Lead Nurse - Rheumatology

St. Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust; St Helens; In loco; GBP 52.000 - 72.000; Tempo pieno

Descrizione del lavoro

Mersey West Lancashire NHS Trust is seeking an experienced Nurse Specialist in Rheumatology to lead and develop the rheumatology nursing service within the trust. The post focuses on advanced clinical practice, multidisciplinary collaboration, and governance alignment.

The role requires substantial post-qualifying experience, formal teaching and mentoring skills, and a strong commitment to quality improvement within NHS frameworks.

Competenze

• Registered Nurse with evidence of CPD activity and post-graduate courses.
• Leadership/management experience in a clinical setting.
• Willingness to travel cross-site and mentor MDT members.

Mansioni

• Lead and manage a multi-disciplinary rheumatology team.
• Provide advanced nursing assessment and treatment for complex cases.
• Develop and evaluate care plans in consultation with Consultants.
• Ensure compliance with NMC Code, standards and local policies.
• Budget monitoring and KPI data submission to commissioners.

Conoscenze

Leadership skills

IT Literate

Time management

Communication skills

Formazione

Nursing registration

Masters-level CPD evidence

Non-medical prescribing qualification

Teaching qualification

Descrizione del lavoro

After applying via NHS Jobs, your submitted application will be imported into our preferred Third-party recruitment system. All subsequent information regarding your application will be generated from apps.trac.jobs. You will not be able to track the progress of your application or receive messages through the NHS Jobs website, and furthermore, as an employer, we will not be able to respond to any e-mails sent to us via the NHS Jobs website. By applying for this post you are agreeing to "name of trust" transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are appointed to a post information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.

Job overview

The post-holder will provide expert leadership and management within a multi-disciplinary team and provide highly advanced specialist / clinical nursing expertise for Rheumatology patients.

The post holder will be expected to advise primary and secondary care clinicians as appropriate about the setting up, implementation, delivery and evaluation of patient care utilising evidence based practice. In addition, the post holder will be expected to provide a service in accordance with national, regional and local guidance, standards and protocols and polices to ensure the most positive outcome for the patients are achieved.

The post-holder will contribute to senior management and governance frameworks within the care group, and be line manager to band 7 and band 6 nurse specialists, the rheumatology day unit nursing team, rheumatology clerical support, co coordinators and the rheumatology metrology team.

The post holder will be responsible for the service budget in conjunction with Clinical director, Directorate Manager and ADM. They will ensure that KPI (Key performance Indicators) data is collected and submitted to commissioners and will be the first point of contact for commissioners' queries.

The post holder will abide by legal requirements and statutory rules relating to practice and promote and maintain standards of professional practice in accordance with The Nursing and Midwifery Councils (NMC) Code and Professional Conduct and Scope of Professional Practice.

Main duties of the job

• To work autonomously, managing a caseload of patients within the specialty whilst working as part of the multidisciplinary team, delivering individualised and personalised direct patient care.
• To take responsibility for the advanced nursing assessment and treatment of patients who may have complex acute and/or chronic presentation to determine the clinical diagnosis of the presenting complaint, extended treatment options and MDT intervention required which involves crossing professional boundaries whilst maintaining records as an autonomous practitioner.
• To undertake full medical assessment of patients within the rheumatology speciality, who may have complex acute and/or chronic presentations, in order to meet their physical, psychological and social needs throughout their illness within the hospital and community.
• To plan, co-ordinate, deliver and evaluate a management plan for such patients, where necessary in consultation with their Consultant Rheumatologist.
• Be responsible for assessing and recognising emergencies in the specialty.
• To interpret information and take appropriate action and to lead other to do the same.
• Act as an advocate for patients within the department, to ensure a patient orientated approach to delivery of care and to meet standards within the NHS plan, NHFD and Best Practice.

Working for our organisation

Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust serves a population of over 600,000 with a workforce of over 9000 dedicated and skilled staff across 21 sites.

We strongly believe that the communities we serve should all have access to Five Star Patient Care.

Acute Care

Providing emergency and maternity services at Whiston, Southport and Ormskirk hospitals, and medical and surgical specialties across all our sites.

Primary Care

Providing primary care services at Marshalls Cross Medical Centre situated in St Helens Hospital.

Community Services

Providing adult community services for St Helens and a wheelchair service in Chorley, South Ribble, and West Lancashire. Our inpatient unit at Newton Community Hospital is where patients needing acute hospital beds can continue rehabilitation, freeing up space for more unwell patients. We also provide urgent care at our Urgent Treatment Centre located in St Helens town centre.

Specialist Regional Services

We provide the Mersey Regional Burns & Plastic Surgery Unit at Whiston Hospital and the Spinal Injuries Unit at Southport Hospital to more than 4 million people across the whole of Merseyside, West Lancashire, Cheshire, Isle of Man and North Wales.

Achievements

• Rated Outstanding by CQC Inspection August 2018
• Top 100 places to work in the NHS (NHS Employers & Health Service Journal)
• National Preceptorship Accreditation (2023) for Nursing & AHP Preceptorship Programme

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see Job Description and Person Specification attached.

Advertising Date: 15th October 2026

Closing Date: 30th October 2026

Shortlisting Date: w/c 2nd November 2026

Proposed Interview date: 12th November 2026

Please note this vacancy may close early if a high number of applications is reached.

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria

• Registered Nurse
• Teaching qualification
• Evidence of relevant CPD activity and relevant post graduate courses
• Evidence of study at Masters level
• Non medical prescribing qualification
• Member of specialist interest group

Values

Essential criteria

• We are kind
• We are open
• We are inclusive

Knowledge & Experience

Essential criteria

• Substantial years post Qualification experience
• Substantial years' experience as Nurse Specialist in Rheumatology
• Evidence of leadership/ management experience
• Evidence of Training/Teaching and supervising others within clinical area - including medical, therapy, nursing colleagues and students. MDT members, patients and carers.
• Evidence of continuous professional development and high level specialist training

Skills

Essential criteria

• Evidence of an advanced standard of performance in specialist clinical area.
• Evidence of playing a key role in the planning, development and improvement of rheumatology services
• Evidence of presentation at local, National and International conferences
• Change management expertise
• Leadership skills
• Ability to effectively co-ordinate and prioritise
• Problem solving skills
• Ability to work undue pressure
• Good communication and interpersonal skills
• Ability to interact with an MDT
• Planning and organisational skills
• Time management
• IT Literate

Other

Essential criteria

• Diplomatic
• Tactful
• Flexible approach to work
• Commitment to quality
• Willingness to undergo further training according to needs of the post
• Able to travel cross site

Thank you for considering an application to work for Mersey West Lancashire NHS Trust. MWL is an exciting and forward-thinking NHS Trust who are one of the best places to work for in England.

Given sometimes we receive a high volume of applications to work for us, please be aware, that we may close a vacancy earlier than stated should a sufficient number of applications be received from which a shortlist can be confirmed. Therefore, you are advised to apply at your earliest convenience.

The Trust may contact you during the recruitment process for your feedback on your experience. We always aim for continuous improvement in our practice.

Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion

We actively cultivate a professional environment of fairness, equality, dignity, and respect for all individuals. We welcome individuals from all backgrounds and value the unique skills, perspective and experience you bring. We are grounded in the belief that diversity enhances our collective strength, fostering innovation and excellence within our workforce. We welcome all applications irrespective of people's race, disability, gender, sexual orientation, religion/belief, age, gender identity, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy/maternity and in particular those from under- represented groups.

As a Disability Confident Leader, we commit to offering an interview to all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the job (the essential criteria) listed in the personal specification. If you wish to apply under this Guaranteed Interview Scheme, please indicate this on the online application form.

If you are having difficulty completing an online application, or require any disability reasonable adjustments, to the application process, please contact