Clinical Nurse Specialist #1138 in Stoke-on-Trent

The Clinical Nurse Specialist (HART) is a key member of the Hospice Advice & Response Team, delivering specialist palliative care advice and rapid response support to patients, families and healthcare professionals across the community. The service operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, responding to urgent and unplanned palliative care needs. Working within an established multidisciplinary team, the post holder provides expert clinical assessment, triage and intervention via telephone and face-to-face visits. This role requires advanced communication skills, sound clinical judgement and the ability to manage complex symptom control, palliative emergencies and sensitive end-of-life situations.

Main duties of the job:

• The post holder provides specialist palliative care nursing support through the Hospice Advice & Response Team, offering timely triage, clinical advice and rapid response to patients with life-limiting illness.
• This includes holistic assessment, symptom management, advance care planning and emotional support for patients and families.
• The role involves working collaboratively with internal hospice services and external healthcare professionals to ensure coordinated, person-centred care.
• The Clinical Nurse Specialist contributes to service development, audit and education, while maintaining high standards of clinical governance, documentation and professional practice in line with organisational values.

Job responsibilities:

• To work alongside your team to ensure the continued co-ordination of the content and delivery of the community patients care plans and ensure the quality and provision of nursing care of patients and their families.
• To assess the needs of patients and their carers and identify their respective physical, psychological, social, cultural and spiritual needs.
• To work within a team framework, collaborating with colleagues and members of other disciplines across the hospice and externally.
• To use a proactive and sensitive approach with patients and families during times of unplanned activity and respond timely to their needs.
• To conduct a triage assessment aligning a time frame for responsiveness.
• To assess peoples information needs and provide relevant information to meet those needs.
• To ensure provision of appropriate interventions and utilise clinical information appropriately.
• To follow the hospice and Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) or other registered body standards on Medicines Management.
• To participate in Clinical Audit and research programme.
• To foster positive working relations with other healthcare professionals and lead by example.
• To support colleagues, volunteers and students in managing bereavements, and provide support for distressed patients, bereaved relatives and visitors.
• You will be able to demonstrate leadership through clinical expertise, aiming to deliver high standards of person-centred care using the underpinning philosophy of Specialist Palliative Care.
• Have the skills and confidence to contribute to the delivery of specialist education and training to other professionals in a formal and informal setting.
• Contribute to quantitative and qualitative data collection of the Service.
• Understand and utilise relevant clinical guidelines.
• Takes professional responsibility for ensuring effective communication between all service providers across the care pathway.
• After an initial period will actively participate in multi-professional meetings, acting as patient advocate and representing the CNS view.
• To recognise and manage the potentially distressing effects of working with terminal illness, maintaining personal resilience while accessing the support, guidance, and resources available through the hospice.
• Work across professional boundaries and develop a robust rationale for decision making and problem-solving.

Person Specification:

Qualifications:

• Essential: Registered Nurse
• Ability to travel independently throughout the locality with access to suitable vehicle for business purposes
• Desirable: Advanced Communication Skills qualification or willingness to undertake, Independent Prescribing Qualification, Healthcare Assessment qualification

Experience:

• Essential: 3 years post registration experience, Proven experience and knowledge of palliative/terminal care
• Desirable: Experience in triage, Experience in Audit, Experience in formal teaching

Additional Criteria:

• Essential: IT skills including Microsoft Office Suite, Must demonstrate excellent interpersonal and communication skills, Ability to work with a multi-disciplinary team, Awareness of palliative emergencies and know when to escalate these, Knowledge of evidencing the use of clinical guidelines, Knowledge of palliative medicine and symptom management, Ability to prioritise, The ability to adapt to change, Ability to motivate others, Use own initiative, To be able to meet the requirements of the post, Flexible working to meet shift requirements, Present a professional appearance appropriate to the role.
• Desirable: To understand the external influences that affect the delivery of palliative care in the community, Experience in advance planning, Demonstrate leadership qualities.

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.

Applicants must have current UK professional registration.