About this role
Job summary
Provide clinical and operational leadership for the Tissue Viability Service, delivering specialist expertise to improve skin integrity, wound care outcomes and patient safety across Norfolk Adults, care homes and the wider integrated health and care system.
The post holder will lead and develop a high-quality, evidence-based and cost-effective service, acting as a clinical role model and supporting multidisciplinary teams through specialist assessment, intervention, education, clinical supervision and professional advice. They will provide advanced clinical support where patient complexity, risk or deterioration exceeds the capabilities of frontline teams, ensuring timely access to specialist tissue viability expertise.
The role is responsible for driving service improvement, quality assurance, governance, workforce development and innovation, while ensuring practice aligns with national guidance, legislation and recognised best practice standards. Working in partnership with patients, carers, colleagues and system partners, the post holder will lead and support the implementation of the six priority domains of Clinical Practice and Interventions, Prevention and Early Intervention, Surveillance and Monitoring, Workforce Development, Equipment and Technology, and Governance and Assurance to improve outcomes and reduce avoidable skin damage and wound-related harm.
Main duties of the job
The post holder will provide strategic, clinical and operational leadership for the Tissue Viability Service, exercising a high degree of professional autonomy to deliver expert assessment, advice and management of patients with compromised skin integrity. They will lead and manage the Tissue Viability Team, ensuring high standards of clinical practice, governance, workforce development, performance management and service delivery across community and inpatient settings. Responsibilities include providing specialist clinical expertise and supervision, leading multidisciplinary decision-making for complex cases, overseeing service improvement, quality assurance, risk management, audit, research and education programmes, and ensuring equitable access to tissue viability services.
The role will support the development and implementation of evidence-based policies, prevention strategies and integrated care pathways, while maintaining effective partnerships with patients, carers, multidisciplinary teams and system partners to improve patient outcomes, service quality and skin integrity care across the wider Integrated Care System.
About us
Please be aware that East of England Community Health and Care NHS Trust will never ask applicants to pay fees at any stage of the recruitment process, including job applications, sponsorship arrangements, or employment offers. All recruitment communications and job applications should only be made through our official careers website and published contact details.
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Job description
Job responsibilities
Exercise a high level of professional autonomy, providing specialist clinical leadership, decision-making, advice and support relating to tissue viability, wound management and skin integrity for patients, carers and healthcare professionals. Lead, develop and maintain the effectiveness, performance and clinical culture of the Tissue Viability Service, including line management, workforce planning, supervision, appraisal, competency assessment and staff development. Deliver specialist assessment, care planning and intervention for patients with complex skin integrity needs, ensuring care is evidence-based, patient-centred and focused on achieving agreed outcomes.
Establish, monitor and review referral pathways, response standards and service access criteria to ensure equitable, timely and effective provision of specialist tissue viability services. Participate in the Tissue Viability rota, providing specialist clinical cover, including weekends and designated bank holidays, to ensure continuity of service delivery. Provide expert clinical advice, education, mentorship and supervision to community, inpatient, health and social care teams, supporting the delivery of high-quality wound management and skin integrity care.
Lead multidisciplinary discussions and meetings for highly complex cases, facilitating collaborative decision-making, challenge, escalation and effective care coordination. Communicate highly complex, sensitive and potentially contentious information with professionalism, compassion and empathy, adapting communication methods to meet individual needs and overcome barriers to understanding. Ensure accurate, timely and comprehensive documentation, electronic record keeping and professional communication in accordance with organisational and professional standards.
Manage service resources effectively, including waiting lists, workforce capacity, budgets, equipment procurement and risk management, ensuring efficient and cost-effective service delivery. Monitor, assess and manage clinical and non-clinical risks in accordance with Trust policies and governance requirements. Promote patient and carer involvement in service delivery and development, ensuring feedback, concerns and complaints are managed appropriately and acted upon. Develop and maintain effective working relationships with patients, carers, multidisciplinary teams, partner organisations and system stakeholders to support integrated care and positive patient outcomes.
Support the strategic development of tissue viability services through service improvement, innovation, implementation of best practice, and alignment with organisational, Integrated Care System (ICS) and long-term condition priorities. Review and interpret national guidance, legislation, evidence and best practice standards, supporting local implementation and continuous improvement. Lead and contribute to audits, research, quality improvement initiatives, data analysis, service evaluation and reporting requirements to demonstrate service effectiveness and improve outcomes.
Utilise Trust information systems and digital technologies to support clinical practice, performance monitoring, audit, governance and resource management. Lead and promote clinical governance, assurance and quality improvement activities, ensuring compliance with Trust, professional and national standards. Oversee prevention and early intervention programmes aimed at reducing pressure ulcers, wound deterioration, avoidable skin damage and associated harm. Develop, implement and review clinical policies, procedures, patient information resources and service standards to support safe and effective practice.
Regularly review complex cases, incidents, risks and performance data to identify trends, implement improvements and escalate concerns where required. Attend and participate in clinical and management supervision and maintain professional competence through reflection, continuing professional development and adherence to professional standards.
Person Specification
Qualifications & Training
Essential
- Registered Nurse with Current NMC registration
- Accredited qualification (e.g. Masters Level) in wound management or working towards
- Evidence of significant experience in tissue viability
Desirable
- Teaching qualification
- Evidence of further academic or practical study at a higher level e.g. level 7 or relevant experience
- Non-medical prescribing qualification or willing to undertake
Experience
Essential
- Significant experience of leadership & management
- Evidence of experience in teaching and mentoring within your role
- Experience of cross boundary working in partnership and collaboration with health, social and voluntary sectors.
- Knowledge and understanding of clinical governance and the implications to their own service area.
- Expert clinical knowledge in all aspects wound management and current best practice
- Proven leadership and management skills in some aspect of service development
- Experience of using advanced communication skills
Desirable
- An understanding of, or experience in managing long-term conditions
- Experience of leading change and innovation
- Research and Audit
- Be able to demonstrate a high personal commitment to the development of improving patient care, e.g. participation in research, audit and education.
- Experience of managing complaints
- Community experience
Skills, Abilities and Knowledge
Essential
- Ability to appraise complex situations and facts and take appropriate action.
- Ability to use own initiative and take responsibility.
- Knowledge and experience of budget management
- Computer literate
- Good organisational and time management skills
- Advanced wound care therapies and techniques appropriate to role and patient/ service need
Communication
Essential
- Ability to deal with highly sensitive and complex information where agreement and co - operation is required with patients, carers, colleagues and other professionals
- Ability to communicate highly complex information where there may be barriers to understanding
Personal and People Development
Essential
- Motivated - able to motivate self and others to deliver a quality service
Personal Attributes / Behaviours
Essential
- Ability to cope with the physical effort required to perform the role.
- Highly Motivated
- Flexible
- Good interpersonal skills
- Confidence to work alone whilst supporting the rest of the team.
- Able to identify with the Trust's commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people/vulnerable adults.
Other
Essential
- Team working skills
- Self-motivated
- Ability to move between details and the bigger picture.
- Demonstrates honesty and integrity and promotes organisational values.
- Embrace change, viewing it as an opportunity to learn and develop
- The post holder will need to be passed fit to perform full duties of the post through occupational health with any reasonable aids and adaptations.
- Must hold full and valid driving licence and have access to a vehicle
- Able to communicate effectively in written and verbal English Language
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
East of England Community Health and Care NHS Trust
Address
North Walsham Hospital
The North Walsham Hospital, Yarmouth Road, North Walsham, Norfolk. NR28 9AP
Norfolk
NR28 9AP
United Kingdom
Employer's website
https://www.eastofenglandcommunityhealthandcare.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)