Paramedic Practitioner in Billingshurst

The postholder will work as an integral member of the duty team, providing high quality, patient-centred care to patients. They will undertake the majority of same-day acute home visits, conducting comprehensive clinical assessments, formulating management and treatment plans, and ensuring timely escalation or referral where appropriate. Our Paramedic Practitioners are supported at all times by a Duty GP when necessary. Working alongside another experienced Paramedic Practitioner, the role will be structured to dovetail hours in order to provide seamless home visiting cover across the week. This collaborative approach ensures continuity, efficiency, and consistent clinical standards for patients requiring urgent or unscheduled care at home.

Main duties of the job:

• To provide paramedic practitioner activities in a primary care setting to support the GPs through telephone triage; holding clinics and visiting patients within their own homes.
• Under the supervision of the GP, provide medical care, assessments, evaluation, and treatment for patients in clinics and in the community.
• To work within the acute Duty team comprising GPs and Advanced Nurse Practitioners, prioritising the needs of patients and making referrals as necessary. Training will be given.
• To make differential diagnoses using decision-making and problem-solving skills, working under the supervision of the Advanced Nurse Practitioner and GPs.
• To order necessary investigations and provide treatment and care both individually and as part of the primary care team and through referral to other agencies.
• To screen patients for disease risk factors and early signs of illness.
• To develop with the patient an ongoing nursing care plan for health.
• To work collaboratively with other health care professionals and disciplines.
• To actively pursue policies that will promote healthy lifestyles for patients: promote health education and participate in relevant sessions within the practice.
• To continuously improve personal specialised skills through audit, research, review and fulfilling training needs.

About us:

Billingshurst Surgery is based in a semi-rural West Sussex commuter village and is well respected locally. We are a busy, high achieving dispensing practice with nearly 14,000 patients and offer an organised and supportive work environment. We are a friendly organisation committed to providing an open, friendly and supportive environment where all staff are encouraged to share ideas and contribute to continuously improving the service we offer.

Job responsibilities:

• To offer care complementary to that offered by the GPs and other Practitioners in the Practice.
• Visits following discussion of each case with a GP, to undertake visits to patients in their own homes and to nursing homes if required during urgent / acute episodes of care.
• Triage (after training): Telephone triage of patients requesting same day appointments, prioritising the needs of patients and referring on to the Advanced Nurse Practitioner and GPs as necessary.
• To monitor and evaluate standards of care through appropriate audit, taking appropriate remedial action if standards are not achieved.
• To be accountable for care given within Practice policies, protocols, and procedures.
• To maintain accurate and comprehensive records with specific regards to confidentiality.
• To advise and support other members of the team whilst working as a flexible and conscientious team member.
• Perform specialist health checks and reviews within their scope of practice and in line with local and national guidance.
• Perform and interpret ECGs.
• Perform investigatory procedures as required and undertake the collection of pathological specimens including intravenous blood samples, swabs and other samples within their scope of practice and within line of local and national guidance.
• Support the delivery of anticipatory care plans and lead certain services (e.g., monitoring blood pressure and diabetes risk of elderly patients).
• Communicate effectively with patients and, where appropriate, family members and their carers, complex and sensitive information regarding their physical health needs, results, findings and treatment choices.
• To attend appropriate clinical update training and general and specific paramedic skills and training in order to maintain knowledge and skills.
• To be aware of national and local targets; initiatives; in relation to own practice and to apply these in the clinical setting.
• To recognise professional boundaries and ensure these are maintained.
• Participation in an annual individual performance review, including taking responsibility for maintaining a record of own personal and/or professional development.
• Contribute to the effectiveness of the team by reflecting on own and team activities.
• To maintain a professional profile.

Confidentiality:

In the course of seeking treatment, patients entrust practice staff with, or allow us to gather, sensitive information in relation to their health and other matters. Comply with Legislation with regards to data protection act and ensure confidentiality is maintained at all times. The post-holder must regard all information relating to patients and their carers, practice staff and other healthcare workers as strictly confidential.

Health & Safety:

The post-holder will comply with practice policies, procedures and clinical guidelines for self and others. This includes identifying, reporting, and correcting health and safety hazards and infection hazards immediately when recognised. Awareness of national standards of infection control and cleanliness, as well as ownership of infection control and clinically based patient care protocols and implementing them across the practice.

Equality and Diversity:

The post-holder will support the equality, diversity and rights of patients, carers and colleagues, to include acting in a way that recognises the importance of peoples rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with practice procedures and policies, and current legislation.

Quality:

The post-holder will strive to maintain quality within the practice, and will alert other team members to issues of quality and risk. Assess own performance and take accountability for own actions, either directly or under supervision.

Communication:

The post-holder should recognize the importance of effective communication within the team and will strive to communicate effectively with other team members and patients.

Contribution to the implementation of services:

The post-holder will apply practice policies, standards and guidance and discuss with other members of the team how the policies, standards and guidelines will affect own work.

Person Specification:

• Completed their two-year Consolidation of Learning period when a newly qualified paramedic.
• Completed a further three years experience as a band 6 (or equivalent) paramedic.
• Ability to listen, empathise with people and provide person centred support in a non-judgemental way.
• Courteous, respectful and helpful at all times.
• Able to get along with people from all backgrounds and communities, respecting lifestyles and diversity.
• Commitment to reducing health inequalities and proactively working to reach people from all communities.
• Able to support people in a way that inspires trust and confidence, motivating others to reach their potential.
• Ability to use own initiative, discretion and sensitivity.
• Ability to communicate complex and sensitive information effectively with people at all levels by telephone, email and face to face.
• High levels of integrity and loyalty.
• Ability to deal with non-routine and unpredictable nature of the workload and individual patient contact.
• Ability to maintain effective working relationships and to promote collaborative practice with all colleagues.
• Demonstrate personal accountability, emotional resilience and work well under pressure.
• Ability to organise, plan and prioritise on own initiative, including when under pressure and meeting deadlines.
• High level of written and oral communication skills.
• Knowledge of and ability to work to policies and procedures, including confidentiality, safeguarding, lone working, information governance, and health and safety.

Other Requirements:

• Willingness to work flexible hours when required to meet work demands.
• Access to own transport and ability to travel across the locality on a regular basis, including to visit people in their own home.
• Clear polite telephone manner.
• Knowledge of IT systems, including ability to use word processing skills, emails and the internet to create simple plans and reports.
• Has previously worked in a primary care setting or a Primary Care Network.

Qualifications:

• Educated to degree level in paramedicine/paramedic science or equivalent experience.
• Registered with the Health and Care Professionals Council as a paramedic.

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.