Clinical Lead for Patient Flow

The Methodist Church in Britain; South Shields; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust is seeking a Clinical Lead for Patient Flow to sit on the senior leadership team within the Operations Directorate. The post sets the strategy for moving patients safely through the hospital, covering capacity, discharge and length of stay across urgent care, inpatient wards and community pathways.

Applicants must be a Registered Nurse with a management qualification at masters level or equivalent experience, and you will lead the Clinical Site Team and Discharge

Qualifications

• Post-graduate management qualification in business or NHS management, MSc or equivalent experience.
• Evidence of ongoing and sustained CPD.

Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership for patient flow across the Trust.
• Lead the development and implementation of patient flow, discharge and capacity management strategies.
• Drive reductions in length of stay, delayed discharges and unnecessary variation in patient pathways.
• Lead the Clinical Site Team and Discharge Lounge, including day-to-day management and future development of site services, capacity arrangements and escalation processes.
• Work with divisional triumvirates, site teams, operational leaders and clinicians to improve patient movement and hospital throughput.
• Lead and influence change across professional and organisational boundaries.
• Build partnerships with community services, local authorities and system partners to optimise discharge pathways.
• Provide expert advice to executive colleagues on patient flow, capacity and utilisation.
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement and accountability, with visible leadership on standards, performance and staff engagement.
• Directly manage a portfolio of services and projects as determined by the Chief Operating Officer.
• Contribute to emergency preparedness and response, participate in the Tactical On-Call rota and maintain operational resilience under pressure.
• Support Directorate and Divisional leadership teams in the planning, delivery and review of pathways and services.

Skills

Operational management

Senior leadership

NMC registration

Service improvement

CPD evidence

Education

MSc in NHS management

Post-graduate management qualification

Tools

Teletracking

Job description

The Clinical Lead for Patient Flow sits on the senior leadership team of Dartford and Gravesham NHS Trust, within the Operations Directorate, working alongside the Chief Operating Officer. The post sets the strategy for moving patients safely through the hospital, covering capacity, discharge and length of stay across urgent care, inpatient wards and community pathways. It leads the Clinical Site Team and Discharge Lounge and takes a turn on the Tactical On-Call rota. Applicants must be a Registered Nurse with a management qualification at masters level or equivalent experience.

What the job involves

• Provide strategic leadership for patient flow across the Trust
• Lead the development and implementation of patient flow, discharge and capacity management strategies
• Drive reductions in length of stay, delayed discharges and unnecessary variation in patient pathways
• Lead the Clinical Site Team and Discharge Lounge, including day-to-day management and future development of site services, capacity arrangements and escalation processes
• Work with divisional triumvirates, site teams, operational leaders and clinicians to improve patient movement and hospital throughput
• Lead and influence change across professional and organisational boundaries
• Build partnerships with community services, local authorities and system partners to optimise discharge pathways
• Provide expert advice to executive colleagues on patient flow, capacity and utilisation
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement and accountability, with visible leadership on standards, performance and staff engagement
• Directly manage a portfolio of services and projects as determined by the Chief Operating Officer
• Contribute to emergency preparedness and response, participate in the Tactical On-Call rota and maintain operational resilience under pressure
• Support Directorate and Divisional leadership teams in the planning, delivery and review of pathways and services

What’s required

Qualifications

• Post-graduate management qualification in business or NHS management, MSc or equivalent experience
• Evidence of ongoing and sustained CPD

Registration & licences

• NMC registration as a Registered Nurse

Experience

• Proven experience as a senior manager with knowledge of operational management in an acute Trust or community setting
• Extensive experience as a clinical site coordinator within an acute trust

Skills & knowledge

• Excellent understanding of operational issues within an acute NHS organisation
• Experience of leading service improvement programmes across services and with multi-disciplinary teams

Nice to have

• Emergency resilience training
• Experience working across multiple professional staff groups, including AHPs, nursing, clinical and scientific
• Experience implementing and using the Teletracking digital capacity management system
• Significant staff management, including senior level experience