating projects and audits

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

Greenwich Health Ltd

Address

25 John Wilson Street

London

SE18 6PZ

Employer's website

https://www.greenwich-health.com/ (Opens in a new tab)