Senior Staff Nurse - Special Schools (Greenmead)

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Detailed job description and main responsibilities

General Duties
• Develops, promotes and implements integrated working (internal and external) whenever this would improve service delivery options or outcomes for individual children, young people and their families
• Ensure that all staff within the team work to SHC and ESTH policies, procedures, standard operating procedures and guidelines within the service area and actively contributes to the proposal of policy or service changes as appropriate
• Works closely and collaboratively with the education, health and social care staff
• Delegates appropriately to ensure consistent coordinated care
• Acts as a specialist practitioner and is a resource to other staff within the department and wider organisation
• Leads by example and maintains a high level of professional conduct at all times
• Is aware of issues relating to information governance and data security.

Clinical Responsibilities
• Be confident and competent in carrying out clinical skills such as administration of medicines and gastrostomy feeds and has experience of working with children and young people with traceostomies
• Support the lead clinician for the children's continence service
• Performs effective assessment and plans care according to the identified health needs of individual children and young people and for those accessing the continence service
• Review care plans on at least a yearly basis or more frequently if needed
• Make onward referrals where appropriate
• Attend safeguarding supervision at least termly and additional, where required
• Represents the school nursing team in the educational setting
• Attend annual educational reviews, child in need meetings, team around the child meetings, professional meetings, child protection case conferences and core group meetings, representing the school nursing team and providing key information to education and social services staff and parents
• Comply with infection control policies and procedures in order to minimise and prevent the spread of infection.

Management Responsibilities and Professional Leadership
• Ensure team compliance with service delivery according to the commissioned service specification
• Support the Team Leader and senior children's services managers to monitor the staffing budget
• Ensure staff comply with their obligation to collect and record data in electronic records in a timely manner
• Receive and handle any complaints according to SHC and ESTH policy
• Work collaboratively with the risk management department to support practitioners in the identification and management of any risks involved with the service and delivery of care
• Ensure all staff comply with the incident policy and ensure that all reported incidents for designated areas are fully investigated
• Ensure effective communication systems are utilised
• Observe and comply with Trust policies and procedures for health and safety ensuring the environment you work in and are responsible for is safe, clean and tidy
• Promote equal opportunities in compliance with Trust policies
• Ensure that benefits to children and young people are maximised through careful, economical and appropriate use of NHS resources including equipment, property, budget, time etc
• Participate in the audit of services to ensure a high level of service delivery and identify areas of improvement.

Education, Training and Personal Development
• Develop and implement local orientation, local induction programmes and preceptorship for any new employees to the team
• Ensure you are compliant with statutory and mandatory training whilst maintaining an adequate level of service delivery
• Work alongside the Team Leader and senior children's services managers to ensure all staff are competent and confident in performing clinical skills associated with their role ensuring any poor performance issues are addressed in line with SHC and ESTH policies
• Ensure staff participate in reflective practice to ensure effective problem solving strategies within the team
• Complete verification for nursing staff undertaking their revalidation in line with NMC guidelines
• Ensure student nurses on clinical placements are allocated trained mentors to support the special school nurses ensuring that placements offer developmental opportunities and are a positive experience.

Working Relationships/Communication
• Develop and maintain a highly professional and constructive relationship with the education team within the special needs schools
• Maintain good communication with children and young people, parents, carers, staff and other professionals at all times and be able to communicate complex information in an appropriate manner to all
• Be able to handle sensitive information and act in a tactful manner when there may be a conflict of interest
• Have knowledge of alternative methods of communication such as Makaton, PECS, PODD books etc.

Financial Responsibility/Service Delivery
• Be responsible for the issue of children's continence products ensuring the identified needs of the client is met whilst maintaining the specified budget
• Support the Team Leader and senior children's services managers to monitor the staffing budget for the specified service areas ensuring expenditure remains within the allocated budget.

Person specification

Education and Qualifications

Essential criteria

• NMC Registered Nurse (adult, child or learning disabilities)
• Mentorship qualification or willing to complete
• Evidence of Continued Professional Development

Desirable criteria

• Specialist Practitioner Qualification

Experience

Essential criteria

• Minimum 2 years experience post qualification working with children and young people
• Evidence of working in a multidisciplinary team
• Demonstrable understanding of clinical governance

Desirable criteria

• Previous experience of working in a special school/community setting
• Previous experience of working with children and young people with severe and profound learning disabilities and complex health needs
• Experience of carrying out children's and young people's continence assessments and providing continence advice to both with/without disabilities

Skills and Knowledge

Essential criteria

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills and ability to communicate at all levels
• Leadership skills
• Holistic assessment skills
• Effective clinical and clinical reasoning skills
• Knowledge of current clinical and professional nursing issues relating to special needs school nursing
• Excellent written skills
• Ability to work as part of a busy health team, prioritising workload and maintaining high standards at all times
• Ability to manage sensitive information and maintain confidentiality
• Ability to have complex and challenging conversations
• Clear understanding of current national and local agenda
• Ability to demonstrate evidence based clinical practice
• Ability to maintain professionalism and work within professional boundaries at all times
• Ability to document concise and accurate clinical records and write accurate clinical reports
• Knowledge and experience of clinical audit and clinical governance
• Knowledge of child protection policies and procedures
• Good IT skills including the use of MS Office, email and internet

Desirable criteria

• Knowledge of specialist communication skills e.g. signing/core boards/Makaton
• Previous use of electronic records systems e.g. EMIS

Personal Attributes

Essential criteria

• Highly developed interpersonal skills
• Flexible, enthusiastic and able to use initiative
• Recognises individual rights in line with legislation, policy and procedures
• Ability to motivate others
• Receptive to change and able to adapt positively
• A 'can do' attitude
• Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines

General Requirements

Essential criteria

• Ability to work flexibly in order to meet the needs of the service
• Ability to work alone and as part of a team

Desirable criteria

• Experience of team management
• Car driver with full valid driving licence and access to a vehicle for business purposes

Your application: Please ensure that you have read the job description and person specification and that your supporting statement reflects these, as your application will be assessed and scored against these criteria.

References: You will be required to provide 3 years of employment/educational history. We do not accept references from personal email addresses such as Hotmail, Gmail etc. therefore please ensure you are providing professional working email addresses within your application form. If you are unable to provide professional email addresses and are invited to an interview, please ensure you advise the interviewers of this - otherwise, this may delay your pre-employment checks.

Closing date: In order to streamline recruitment within our Trust, we reserve the right to expire vacancies prior to the advertised closing date once we have received a sufficient number of applications.

Shortlisting: You will only be contacted via e-mail/SMS by the SWL Recruitment Hub if you are successfully shortlisted for this post. Please ensure that you check your Trac registered e-mail regularly.

DBS: We are committed to safeguarding children and adults who are at risk of abuse. As such, if this post will have access to children or vulnerable adults, you will be required to undertake an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check. However, all employees have a responsibility for safeguarding children and vulnerable adults in the course of their duties and for ensuring that they are aware of the specific duties relating to their role.

Disability Advice Line: SWL Recruitment Hub is committed to promoting equity and equal opportunities for individuals with disabilities. We believe that greater diversity and inclusion will lead to an even more positive impact on the people we serve. For support with job opportunities and reasonable adjustments contact our Confidential Disability Advice Line at:

Telephone: 02082963786

Text: 07501066267

Email: esth.dal@nhs.net.

Our confidential answering service is available after 5pm.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Documents to download

• Band 6 Senior Staff Nurse.Perseid JD (PDF, 504.3KB)
• DBS Policy (PDF, 101.1KB)
• We're here to care (DOC, 39.0KB)