Healthcare Support Worker - Band 3

The Methodist Church in Britain; Cambridge; On-site; GBP 21,000 - 25,000; Full time

Job summary

Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is seeking a Healthcare Support Worker to provide high-quality personal care on adult wards. The role is open to candidates with NHS HCSW experience, involves assisting with eating and drinking, observing patients, and supporting mobility under supervision.

Shifts include days, nights, weekends and bank holidays; training and competency signing are required.

Qualifications

• NHS-recognised National Care Certificate, with practical assessment against all 16 standards
• Functional Skills Level 1 maths and English, or GCSE equivalent
• Commitment to further learning and development

Responsibilities

• Provide high-quality personal care
• Support patients with eating and drinking
• Undertake and record clinical observations, including blood pressure, pulse, temperature and urinalysis
• Assist patients with mobility
• Support nurses and the multidisciplinary team in delivering patient care
• Carry out delegated clinical duties within level of training and competence
• Deliver safe, effective and dignified care alongside nurses, doctors and multidisciplinary teams

Skills

Patient care

Teamwork

Communication

Attention to detail

Education

NHS Care Certificate

Functional Skills Level 1 Maths & English

Job description

A Healthcare Support Worker post at Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, open only to those with existing NHS HCSW experience, with successful candidates held in a central pool until an adult ward is allocated. The work centres on personal care, eating and drinking support, observations and mobility, with delegated clinical tasks done alongside nurses and the multidisciplinary team. Shifts cover days, nights, weekends and bank holidays, with no fixed patterns available. Practical Care Certificate assessment and signed-off competencies are needed, as online-only training is not accepted.

What the job involves

• Provide high-quality personal care
• Support patients with eating and drinking
• Undertake and record clinical observations, including blood pressure, pulse, temperature and urinalysis
• Assist patients with mobility
• Support nurses and the multidisciplinary team in delivering patient care
• Carry out delegated clinical duties within level of training and competence
• Deliver safe, effective and dignified care alongside nurses, doctors and multidisciplinary teams

Qualifications

• NHS-recognised National Care Certificate, with practical assessment against all 16 standards
• Functional Skills Level 1 maths and English, or GCSE equivalent, or a pass on the Level 1 assessment
• Commitment to further learning and development

Experience

• Current or previous NHS Healthcare Support Worker experience, in an NHS hospital setting
• Direct patient care, clinical observation and basic clinical procedures experience
• Working under pressure
• Working within a team
• Public sector experience
• Attention to detail, such as recording in patient records

Skills & knowledge

• Good written and verbal communication, relating well to patients, relatives, visitors and colleagues
• Carrying out well-defined routine tasks, and understanding the role or being prepared to train for it
• Working on own initiative under direction or supervision of a Registered Healthcare Practitioner
• Signed-off clinical competency in health and safety, IPC and PPE, urinary catheter care and removal, vital signs and manual BP, cannula removal and enhanced observations

Other

• Caring, compassionate and patient-centred approach, committed to high standards of care
• Behaving in line with Trust values of Safe, Kind and Excellent towards patients, visitors and colleagues
• Flexibility to meet the shift pattern and duty roster

Nice to have

• Level 3 award in health care
• Experience working within a health care environment
• Experience in a healthcare, social care or service setting requiring people contact
• Awareness of national and local priorities and initiatives
• Prepared to coach other HCSWs
• IT skills

What's offered

• Ongoing training, clinical skills development and Functional Skills support in English and maths
• Flexible working, including part-time, job-share, term-time and flexible start and finish times
• Reduced-cost Stagecoach bus travel to and from the site
• Free Park and Ride between Babraham Road and Trumpington, and free route to Cambridge train station
• Subsidised on-site parking for eligible staff
• Hot food available 24/7 on campus at reduced cost
• On-site leisure facilities, shopping concourse and day nurseries
• Colleague-only café with free tea and coffee and staff break space at the Deakin Centre