Hospice at Home Nurse/HCP in Bristol

As a Band 6 clinician within our Hospice at Home service, you will work autonomously in patients' homes, providing high-quality clinical, practical and emotional support to individuals in the last four weeks of life and to their families, both before and after bereavement.

The Hospice at Home Registered clinician is an expert in ensuring high quality palliative care is delivered to patients in the last weeks of life and their families. They work independently, and as part of the wider health care team.

Main duties of the job:

• Providing symptom control, psychological, personal, social and spiritual care and initial after death guidance and bereavement support.
• Delegating care to Nurse associates and Senior Palliative Care Support Workers (SPCSWs).
• Support and line management of Nursing Associates and SPCSWs.
• The triage, assessment and prioritisation of referrals.
• Coordinate, manage and allocate SPCSW teams to deliver Hospice at home care.
• Working with a multi-professional approach to care.
• Participation in quality initiatives.

Job responsibilities:

• Independent assessment of the patients needs, identifying their priorities and working with the patient and family towards achieving them.
• Demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of the options for achieving control of symptoms in the last weeks of life and ability to advise the primary and community health care teams.
• Responsibility for the planning and supervision of delivery of care.
• Support and coach carers at home in managing a relative whose condition is deteriorating.
• Recognise the impact of caring for dying patients on yourself, internal and external colleagues and offer / seek support.
• Safely administer medication in the community including setting up syringe pumps and administration of STAT doses once competent to do so.
• Recognise and manage palliative care emergencies.
• Bring closure to the clinician-patient relationship and provide for a safe transition to another care provider as appropriate.
• Deputise for team leader.
• Work within own scope of practice, taking professional accountability for clinical competence.

Potential Additional Clinical Responsibilities:

• Use physical assessment and clinical reasoning skills as part of patient assessment and to support clinical advice, professional communication and documentation.
• Perform Non-Medical prescribing within area of competence and practice according to local policy.

Qualifications:

• Current NMC or HCPC Registration.
• Proven experience of palliative care/oncology/community.
• Relevant qualification at degree level.
• Communication skills training, or willingness to undertake.
• Valid UK driving licence.

Experience:

• Minimum 2 years post registration.
• Recent significant palliative care experience.
• Possess a working knowledge of clinical governance and evidence-based practice.
• Possess a working knowledge of safeguarding individuals who are at risk.

Additional Criteria:

• Possess an ability to analyse complex facts and situations and develop a range of options.
• Problem solving skills and ability to work methodically and flexibly.
• Ability to work to tight and often changing timescales.
• Ability to work autonomously.
• Own and take responsibility for constructive feedback to improve patient care and/or team working.
• Robust emotional resilience to manage excessive exposure to dying people and family/carer distress.

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.