Lead Practice Nurse

NHS; Dorchester; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Part time

Job summary

A local healthcare practice in Dorchester is seeking a dedicated Lead Practice Nurse to oversee nursing services, including respiratory care and Infection Prevention & Control. This part-time role involves mentoring staff and ensuring high standards of patient care. The ideal candidate will have experience in chronic disease management and a commitment to professional development.

Benefits

Ongoing professional development

Supportive team environment

Qualifications

• Evidence of working at the relevant level in Primary Care and General Practice Nursing.
• Knowledge of wound care and infection prevention and control.
• Experience in chronic disease management.

Responsibilities

• Lead and develop respiratory care services.
• Oversee Infection Prevention & Control activities.
• Provide mentorship and support to the nursing team.
• Conduct patient assessments and consultations.

Skills

Time management

Teamwork

Interpersonal skills

Risk assessment

Empathy

Education

Registered Nurse

General Practice Nurse qualification

Mentor/teaching qualification

Tools

SystmOne

Job description

Overview

Are you an experienced, forward-thinking Practice Nurse ready for a leadership challenge? An exciting opportunity has arisen to join Queens Avenue Surgery as a Lead Practice Nurse. This is a key senior role for a passionate nurse to lead our services, including Respiratory Care and Infection Prevention & Control (IPC). You will be instrumental in delivering the highest standards of clinical care, developing patient services, and mentoring our nursing team. The position is for 30 hours per week over 4 days with a Saturday morning worked on a rota (around 1 in 5). Interviews will be held week commencing 20/10/2025.

Working as a senior member of the practice multidisciplinary team, you will ensure nursing services are delivered effectively to our patient population. If you are proactive, dedicated to patient-centred care, and looking to make a real impact within a supportive and collaborative practice, we would love to hear from you.

Main duties

As our Lead Practice Nurse, you will be a senior clinical voice in the practice. Your main duties will include:

• Acting as the designated Lead for Infection Prevention & Control (IPC), overseeing audits, training, and policy.
• Leading and developing respiratory care services, including managing asthma and COPD clinics and individual treatment plans for patients with chronic disease.
• Delivering comprehensive care for patients with long-term conditions, including the frail and housebound.
• Providing the full scope of general practice nursing, from wound care and immunisations to travel health and cervical cytology.
• Mentoring and supporting the development of Healthcare Assistants and the wider nursing team.
• Championing health promotion and wellbeing programmes for the patient community.

About us

Queens Avenue Surgery is a patient-focused practice dedicated to serving our local community with high-quality, compassionate care. We value a professional, friendly, and highly supportive team environment and encourage staff to contribute ideas to enhance patient care. We are committed to ongoing professional development, providing induction, regular clinical supervision, and opportunities for training to help you reach your full potential.

Details

Date posted: 24 September 2025

Pay scheme: Other

Salary: £18 to £24 an hour depending on experience

Contract: Permanent

Working pattern: Part-time

Location: Queens Avenue Surgery, 14 Queens Avenue, Dorchester, Dorset, DT1 2EW

Employer: Queens Avenue Surgery

Employer's website: queensavenue.co.uk

Job responsibilities

The following are the core responsibilities of the Lead Practice Nurse in delivering health services at Queens Avenue Surgery:

• Provide mentorship, assessment, and guidance to other team members, including practice nurses and healthcare assistants
• Conduct appraisals and lead planning and implementation of changes within the team
• Develop, review, and implement nursing protocols and clinical policies with practice partners
• Act as IPC lead and work to the IPC Policy
• Consult with patients and families to undertake assessments of patient need
• Support long-term condition management within the surgery, particularly for asthma and COPD, including quality improvement initiatives
• Develop and embed a care management programme for frail and housebound patients
• Support public health and screening programmes (immunisations, vaccinations, cervical screening) and provide health promotion advice
• Embed population health management approaches to improve access and reduce health inequalities
• Provide routine nursing care in line with evidence, NICE, and the NSF
• Support new-to-practice nurses and other healthcare professionals
• Educate patients and families on managing conditions
• Participate in clinical audits and research; update practice protocols and procedures locally
• Work within national/local protocols and know when to refer to GPs
• Support delivery of enhanced services and other service requirements
• Adhere to safeguarding policies for adults and children
• Participate in handling patient complaints and learning from incidents
• Undertake mandatory training and induction
• Contribute to clinical governance and review policies to ensure compliance with legislation
• Attend formal appraisal with manager at least every 12 months
• Lead on public health campaigns (e.g., flu clinics) and provide travel advice services
• Provide wound care and maintain accurate clinical records with SNOMED CT codes
• Contribute to practice targets (QOF) and maintain chronic disease registers
• Maintain a clean and safe working environment; chaperone patients as needed
• Support the team in clinical emergencies and liaise with external services as needed

There may be occasional other tasks depending on workload and staffing levels.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Essential: Registered Nurse; evidence of working at the relevant level as described in the Primary Care and General Practice Nursing Career and Core Capabilities Framework
• Desirable: General Practice Nurse qualification; mentor/teaching qualification; respiratory care qualifications; cervical cytology qualification; travel health training

Personal qualities

• Essential: effective time management; ability to follow policies; initiative; respect for diversity; risk assessment; teamwork and autonomy; interpersonal and organisational skills; empathy; commitment to professional development
• Desirable: knowledge of SystmOne and IT systems; resilience and ability to work under pressure

Experience

• Essential: broad knowledge of general practice; experience with chronic disease management; autonomous working; infection prevention and control; managing elderly and housebound patients
• Desirable: experience of quality initiatives and understanding NHS landscape including PCNs and commissioners

Clinical knowledge and skills

• Essential: wound care, ECG, venepuncture, immunisations, new patient medicals, women\'s health (cervical cytology, contraception); pathology testing; evidence-based practice; ability to refer to GPs; good clinical IT; safeguarding; knowledge of QOF and enhanced services
• Desirable: knowledge of clinical governance; public health issues; health promotion strategies; awareness of NSF/NICE guidelines

Compliance

Disclosure and Barring Service Check: This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act and requires a DBS disclosure.

UK Registration: Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers.