Health Play Specialist

NHS; Carshalton; On-site; GBP 31,000 - 34,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a passionate Health Play Specialist to join their team. This role offers the chance to work in a supportive environment, helping children navigate their healthcare experiences through play. You will engage with children and families, providing therapeutic play interventions that promote emotional and developmental well-being. This is a unique opportunity to make a meaningful impact in the lives of young patients while collaborating with a dedicated team of professionals. If you are ready to contribute to a vital service within the community, this position is perfect for you.

Qualifications

• Registered Health Play Specialist with a Foundation Degree in Healthcare Play Specialism.
• Experience working with children aged 0-18 in healthcare settings.

Responsibilities

• Organise play activities to help children prepare for clinical procedures.
• Provide support to families on using play to aid children's understanding.

Skills

Child Development Knowledge

Therapeutic Play Intervention

Communication Skills

Infection Control Practices

Safeguarding Awareness

Education

Foundation Degree in Healthcare Play Specialism

NNEB/NVQ Level 3 or equivalent

Job description

Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust

Full time and part time options are available

Would you like to work in a local district general hospital? Are you thinking of returning to practice as a HPS? Or considering a move into Health Play Specialism and would like the opportunity to start here and build on the Play service that is developing? Are you already newly qualified and looking for experience or still studying and wanting a step in the door to working within the NHS? If so, then this post is for you.

Main duties of the job

You will be working to organise play activities to help children prepare for clinical procedures, surgery and to work through their concerns and worries through a range of techniques suitable.

The work that you will be doing will be supported by a combination of evidence-based practice and theoretical knowledge which will enable you to plan, implement, review and evaluate therapeutic play programmes that support children (from birth) and young people emotionally and developmentally.

You will also be providing support to parents, carers and the wider family, including siblings, and will offer advice on how they can use play to help their children make sense of what's happening to them.

Minimum Requirements

The Foundation degree in Healthcare Play Specialism, Edex /BTEC in Specialised play for the sick child or the previous HPSC/HPSEB, or international equivalent, is required for this post along with current registration with HPSET. Students currently undertaking the FdA Healthcare play specialism are welcome to apply or those working towards the registration.

About us

Welcome to Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust

Thank you for showing an interest in working with us at Epsom and St Helier - a family of more than 7,000 colleagues.

We are truly an integrated health and care Trust. In simple terms, that means that as well as the services we provide at our acute care hospitals (Epsom in Surrey and St Helier nearby in south west London), we work with local GPs, mental health services, community providers and local authorities, with the joint aim of preventing local people from becoming unwell, and when they do, that they receive the right care, in the right place, with the right support.

So, as well as great hospital care, together we offer an increasing range of services. These include adult community health, sexual health and children's therapies. Many of these community services are run by the partnerships we host, Surrey Downs Health and Care and Sutton Health and Care.

Job responsibilities

Please see the attached supporting Job description/Person Specification documents which contains more information about the role.

Person Specification

• Experience of working with children aged 0 -18 years and understanding their developmental process.
• Registered and Qualified Health Play Specialist holding the Foundation Degree in Healthcare Play Specialism. NNEB/NVQ Level 3 or equivalent training involving normal childcare development.
• Experience of working with children in a healthcare setting.
• Knowledge of child development and the ability to apply therapeutic play intervention for children including distraction preparation and post procedural play.
• Awareness of child safeguarding processes, know the importance of good infection control practices; and the health and safety and risk management issues to health play services.
• Knowledge of professional and ethical issues, including professional boundaries, clinical governance and safeguarding children's policies and practice.
• Experience of working with children, young people and their families with SEN.

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.

Employer name

Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust

£31,081 to £33,665 a year pa pro rata incl of outer London HCAS