Senior Audiologist (Paed) in Luton

We are looking for experienced Audiologists to join our Bank team to support mainly our Paediatric Audiology service. There's opportunity to cover Adult Audiology services too. We want you to have significant Paediatric Audiology experience such that you're competent and confident to lead routine Paediatric clinics and support complex Paediatric clinics (both assessment and habilitation). Paediatric clinics are delivered from a number of sites across the county of Bedfordshire so you will need the ability to travel between and across sites.

Main duties of the job

• The post holder will work at a senior level, participating in the provision of a comprehensive diagnostic and rehabilitative Audiology for both adults and children, including participation in complex cases.
• The post is predominantly weighted towards the Paediatric Service and will require a specialised diagnostic and rehabilitative skill set and knowledge base, working with a caseload aged early months to young adult.

About us

Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust provides hospital services to a growing population of around 700,000 people living across Bedfordshire and the surrounding areas across two busy hospital sites in Bedford and Luton. Both hospital sites offer key services such as A&E, Obstetrics-led Maternity and Paediatrics. You will be joining a friendly, high performing Trust committed to ensuring the health and wellbeing of staff. As one of the largest NHS Trusts in our region you will have access to a programme of high quality training and development to help you grow your career. The Trust continues to be committed to delivering the best patient care using the best clinical knowledge and technology available.

Our values

We not only recruit based on qualifications and experience - we recruit individuals who demonstrate the behaviours which underpin our Trusts core values. We achieve this by using values based recruitment. We are dedicated to making our recruitment practices as inclusive as possible for everyone, we are committed to promoting equality and diversity, and creating a culture that values differences.

Please note that vacancies may close prior to the advertised closing date when sufficient number of applications have been received. All new staff will be subject to a probationary period covering first 6 months in post. Travel between hospital sites may be required. Please review all documents attached to ensure you familiarise yourself with all requirements of the job.

Job responsibilities

• Work as an independent practitioner providing specialist clinical services directly to patients, to include:

• The assessment and rehabilitation of adults and children > 6 months of age.
• Creation of individual rehabilitation plans selected from a range of possible options, engaging the patient/family as an active partner in the decision-making process guided by a flexible, inclusive and responsive approach based on patient/family need.
• Management of patients with complex and/or special and additional needs.
• Establishment of good rapport, including gaining patients co-operation in clinics and self-management at home.

Promote clinical excellence as a senior practitioner, maintaining a high level of expertise in routine and non-routine testing and rehabilitation methods, to include expertise in a range of techniques, procedures and technologies. The latter will involve keeping up to date with new or emerging technologies and knowledge. To work effectively in, and share knowledge, skills, expertise and advice with the team, wider multi-disciplinary team, patients, families, and other agencies. Participate in maintenance and collation of departmental statistics. Maintaining Departmental and Hospital records including use of the Patient Management System, stock control systems, and equipment calibration and service records. To undertake the requirements to maintain professional registration including maintaining CPD Records in a format required by the regulatory professional body. Maintain an understanding of changes and new developments in audiological matters.

Communication

• Ability to communicate effectively, empathetically and sensitively with patients of all ages and their families/carers who:

• may have varying degrees of hearing loss, from mild to profound
• may have highly complex needs where advanced communication skills are paramount.
• may be highly anxious or emotional due to the news you are imparting (e.g. diagnosis of profound hearing loss in a new-born baby, deterioration of an existing hearing loss) or recent news (e.g. still distressed about sudden significant loss of hearing).

Ability to communicate with professionals and public, both internal and external to the Trust, on clinical, service provision and professional matters. To maintain clear, accurate, appropriately detailed clinical records (legible, if written). To ensure confidentiality of records. To report and or refer appropriately, clearly and in a timely fashion as required. To comply with the Trusts requirements for data management and storage.

Knowledge

• Advanced knowledge of methods of assessment for children of all ages (neonates to young adult), including assessment of children of all abilities.
• Advanced knowledge of appropriate interventions and management strategies for all assessed children.
• Advanced knowledge of assessment techniques and rehabilitative strategies for Adult patients, including patients with special and additional needs.

Person Specification

• Qualification

• BSc, PTP, Level 6 apprenticeship in Audiology or equivalent
• MSc Audiology

• Paediatric Experience

• Evidence of Paediatric Audiology experience (assessment)
• Evidence of Paediatric Audiology experience (habilitation)

• Skills

• Excellent ability to communicate with families and young patients.
• Ability to develop rapport to engage and work with babies, children and young adults.
• Attention to detail.
• Accurate work.
• Commitment to quality.

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.