Physician Associate (Home Visiting Service) and overflow clinic

We are looking to recruit a Physician Associate on a fixed term two year contract who will work as part of a multi-disciplinary team in a patient-facing role, within a home visiting capacity between the hours of 10am till 6pm. All Physician Associates within our team are assigned a dedicated GP Mentor within the practice team. Candidates must have at least two years primary care experience. This is an exciting opportunity in which you will gain experience in a home visiting service and make a real impact whilst being supported by the multi-disciplinary team. This role is pivotal to improving the quality of care and operational efficiencies so requires motivation and passion to deliver excellent service within the Primary Care Networks.

BHF are fully committed to ensuring equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) as this is embedded in our values. We are also a committed employer under the Disability Confident Scheme. Therefore, should you wish to discuss any reasonable adjustments or assistance you might need in the application or interview process, please contact a member of the HR team.

Main duties of the job:

• The ideal candidate should have (or be about to obtain) a Physician Associate Postgraduate Diploma and possess Certification of passing the National Examination, and be a member of the Faculty of Physician Associates at the RCP including registration on the Managed Voluntary Register.
• 2 years' post qualification experience is essential.
• The successful candidate will need to be flexible in their approach to work including; to undertake your work and provide care to patients via our home visiting service.
• Provide health/disease promotion and prevention advice.
• Using appropriate referral pathways, refer patients to other services.
• Provide patient care; focused history taking, clinical assessment, diagnoses, treatment and evaluation of care.

Our team is keen to support Physician Associates with further learning, to meet their interests and support the needs of particular patient demographics within the practice.

About us:

Barnsley has established one super Primary Care Network of over 250,000 patients which includes all GP practices across Barnsley. This is supported by six Neighbourhood Networks building on our successful and existing model of neighbourhood working; this enables us to maintain and focus on the specific needs of each local area whilst allowing integration at a borough wide level.

We offer:

• Generous holiday allowance 6 weeks holiday plus bank holidays
• Monthly B.E.S.T training event
• Access to Blue Light card retail discounts

Job responsibilities:

Under the supervision of a GP, provide care for the presenting patient including focused history taking, clinical assessment, diagnoses, treatment, and evaluation of care within a home visiting setting. Work collaboratively with the healthcare team and its member practices to meet the needs of the patients, supporting delivery of appropriate care. Provide a home visiting service with the support and supervision of experienced GPs, implementing agreed management plans and following approved protocols.

PRIMARY DUTIES AND AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITIES:

• To undertake your work and provide care to patients via our home visiting service.
• Provide first point of contact care for patients presenting with undifferentiated, undiagnosed problems by utilising history-taking, physical examinations, and clinical decision-making skills to establish a working diagnosis and management plan in partnership with the patient (and their carers where applicable).
• Support the management of patients conditions through offering specialised clinics following appropriate training including family planning, baby checks, COPD, asthma, diabetes, and anticoagulation.
• Provide health/disease promotion and prevention advice, alongside analysing and actioning diagnostic test results.
• Develop integrated patient-centred care through appropriate wording with the wider primary care multi-disciplinary team and social care networks.
• Utilise clinical guidelines and promote evidence-based practice and partake in clinical audits, significant event reviews and other research and analysis tasks.
• Manage a clinical caseload and deal with presenting patients needs in a home visiting setting.
• Refer patients directly to other services or agencies using appropriate referral pathways.
• Ensure safe handover of care within and outside the practice as appropriate.
• Work directly with members of the practice primary health care team and support integrated patient centred care through appropriate working with wider primary care / social care networks.
• Identify community health needs and participate in the development of patient/family-centred strategies to address them.
• Contribute to the practice quality targets to consistently achieve high standards of safe, evidence-based, cost-effective patient care and service delivery.

Person Specification:

Skills and Competencies:

• Ability to work well with colleagues and within a team
• Ability to liaise effectively with the wider healthcare community
• Awareness of local referral pathways
• Ability to organise and prioritise workload effectively
• Ability to exercise sound judgements when faced with conflicting pressures
• Ability to take an active role in a working group
• Sound IT knowledge including use of clinical systems
• Experience of conducting clinical audit
• Offering patient care in line with relevant guidance
• An awareness of current developments and initiatives in primary care
• To assist in the development of the role of Physician Associate within the practice and the wider PCN
• An awareness of local commissioning objectives that impact upon primary care and the services delivered
• Ability to motivate and develop colleagues

Qualifications:

• Graduation from a recognised/accredited Physician Associate higher education institution
• Certification of passing the PA National Examination
• Member of the Faculty of Physician Associates at the RCP, including registration on the PA Managed Voluntary Register
• MSc Degree in Physician Associate Studies
• BA/BSc degree prior to undertaking PA program

Attributes and Behaviours:

• Demonstrable ability to show kindness and compassion
• Demonstrate ability to reflect and learn from situations
• Identifies difficulties as challenges and works with others to identify solutions
• Demonstrates co-operative team working and awareness of the roles of other professionals
• Able to work on own initiative, organising and prioritising own workload to set deadlines
• Ability to adapt and change approach as circumstance dictates
• Persistence and ability to keep going in difficult situations and with complex and uncertain pieces of work
• Understanding of and commitment to equality of opportunity and good working relationships
• An ability to maintain confidentiality and trust
• Can do attitude, able to maintain positivity in the face of adversity
• Good time keeping
• Flexible approach to work
• Ability to work flexibly across days of the week

Experience:

• Experienced graduate with 2 years' associated clinical experience
• Experience of working within a primary care environment, which could include on placement at University.
• Experience of preventative medicine and management of patients with long term conditions and complex needs.
• Experience of seeing, assessing, and treating acutely unwell people presenting in primary care.

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 to check for any previous criminal convictions.