Job summary
As a Junior Sister/Charge Nurse in Pre-Operative Assessment your focus will be to deliver patient centred care to those patients listed for an elective surgery whilst managing a team of Nurses and SHCAs. This will be supported by the use of our digital pre-assessment system, Synopsis, to assess the patients medical history and complexities prior to surgery.
As well as this, you will be responsible for managing your own team and a wider Countywide service to complete tasks such as PDRs, rostering, sickness reviews and wellbeing conversations. You will work a variety of shifts including Nurse in Charge shifts, triage and face to face clinics.
As a Countywide service there will be the need to travel to all three sites to provide support and services wherever the need arises. Further details can be discussed at interview.
You will be joining an established, knowledgeable team who are keen to welcome and support you.
Main duties of the job
To
ensure the maintenance of high quality patient focused care at all times,
through effective leadership of staff and managed resources.
To work according to the NMC Code of Professional
Standards of Practice and Behaviour for Nurses, relevant professional
guidelines and frameworks, including the 6 Cs.
As
a named nurse / key worker for a defined group of patients, working
autonomously, to take responsibility for:
The provision of accurate pre-operative patient
information.
Ensuring that all necessary follow up and discharge
preparations are in place prior to admission.
Conducting holistic clinical assessments of all
patients awaiting surgery, making appropriate onward referrals in a timely
fashion.
Providing health promotion, making every contact
count.
Managing the unit in the absence of the Band 7
Working with the Band 7 to ensure safe staffing
levels and safe practice for the POA service in your area.
Ensuring that own skills are developed and shared
with team as appropriate.
Ensuring effective communication with patients,
relatives, carers and the multidisciplinary team.
Participation in preceptorship programmes as
appropriate and act as a facilitator / mentor / preceptor / role model to other
members of the team.
Providing supervision, support and education to
unqualified staff, students and new staff team members.
Liaising with Consultants and their teams in the
event of surgical cancellations.
About us
Our purpose is simple - Putting Patients First. We are looking for exceptional colleagues who can help us achieve this.
Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust is a large acute and specialised hospital trust that provides a range of local acute services to the residents of Worcestershire and more specialised services to a larger population in Herefordshire and beyond.
The Trust operates hospital-based services from three sites in Kidderminster, Redditch and Worcester
Our workforce is over 7,000 strong, and our caring staff are recognised as providing good and outstanding patient-centred care. You could be one of them.
We are committed to recruiting the best people to work with us to achieve our Vision - working in partnership to provide the best healthcare for our communities, leading and supporting our teams to move 4ward. Our 4ward behaviours, which we ask all staff to demonstrate, underpin our everyday work and remain firmly at the heart of all we do.
Our objectives are simple:
- Best services for local people
- Best experience of care and best outcomes for our patients
- Best use of resources
- Best people
Better never stops, and our Clinical Services Strategy provides a clear future vision for our Trust, our hospitals, our services and our role in the wider health and care system.
We are proud to have achieved Timewise accreditation - this means we are committed to embedding flexible working within our organisation as a flex positive employer.
Job description
Job responsibilities
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
- Patient Care Responsibilities
- Acting as a Named Nurse/Case manager to a cohort of patients from the time of POA to admission.
- Responsible for assessing, planning, implementing and evaluating programmes of care within the framework of team nursing.
- Evaluation of patient health history and identifies previously unknown health concerns.
- Independently make onward referrals to an additional service as appropriate e.g. General Practitioner, Specialist Nurse.
- Follow up advice, referral, investigations for patients presenting with significant co morbidities.
- Acts as a resource and provides advice on the management of patients to staff at Band 5.
- To co-ordinate the patients discharge arrangements in accordance with WAHT discharge policy.
- To promote a patient-focused approach to care in collaboration with all relevant health professionals.
- To obtain accurate and concise medical and medicines histories from the patient using interpersonal skills to facilitate the assessment of the patient for both minor and major surgery.
- Uses information obtained during the assessment, to determine the patients fitness to proceed for surgery, demonstrating the appropriate action to take in the event of not fit to proceed.
- Ensure the patient has an understanding of their proposed operation by providing accurate peri-operative information both verbally and in writing.
- Provide information that will enable the patient to make choices about adopting a healthier lifestyle and makes a referral, as appropriate, for optimisation of their health before surgery.
- Arranges and co-ordinates any assessment and/or investigations needed near the time of surgery, in accordance with local and national guidance.
- Identifies abnormal readings and acts on the findings in an appropriate and timely manner.
- To assist in establishing and monitoring of protocols and care pathways.
- To ensure effective communication with patients, relatives and other staff.
- To support peoples equality, diversity and rights at all times.
- To safe guard vulnerable adults in accordance with agreed policies and procedures.
- Professional Development and Education Responsibilities
- To develop own teaching skills and participate in staff / student education and training.
- To help maintain a suitable learning environment for staff and act as a facilitator in the supervision and teaching of less experienced staff.
- To attend Trust / local orientation programmes and mandatory training sessions.
- To be responsible for developing and sustaining own knowledge, clinical skills and professional awareness in accordance with revalidation requirements and to maintain a professional portfolio with evidence of reflective practice.
- To undertake Personal Development Reviews for their team and be responsible for own Personal Development Programme.
- To participate in the Trusts Preceptorship Programme.
- To assist in the development and implementation of nursing practice guidelines, standards and policies.
- Research and Development Responsibilities
- To assist in promoting nursing practice in line with relevant research.
- To maintain an awareness of evidence-based practice relating to POA.
- To contribute to research and development programmes within the unit.
- Audit, Quality and Risk Management Responsibilities
- To contribute to the setting and monitoring of measurable standards of care and be accountable for maintaining standards.
- To maintain awareness of the national, professional and local quality issue relevant to the delivery of nursing services, e.g. Clinical Governance.
- To uphold quality initiatives that improve customer care and enhance the interface between staff, patients, and visitors.
- To participate in the audit process for monitoring and reviewing nursing quality indicators.
- To be aware of personal responsibilities in relation to the maintenance of a safe environment and identification of potential risks for all personnel, patients and visitors, taking action as and when required.
- To be aware of the role of the nurse in handling complaints in accordance with WAHT policy.
- Support the development and implement new policies and guidelines into the POA service.
- To participate in maintaining a clean environment.
- The post holder will familiarise themselves with relevant Trust policies and procedures and comply with these at all times.
- Support the implementation of service development and improvement as appropriate and facilitate changes in service delivery.
- To assist in the unit lead in the provision of leadership and management.
- To maintain a safe unit and ensure all appropriate general risk assessments are completed in POA.
- To complete rosters in line with Trust deadlines
- To demonstrates knowledge and understanding of the POA process and the referral to treatment pathway (18 week RTT).
- Resource Management Responsibilities
- To develop and maintain an awareness of budgeting and resource management.
- To assist in the assessment and monitoring of staffing requirements and report problems to the appropriate manager.
- To monitor sickness absence and escalate as appropriate
- In the absence of senior staff, the post holder will take responsibility for the management of the unit/Countywide team.
- To ensure effective use of appointment slots and ensure that any capacity issues are identified and discussed with the POA Capacity Coordinator.
Vision and Values:
The Trust aims to provide local services for local people. It has developed its vision to reflect this commitment.
To continue to be the major provider of acute/specialist services for the people of Worcestershire (and wider) with a strong reputation for providing outstanding, high quality, reliable, accessible and integrated healthcare for local people
Driving this commitment are the Trust-wide signature behaviours:
Do what we say we will do
No Delays, every day
We listen, we learn, we lead
Work together, celebrate together
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- RGN with current registration
- First level degree or equivalent
- Evidence of Continuing Professional Development
- Related post basic training/experience in Assessment of patients Pre-operatively
- NMC recognised teaching and assessing qualification.
Desirable
- First level degree
- Holistic health assessment/clinical assessment module at academic Level 6
Other job requirements
Essential
- Willing to travel between sites Countywide as required
- Able to work outside normal office hours/shifts on occasion as required
Skills/Knowledge
Essential
- NMC Code
- Knowledge of person centred care
- Promote peoples equality, diversity & rights
- Excellent communication skills
- Evidence of being up to date with current NHS / professional issues
- Experience and knowledge within the speciality or related field
- Clinical credible
- Evidence of teaching and development skills
- Evidence of managing Change Organisation skills, Leadership skills and ability to inspire and motivate others
- Awareness of health and safety issues and management of them
- Ability to prioritise
- Ability to motivate others.
- Ability to work as part of a wider MDT
- Able to challenge and articulate opinion
Experience
Essential
- Experience at Band 5 within POA or a related field
- POA departmental management experience or related field
- POA department based teaching or related experience
- Managing clinical risk and incidents at departmental level
Desirable
- Clinical audit activity
- Risk assessment
- Staff appraisals and PDR
- Sickness absence / performance management
- Complaints handling
- Pre- Operative Assessment experience
- Experience with Synopsis
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 .
Employer details
Employer name
Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust
Address
Charles Hastings Way
Worcester
Worcestershire
WR5 1DD