Dental Triage Nurse

NHS; Huddersfield; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 60,000; Part time

Job summary

A leading healthcare provider is seeking part-time Dental Triage Nurses to work in their Contact Centres. The role involves providing clinical assessment and advice to dental patients over the phone, ensuring timely and professional responses. Candidates must be registered Dental Nurses with experience in dental care settings. This position offers flexible shifts and competitive hourly rates.

Benefits

Employee Assistance Programme

NHS Pensions

NHS Discounts (Blue light card)

Health & Wellbeing group to support staff

Supportive and Friendly teams

Qualifications

• Experience in primary or secondary dental care setting.
• Evidence of continuing personal / professional development.
• Experience of telephone triage.

Responsibilities

• Respond to dental patient calls transferred from NHS 111.
• Provide evidence-based clinical assessment and advice over the phone.
• Identify patients appropriate for urgent dental care appointments.

Skills

Effective communication skills

Good assessment & decision-making skills

Self-motivated team worker

Education

Dental Nurse registered with the General Dental Council

Job description

Local Care Direct is a non-profit Social Enterprise operating across 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, to provide various primary and urgent health care services across West Yorkshire.

We have various Part-Time vacancies for Dental Triage Nurses working in our Contact Centres responding to dental patients by providing clinical assessment & advice over the phone.

The Dental Service provides a 24 / 7 service to patients aged over 5 experiencing urgent dental issues providing advice & support over the phone.

Hourly Rate: £15.22 per hour in hours & £16.22 per hour out of hours.

(In Hours = Monday to Friday 08.00 to 18.00 & Out of Hours = Monday to Friday 18.00 to 08.00 and all day Saturday Sunday)

Location: Unit 2, Bradley, Huddersfield, HD2 1GQ and / or Lexicon House, Wilmington Grove, Leeds, LS7 2BQ (Please note if successful for Lexicon working from Bradley may be required during the training period)

Shifts Available (minimum shift requirement of 16 hours per week):

• Tuesday weekly 12.30-15.59
• Friday weekly 07.00-11.59
• Friday weekly 18.00-21.59
• Saturday weekly 08.00-16.00
• Saturday weekly 08.30-13.30
• Saturday weekly 12.00-16.00
• Saturday weekly 18.00-22.29
• Saturday weeks 2&4 07.00-11.00
• Saturday weeks 2&4 07.30-12.30
• Sunday weekly 06.00-10.00
• Sunday weekly 08.00-11.59
• Sunday weekly 16.30-20.30
• Sunday weekly 18.00-00.00
• Sunday weekly 23.59-06.00

Main duties of the job

Dental Triage Nurses are based in the contact centre and are required to respond to dental patient calls transferred from NHS 111 in a professional and timely manner, in line with all relevant protocols / procedures and key performance indicators for the service.

They will provide evidence based clinical assessment, prioritisation and advice over the telephone working within clinical capabilities and competencies and in line with the NHS Pathways Dental Module.

They will identify those patients appropriate to be booked into urgent dental care appointments and prioritise need, taking into account patient circumstances / preferences as appropriate.

They will ensure that patients who are not appropriate to be booked into an urgent dental care appointment are provided with relevant information regarding self-care and/or finding a regular dentist.

About us

We care about people at Local Care Direct. Together, we act with kindness & respect, fairness & consistency, and honesty & integrity. Every one of our values is essential, but our impact is greater when we use all of them together.

Our purpose is to care for people. Established as a social enterprise in 2004 to deliver health services across West Yorkshire, our aim is to meet the needs and expectations of our patients, and our NHS and social care partners. Over the years, we have developed a broad range of services for patients across Yorkshire and the Humber including: a centralised contact centre, GP out of hours services, Urgent Treatment Centres, walk-in facilities, a dental assessment and booking service, as well as a number of bespoke services for our NHS clients.

Benefits of working for Local Care Direct:

• Employee Assistance Programme
• Modern working environment with a positive atmosphere
• NHS Pensions
• NHS Discounts (Blue light card)
• Various hours available in a 24 / 7 environment
• Health & Wellbeing group to support staff
• Supportive and Friendly teams
• Annual Awards focused on raising money to support a local charity

Job responsibilities

Job Title: Dental Triage Nurse - Clinical Assessment and Booking Service (CABS)

Base Location: Sheridan Teal House, Bradley and / or Lexicon House Leeds

Clinical Line Manager: Lead Dental Nurse

Hours of Work: As per contract. (This is a 24 hour service and shifts cover the 24 hour period, 365 days per year including bank holidays)

Staff Group: All Clinical & Dental Triage Nurses

DBS Check Level Required: Enhanced with Child/Adult Barring, Child/Adult Workforce

• Covid19 double vaccination not required but recommended.
• This job has been rated as Low Risk for requiring Hepatitis B immunisation.
• Flu jab recommended and will be offered.

Job Purpose:

To respond to dental patient calls transferred from NHS 111 in a professional and timely manner, in line with all relevant protocols / procedures and key performance indicators for the service.

To provide evidence based clinical assessment, prioritisation & advice over the telephone working within clinical capabilities & competencies and in line with the NHS Pathways Dental Module.

To identify those patients appropriate to be booked into an urgent dental care appointment & prioritise need when booking into an appointment, taking into account patient circumstances / preferences as appropriate.

To ensure that patients are given correct information relating to exemption from payment of dental charges.

To ensure that patients who are not appropriate to be booked into an urgent dental care appointment are provided with relevant information regarding self-care and / or finding a regular dentist using the Directory of Services (DOS) and / or the NHS Choices website.

To strive to improve performance & quality as needed, in line with Local Care Direct (LCD) clinical governance & performance review policies / procedures.

KEY PRINCIPLES

Clinical:

• Assess clinical risk on behalf of dental patients as part of an initial telephone-based assessment.
• Undertake an assessment using approved clinical assessment tools plus evidence-based protocols & guidelines together with professional judgement.
• Identify promptly any patient with an apparent medical need & effect a prompt warm transfer to the NHS 111 Integrated Urgent Care provider.
• Ensure that any patient who may have taken an excess of pain relief medication is dealt with appropriately & that such patient is passed for medical assessment promptly.
• Process calls whilst providing a professional, courteous & efficient telephone service consistent with standards / protocols specified for telephone triage in respect of patients seeking assistance via NHS 111.
• Triage all calls effectively, giving appropriate self-care or other advice as necessary.
• Use critical thinking & effective communication skills to assess patient need, taking account of relevant cultural, social & economic factors in a respectful and non-judgemental manner.
• Identify & use appropriate information sources to support & underpin clinical decision making.
• Aim to book a patient with an emergency or urgent dental care disposition into an appropriate & timely dental appointment, taking account of individual patient circumstances plus their access to a regular dentist.
• For patients not eligible for an urgent dental care appointment, or where there is no appointment readily available, provide appropriate self-care advice as needed ensuring that patients have a safe & consistent outcome together with information on how to find a regular dentist if necessary.
• Accept responsibility & accountability for managing own workload, risk assessment & risk management, whilst also working effectively as a team member.
• Provide reliable clinical advice that is based on current evidence & best practice.
• Conclude the episode to the satisfaction of the patient or their representative.
• Document accurate & contemporaneous records of telephone triage outcomes.

Personal:

• Show evidence of effective decision making.
• Manage time & resources effectively & appropriately.
• Communicate effectively with patients / their representatives & other agencies as required.
• Develop effective interpersonal relationships with others in the CABS team.
• Demonstrate effective performance within a team environment.
• Develop own skills / competencies through education, training & development activities relating to current & future demands of the role or when requested to do so.
• Be prepared to work on a flexible basis as required to assist in service delivery.

Quality:

• Provide a safe & effective service, meeting key performance indicators as appropriate.
• Understand & observe professional & national guidelines on confidentiality.
• Use professional knowledge, skills & experience to the maximum benefit of the caller.
• Work as a member of the CABS team to improve performance & quality.
• Participate in organisational clinical governance & performance review procedures.

Communication

• Manage calls in a professional & reassuring manner adapted to individual need, using tact & empathy across a range of calls some of which will be challenging due to emotive circumstances or caller aggression.
• Utilise translation services where language barriers are present or other relevant means of communication for non hearing patients.
• Utilise communication skills to negotiate with & provide support to patients who are non-compliant with the assessment outcome.
• Actively communicate with the Shift Supervisor & other CABS team members, plus other agencies as necessary, to assist service delivery.

Education, Training and Development

• Demonstrate a broad understanding of the NHS & in particular the NHS 111 patient pathway plus key performance indicators relating to CABS.
• Attend mandatory / other relevant training courses & ensure ongoing awareness of relevant clinical or other service updates.
• Take responsibility & accountability for own professional development & performance, maintaining a portfolio in accordance with General Dental Council registration requirements to demonstrate personal & professional development / achievements.
• Identify personal / professional developmental needs in line with service requirements & agree periodic objectives with the relevant clinical manager.
• Participate in regular performance review of progress / achievements & identify areas of need for professional development to meet service & personal objectives.
• Support new dental triage nurses in their development & participate in training & supervision as required, to help new staff develop & achieve role competencies.

General

• To be willing to work flexibly to support the needs of the service.
• At all times to carry out duties & responsibilities in line with LCD policies: Confidentiality; Data Protection Act; Equal Opportunities; Health & Safety.
• To inform senior colleagues of any factors affecting service delivery at the time that an issue is highlighted & take any necessary action as a result.
• To undertake any other duties, role & responsibilities commensurate with the nature & grading of the post or as reasonably requested.

COMMUNICATIONS & RELATIONSHIPS

To ensure agreed lines of communication & reporting are implemented within the team to support all employees understanding LCD business plans, objectives, priorities & changes.

To promote effective cross-functional working & that the operational team supports the achievement of objectives, standards & protocols of other LCD areas.

To attend internal & external meetings representing LCD & engaging in discussions appropriate to the role and level of the post.

PATIENT CARE

To ensure that the quality of patient care is firmly at the centre of the organisations objectives & vision.

To ensure the management & monitoring of the highest standards or safety & quality in the delivery of healthcare & related services, & manage risk within Local Care Direct.

FINANCIAL RESOURCES

To ensure financial policies & procedures are maintained & the budget is adhered to & that best value for money is achieved.

CONFIDENTIALITY

To operate & ensure the team operates within information governance protocols & that business confidentiality is maintained at all times.

TRAINING

To complete the defined company induction programme & core training for this role and mandatory refresher training thereafter & ensure that accurate records of training are maintained.

INFECTION PREVENTION AND CONTROL

Healthcare workers have a duty of care to patients & are expected to comply fully with the companies Infection Prevention & Control (IP&C) policies & attend / complete IP&C training, for personal & patient safety & for prevention of healthcare-associated infection (HCAI). Knowledge, skills & behaviour in the workplace should reflect this.

SAFEGUARDING

Individuals have a duty of care to children & vulnerable adults that they come into contact with whilst at work to safeguard & promote their welfare and to work to prevent, recognise, respond, appropriately refer & record potential neglect or abuse, adhering to the companys Safeguarding Children & Safeguarding Vulnerable Adults policies & procedures.

MANAGING SELF

Ensure that relevant professional practice is evidence based & current.

Ensure that continual professional development is maintained & facilitates the ability to provide care to a high standard in a way that is both safe & cost effective.

Ensure that mandatory training is up to date & participate in training as appropriate.

Effectively utilise time management, organisational, co-ordination and if required - management skills.

Identify own professional development needs through the Personal Development Review process (PDR).

The main duties & responsibilities shown here are not exhaustive and the postholder will be expected to carry out any reasonable activities according to the needs of the business as directed by the line manager.

Person Specification

Experience

• Experience of working in a primary or secondary dental care setting.
• Evidence of continuing personal / professional development.
• Experience of telephone triage.
• Experience of using NHS Pathways and DOS.
• Experience of working in an urgent dental care or Community Dental Service setting.

Qualifications

• Dental Nurse or other Dental Professional currently registered with the General Dental Council, with at least 5 years post registration experience.
• Additional qualifications relevant to primary dental care.

Knowledge/ Skills

• Effective communication skills: verbal, written and non-verbal.
• Good assessment & decision-making skills.
• Self-motivated team worker.
• Understanding of primary and secondary dental care services.
• Able to manage time and workload in order to meet performance standards.
• Aware of impact of change on self, the team and the service.
• Up-to-date knowledge of health agenda (local and national).
• Understanding of how to deal with difficult or vulnerable patients.
• Previous experience in relation to the NHS111 dental patient pathway.

Personal

• Professional.
• Self-motivated.
• Team player.
• Calm & empathetic.
• Decisive.
• Flexible.

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.

£15.22 an hourfor in hours (£16.22 an hour for out of hours)