Junior Practitioner UTC Band 6

Gateshead Health; Gateshead; Hybrid; GBP 42,000 - 54,000; Full time

Job summary

Gateshead Health is recruiting for a nursing role based in the North East of England, delivering face-to-face consultations for patients and carers, assessing, treating, and referring minor illness and injury, both in and out of hours.

You will work autonomously within a multi-disciplinary team, supporting evidence-based, high-quality services and developing extended nursing practices with a strong focus on rapid assessment and safe prescribing where applicable.

Qualifications

• Registered Nurse or Allied Health Care Professional
• Degree in Nursing or Allied Health
• Teaching qualification or Mentorship
• Clinical skills competencies
• Paediatric experience
• ILS/PILS
• 3 years experience in first contact setting (ED/UTC/Primary Care)
• Portfolio of evidence of continuous professional development

Responsibilities

• Develop knowledge and practice extended nursing role and protocols.
• Perform practical procedures such as wound care and other extended skills.
• Conduct diagnostic investigations and explain results to patients.
• Engage in health promotion during care episodes (smoking cessation, weight management).
• Keep accurate records of all consultations.
• Collaborate with out-of-hours providers to ensure quality minor illness/injury services.
• Participate in clinical supervision.
• Liaise with agencies to achieve best patient outcomes.
• Contribute to audits, practice development and extended nursing protocols.
• Maintain awareness of current research and legislation; follow the NMC Code.
• Contribute to quality improvement and patient care standards.
• Initiate diagnostic investigations and communicate results to patients.
• Provide feedback to team members and take on agreed responsibilities.
• Apply infection control principles to all activities.

Skills

Communication and organisational

Extended nursing skills

Ability to work under pressure

Acute setting experience

Evidence of extended skills

Education

Degree in Nursing or Allied Health

Teaching qualification or Mentorship

Registered Nurse or Allied Health Care Professional

ILS/PILS

Job description

• To provide continuing responsibility in the absence of the band 7 and act in their absence.
• To provide face to face consultation for patients and their carers and to carry out assessment, diagnosis, treatment and/or appropriate referral for minor illness and minor injury.
• To work autonomously and as part of a multi-disciplinary team providing services in and out of hours.
• To support the development of evidence based, high quality service.

Main duties of the job

• Provides assessment, treatment and ensures follow up of patients with undifferentiated diagnosis and make appropriate referrals to other service providers as necessary.
• Delivers a range of services in a 'one-stop-shop' setting, e.g., assessment, treatment and supplying of medication through patient group directions as necessary.
• If practicing as a non-medical prescriber following completion of course they will ensure safe prescribing and administration of drugs in accordance with current NMC guidelines and Trust Policies.

About us

Based in the North East of England we provide a range of hospital and community health services from our leading facilities, including the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Blaydon urgent care centre and Bensham Hospital, all within Gateshead.

Established in 2005, we were one of the first foundation trusts in the country and since then have consistently achieved the highest levels of care for patients.

We now employ around 4,800 staff and currently provide 444 hospital beds across the Gateshead region.

Our values should be the 'golden thread' which runs through everything we do - they are the core of who we are. Our five values can easily be remembered by the simple acronymICORE; Innovation, Care, Openness, Respect, Engagement.

We have a number of staff networks including the Global Ethnic Majority (GEM) network, D-Ability network, LGBTQ+ Network and the Women's Network, to challenge us and help us to constantly improve. Our Armed Forces network is one of our emerging networks.

The health and wellbeing of our staff is one of our highest priorities, and we offer a range of support and initiatives as part of our 'Balance' programme balancegateshead.com to cater for our diverse workforce, so that your individual needs can be supported, allowing you a happy and healthy working experience with us.

Job responsibilities

• Develop knowledge and practice facilitate the extended role in nursing and work to develop protocols relating to advanced nursing practice and work in the extended nursing role.
• To perform practical procedures for example: wound closure and other extended skills following training appropriate to the minor injury and illness setting.
• Ability to perform a range of diagnostic investigations, appropriate interpretationof results and explain these to patients.
• Informs, educates and uses opportunities during episodes of care, to engage in health promotion activity with patients, e.g., smoking cessation, weight management advice.
• Keeps accurate records of all consultations.
• Works with other out-of-hours providers to ensure high quality effective minor illness and minor injury services at the point of need.
• Participates in clinical supervision.
• Liaises with other agencies/ providers to ensure the best outcomes for patients
• Contribute to the development of services by participating in audits, practice developments, developing protocols relating to advanced practice and the extended role of nursing.
• Maintain and demonstrate an awareness of current research and legislation and work within the NMC Code of Conduct
• Contribute to quality improvement to ensure the highest standards of patient care are achieved at all times in the most effective manner.
• Ability to initiate a range of diagnostic investigations, appropriate interpretation of results and explain these to patients
• Provide feedback to team members and undertake any other responsibilities as agreed by the Lead Nurse or Modern Matron
• Apply standard principles of infection control to all activities at all times

Qualifications

• Registered Nurse or Allied Health Care Professional
• Degree in Nursing or Allied Health
• Teaching qualification or Mentorship
• Clinical skills competencies
• Paediatric experience
• ILS/PILS

Experience

• 3 years experience of working in first contact setting eg ED, UTC, Primary Care
• Portfolio of evidence of continuous professional development
• Autonomous working
• Ability to undertake audit

Skills, attributes/knowledge

• Communication and organisational skills
• Extended nursing skills
• Ability to work under pressure and achieve tight deadlines in a complex/changing environment
• Skills in an acute setting
• Evidence of taking on extended skills

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.