About this role
Job summary
Practice Development Nurse - Sepsis and Patient Deterioration
Department Practice Development
Band 7 £49,387 - £56,515 Per annum, pro rata if part-time
Hours: 37.5 per week, all MKUH roles will be considered for flexible working
Are you passionate about improving patient safety and empowering staff to recognise and respond to deterioration? This exciting role offers the opportunity to make a real Trust-wide impact by leading education, audit and improvement work focused on sepsis and patient deterioration.
As Practice Development Nurse, you will work collaboratively with clinical teams, Rapid Response, Patient Safety and Governance colleagues to strengthen early recognition, escalation and management of deteriorating patients.
You will develop engaging education programmes, support sepsis and deteriorating patient improvement work, lead audit activity, and help translate learning into meaningful improvements in practice.
We are looking for an enthusiastic, credible and clinically confident nurse with excellent communication skills, a passion for education, and the drive to influence safer care across MKUH.
Interview 30 September 2026
Main duties of the job
'94% feel that their role makes a difference to patience and service users.' 'NHS Staff Survey 2024'
'We care We communicate We collaborate We contribute'
o Raise awareness of sepsis and the deteriorating patient, the importance of early recognition and intervention through utilisation of NEWS 2 across the Trust.
o Lead on the audit of sepsis recognition and management, ensuring sepsis tools are used and are in line with NICE guidelines.
o Deliver a continuous education programme on the recognition and management of deteriorating patients for all healthcare professionals involved in the care and treatment of patients.
o Identify and support sepsis and deteriorating champions in each clinical area.
o Audit patients who have deteriorated using this data to inform training needs and ensure shared learning.
o Support Trust improvement projects related to the deteriorating patient, including collection of audit data, education, and training.
About us
Milton Keynes University Hospital, in proud partnership with the University of Buckingham, is a University Teaching Hospital committed to advancing patient care through cutting-edge research and education. With a "Good" rating from the CQC and significant investment underway, this is an exciting time to join our team and grow your career.
As a medium sized general hospital, we provide a full range of general medical and surgical services, including a busy Emergency Department, Maternity, and Paediatrics. As the population of our city and surrounding areas continues to grow rapidly, we are expanding and enhancing our facilities to meet rising demand and improve access to care for all our communities.
We are also proud to offer a growing portfolio of specialist services. In January 2025 we opened our state-of-the-art Radiotherapy Centre, bringing advanced cancer treatment closer to home. Our services also include neonatology, specialist surgical care, and a wide range of diagnostics, supported by the new Community Diagnostic Centre at Whitehouse Health Centre. We have just opened the Oak Wards - a new ward block featuring two 24-bed wards.
Further investment is underway, including the recently approved Women and Children's Centre, set to open by 2030.
Visit our website to explore the latest news and opportunities at MKUH - News - Milton Keynes University Hospital -
For further information about Milton Keynes please visit - Visit Milton Keynes
Job description Job responsibilities
Education
To work collaboratively with the Trust Sepsis and Care of the Critically Ill Patient groups to assess educational requirements across the Organisation, identifying areas which require enhanced educational input and development of appropriate competency-based programmes to meet these needs.
Lead the development, co-ordination and delivery of quality education programmes centred on the recognition and management of the deteriorating patient, including sepsis and NEWS 2 utilising a variety of educational platforms.
Clinical
Provide evidence-based specialist advice and support relating the deteriorating patient to all Trust staff groups.
Audit, monitor and advise the Care of the Critically Ill Group and other Trust Groups on the provision and effectiveness of deteriorating patient education.
Research, Audit and Development
To actively participate in multidisciplinary audit activity, this includes data collection to support any relevant CQUIN.
Deliver high quality clinical and audit presentations to multidisciplinary groups.
Personal and Professional Development
To take responsibility of own professional development, ensuring that you develop within the role.
To ensure that they are up to date with any new developments, recommendations or guidelines and are competent in the skills that they are expected to provide.
Please refer to the Job Description for further details
Person Specification
Qualifications and knowledge Essential
Registered Nurse (Adult) with current NMC registration Evidence of study at Master's Level Teaching Qualification (Post Graduate Certificate Education or equivalent) Practice Assessor/Supervisor qualification
Desirable
ILS Provider Aim/Alert Instructor
Experience Essential
Significant experience of working in an acute specialty Senior Nurse experience (Band 6 ward sister or specialist nurse) Evidence of effective Practice Development within a clinical environment Experience of audit process Evidence of effective teaching ability
Desirable
Experience of Organisational Policy development Experience of change management
Skills Essential
Ability to work autonomously. Ability to manage time and prioritise own workload. Expertise in management of the deteriorating patient Knowledge of current sepsis guidelines and current issues relating to the deteriorating patient Experience of effective clinical leadership Excellent problem-solving skills. Proficient IT skills
Personal and people development Essential
Patient focused with a commitment to providing high quality care. A positive role model. Flexible and adaptive Ability to supervise staff on a day-to-day basis. Motivated and innovative.
Communication Essential
Excellent verbal and written communication skills. Ability to present complex information utilising a variety of mediums. Effective negotiation skills.
Desirable
Experience of report writing.
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 Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Address Resus Training Officer (Dept)
Milton Keynes
MK6 5LD
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://www.mkuh.nhs.uk/working-at-mkuh (Opens in a new tab)