Focused Care Practitioner in Rochdale

We are seeking to recruit a Focused Care Practitioner to work across Middleton and Rochdale, supporting patients with complex needs in areas of high deprivation. This role adopts a whole-household approach, managing a diverse caseload with the aim of addressing both medical and social factors that impact an individual's health and wellbeing. This is a highly rewarding opportunity for experienced individuals to apply their skills in delivering meaningful and lasting change.

The role involves working with complex issues such as safeguarding, domestic abuse, mental health, and substance misuse, with the support of GP practices and wider community teams. The Focused Care Practitioner is a patient-facing role, primarily involving home visits. You will provide practical, strengths-based solutions, addressing the underlying causes of poor health outcomes and coordinating services to deliver long-term, sustainable improvements for patients who may otherwise be underserved. This is a full-time position, working Monday to Friday across Middleton Health Centre and Wellfield Health Centre.

Main duties of the job

• Acting as an advocate for patients, you will support them in accessing appropriate appointments, medication, and benefits.
• You will work collaboratively with patients, GP teams, and statutory and community services to develop practical and effective care plans.
• The role requires a strong team player with the ability to build positive working relationships across multidisciplinary teams.

This position would suit individuals with over eight years experience in health, social care, or community-based roles. You should demonstrate a professional, compassionate, and non-judgemental approach, alongside a strong commitment to social justice and an understanding of health inequalities. Experience of working with diverse communities, including BAME, LGBTQI+, and people living with HIV, is highly desirable.

About us

This role is employed by Hope Citadel Healthcare as the Lead employer and Wellfield Health Center. As a Focused Care Practitioner you will take part in everyday practice life. At primary care the most vulnerable are often the most invisible to the system, the role a Focused Care Practitioner aims to turn this round and reverse the inverse care law so that the most vulnerable become the most visible.

Job responsibilities

• To manage own caseload of complex and vulnerable cases, appropriately referred from GPs and other members of the team.
• To assess needs of patients and families in complex/vulnerable situations and to work as an advocate to develop effective care plans in partnership with the families, to ensure that these needs can be met.
• To help the practice develop new ways of working to deliver whole person healthcare to patients, families and the community.
• To build strong relationships between the practice and other statutory bodies, voluntary organisations and the community.
• To pro-actively seek to build-up the community, in order to offer community as well as practice solutions, to meet the health needs of individual patients and their families.

Duties & Responsibilities:

• To attend multi-disciplinary practice meetings.
• To prepare relevant reports based on assessment and case findings.
• To ensure good communications between agencies and attend multi-agency meetings where appropriate.
• To work transparently and in such a way that any further focused care workers can easily take on this role.
• To access clinical supervision regularly in order to maintain gold standard of practice and care.
• To ensure record keeping complies with practice, NMC or other professional standards and child protection guidelines: to initiate and maintain a gold standard of records which is accessible to the relevant agencies within patient confidentiality guidelines.
• To maintain accurate, confidential and up-to-date documentation on all cases of safeguarding and child protection and report where required.
• Encourage GP practice staff to have increased awareness of households (including adults and children) who may be in need of safeguarding or have additional vulnerability.
• When working with adults complete the Initial assessment on all adults, which provides a structure that identifies adults who may be at risk.
• To work in line with all practice policy and procedures.

This job description is not exhaustive and may be adjusted periodically after review and consultation. You will also be expected to carry out any reasonable duties, which may be requested from time-to-time.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Professional qualification and/or extended experience in health or social field, being a nurse, health visitor, social worker, probation worker, youth worker background.
• Evidence of ongoing professional development.

Experience

• MDT working and experience building relationships with patients, GPs, staff members and other agencies.
• Ability to work in line within NHS and/or company and practice policies and procedures, and with your line manager and local team.
• Experience and understanding of Safeguarding.
• Understanding and appreciation of the role of the community and voluntary sector.
• Experience or knowledge of the services / working in relevant CCG or borough area.

Skills

• Be risk aware but not risk averse.
• Be proactive and practical, with the ability to problem solve.
• Be compassionate, patient and professional.
• Confident following lone working procedures, working across different locations and home visiting.
• Good knowledge and understanding of IT systems (ideally EMIS) and note recording.

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.

Full-time, Flexible working, Compressed hours.