Clinical Assessor (Band 7) - Hospice At Home
St Michael'S Hospice (North Hampshire)
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Benefits offered by this job
Job summary
St Michaels Hospice is seeking a skilled registered nurse with extensive palliative and end‑of‑life experience to join as Clinical Assessor in Hospice at Home. You will conduct holistic assessments, coordinate complex care, and work with primary care, community nursing, and hospital teams to enable safe care at home and timely discharge.
Applicants must have current NMC registration, and a non‑medical prescribing pathway may be considered.
Qualifications
- Significant post‑registration palliative and end‑of‑life nursing experience.
- History taking and physical assessment competence relevant to the role.
- Ability to coordinate a clinical caseload and work across teams.
Responsibilities
- Provide specialist autonomous assessment, triage and symptom management in patients with palliative needs.
- Coordinate care and support timely discharge to the community.
- Lead and support nursing colleagues and participate in audits and service improvement.
Skills
Education
Job description
We are looking for a skilled registered nurse with significant palliative and end-of-life care experience, including community practice, who is confident undertaking autonomous assessment and supporting patients with complex needs. You will bring strong clinical judgement, compassionate communication and the ability to coordinate care across services. You will have a history taking and physical assessment qualification, or equivalent assessed competence relevant to the role, and experience of coordinating a clinical caseload or team. You will also be keen to maintain and develop the operational skills needed to support service leadership. Successful candidates will be required to undergo relevant background checks, including a DBS check and provide satisfactory reference before starting the role. Candidates must have the right to work in the UK. We are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role.
Join us as we develop Hospice at Home at St Michaels Hospice to provide a more responsive service for patients and those important to them, supporting care in their preferred place. As Clinical Assessor, your main focus will be holistic assessment, referral triage, symptom management and coordination of complex care. You will identify changing needs, agree individual care and anticipatory plans, and work with primary care, community nursing, specialist palliative care and hospital teams to support safe care at home and timely discharge. You will work alongside a Band 7 Operational Manager in a complementary partnership. The manager will lead operational delivery and team management while maintaining regular clinical practice. You will participate in operational reviews, referral prioritisation and capacity planning, keeping the knowledge and skills needed to provide agreed day-to-day management cover during the managers absence. Your role will include providing specialist advice, supporting colleagues learning and contributing to audit and service improvement. You will report to the Clinical Lead. Current NMC registration as an Adult Nurse is essential. A non‑medical prescribing qualification is desirable; where appropriate, an agreed development pathway may be considered, subject to organisational approval and support.
St. Michaels Hospice is a registered charity providing specialist palliative and end‑of‑life care services since 1992, for the people of North Hampshire. We are dedicated to providing care to people throughout North Hampshire who are affected by life limiting illness to attain the highest possible quality of life by providing a choice of specialist care and support. As a charity, we depend on the kindness and support of our local community to continue offering our services free of charge. This care is made possible by supporters donating, taking part in fundraising events and activities, playing our lottery, shopping in our retail outlets, leaving gifts in their Wills or giving freely of their time to volunteer. We offer a competitive salary with attractive benefits, including, free parking, life assurance, 27 days annual leave plus bank holidays, and an extensive health and wellbeing plan and company pension. For further information and to arrange informal visits, please contact Jo Fricker, Clinical Director, on 01256 844744 or email: jo.fricker@stmichaelshospice.org.uk
Provide specialist autonomous assessment, triage, symptom management and coordination of care for patients with palliative and end‑of‑life needs and those important to them. Work alongside the Band 7 Operational Manager, contributing to day‑to‑day service decisions and maintaining the operational skills needed to provide agreed management cover during absence. Professional accountability to the Clinical Lead.
Clinical Lead, Clinical Director, Operational Manager or Clinical Assessor, Hospice at Home nurses and healthcare assistants, medical team, hospice multidisciplinary services, quality and governance colleagues, primary care, community nursing, specialist palliative care and urgent care partners. Work with Rowan’s Hospice colleagues to share learning and align practice through agreed arrangements.
Act as an autonomous specialist nurse, leading holistic assessment and triage of referrals and patients with complex palliative and end‑of‑life needs. Prioritise response according to urgency, clinical risk, service criteria and available resources. Undertake timely assessments in the home and other agreed settings, including hospital assessment where this forms part of an approved pathway. Assess physical symptoms, psychological, social and spiritual needs, family and carer needs and risks to safe care at home. Use history taking, physical assessment and clinical reasoning within competence to identify deterioration, potentially reversible problems and the need for medical or specialist review. Escalate emergencies and concerns through agreed pathways. Plan, deliver and evaluate symptom management and nursing interventions with patients, those important to them and the multidisciplinary team. Develop anticipatory plans, clear review arrangements and safety‑netting advice. Support advance care planning, preferred place of care and ReSPECT discussions within competence. Undertake verification of expected death and other extended procedures only following relevant training, assessment and hospice authorisation.
Coordinate complex care and support timely discharge to the community, confirming that necessary care, medicines, equipment, information and follow‑up arrangements are in place. Provide specialist advice and clinical support to the Hospice at Home team and partners. Lead or contribute to multidisciplinary discussions, case reviews and clinical supervision. Work with the Operational Manager to prioritise referrals, review the caseload and allocate work according to patient need, staff competence and capacity. Identify patients whose needs require another service or escalation. Contribute to clinical standards, audit, service evaluation and improvement. Collect accurate activity and outcome data and use patient and carer feedback to improve the service.
Participate regularly in operational reviews, rota and capacity planning, team communication and governance activity so that management knowledge and skills are maintained alongside clinical practice. Provide delegated day‑to‑day operational leadership in the Operational Manager’s absence, including referral prioritisation, staff allocation, immediate rota adjustments, escalation of staffing concerns and coordination of the team. Support staff with immediate concerns and document significant decisions and actions for handover. Refer formal HR matters, budget decisions beyond delegated authority and unresolved clinical or operational risks to the Clinical Lead. During cover, agree with the Clinical Lead how the clinical assessment workload will be reprioritised or covered. Maintain safe clinical practice and escalate when both functions cannot be delivered within competence and contracted hours.
Work as a complementary Band 7 partnership with the other post holder, maintaining distinct primary responsibilities and a shared understanding of clinical priorities, staffing, risks and service pressures. Agree regular joint reviews, documented handovers and planned overlap within contracted hours. The Operational Manager retains substantive responsibility for team line management and operational delivery. The Clinical Assessor provides day‑to‑day operational cover during the managers absence under agreed delegated authority. Both post holders remain accountable for their own professional practice. Agree cover arrangements with the Clinical Lead before planned absence and at the earliest opportunity for unplanned absence. Record responsibilities, decisions requiring senior approval and escalation routes. Cover does not automatically transfer budget authority or formal employment decision‑making powers. Balance clinical and operational work through an agreed work plan. Escalate competing demands, staffing gaps or work beyond competence or available hours to the Clinical Lead. These two part‑time posts do not provide continuous management or clinical cover for all service hours.
Communicate complex and sensitive information compassionately with patients and those important to them. Support informed choices, assess decision‑making capacity within competence and follow hospice procedures where a patient cannot provide consent. Coordinate care with primary care, community nursing, specialist palliative care, hospital teams, urgent and out‑of‑hours services and other partners. Provide clear handovers, agreed responsibilities and escalation plans to support safe transitions and timely discharge home. Maintain professional boundaries, respect confidentiality and individual cultural, spiritual and personal preferences, and promote constructive communication and challenge within the team.
Promote safe administration, storage, monitoring and use of medicines and equipment, including controlled drugs, in accordance with hospice policies and individual competence. Recognise, report and elevate medication concerns and adverse effects. Undertake independent prescribing only when appropriately qualified, registered, authorised by the hospice and working within individual competence and the agreed formulary and prescribing policy. Maintain prescribing supervision and continuing professional development. Where not qualified as an independent prescriber, work with authorised prescribers to secure timely symptom management. Participate in an agreed development plan towards non‑medical prescribing where appropriate, subject to organisational approval and support.
Maintain current clinical competence through direct practice, supervision, reflection and continuing professional development. Undertake mandatory training and maintain professional registration. Teach, coach and support nurses, healthcare assistants, students and relevant partners. Contribute to competency assessment within own competence and promote reflective practice and staff wellbeing. Participate in appraisal and agree a development plan covering the clinical and operational skills needed for the partnership and absence cover.
Work in accordance with the NMC Code, St Michaels Hospice policies and agreed clinical pathways. Maintain timely, accurate records and use electronic systems only with appropriate authorisation. Recognise and promptly report safeguarding concerns involving adults or children. Follow agreed escalation procedures for deteriorating patients, incidents, complaints and risks; contribute to investigation, learning and improvement. Comply with information governance, infection prevention, health and safety and lone‑working requirements. Promote equality, inclusion and the hospices values, and use charitable resources responsibly. Undertake other reasonable duties consistent with the role, Band 7 level, competence and contracted hours. The job description will be reviewed in consultation with the post holder as the service develops.
Work to maintain the values, vision and aims of St. Michaels Hospice. Additional Duties In discussion with the line manager to undertake work, as and when required, in support of St. Michaels Hospice as an organisation. Public Relations To represent St. Michaels Hospice in the community and public domain, including social media, appropriately. Undertake all statutory and mandatory training, as required. To be conversant with and adhere to all St. Michaels Hospice Policies and Procedures. Be responsible for upholding and promoting St. Michaels Hospice safeguarding policies, ensuring the safety and well‑being of all individuals, and promptly reporting any concerns or incidents in accordance with established procedures. This is an outline job description and may be subject to change, according to the needs of the service, in consultation with the post holder. Take responsibility for own personal safety and of others whilst at work. You will take appropriate action or report any concerns to address any health and safety issues that you or members of your team may be aware of. This job description is an outline of the role and responsibilities. From time to time, due to the needs of the service, we may ask you to flexibly undertake other duties that are consistent with your role and banding, including project work, internal job rotation and absence cover.
- Experience of coordinating staff, referrals or a clinical caseload and providing senior team leadership.
- Ability to prioritise work, adjust deployment and elevate operational risks.
- Willingness to maintain operational competence through regular participation and development.
- Ability to teach and support colleagues and contribute to clinical audit, case review and service improvement.
- Advanced communication skills with patients, families and professionals. Ability to discuss sensitive information, support informed decisions and coordinate care across organisational boundaries.
- Working knowledge of safeguarding, consent and capacity, medicines safety, confidentiality, lone working and clinical risk. Accurate electronic record keeping and ability to learn relevant systems.
- Previous rota management, line management or acting‑up experience.
- Experience of leading audit or education projects; practice assessor training.
- Completed advanced communication skills course; ReSPECT training.
- Experience of incident review, audit and service evaluation.
- Registered Nurse Adult with current NMC registration.
- Degree in nursing or a relevant subject, or equivalent demonstrable learning and experience.
- Evidence of continuing professional development and ability to study at postgraduate level.
- History taking and physical assessment qualification, or evidenced equivalent assessed competence relevant to this role. Ability to make autonomous clinical decisions, recognise limits and elevate safely.
- Understanding of safe medicines management and limits of own authority. Willingness to discuss and undertake an agreed prescribing development pathway where appropriate.
- Postgraduate qualification in palliative care. Teaching or practice assessor qualification.
- Postgraduate advanced assessment qualification.
- Independent or non‑medical prescribing qualification with evidence of current competence.
- Significant post‑registration palliative and end‑of‑life nursing experience, including community practice and complex care. Current competence in assessment, triage, symptom management, anticipatory care planning and escalation.
- Experience in urgent response and supporting discharge from hospital to home.
- Compassionate, inclusive and professional approach. Constructive challenge, sound judgement and ability to remain effective under pressure. Commitment to supervision and learning.
- Knowledge of working in an independent charitable hospice.
- Ability to travel reliably across the service area, with reasonable adjustments considered; appropriate licence and business‑use insurance where driving for work. Flexible participation in an agreed rota within contracted hours.
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. Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
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