Detailed job description and main responsibilities

1.      Delivering safe and effective safeguarding practice.

·         Ensure a high standard of safe clinical care and record keeping in accordance with Nursing and Midwifery Council, national legislation, and trust standards.

·         Have a working knowledge of factors that may contribute to abuse and neglect, including domestic abuse, substance misuse, mental health concerns, sexual abuse, learning disability, adverse childhood experiences, exploitation, self-neglect and hoarding.

·         Have a knowledge of relevant safeguarding legislation in respect of adults with care and support needs.

·         Have a working knowledge of Mental Capacity assessment and Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards.

·         Take personal responsibility for own actions and omissions, and fully recognise personal accountability and limitations, seeking advice and support as needed.

·         Practise within an ethical framework based upon dignity and respect for the well-being and safety of patients and clients.

·         Act as a change agent, developing clinically effective practice through the effective utilisation and integration of evidence-based practice within own work area.

·         Contribute to the development and implementation of evidence-based protocols, standards, policies and clinical guidelines within own work area.

·         Ensure a culture of continuous quality improvement using audit, patient feedback and reflection on practice by self and other members of the team.

·         Promote a safe environment for staff, patients, and visitors by ensuring compliance

with, legislation, policies and protocols including health and safety, healthcare associated infection prevention, clinical governance, including risk management, incident reporting and use of appropriate governance structures.

·         Demonstrate advanced communication methods to illicit the patient’s voice and liaise effectively with internal and external colleagues to address safeguarding concerns and promote patient safety.

·         Assess the risks involved in the care of patients and ensure utilisation of practices and

protocols to minimise those risks, and ensure safeguarding practice is followed. 

·         Report incidents and near misses promptly and appropriately and take effective action to minimise future risk

·         Escalate risk using internal and external escalation pathways to ensure the safety of patients and staff

·         Have a working knowledge of the process for managing allegations against staff and prompt escalation to the Lead Nurse for Safeguarding Adults.

·         Complete timely documentation, and ensure this forms part of the patient record

·         Ensure that safeguarding databases are kept up to date to provide accurate data collection as evidence for relevant trust reporting, our executive lead, Integrated Care Board (ICB), contracts and external bodies who may request this information. 

·         Provide timely specialist safeguarding advice to Trust staff.

·         Demonstrate a knowledge of local epidemiological, demographic, social and professional trends and developments and how these inform safeguarding practice.

·         Lead by example, be influential in the way that care is delivered to patients accessing WHT services.

·         Access own safeguarding supervision and provide safeguarding supervision to other staff.

·         Work harmoniously as a team member, driving the safeguarding agenda and communicating effectively to meet the adult safeguarding objectives.

·         Practise within the scope of personal professional competence and extend this scope as appropriate to meet service needs.

·         Delegate aspects of care to others and accept responsibility and accountability for such delegation.

·         Critically appraise the outcomes of relevant research, evaluations, and audits and put forward suggested recommendations when seeking to improve safeguarding practice.

·         Be able to prioritise work and to meet deadlines.

·         Be solution focused and support changes to improve working practice.

·         Be analytical of safeguarding practice and apply benchmarking against expected practice.

·         Be able to summarise relevant information and key findings relevant to safeguarding enquiries or incidents.

·         Be able to participate in safeguarding audits both internally and with key partner agencies, such as Walsall Adult social care, West Midlands Police and Probation.

·         Ensure knowledge of Strategic priorities of Walsall Safeguarding Adult Board to ensure WHT practice is reflective of these. 

2.      To enhance the patient’s experience

·         To effectively, holistically assess individuals safeguarding needs, supporting staff in planning actions to elicit any required support and/or referrals.

·         To promote the principles of the Care Act, which include assessment of mental capacity where indicated, making safeguarding personal and risk enablement.

·         To empower staff to change behaviour through interactions with individuals, carers, families to support them in making positive changes to their physical and mental health and wellbeing.

·         Ensure an effective and efficient patient’s journey by supporting and promoting effective information sharing of safeguarding concerns and the planning and coordination of services to promote safe transition/discharge. 

·         Within a multidisciplinary team environment, develop a culture of person-centred care.

·         Promote a caring and compassionate environment where equality and diversity issues are respected, and patients are enabled to be partners in their care.

·         Be visible within the wards, and departments both in the acute and community to promote accessibility of the safeguarding service. 

3.      To ensure effective contribution to the delivery of the organisation’s objectives

·         Contribute to the development of an organisational culture that supports continuous learning and development, evidence-based practice and succession planning.

·         Contribute to promoting a culture of protecting patients from harm and deprivation of basic rights. 

·         Engage fully in the appraisal process by ensuring that personal development plans are completed, and that timely professional revalidation is undertaken.

·         Network with safeguarding peers across professional groups and clinical disciplines promoting the exchange of knowledge, skills and resources.

·         Demonstrate effective use of resources in decision-making and propose appropriate strategies to enhance quality, productivity and value in own sphere of work.

·         Strive to improve safeguarding practice and associated health outcomes so that they are consistent with or better than national and standards.

·         Contribute in a proactive manner to innovative redesign of clinical services, linked to organisational priorities to support improved outcomes.

·         Ensure knowledge and implementation of the organisation’s quality and safety agenda.

·         Develop and maintain a working knowledge of local, national and professional safeguarding strategy and policy, ensuring that organisational goals and values are reflected in personal objectives.

·         Demonstrate the ability to contribute to policy and strategy development at a departmental and organisational level and, where appropriate, national level.

·         Demonstrate compliance with the Trust values and to the pledges of the NHS Constitution 2012 (last updated 17.08.2023).  

·         Act in a way which is consistent with the values-based approach to care delivery

·         To be open and honest, practising in a transparent manner in accordance with the Nursing and Midwifery Council and Trust Standards of Behaviour.