About this role
Job summary
Are you a skilled and motivated Hand Therapist looking to take your career to the next level? We have an exciting opportunity to join our friendly and well-established Hand Therapy team at Northampton General Hospital, part of the University Hospitals of Northamptonshire Group.
This post is a 12 Month, part-time fixed term maternity cover, providing a great opportunity to consolidate and develop experience in a specialist Hand Therapy Department.
This is a varied and rewarding role in which you'll manage your own complex caseload, working across trauma and orthopaedics and plastic surgery. You'll apply advanced clinical reasoning, design and fabricate splints, and make a real difference to patients navigating some of the most challenging moments of their lives.
Beyond direct patient care, you'll play an active part in shaping the service -- contributing to audit, clinical pathway development and in-service training. You'll also have the opportunity to mentor junior staff and support students on practice placement, helping to develop the next generation of hand therapists.
We're looking for a qualified Occupational Therapist or Physiotherapist with HCPC registration and solid experience in Hand Therapy at Band 5 or above. You'll need a strong working knowledge of upper limb anatomy and conditions, ideally have experience of splinting across a range of presentations, and the confidence to manage a busy and diverse caseload.
Please note: Interviews will take place face to face.
Main duties of the job
Responsible for the assessment, planning and implementation of Hand Therapy interventions for patients on own caseload, alongside senior Hand Therapy colleagues.
Actively contribute to the day-to-day operation and ongoing development of the Hand Therapy Service, working in close conjunction with the Hand Therapy Team leader, Hand Therapy colleagues and Therapy Service managers.
Provide clinical supervision to junior Hand Therapy staff and Hand Therapy Clinical Support staff as required.
Contribute to the fieldwork education of students on practice placement within the Hand Therapy and Therapies service.
About us
Please submit your application as soon as possible, as we reserve the right to close adverts once sufficient applications have been received.
We recognise that AI tools can be helpful when drafting job applications; however, we ask candidates to keep their use to a minimum. Your responses should reflect your own experiences, skills and knowledge. Over-reliance on AI-generated content may result in responses that are generic or do not accurately represent your abilities.
University Hospitals of Northamptonshire (UHN) was formed through the grouping of Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust. As one group, we are on a journey to improve services for our communities by working collaboratively, modernising the way we deliver care and continually striving for excellence.
Working together allows us to share expertise, strengthen services and create greater opportunities . There may be a requirement to work across our hospital sites depending on service needs.
Our Excellence Values: Compassion, Accountability, Respect, Integrity and Courage.
UHN welcomes applications from people from all protected groups and is committed to creating an inclusive working environment. We are proud signatories of the Armed Forces Covenant and have achieved the Gold Award under the Armed Forces Employer Recognition Scheme. Our active staff networks support colleagues from all backgrounds and help ensure everyone feels valued here at UHN.
Job description Job responsibilities
Corporate Responsibilities
Build safe working knowledge of all equipment used to provide safe patient care and participate in maintenance and training.
Supporting Clinical and Patient Excellence
Select and apply assessments and interventions for patients on own caseload, including the management of complex cases.
Use clinical reasoning to balance risk, safety, patient choice and eligibility for services.
Manage own clinical caseload from the point of referral through to discharge from the Hand Therapy service.
Demonstrate and apply a broad level of understanding of illness, injury and disability and the complex interaction between health, functional ability, psychological and social issues, as appropriate to Hand Therapy.
Select, design and fabricate splints appropriately to meet the required clinical outcomes, including the fabrication of dynamic splints.
Communicate effectively with patients, carers, members of the clinical team, Hand Therapy/Occupational Therapy colleagues and other agencies.
Provide support to patients, sharing information to enable them to make informed decisions regarding their Hand Therapy treatment.
Advise patients and carers, teaching and demonstrating the safe use of splints and other treatment modalities to optimise patient outcome.
Liaise with healthcare professionals and other related statutory, private and voluntary organisations, providing verbal and written reports where appropriate.
Respect the individuality, values, cultural and religious diversity of patients and contribute to the provision of a service sensitive to these needs.
Demonstrate basic leadership skills through the management of designated projects.
Participate in planning, evaluation and audit of practice, clinical pathways, protocols and procedures within Hand Therapy, in conjunction with the Hand Therapy Team Leader and senior Hand Therapy colleagues.
Propose changes to processes and procedures carried out within the Hand Therapy Service to improve effectiveness and efficiency.
Demonstrate understanding and application of local and national guidelines and legislation relating to healthcare provision within Hand Therapy and provide guidance to junior Hand Therapy staff as appropriate.
Exercise good personal time management, punctuality and consistent reliable attendance, submitting accurate daily records of attendance on electronic timesheets.
Notify the Hand Therapy Team Leader of sick leave as soon as possible in line with Trust policy.
In the absence of Hand Therapy colleagues through planned or unplanned leave, work flexibly to meet the prioritised needs of the Hand Therapy service, assisting senior Hand Therapy colleagues in co-ordinating cover when required.
Comply with departmental guidelines for the safe use, care and maintenance of equipment and stock.
Delegate work tasks appropriately to junior Hand Therapists, Hand Therapy Technical Instructors and Administrative Support staff.
Undertake supervision and contribute to the appraisal process of junior Hand Therapy staff, Hand Therapy Clinical Support staff and Administrative Support staff where required.
Provide/contribute to regular supervision and formal assessment of Occupational Therapy / Physiotherapy students on fieldwork practice placements within the Hand Therapy/ Therapies service.
In conjunction with the Hand Therapy Team Leader and senior Hand Therapy colleagues, initiate, plan and implement the induction, training and education of other staff and students within the Hand Therapy service.
Develop and utilise specialist skills as required for specific clinical conditions within Hand Therapy.
Apply increasingly complex knowledge and skills in order to ensure fitness to practice as an Occupational Therapist / Physiotherapist within the Hand Therapy service, in line with competencies detailed in the Knowledge & Skills Framework Outline for this post.
Participate in the Hand Therapy in-service training programme, taking the lead in designated sessions as appropriate.
Demonstrate ongoing personal development through identification of learning needs, and participation in formal/informal internal and external learning opportunities, contributing to the production of a Personal Development Plan.
Build an ongoing Continuing Professional Development portfolio, reflecting on and recording learning outcomes of development opportunities.
Demonstrate the ability to critically evaluate current Hand Therapy research and apply this to practice in conjunction with the Hand Therapy team.
Broaden research and development skills through participation in Hand Therapy service audit and research projects as appropriate.
Communicate effectively as a representative of the Hand Therapy/Therapies service at meetings and forums as delegated by the Head of Therapies or their Deputy.
People / Management Excellence
Reflect on ethical issues which impact on Hand Therapy service provision and provide guidance to junior Hand Therapy staff as required.
Review and reflect on own practice and actively participate in regular supervision and annual appraisal.
Coordinate the day-to-day activities of junior Hand Therapists, Hand Therapy
Clinical Support staff and administrative support staff in conjunction with the Hand Therapy Team Leader and senior Hand Therapy colleagues
Supporting Financial Excellence
To make best use of NHS resources
Professional Responsibilities, Quality Assurance and Monitoring
Comply with the College of Occupational Therapists / Chartered Society of Physiotherapists Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct, and the Health and Care Professions Council Standards of Conduct, Performance & Ethics, national and Trust policy, protocols and guidelines.
Complete all work necessary to maintain registration and encourage others to do so
Monitor own and others quality and standard of practice by appraisal and review
Maintain and monitor standards on health and safety, consent, note keeping, clinical governance, continuous professional development on both a personal, professional and departmental level
To supervise and teach students on placement
Policy and Service Development, Research and Development Responsibilities
To use information such as Clinical governance, NICE, and other clinical specific guidelines and evidence of best practice to assist in producing working guidelines, competencies and objectives to develop the service
Person Specification
Education, Training and Qualifications Essential
Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy qualification at degree level (or equivalent) Health Care Professions Council registration Evidence of up to date CPD
Desirable
Level 1 BAHT Training Training in splinting / Hand Therapy Membership of British Association of Hand Therapists (BAHT)/ RCOT/ CSP Practice educator training
Knowledge and Experience Essential
Experience of assessment, goal setting, planning, implementation and review of interventions with Hand Therapy patients within Trauma & Orthopaedics and/or Plastic Surgery Experience of splinting and hand therapy across a wide range of clinical conditions Experience of managing a clinical caseload and prioritising work Experience working in a multi-disciplinary team and making an active contribution towards its effective functioning Experience of delegating tasks to support staff Experience working at Band 5 level Knowledge of upper limb anatomy, conditions and surgery relating to Hand Therapy Knowledge of the Occupational Therapy / Physiotherapy process when specifically applied to Hand Therapy Awareness of the importance of maintaining accurate and up to date patient records and statistical data
Desirable
Experience working at Band 6 level Experience of supervising junior, support staff and students Recent experience working in the NHS Knowledge of current legislation relating to delivery of healthcare and the NHS Awareness of NHS governance agenda Knowledge of a range of standardised assessments relevant to working with patients in Hand Therapy
Skills Essential
Skills to communicate effectively with patients, carers, team members, Therapy colleagues and other agencies to facilitate plans and concepts and empower lifestyle change. Self management skills Skills in the fabrication and use of static splints and other treatment modalities Skills to produce clear and concise verbal and written clinical reports Effective team working skills Ability to review and reflect on own practice
Desirable
IT skills (keyboard, Microsoft word, Powerpoint, email and internet) Interest in contributing towards the development of junior and support staff and the broader Therapies service Skills in the fabrication of dynamic splints
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.
Certificate of Sponsorship Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
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 Northampton General Hospital
Address Northampton General Hospital
Billing Road
Northampton
NN1 5BD
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://www.northamptongeneral.nhs.uk/Home.aspx (Opens in a new tab)