Clinical Lead West Hants/Southampton/Isle of Wight Wheelchair Services

We are looking for an experienced Clinical Lead to join our wheelchair service team. This role involves providing clinical leadership and expertise to ensure the delivery of safe, effective person-centred care. Working with our highly experienced team, you will play a pivotal role in managing the service to provide the highest standards of postural and mobility services.

The role is primarily based at the Chandlers Ford Wheelchair Service site with regular visits to the Newport Clinical site. Travel to other sites is required and occasional visits to other Ross Care locations may also be necessary.

The Clinical Lead is supported and supervised by a Regional Therapist and is part of our national Clinical Lead Group, who meet weekly for information sharing and peer support. Ross Care have a well-developed staff development framework including Personal Development Reviews and Plans plus CPD for all clinical staff.

This role will provide leadership to the team, developing both staff and the service itself. Experience of previous wheelchair provision is essential. The post offers an opportunity to utilise existing management experience and build new skills, including:

• Ensuring best practice is adhered to in all areas of wheelchair service delivery, in line with national service frameworks and standards of treatment/practice, collaborating with other Wheelchair Service Clinical Leads through regular meetings to share and develop best practice.
• Be responsible for the clinical team, providing expert clinical support and ensuring that staff are supported in managing their own caseloads and are working at the appropriate competence level.
• Carry a small complex caseload.
• Work collaboratively with the senior management team to ensure provision of an efficient and effective clinical service that meets contractual obligations and KPIs, provides excellent customer service and manage budgets to ensure best value.

About us: Ross Care provide clinically lead, high-quality wheelchair services on behalf of the NHS. Our friendly teams include OTs, Physiotherapists and Rehabilitation Engineers, providing services for all age ranges. We operate across 40 regions in England and Wales, supporting over 400,000 wheelchair users each year and covering 45% of the population. We take great pride in the role we play in making a real difference in the lives of those who matter most - our patients and their families.

Ross Care are a values-led organisation where people come first and whilst demand can often be high, our commitment to delivering high-quality care never wavers. We foster an environment where every team member is included, supported and empowered to contribute ideas and shape how we deliver services.

We provide a mature career pathway designed to help you grow with us and clinical supervision and CPD opportunities are embedded at all levels. We offer opportunity, structure, encouragement and excellent line management support. We offer a wide range of learning opportunities, including apprenticeships and training programmes. Many of our team members progress into new roles within the organisation, thanks to our strong grow your own culture.

We take our environmental responsibilities seriously - tracking our carbon footprint, setting measurable targets, and continuously seeking new ways to reduce environmental impact.

Please see attached job description for full details of main job description and responsibilities for the role.

To provide clinical leadership and expertise to the wheelchair service clinical team and other wheelchair service team members, from a background of Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy. The post holder will be required to run clinics in and provide clinical leadership in Surrey Wheelchair Services.

• Demonstrate strategies for organising own workload.
• Demonstrate a flexible and adaptable approach to working in order to meet competing priorities.
• Demonstrate strategies for managing waiting lists.
• Demonstrate and provide evidence of skill development and provide examples of practice where key skills have been applied.
• Confident in the use of IT with strong skills in Microsoft Office.
• Good communication skills, both written and verbal; positive interpersonal skills with an ability to communicate appropriately with colleagues, other professionals, carers and service users.
• Ability to communicate sensitive information in written and verbal forms to service users, other professionals and in-house staff.
• Knowledge of a wide range of medical conditions (e.g. respiratory, neuro, orthopaedic), their management and implications for wheelchair prescription or other intervention.
• Effective strategies to cope with a variety of distressing situations, including challenging behaviour from service users, other stakeholders and staff.
• Ability to work under pressure.
• Demonstrate understanding of risk assessment and management in all aspects of the work environment and service provision.
• Demonstrate an understanding of safeguarding, including how to identify potential safeguarding situations, how to report them internally and ensure action within the MDT.
• Knowledge of legal issues (e.g. data protection, child protection, health and safety, vulnerable adults, human rights etc).
• Demonstrate an understanding of health and safety responsibilities and compliance.
• Demonstrate an understanding of clinical governance requirements.
• Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of moving and handling techniques and procedures.
• Understanding of information governance and data protection issues.

• BSc or Diploma in Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy.
• State registration with the HCPC.
• DBS Clearance.
• Member of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy or the Royal College of Occupational Therapists.
• Member of relevant special interest group, e.g. PMG.

• Minimum of 5 years post registration experience working with patients who have long-term or complex medical conditions.
• Previous experience of wheelchair provision.
• Experience of team leadership, management and positive role modelling.
• Experience of managing and supervising junior staff.
• Experience of managing a budget.
• Experience of working within the NHS.

• Full driving licence and a willingness to drive Ross Care/own vehicles.
• An ability to adapt to changing environmental conditions, such as weather, exposure to unpleasant environments, bodily fluids, pets and other unspecified hazards.

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.