About this role
Job summary
We are looking to appoint a health professional to work autonomously within the community using their enhanced clinical assessment and treatment skills, to provide first point of contact for patients presenting with undifferentiated, undiagnosed problems relating to acute illness or injury. This health professional will have the capability to make sound judgements in the absence of full information and to manage varying degrees of risk when there are complex, competing or ambiguous information or uncertainty.
Main duties of the job
The key purpose of this role will be to support the practices by assessing patients in their homes or in our PCN supported care homes and working with the practice clinicians to formulate a management plan.
About us
Newcastle North PCN comprises of 5 separate Member GP Practices in 4 locations working together to provide patient care to a population of just over 35,000. We are an enthusiastic, dynamic and friendly PCN led by Dr Bhushan Rao our Clinical Director. We constantly strive to improve patient pathways and health care outcomes.
Job description Job responsibilities
Key duties and responsibilities
1. Deliver acute assessments in the community on behalf of practices and working in collaboration with other services such as CRIS and WMAS
2. To provide acute home visits for on the day requests with the ability to review patients who have been previously seen
3. Work with the existing PCN Care Home Team to provide support to care home patients
4. Assess and triage patients, including same day triage, and as appropriate provide definitive treatment or make necessary referrals to other members of the PCN team
5. Advise patients on general healthcare and promote self-management where appropriate, including signposting patients to other community or voluntary services
6. Be able to:
a. perform specialist health checks and reviews
b. perform and interpret ECGs; alongside other results as appropriate
c. perform investigatory procedures as required
d. undertake the collection of pathological specimens including intravenous blood samples, swabs, etc.
e. perform investigatory procedures needed by patients and those requested by GPs and the wider PCN
7. Support the delivery of anticipatory care plans and certain community services (e.g. monitoring blood pressure and pulse oximetry)
8. Communicate at all levels across PCNs and other organisations, ensuring effective, patient-centred service
9. Communicate proactively and effectively with all colleagues across the multi-disciplinary team, attending and contributing to meetings as required
10. Collaborate with other members of the PCN including doctors, nurses and other AHPs, accepting referrals and referring to them for specialist care
11. Maintain accurate and contemporaneous health records appropriate to the consultation, ensuring accurate completion of all necessary documentation associated with patient health care and registration with the practice
12. If a prescriber, to prescribe, issue and review medications as appropriate following policy, patient group directives, NICE (national) and local clinical guidelines and local care pathways. This will be done in accordance with evidence-based practice and national and practice protocols, and within scope of practice
13. Work with patients in order to support compliance with and adherence to prescribed treatments
14. Provide information and advice on prescribed or over-the-counter medication on medication regimens, side-effects and interactions
15. Assess, diagnose, plan, implement and evaluate treatment/interventions and care for patients presenting with an undifferentiated diagnosis, and patients with complex needs
16. Clinically examine and assess patient needs from a physiological and psychological perspective, and plan clinical care accordingly
17. Prioritise health problems and intervene appropriately to assist the patient in complex, urgent or emergency situations, including initiation of effective emergency care
18. Diagnose and manage both acute and chronic conditions
19. Support the management of long term conditions in collaboration with the practice teams
20. Support patients to adopt health promotion strategies that promote healthy lifestyles, and apply principles of self-care
Quality Requirements
· Enhance own performance through continuous professional development, keep up to date with current evidence-based practice, and impart own knowledge and skills to PCN colleagues to meet the needs of the service
· Recognise and work within own competence and professional code of conduct
· Assess effectiveness of care delivery through self and peer review, benchmarking and formal evaluation
· Participate in research and utilise the audit cycle as a means of evaluating the quality of the work of self and the team, implementing improvements where required
· In partnership with other clinical teams, collaborate on improving the quality of health care responding to local and national policies and initiatives as appropriate
· Alert other team members to issues of quality and risk
· Assess own performance and take accountability for own actions, either directly or under supervision
· Contribute to the effectiveness of the team by reflecting on own and team activities and making suggestions on ways to improve and enhance the
team’s performance
· Work effectively with individuals in other agencies to meet patients’ needs
· Effectively manage own time, workload and resources
General
Administrative requirements
· Produce accurate, contemporaneous and complete records of patient consultation, consistent with legislation, policies and procedures
· Be aware of data protection (GDPR) and confidentiality issues particularly within a PCN
· Use technology and appropriate software as an aid to management in planning, implementation and monitoring of care, presenting and communicating information
· Review and process data using accurate SNOMED codes in order to ensure easy and accurate information retrieval for monitoring and audit processes.
Equality and diversity:
The post-holder will support the equality, diversity and rights of patients, carers and colleagues, to include:
· Acting in a way that recognises the importance of people’s rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with practice procedures and policies, and current legislation
· Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs and beliefs of patients, carers and colleagues
· Behaving in a manner which is welcoming to and of the individual, is non- judgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings priorities and rights.
· Develop a culture that promotes equality and values diversity. The post holder must be aware of and committed to the Equality and Diversity policies of the appointing GP Practice and comply with all the requirements of these policies and actively promote Equality and Diversity issues relevant to the post.
The post holder will:
· Ensure the principles of openness, transparency and candour are observed and upheld in all working practices.
· Have, or acquire through training, the appropriate level of safeguarding and knowledge, skills and practice required for the post and be aware of and comply with the organisation’s safeguarding protection policies and procedures.
· Ensure that any infection prevention and control issues are reported to the line manager/Infection Prevention and Control
Personal/Professional development:
· The post-holder will participate in any training programme implemented by the practice as part of this employment, with such training to include:
o Participation in an annual individual performance review, including taking responsibility for maintaining a record of own personal and/or professional development
o Taking responsibility for own development, learning and performance and demonstrating skills and activities to others who are undertaking similar work
Supervision
The post holder will have access to appropriate clinical supervision and an appropriate named individual in the PCN to provide general advice and support on a day to day basis
Person Specification
Qualifications Essential
Essential Qualifications for a Paramedic as follows: Pre-reg MSc in a training programme approved by the College of Paramedics BSc in a training programme approved by the College of Paramedics Health & Care Professions Council (HCPC) registration Able to operate at an advanced level of clinical practice Framework for Higher Education Qualification (FHEQ) Level 7 or Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCOF) Level 11 Essential Qualifications for a Physician Associate as follows: Postgraduate Diploma/Master in Physician Associate from an accredited UK University Bachelor Degree in Life Science/Biomedical/Nursing or Allied Health Science Member of Faculty of Physician Associate Managed Voluntary Register (PAMVR) Valid national certification and recertification every six years stipulated by PAMVR. Essential qualifications for Advanced Practitioner: Masters Degree in Life Science/Biomedical/Nursing or Allied Health Science or equivalent IP qualification
Skills and Personal Attributes Essential
Essential Skills and Personal Attributes for Paramedic: Experience in managing a designated caseload using theoretical and practical experience, completing assessments, planning, implementing interventions, and evaluating outcomes aligned to care plans. Ability to evidence a sound understanding of the NHS principles and values Ability to analyse and interpret complex/ often incomplete information, pre-empt and evaluate issues, and recommend and appropriate course of action to address the issues. Excellent interpersonal, organisational and communication skills, able to influence and persuade others articulating a balanced view and able to constructively question information. Ability to negotiate effectively. Build effective relationships with a range of stakeholders which are based on openness, honesty trust and confidence. Strong and inspirational leadership Ability to co-ordinate and prioritise workloads able to multi-task as well as be self-disciplined and highly motivated Essential skills and Personal Attributes for Advanced Practitioner: IT literate / proficient in the use of the computer. Excellent interpersonal and organisational skills. Good problem solving and decision making skills. Ability to manage work load effectively. A high standard of clinical skills and experience of using these skills in different situations. Willingness to work at all times towards the best interest of the patient. Team player / ability to liaise effectively with colleagues and other members of the multi-disciplinary team. Ability to co-ordinate and prioritise workloads able to multi-task as well as be self-disciplined and highly motivated.
Desirable
Desirable skills and Personal Attributes for Paramedic: Working knowledge of Microsoft and GP practice and prescribing data monitoring systems. Working towards advanced clinical practitioner status. Mentorship or supervisory skills training. Be aware of data protection (GDPR) and confidentiality issues particularly within a PCN. Cognitive behavioural and motivational interviewing approaches / skills. Experience of working within a primary care setting Evidence of working across organisational boundaries within health and social care. Independent thinker with demonstrated good judgement, problem-solving and analytical skills. Clear communicator with excellent writing, report writing and presentation skills; capable of constructing and delivering clear ideas and concepts concisely and accurately for diverse audiences. Evidence of success in efficient and effective project and programme management. Evidence of inspiring and motivating teams with the ability to communicate passionately, effectively and persuasively across a diverse set of stakeholders. Desirable skills and Personal Attributes for Advanced Practitioner: Management and leadership skills. Evidence of success in efficient and effective project and programme management. High degree of personal credibility, emotional intelligence, patience and flexibility. Ability to cope with unpredictable situations. Confident in facilitating and challenging others. Demonstrates a flexible approach in order to ensure patient care is delivered.
Experience Essential
Experience in managing a designated caseload using theoretical and practical experience, completing assessments, planning, implementing interventions, and evaluating outcomes aligned to care plans Ability to evidence a sound understanding of the NHS principles and values Ability to analyse and interpret complex/ often incomplete information, pre-empt and evaluate issues, and recommend and appropriate course of action to address the issues. Experience of working to protocols or guidelines. Ongoing evidence of CPD
Desirable
Working knowledge of Microsoft and GP practice and prescribing data monitoring systems Working towards advanced clinical practitioner status Mentorship or supervisory skills training Be aware of data protection (GDPR) and confidentiality issues particularly within a PCN Cognitive behavioural and motivational interviewing approaches / skills Experience of working within a primary care setting Evidence of working across organisational boundaries within health and social care Independent thinker with demonstrated good judgement, problem-solving and analytical skills. Desirable experience for advanced practitioner as follows: Previous experience of developing clinical guidelines, clinical care pathways Experience of offering mentorship and supervision to other nursing staff. Experience of developing and implementing training programmes.
Other Essential
Meets DBS reference standards and criminal record checks Willingness to work flexible hours when required to meet work demands Access to own transport and ability to travel across the locality on a regular basis, including to visit people in their own homes
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 Newcastle North Primary Care Network (PCN)
Address Mount Road
Kidsgrove
Stoke-on-trent
ST7 4AY
United Kingdom