Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Duties and Responsibilities

Key results from the job holder

• Participate in the development and implantation of departmental guidelines and protocols as required.
• Assist with the implementation of the Trusts clinical governance strategy and quality initiatives.
• Act as a role model in leadership through personal example and direct involvement in the activities of the service.
• Supervise and act as an experienced nurse for consultative purposes for other staff working in the service and outside disciplines.
• Provide vision and creativity to ensure the service has innovative policies and practices to meet customer needs and clinical developments.
• Actively encourage multi-disciplinary approaches to patient care.
• Ensure the health and safety of staff, patients and visitors in accordance with the relevant Trust policies.
• Maintains safe administration of medicines, concordant with the NMC and trust policies.
• Act as a resource of expert knowledge and advice to members of staff.
• Responsibility to maintain their professional accountability through the practice of safe standards in compliance with the NMC Code of Conduct.
• Supervise and direct the work of nurses, AHP  and support workers by working alongside them in the clinical area.

Planning and Organisational Duties

The post holder will participate in, and influence, care delivery by:

• Work alongside and assist staff in the planning, implementation and evaluation of effective programmes of care for patients ensuring safe discharge, referral and/or transfer to an appropriate health care worker.
• Provide specialist clinical expertise and health care advice in Emergency Nursing.
• Work clinically within all areas and support achievement performance indicators and national targets.
• Maintain self-development and clinical competence.
• Encourage provision of health education / health promotion during patients’ consultations.
• Ensure patients are properly informed about their condition, treatment and expected outcomes.
• Maintain confidentiality.
• Act in accordance with the NMC Code of Professional Conduct.
• Facilitate and implement change as appropriate.
• Contribute to risk recognition in the clinical environment and take responsibility for initiating action as required.
• Organize own workload and adjust priorities in response to issues arising in workplace.
• Recognise and respond appropriately to issues, which require urgent or immediate attention, reporting to other members of the multi-disciplinary/management team as necessary.
• Ensure compliance with policies, procedures and clinical guidelines for self and others.
• Responsibility to keep self organisationally and departmentally updated through attendance at appropriate meetings.
• Deputise for the Matron as requested at meetings and other events.
• Organises reviews and adjusts staff rosters in accordance with individual staff learning needs and departmental requirements.

Communications and Key Working Relationships

Risk Management

• Take every reasonable measure to ensure confidentiality of correspondence and personal records.

Responsibility for Finance

• Contribute to ensuring the effective use of all resources.
• Bring to the attention of the Matron any potential efficiency savings or anticipated budgetary pressures.

Responsibility for Human Resources

• Adhere to Trust policies and maintenance of the professional Code of Conduct.
• Actively involved in the recruitment, retention and selection of staff.
• Participate in the PDR/PDP process, undertaking the PDR/PDP of staff.
• Allocation of staff to relevant study sessions in relation to their professional development.
• Identifies staff for courses under SLA.
• Liaise with educational establishments in relation to student nurse placements, mentorship, meeting of learning objectives and audit of placements.
• Responsible for allocation of study leave in conjunction with Matron.
• Responsible for ensuring that all newly appointed staff receive an induction to the department and obtain mentorship/preceptorship as appropriate.
• Act as a role model by personal example and direct involvement in the activities of the department.
• Effectively co-ordinates and delivers staff training with the Emergency Care Centre.

Responsibility for Health & Safety

Compliance with the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974 – the post holder is required to fulfil a proactive role towards the management of risk in all of their actions. This entails the risk assessment of all situations, the taking of appropriate actions and reporting of all incidents, near misses and hazards, and a statutory duty of care for their own personal safety and that of others who may be affected by their acts or omissions. 

Responsibility for Information Resources

• Responsible for maintaining accurate training records for all staff on database.
• Responsible for providing and presenting formal reports in relation to staff training.
• Responsible for the analysis of all staff PDRs and the implementation of appropriate action in collaboration with Team Leaders in ECC.
• Maintain effective communication skills to liaise with patients, staff and visitors to receive and process information maintaining confidentiality.
• Utilise the Trusts IT resources appropriately and in adherence to policies and procedures.
• Maintain legible and accurate records.

Responsibility for Teaching

The post holder will promote life-long learning through the use of appropriate coaching, teaching and assessment in practice by:

• Responsible for the teaching and devising of training and development programs for Emergency Care 
• Ensure assessment of trainees and junior staff is completed according to the requirements of their programme.
• Facilitate a supportive learning environment for all levels of staff.
• Undertake the role of mentor/preceptor/supervisor to other members of the departmental team.
• Assist members of the departmental team to identify their own training and development needs and support them in achieving individual goals.
• Formally assess the competence of staff and students producing verbal and written reports as required by the appropriate agencies.
• Responsible for the teaching and devising of training and development programs for Emergency Care.
• Undertake regular teaching/training sessions to all grades of staff.
• Participation in Trust Training and Development Programmes e.g. AIMS, venepuncture and cannulations.
• Responsible for the provision of specialist training programmes from all grades of staff

Research and Development

• Participate in directorate and Trust projects and any relevant committees and working groups, as required.
• Participate in departmental and organisational audit as appropriate.
• Maintain an awareness of current identified best practice within the relevant sphere of nursing.
• Critically analyse research to inform nursing practice and implement such research to care if appropriate.
• Identify, maintain and improve the quality of care through evidence based practice.
• Facilitate developments within Emergency Nursing with local and national developments.