This is a newborn hearing screener post in Luton and Bedfordshire, run by East of England Community Health and Care NHS Trust. The job is to screen babies before discharge, refer those without a clear response to audiology, and keep accurate screening records. The role spans maternity, the special care baby unit, outpatient clinics and children's centres, with occasional home visits and a rota covering roughly one weekend in three. Applicants need a level 2 diploma or equivalent and must complete a level 3 diploma within two years.
What the job involves
- Screen babies before discharge across postnatal wards, the special care baby unit, community clinics and home visits, prioritising workload with colleagues
- Identify babies who need screening using the Smart 4 Hearing and maternity databases and by liaising with ward staff
- Monitor and record screening results in red books, Smart 4 Hearing and paediatric records
- Refer babies with no clear response to the appropriate audiology service
- Check the daily calibration, safety and security of equipment, reporting problems to the Senior Screener or NHSP Manager
- Organise and prepare community clinics so that babies are screened as early as possible
- Travel to other venues to set up and carry out screening in outpatient clinics and on home visits
- Keep accurate, timely and confidential records under service and organisational policies, including appointment ledgers, referral forms, data input and e-referrals
- Report and hand over concerns about a mother's or baby's wellbeing
- Give parents guidance and information to support informed choice, using translation options where needed
- Build relationships with families and carers, encourage family involvement and handle babies gently
- Be alert to safeguarding issues and support vulnerable families
Qualifications
- Level 2 diploma or equivalent
- GCSE maths and English at level 4
- Commitment to completing a level 3 diploma and an external clinical assessment
Experience
- Experience handling newborns
- Experience recording data and making appointments
Skills & knowledge
- Excellent communication skills
- Able to handle sensitive data confidentially
- Basic IT skills
- Dexterity to use equipment and small consumables
- Excellent infection control technique
Checks & eligibility
- Car driver or owner
Other
- Works within Trust values
- Able to be on feet most of the day and move through tight spaces
- Physically able to move trolleys, cots and equipment
- Able to work one in three or one in four weekends a month
Nice to have
- NHS experience
- Experience in newborn hearing or another screening discipline
- Experience supporting mothers and newborns
- Safeguarding experience
- Experience working in a ward or community health environment
- Comfortable working with mothers and babies where contact with bodily fluids is possible
- Word, Excel and System 1 use, including uploading results to databases
- Flexibility to ensure service cover
What’s offered
- Training as required, including the level 3 diploma
- Mandatory training and annual e-learning
- Pro-rata annual leave
- Team does not work bank holidays
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Contact Details:
The Methodist Church in Britain Recruitment Team
