Nursing Assistant - Kingsley Ward (Older People’s Mental Health)

NHS; Warrington; On-site; GBP 20,000 - 25,000; Full time

Job summary

A regional health trust is seeking a Nursing Assistant for Kingsley Ward, specializing in dementia care. The role involves direct care, supervision under qualified staff, and assisting with daily living activities. Ideal candidates will have a Level 2 qualification in Health and Social Care, effective communication skills, and experience in a care setting. This position offers a chance to make a significant impact on the lives of patients and their families.

Qualifications

• Experience of working in a care setting.
• Understanding of issues of confidentiality.
• Experience or personal lived experience of mental health problems.

Responsibilities

• Assist with daily living activities and care plan implementation.
• Report observations and feedback to qualified practitioners.
• Contribute to safe environment and care assessments as needed.

Skills

Communication skills

Teamwork

Non-judgmental attitude

Ability to work independently

Support and guidance to junior staff

Education

Health and Social Care Level 2 qualification

Care Certificate

Job description

Nursing Assistant - Kingsley Ward (Older People’s Mental Health)

Join Our Passionate Team at Kingsley Ward - Make a Real Difference in Dementia Care

Are you ready to take the next step in your career and be part of something truly meaningful? An exciting opportunity has opened up within theKingsley Ward Team, our specialist inpatient dementia assessment unit atHollins Park Hospital, Warrington.

At Kingsley Ward, we pride ourselves on delivering exceptional care and support to individuals living withDementia and Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD). Our team is dedicated to providing compassionate, person-centred assessment and treatment in a supportive and dynamic environment.

As part of our team, you'll gain invaluable experience across both physical and mental health aspects of dementia care. This is a fantastic opportunity to develop your skills, grow professionally, and make a lasting impact on the lives of patients and their families.

If you're driven by purpose and want to be part of a team that truly makes a difference, we'd love to hear from you.

Main duties of the job

• To carry out assigned duties, involving direct care and observation of service users under the guidance and indirect supervision of qualified staff.
• To report to the qualified staff any observations made whilst providing care to service users activities and leisure, providing details of mental state and risk factors.
• To work with service users on an individual and group basis as outlined in the care plan and as directed by the appropriate named lead professional.

About us

Mersey Care is one of the largest trusts providing physical health and mental health services in the North West, serving more than 1.4 million people across our region and are also commissioned for services that cover the North West, North Wales and the Midlands.

We offer specialist inpatient and community services that support physical and mental health and specialist inpatient mental health, learning disability, addiction and brain injury services. Mersey Care is one of only three trusts in the UK that offer high secure mental health facilities.

At the heart of all we do is our commitment to 'perfect care' - care that is safe, effective, positively experienced, timely, equitable and efficient. We support our staff to do the best job they can and work alongside service users, their families, and carers to design and develop future services together. We're currently delivering a programme of organisational and service transformation to significantly improve the quality of the services we provide and safely reduce cost as we do so.

Flexible working requests will be considered for all roles.

Job responsibilities

• To coordinate the assessment and delivery of a planned programme of care with guidance and indirect supervision from a qualified practitioner and to contribute to formal assessment and delivery of an individuals plan of care.
• To assist with activities of daily living, social, recreational and occupational activities as agreed in the service user care plan.
• To report general observations and provide feedback to a qualified practitioner both verbally and in written formats, if required. This should include any concerns arising from the service user physical or mental health.
• To contribute to effective running of the service by providing and receiving information to/from other departments or services. Ensure this information is provided in the most effective way i.e. telephone, fax or in writing.
• To assist service users with self‑administration of oral medication and ensure any concerns / issues about medication are reported back to a qualified practitioner.
• To use a variety of verbal and non‑verbal skills to overcome communication barriers presented by service users due to their mental health needs.
• To contribute to maintaining a safe environment for service user in the community (where appropriate).
• To carry out specific duties that contributes to the assessment of service users as requested by a qualified practitioner.
• To develop and maintain links with other agencies and services, both statutory and voluntary (where appropriate).
• To use skills and techniques, to de‑escalate situations where service users become physically or verbally aggressive.
• To carry out observations and inform the Registered Nurse of any concerns. e.g. temperature, pulse, respiration, blood pressure, diet and fluid intake, weight as requested by a qualified practitioner.
• To contribute to the development of risk management plans for service users by reporting, to the qualified practitioner any issues or concerns regarding service users behaviour / action towards themselves or others.
• Respond to the changing needs of service users.
• Control the assessments of implemented individual service users care plans.
• To undertake and understand the support of observations as per policy tbc (Levels 1- 4)

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Health and Social Care Level 2 qualification or equivalent experience
• Care Certificate

Knowledge

• Experience of working in a care setting
• Understanding of issues of confidentiality
• Experience of individuals with mental health problems or personal lived experience of mental health problems

Skills

• Able to communicate effectively
• Ability to work as a member of a team
• Ability to demonstrate a non‑judgemental attitude
• Ability to work on own initiative under the supervision of a qualified practitioner
• Ability to provide support and guidance to junior staff

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.