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Detailed job description and main responsibilities

1. Communication and relationship skills

•  To have excellent communication and interpersonal skills
• To ensure clear communication channels are maintained to both the team and senior managers
• To act as a resource and educator for patients, carers, families, team members, GP’s and other professionals within the MDT to provide and advise on evidence based practice, including effective health promotional and enablement aspects, in order to fulfil the requirements of local and national guidelines
• To use effective written and verbal communication in order to transfer sensitive information to others including having difficult conversations with both members of the team and patients and relatives.
• To promote the work of the Stroke team and MCH as an organisation to other professionals, service users and external stakeholders.
• Provide clinical intervention by promoting timely and appropriate decision making and assessments of patients
• Robust documentation and reporting incorporating organisational IT systems
• Work as part of a multidisciplinary team to facilitate timely and appropriate clinical management of patients
• Develop and maintain good working relationships with inpatient and community services within the organisation and the external partners
• To work as a key member of the transfer/ discharge process within the Medway whole system, ensuring effective communication and developing sound relationships with colleagues, health and social professionals from within and external to Medway Community Healthcare, as well as colleagues in the voluntary and private sector
• Promote the philosophy and culture of ‘enablement’ to ensure the unit strives to improve peoples independence and to improve flow within the system and avoid unnecessary delays, working closely with the therapy team.
• To work closely with the Therapy Team to ensure joint working towards achieving individuals goals and ensure the vision of the unit is upheld.

2. Knowledge, training and experience

Registered nurse with previous evidenced experience of being a senior nurse

Extended nursing skills to include:-

• Registered nurse level 1, educated to degree level
• Evidence of continuous development
• Preparation of mentors qualification
• IV drug administration
• Obtain and interpret patient observations
• Record and interpret ECG
• Venepuncture and cannulation
• Male and female catheterisation
• Know the principles in infection control
• Verification of death of identified patients
• Sound clinical knowledge and skills in the support of immediate management of patients requiring clinical intervention
• Evidence experience in identifying and managing unwell patients
• Experience of multidisciplinary working
• DOLs
• Able to work flexibly and co-operatively as well as autonomously
• Confident with decision making
• Able to understand the principles of enablement and rehabilitation to promote independence at all times
• Possess a working knowledge of IT software programmes and how they function, with a good standard of inputting skills
• Evidence of an awareness and understanding of national targets both in health and social care
• Teach and support junior staff. Encourage their development through appraisals and supervision
• To maintain professional standards by attending appropriate training and development opportunities
• Experience of inter professional working
• Experience in clinical audit/ quality improvement initiatives
• Relevant management experience
• To keep up to date with new treatments, techniques and developments for the promotion and maintenance of good clinical practice
• To be a reflective practitioner who is responsible for their own continuous professional development and that of the team
• To have good time management skills; an ability to work in a team being reliable and having a flexible approach

3. Analytical and judgement skills

• To manage the inpatient unit in the absence of the Clinical Lead
• To be able to support staff to assess patients’ understanding of treatment proposals and goal plans, gain valid informed consent and have an ability to work within the legal framework with patients who lack capacity to consent to treatmen
• To asses for and escalate appropriately clinical and non-clinical risk within own role/ and for the team according to the organisations protocol
• To understand the balance of professional development needs with the service needs
• To assess/practice standards on the units infection control precautions and to ensure the organisations policy is applied at all times
• Ability to design and follow individual goal plans (My Plan) in partnership with the patient and the therapy team to ensure awareness of shared objectives at all times and evidence progression
• Demonstrate the ability to reflect on practice and participate in clinical supervision
• Ability to deal with complex information regarding client care and make adjustments in care plan accordingly
• Provide and facilitate assessment of extended nursing skills
• Manage own workload independently using clinical judgement to make informed and appropriate decisions regarding patient care

4. Planning and organisational skills

• To contribute to the development of the team and service provision
• To comply with policy
• To collect and submit all data and statistics as required in a timely and accurate manner
• To independently plan and prioritise own workload, including delegating and organising the work of the team including clinical and non clinical work
• To ensure the team meets the required level of statutory and mandatory training 1:1 and appraisal requirements
• Ensuring patients have appropriate management plan/ my plan
• Ability to plan workload and report within set deadlines
• Co-ordinate the transfer of patients, including those with complex health and social care needs, between Acute Units and MCH
• To manage staffing issues providing senior nurse support and guidance
• To support the Clinical Lead in the coordination of annual leave, study leave and duty rotas
• Provide professional leadership developing teaching and supervising staff, patients and their families to raise understanding, standards of professionalism and contribute to the development of nursing

5. Physical skills

• Undertake the nursing care of the patient in accordance with care plans. Physically carrying out personal care and assisting with mobility whilst encouraging the patient to be as independent as possible and maintaining their privacy and dignity
• Maintain clinical and professional competency by portfolio evidence and an up to date knowledge of nursing, social and integrated working trends policy
• To act within professional standards, including record keeping, confidentiality and drug administration and NMC code of conduct
• Undertake a range of clinical skills including wound management and catheter care.
• Good computer skills in word, excel, outlook and other software packages.
• Patient moving and handling, including transfers, patient from bed to chair and similar in order to support ward staff. To include carrying out a mobility assessment.
• IV drug administration, record and interpret ECG, venepuncture and cannulation.
• Be able to travel to dispersed sites in a timely manne