An exciting opportunity has arisen for a motivated and dynamic experienced Paediatric dietitian, to join the community team at Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust within the Nutrition & Dietetics Princes House, at Royal Berkshire Hospital, delivering a service as part of the Nutrition and Dietetics Team.
If you are successful in your application to this post, you will be expected to manage and deliver on the responsibilities outlined below:
You will work in the highly specialised field of paediatric diabetes.
You will provide a high quality, evidence based specialist dietetic service for children, and their families/carers attending the Paediatric Dept at The Royal Berkshire Hospital.
You will undertake a lead role in planning, co-ordinating, delivering, developing and evaluating the dietetic service to patients referred for dietetic advice from Paediatric diabetes services
You will plan, co-ordinate and deliver nutrition/dietetic training of professional and support staff and be a lead source of knowledge and expertise in the paediatric diabetes MDT.
You will be involved in all Nutrition and Dietetic departmental activities and contribute to the delivery of a trust wide dietetic service
You will ensure safe practice at all times through the recognition and appreciation of Clinical Governance and manage governance within the specialist clinical area
You will be a core member of the paediatric multi-professional team.
You will work collaboratively with the multi-professional team to develop and maintain a strategy relating to the care of children with diabetes.
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Job description
Job responsibilities
WORKING RELATIONSHIPS
Includes Consultants, Specialist Nurses, Clinical Psychologists, Clinic/Ward Staff, Other Dietetic Staff, GPs, Staff working in schools.
RESPONSIBILITIES
MANAGERIAL DUTIES
Strategic Management
To lead the development of dietetic resource within paediatric diabetes service
Service Management
To provides the Paediatric Dietetic Team Leader with annual reports on the service
CLINICAL
To plan, justify and deliver highly specialised dietary advice to paediatric patients as both inpatients and outpatients for children with diabetes.
To be professionally responsible and accountable for the management of own clinical case load and to organise this effectively with regards to clinical priority and effective use of time.
To work autonomously to provide highly specialist and complex advice to patients, carers and healthcare professionals. This will involve dietetic assessment based on interpretation of biochemistry, anthropometry, clinical condition nutritional status and nutritional intake to develop care plans that are practical and evidence based, taking into account social, economic, cultural and psychological factors.
In collaboration with the patient, carers, members of the team and other colleagues as necessary, to develop a care plan to meet nutritional needs
To review monitor and evaluate highly specialist dietetic treatment.
To review relevant drug treatments and drug/nutrient interactions.
To obtain consent and liaise with colleagues regarding consent
to pathways if consent cannot be obtained.
To undertake dietary assessment, calculate nutrition and fluid requirements and provide advice at a level that is appropriate for the patient.
When appropriate to formulate feeding regimens and make recommendations on a wide range of oral and enteral nutrition feeds and
supplements.
To attend relevant multidisciplinary meetings in order to provide expert
advice to clinicians regarding dietetic management based on clinical evidence.
To communicate effectively with patients and their families/carers to maximise dietetic management.
To participate in the development of trust wide dietetic and nutritional
policies and guidelines.
To liaise and work with catering for the provisions of nutritionally adequate
meals to patients.
To maintain written documentation in an accurate and timely manner in
line with national and local standards.
To co-ordinate the production and review of resources to reflect current
evidence based practice.
To refer patients and their families/carers to other health
professional and agencies when necessary using the appropriate channels of referral.
To assist in the discharge planning of patients going home on therapeutic diets and enteral feeding. To initiate the ordering of specialised products/meals that may be required as part of the treatment plan
To educate patients and relatives/carers on all aspects of their dietary treatment providing reassurance and support.
To communicate complex information effectively using appropriate aids and skills with patients many of whom have complex and/or special needs and where there may be cultural differences and/or a barrier to understanding
TEAMWORK
To contribute to the effectiveness of both the dietetic and paediatric multi-
disciplinary team, working closely with colleagues to share knowledge and resources so that duplicated effort is minimised.
To communicate with dietetic, medical, nursing and other professional staff regarding the complex nutritional requirements and dietary care of patients and to attend case conferences and multidisciplinary meetings on a regular basis.
To communicate complex and sensitive information, both verbally and in written form to a range of healthcare and other professionals.
TRAINING AND TEACHING
To communicate health messages effectively to patient and staff groups at an appropriate level and pace using relevant aids and skills including delivery to complex or potentially challenging groups.
To use a variety of techniques to engage individuals within a group context and to apply the principles of group dynamics.
To plan, deliver and evaluate training sessions to patients and their
Families / carers. In particular to participate in structured diabetes education programmes for paediatric diabetics.
To plan, deliver and evaluate training sessions for medical, clinical and support staff in the field of paediatric diabetes.
To provide training for dietetic staff on an individual/group basis to aid their professional development in the field of paediatric diabetes.
To plan, supervise and assess the training of student dietitians contributing to the overall programme.
To develop and review evidence-based patient information leaflets and posters in line with professional guidelines.
To support the department by contributing to initiatives in agreed national and local health campaigns as appropriate.
CATERING
To liaise with the hospital catering department and wards to ensure the provision of suitable hospital meals for patients requiring highly specialised therapeutic diets.
To plan, adapt, diet code and evaluate hospital menus to meet the nutritional and dietary requirements of specialised and general patient groups.
To instruct the diet chefs/care staff in the preparation of highly specialised /therapeutic diets for patients
PROFESSIONAL
To maintain high professional standards and adhere to Trust policies, codes of practice and procedures.
To actively contribute towards supporting the clinical governance agenda.
To be professionally and legally accountable for all aspects of own work, including keeping accurate patient records and activity data
To maintain clinical expertise and keep up to date in current dietetic practice expertise through journal review, reflective practice, attendance of relevant study days, conferences, departmental update meetings, journal club, community dietetic team meetings and membership of specialist professional groups.
Practice dietetically in adherence to departmental and trust frameworks for CPD and clinical supervision
To develop and maintain skills and knowledge required to practice. For example feeding tube, clinical biochemistry, drug-nutrient interactions.
To be professionally and legally accountable for all aspects of own work, keeping accurate patient records and activity data.
To undertake the measurement and evaluation of own work and current practices through the use and application of evidence based practice projects, audits, research and outcome measures and lead others in doing so. Make recommendations to changes in clinical practice and influence implementation of new working practices.
To develop and maintain evidence-based written dietary leaflets and resources for children and young people on ketogenic diets.
To practice reflectively and keep an up to date working portfolio.
ORGANISATIONAL
To keep statistics of work activities and individual patients seen according to management information needs.
To decide priorities for own work area and balancing other patient related and professional demands.
To ensure all education materials and information leaflets are up to date including facilitating the purchasing and ordering of these when necessary.
To be a strong influence in the planning, establishment and co-ordination of a multi-disciplinary approach to patient care, attending relevant steering group meetings.
To actively help develop and implement local guidelines as part of an MDT group.
To attend acute dietetic meetings, taking responsibility for contribution to journal club and CPD presentations.
To attend departmental update meetings.
To attend clinical supervision
Assisting to develop and monitor relevant protocols for clinics.
To maintain high professional standards and adhere to department policies and procedures. Contribute actively towards supporting the clinical governance agenda.
Assist the Acute Team Leader RBH in carrying out any reasonable duties deemed necessary to ensure adequate provision of the service.
AUDIT/RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT
To accurately collect and enter patient activity data
To seek out audit opportunities to ensure continuing improvement in dietetic services.
To use audit information and evidence-based research to improve long-term services to patients
To participate on the B and C placement student training programmes in the department, including mentorship, encouraging reflective practice and completing formative and summative assessments.
To provide support via mentoring to Band 5 and 6 dietitians and other dietetic support staff