Senior Occupational Therapist

Step Up to Lead: Are you an experienced Occupational Therapist with a focus on physical health? Do you want to take the next step in your career by taking on a leadership role within a team while staying hands-on with patient care? We are looking for a passionate candidate to join us as a Senior OT for our West Berkshire Community Hospital Inpatients Unit, a friendly and supportive community-based physical health service. The unit includes two wards helping adult patients recover from surgery or acute medical conditions as they prepare to return home. This position is offered as a secondment or a fixed-term contract, providing a great development opportunity for aspiring leaders.

What makes this role different?

1. Support a team of OTs while managing a smaller personal caseload. Your focus will be on mentoring junior staff and managing a complex clinical caseload.
2. Collaborate for better care: Work closely with the Therapy Team Leads to develop and improve patient care.
3. Flexible working: Enjoy standard Monday to Friday hours, with options for part-time work from 30 hours per week. The core hours are 8am – 4pm, with current policies not including weekend work, though this may change in the future.
4. Be a clinical expert in your specialist area, supporting the Occupational Therapy contribution to the multidisciplinary team (MDT) on inpatient wards.
5. Plan and deliver Occupational Therapy for patients with a wide range of physical conditions and diverse presentations, taking lead responsibility for their care.
6. Autonomously manage a caseload of patients, including assessments and developing patient-centered care plans, some with highly complex needs.
7. Work as part of the MDT, including case conferences and discharge planning, ensuring patient information is managed professionally in line with confidentiality and data protection standards.
8. Supervise and support Band 5 Occupational Therapists, OT assistants, and multi-therapy assistants, ensuring ongoing supervision, appraisals, and training to maintain high-quality service.
9. Provide professional training and support to the MDT in your specialist area.
10. Lead the implementation of changes in clinical practice, including planning, developing, and evaluating services, and managing projects such as audits and research.
11. Foster key relationships with various healthcare teams, including acute care, secondary care, primary care, GPs, intermediate care teams, social services, clinical governance, patient safety managers, community matrons, case managers, and district nurses.

Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is a specialist mental health and community health services trust. Rated \’outstanding\’ by the CQC, we\’re committed to providing the best possible care to people across Berkshire. We are dedicated to creating an inclusive and compassionate environment where our staff feel a sense of belonging and are supported to flourish.

Our values at Berkshire Healthcare include:

• Caring for and about you is our top priority
• Committed to providing good quality, safe services
• Working together with you to develop innovative solutions

Your wellbeing is important to us. Some benefits of working with us include:

• Flexible working options to support work-life balance
• 27 days\’ annual leave, increasing with service, with options to buy and sell
• Generous NHS pension scheme
• Excellent learning and career development opportunities
• \’Cycle to Work\’ and car leasing schemes, including electric vehicles
• Access to wellbeing tools and services
• Discounts at various retailers and restaurants
• Staff networks supporting diversity, inclusion, and community engagement
• Generous maternity, paternity, adoption, and special leave
• Free parking across Trust sites