Detailed job description and main responsibilities

1.     Patient-related duties

1.1  Daily morning participation on the In-patient Unit (IPU) to deliver individual functional activities and mobility practice, and to include all appropriate patients.

1.2  To report status and variances in treatment and condition of identified IPU patients to the appropriate Therapist at the earliest opportunity, and to progress treatment as advised by the Therapist.

1.3  To be an advocate and enabler for the Therapy team in the IPU, supporting therapy and quality of life goals for patients.

1.4  To promote and role-model an approach based on patient-focused goals, empowerment, enablement & self-management to MDT colleagues

1.5  Where appropriate, and as identified by the Therapy team, outreach into the community to assist therapy goals.

2.     Communication

2.1  To daily collate Therapy team messages – e.g. written/ email.

2.2  To daily take a brief patient update / handover from the Nurse-in-Charge on IPU at Florence Nightingale Hospice and to feed back/ liaise with the Therapy team. 

2.3  To maintain excellent communication with Therapy colleagues; working collaboratively, individually or as part of the wider hospice team. 

2.4  To be responsible for collecting, collating, evaluating and reporting information, and maintaining accurate patient records in all formats, including written and electronic patient information systems in a timely manner. 

2.5  To communicate and exchange information sensitively with patients and relatives using tact, reassurance and persuasion. This will include circumstances where communication difficulties exist, as well as in situations that may be difficult and emotionally distressing due to patients & families living with life-limiting illnesses, and dealing with death, dying & bereavement. 

2.6  To be able to communicate with people from a wide cultural background. Responsible to ensure that the service users’ individual rights and choices are actively promoted and supported, and their beliefs and preferences appropriately acknowledged.

3.     Admin

3.1  To support the Therapy Team by completing administrative tasks as required, such as gathering referrals and recording monthly activity data.

4.     Equipment duties

4.1  To be responsible for issuing basic functional / mobility equipment.

4.2  To be responsible for reviewing, ordering and fitting equipment and to work with patients and their carers / family to demonstrate its safe use, either in Florence Nightingale Hospice or in the patient’s home.

4.3  To be responsible for maintaining equipment stock levels in the buffer store at Florence Nightingale Hospice, re-ordering as required.

4.4  To ensure that equipment and walking aids on the IPU are kept clean to prevent the spread of infection.

4.5  To ensure that equipment and walking aids on the IPU are safe and that faults are either dealt with or reported to registered practitioners.

5.     Physical effort

5.1  To carry out tasks requiring physical effort throughout the day, including dressing and undressing patients, transferring patients, bed positioning, reseating, gait training, and moving equipment.

5.2  Daily exposure to bodily fluids and waste products.

5.3  Daily exposure to communicable diseases and the need to take infection control precautions.

6.     Independent Working

6.1  To be able to prioritise, organise, coordinate and deliver daily workload without direct supervision.

6.2  To be able to assess and recognise risk and report back to relevant staff.

6.3  To be able to work autonomously, as agreed by a registered practitioner, and to be responsible and accountable within their scope of practice. 

7.     General

Facilitating the safe and smooth running of the Service, the post holder is expected to maintain a safe working environment, maintain service user confidentiality, and any other duties commensurate with the grade and in line with the requirement of the post.