Community and Inpatient Liaison Practitioner

ESSEX PARTNERSHIP UNIVERSITY NHS FOUNDATION TRUST; Basildon; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A healthcare organization in Essex is seeking a Community and Inpatient Liaison Practitioner to coordinate care and support patient flow between services. The role involves facilitating discharges, attending multidisciplinary meetings, and supporting a team environment. Ideal candidates will have excellent care coordination skills and a commitment to equality and inclusion. Benefits include 27 days holiday, pension up to 14.5%, and staff discounts.

Benefits

27 days holiday plus bank holidays

Pension up to 14.5%

Staff discounts

£8K relocation package

Flexible working available from day one

Qualifications

• Professional references covering the last three years.
• May require DBS check; cost possibly deducted from first salary.
• Commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion.

Responsibilities

• Provide temporary care coordination and support patient flow.
• Attend ward reviews and facilitate team meetings.
• Identify and manage clinical and non-clinical risks.

Skills

Care coordination

Patient discharge facilitation

Multi-disciplinary teamwork

Risk assessment

Supervision of junior staff

Job description

Overview

The role of the Community and Inpatient Liaison Practitioner is to provide temporary care coordination and to interface with inpatient wards to support patient flow between inpatient and community services and to facilitate discharges from inpatient to the community. This includes supporting care planning, undertaking care act assessments, capacity assessments and relevant paperwork for panel presentations to either the local authority or the 117 panels with support from the ECC Senior Practitioners. The role involves attending ward reviews, professionals meetings, and liaising with care coordinators, discharge coordinators and inpatient ward staff to contribute to safe and effective working relationships with other teams, services, and organisations. The practitioner would also support discharges from community services by identifying and facilitating discharges for patients who no longer require secondary care services.

The role may also involve supporting the general functioning of the team, such as being on the duty rota, providing cover to facilitate joint appointments with other team members, and taking part in regular multi-disciplinary team discussions.

Responsibilities

• Provide temporary care coordination and act as the interface between inpatient wards and community services to promote safe patient flow and timely discharges.
• Support care planning, care act assessments, capacity assessments, and prepare relevant documentation for panel presentations (local authority or 117 panels) with support from ECC Senior Practitioners.
• Attend ward reviews, professionals meetings, and liaise with care coordinators, discharge coordinators, and inpatient ward staff to foster effective working relationships across services.
• Identify and facilitate discharges from community services for patients who no longer require secondary care services.
• Participate in the duty rota and provide cover for joint appointments, contributing to regular multi-disciplinary team discussions.
• Support the wider team in achieving flow and capacity through the system from inpatient to FRT and onward into primary care domains.
• Assist care coordinators with discharge planning practicalities, safeguarding paperwork, and related processes to reduce delays while maintaining therapeutic relationships with inpatients and community patients.
• Identify, assess, and manage clinical and non-clinical risks; document risk assessments and contribute to local and Trust risk registers.
• Provide supervision and participate in annual appraisals for junior staff and oversee hub supervision and appraisal performance where applicable.
• Support adherence to key performance indicators (KPIs) and contribute to strategies to meet targets.
• Assist with HR processes and employee wellbeing, including sickness absence monitoring, and facilitate access to mandatory and specialist training.
• Collaborate with colleagues across health and social care to support integrated patient experiences and service transformation across neighbourhood, community, and secondary care levels.
• Support students and learner placements, including nursing and allied health professionals; contribute to quality initiatives to improve patient and carer experiences.
• Participate in recruitment and HR processes and help review skill mix and service needs with the clinical manager.

Requirements

• Professional references with business contact information covering the last three years of employment history (personal or character references are not accepted).
• New appointments may require an initial DBS check; the cost may be deducted from the first salary.
• Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: Our Trust is an Equal Opportunities Employer; we welcome applications from people with experience of using mental health services and encourage people with disabilities to apply.
• As part of pre-employment checks, adherence to safeguarding commitments and safe recruitment processes is expected.

Working for our organisation

We are committed to valuing you and supporting your development. Benefits may include supervision and support, an inclusive community, mental health and wellbeing services, occupational health advice and counselling, recognition awards, and opportunities for professional development.

• 27 days holiday, plus bank holidays, rising to 33 days after 10 years' service.
• Excellent pension of up to 14.5% of pensionable pay.
• Staff discounts including Blue Light Card, NHS discounts, and staff benefits.
• £8K relocation package if you move to Essex to join us.
• Season ticket loans (interest-free) for travel costs.
• Flexible working: available from day one for most roles.

Important notices

The Trust is an Equal Opportunities Employer and may publish safeguarding and pre-employment requirements. Visitors are encouraged to check communications and emails regarding the status of vacancies and any closing dates. We value safeguarding and commitment to protecting children, young people, and vulnerable adults, with robust safer recruitment processes in place.

Our Trust cares for more than 100,000 patients across Essex and parts of Bedfordshire and Suffolk in mental health, learning disability, and community services. We aim to be a leading health and wellbeing service in mental health and community care.