Community Physical Health Nurse

Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust; St Helens; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 50,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading NHS trust in St Helens is seeking a skilled Clinical Lead to oversee physical health care for patients. This role involves coordinating health clinics, collaborating with multi-disciplinary teams, and ensuring high standards in service user care. Candidates must be Registered Nurses with extensive experience in adult clinical settings and a strong focus on health promotion. The position will offer opportunities for professional development and flexible working arrangements.

Benefits

Flexible working arrangements

Comprehensive training programs

Supportive work environment

Qualifications

• Registered Nurse with 2+ years in Adult clinical area required.
• Experience in managing mental health patients is essential.
• Knowledge of NHS Plan and Cardio Metabolic risks important.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate physical care for service users, ensuring effective assessments.
• Supervise junior staff entries and manage performance.
• Participate in service user reviews and develop care plans.

Skills

Effective Communication

Time Management

Negotiation Skills

Compassionate Care

Education

Registered Nurse

Degree Level or working towards

Phlebotomy Training

Diabetes Care

Health Promotion

Job description

The role will require the screening, assessment, brief intervention and sign posting for patients within Primary Care, to promote their physical health and well being.

The role will require the co-ordination of physical health clinics, outreach appointments and collaboration with existing team members and Primary Care colleagues to ensure all clients receive an annual health screening and further contacts around health promotion.

The position will also include liaison with the appropriate care team involved in the patients within Primary Care where required, to provide seamless all-round care for the client. This role will provide support around performance monitoring and Quality across the community services and Primary Care where the Physical Health Team is involved, providing performance data, audits and action planning.

The Community Physical Health team will work across St Helens and will be required to travel between various sites.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will be responsible for providing up to date; evidence based clinical leadership for physical health to Community mental health teams and Primary Care services in line with national standards, aiming to reduce cardio metabolic risks for patients and reduce the prevalence of premature mortality, with the support of the Community Physical health Integration Lead and extended team. The role will also include monitoring of performance and Audit completion.

The post holder will be expected to be a good team member and have the skills to supervise, teach and develop physical health care skills to clinical staff. Acting as a positive role model in clinical practice, to work autonomously, reaching clinically appropriate decisions based on information received and using the knowledge and experience of the multi disciplinary team.

To provide managerial responsibilities for the junior staff members of the physical health team, including management of sickness and absence, PACE and supervision.

Requiring excellent communication skills and interpersonal effectiveness. Able to liaise across both secondary mental health services and Primary Care to manage the physical health care needs of the patient.

Liaising with external agencies in primary care to provide appropriate sign posting for conditions such as diabetes, COPD, Cardiovascular conditions, Hypertension and obesity.

About us

Mersey Care is one of the largest trusts providing physical health and mental health services in the North West, serving more than 1.4 million people across our region and are also commissioned for services that cover the North West, North Wales and the Midlands.

We offer specialist inpatient and community services that support physical and mental health and specialist inpatient mental health, learning disability, addiction and brain injury services. Mersey Care is one of only three trusts in the UK that offer high secure mental health facilities.

At the heart of all we do is our commitment to 'perfect care' - care that is safe, effective, positively experienced, timely, equitable and efficient. We support our staff to do the best job they can and work alongside service users, their families, and carers to design and develop future services together. We're currently delivering a programme of organisational and service transformation to significantly improve the quality of the services we provide and safely reduce cost as we do so.

Flexible working requests will be considered for all roles.

Job responsibilities

To coordinate the physical care of service users carrying out assessment planning, implementation and evaluation of their care under the supervision of the line manager.

To ensure that the service users physical health status is highlighted and proactively followed up where needs exist by the most appropriate care team.

Ensuring that all relevant information with regards to a service users care and treatment is documented accurately and legibly into their health record. Supervise and monitor the entries made by junior team members, through performance management and audit.

To liaise significant others when completing the assessment and developing a care plan.

To direct other staff in order to ensure delivery of a high standard of physical care to service users.

To participate in setting physical health standards for care based on sound evidence based and research findings.

To participate in the systematic monitoring and evaluation of service users that with guidance from a supervisor.

To communicate with other members of the multi-disciplinary team to ensure the communication of any relevant information that has an impact on the service users physical care.

To use verbal and non-verbal communication skills gained through training or experience to impart sensitive information.

To check understanding of information where there are often barriers to effective communications due to distress, psychiatric symptoms or where English is not the first language.

To use skills gained through training and experience to give and receive information to other individuals with regards to a service users care in the reviews and multidisciplinary meetings. These individuals may be external to the Trust.

To provide and co-ordinate the provision of a range of therapeutic activities for service users and monitor their effectiveness.

To ensure that all relevant information with regards to a service users care and treatment is documented accurately and legibly into the health record. To supervise and monitor the entries made by unqualified staff.

Under the guidance of a supervisor provide reports both in written and verbal formats as requested and required.

To contribute to teaching sessions in order to pass on knowledge and skills.

To ensure that all incidents or near misses are documented as per Trust policy and that any follow up action is taken.

To actively participate in service user discussions/reviews where appropriate ensuring that service user needs are met and that the team has all the relevant information on which to base their clinical decisions.

To develop care plans that enable service users to reach and maintain their optimum level of health and wellbeing to help them to obtain their optimum health.

To react pro-actively in cases of service user physical health deterioration and put in place immediate plans to resolve the situation with supervision and guidance as appropriate.

To assist in the assessment and supervision of nursing and other students.

To assess and monitor the physical health of service users, seeking advice and support from medical staff as appropriate.

To actively participate in team meetings in order to positively influence team working and the development of research-based practice.

To participate in the induction of new staff.

To maintain safe custody of sharps and other clinical equipment.

To manage own time and workload, prioritising work appropriately.

Person Specification

QUALIFICATIONS

• Registered Nurse
• Degree Level or working towards
• Phlebotomy training
• Diabetes Care
• Health promotion

KNOWLEDGE/ EXPERIENCE

• 2 years post registration Experience of working in an Adult clinical area
• Demonstrable experience of working with people who experience serious ongoing mental health problems
• Demonstrate a good knowledge of the Code of Conduct and the nurse's responsibility to identify gaps in their knowledge base
• Knowledge and understanding of the Mental Capacity Act
• Demonstrate knowledge in the concepts of mentorship, preceptor ship and supervision
• A demonstrated understanding of Equality and Human Rights
• Knowledge of Cardio Metabolic risks in clients with Severe and Enduring mental health conditions
• LESTER Tool and NHS Plan
• Knowledge of substance misuse and associated risks
• Appreciate the process of standard setting and audit
• Understanding of evidence-based practice
• Knowledge and understanding of the Mental Health Act and Code
• Knowledge of Substance Misuse Nursing interventions

VALUES

• Accountability
• Support
• High professional standards
• Responsive to service users
• Engaging leadership style
• Transparency and honesty
• Discreet
• Change oriented

SKILLS

• Able to communicate effectively
• Possess good listening and negotiation skills
• Be able to demonstrate a sound knowledge base regarding: Effective Physical Health Care, Care Planning and evaluation, Quality and clinical audit
• Professional attitude
• Flexibility
• Ability to contribute to develop professional excellence within the community team. Compassionate and motivated about the needs of mental health service users
• Excellent time management and organizational skills

OTHER

• Access to transport

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

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.