Specialist Physiotherapist

Merseywestlancs; Knowsley; Remote; GBP 32,000 - 42,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pension scheme

NHS discounts

Annual leave 27 days (pro rata)

Job summary

Mersey West Lancashire NHS Trust invites a Specialist Physiotherapist (Band 6) to join the Admission Avoidance Therapy Team at Whiston Hospital. You’ll work across AED and Frailty pathways, delivering expert assessments and treatment to prevent admissions and support discharge planning.

The role covers inpatient duties and community collaboration, with CPD, governance, research and audit opportunities. Flexible hours extend 8am–6pm, with a 5‑day week on a 7‑day service.

Qualifications

• Degree in Physiotherapy (essential professional qualification).
• HCPC registration as a practicing physiotherapist.
• Clinical Educators Certificate or equivalent preferred.

Responsibilities

• Provide high quality, responsive care to patients in AED and Frailty Unit.
• Perform specialist assessments and develop individualised treatment plans.
• Manage own caseload within an MDT and support junior staff as needed.
• Contribute to service development and audit activities.
• Participate in 7-day service rota and flexible working as required.

Skills

Physiotherapist

Education

Degree in Physiotherapy

HCPC registration

Clinical Educators Certificate

Job description

We want talented and enthusiastic people from all backgrounds to join #TeamMWL, with us you can learn, grow and develop yourself and your career, realising your true ambitions and aspirations.

Whatever you’re looking for in your career, you’ll find it here at MWL.

Job overview

Specialist Physiotherapist - Band 6 Permanent

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced Physiotherapist to join the Admission Avoidance Therapy Team at Whiston Hospital. You will work in a diverse environment including a high paced AED setting as well as a specialist Ambulatory Frailty clinic based within Bevan Court - our Frailty and Reablement Unit.

The aim of the service is to prevent hospital admission and ensure patients safety for discharge from AED / Ambulatory Frailty Clinic wherever possible. Whilst being predominantly inpatient based you will also work alongside our community colleagues covering UCR, Community Frailty and Virtual Ward for the residents of St Helens.

The successful applicant will work alongside highly experienced therapists, nurses and medics within an AED and Frailty MDT. This is an opportunity to work with Frailty patients throughout their journey and make a real difference to people’s lives on their path from hospital to home.

In return for your hard work and dedication we can offer a friendly and welcoming team. We encourage ongoing continuing professional development and enable regular peer support and In Service Training. Service development, Clinical Governance, Research and audit activities are key and you will have a number of opportunities to contribute to our ever developing and expanding service.

The team hours cover an extended service 8am to 6pm. Shifts are 8am – 4pm and 10pm – 6pm.

Main duties of the job

Main duties of the job

The successful candidate will provide high quality, responsive care to patients attending the Accident and Emergency Department and those transferred to the Frailty Unit. In AED you will provide a first response and initial assessment that will support and help determine patient flow through the hospital. You will need to demonstrate confidence and clarity with your clinical reasoning and make informed decisions that may assist in turning people around safely and effectively in a shorter period. You must be adaptable to increasing demand often in a high‑pressured setting.

Working in Frailty you will be familiar with the frailty pathway. Our aims are to provide a reactive and proactive service to care for the frail older adult, preventing crisis, avoiding hospital attendance and maximising independence in a patient’s own home where possible. You will be expected to liaise with community colleagues to ensure a seamless transition from hospital to home.

You should have a broad knowledge base to assess a variety of conditions that may present in AED. You must be flexible in your approach to meet the demands of our 7-day service. You will join our rota and will work 5 days a week over the 7 days that the service is provided. The team hours cover an extended service 8am to 6pm. Shifts are 8am – 4pm and 10pm – 6pm.

Working for our organisation

Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust serves a population of over 600,000 with a workforce of over 10,500 dedicated and skilled staff across 21 sites.

Our services:

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. 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

Purpose of the role

To perform specialist assessment of patients with diverse presentations and complex physical and psychological conditions.

To provide a diagnosis and develop and deliver an individualised treatment programme

To hold responsibility for own caseload and be responsible for a defined area of service or patient type without direct supervision.

To work in secondary care in a variety of hospital settings and the patient’s own homes.

To demonstrate as appropriate the role highly developed physical skills for assessment and treatment of patients e.g. dexterity, coordination, palpatory, and other senses.

To participate in bank holiday, weekend and evening work if required, following appropriate training, without direct supervision.

All therapists work as part of an MDT under suit will be expected to provide support and when needed supervision to all disciplines: physiotherapy, occupational therapy, speech and language therapy and dietitians.

Main Tasks and Responsibilities

1. To be professional and legally responsible and accountable for all aspects of your own work including the management of patients/clients in your car.

2. To undertake a comprehensive assessment of patients/ clients including those with diverse or complex presentations/multi pathologies; use specialist clinical reasoning skills and appropriate assessment techniques to provide an accurate diagnosis of their condition

3. Formulate and deliver an individual treatment programme using assessment, reasoning skills and treatment skills based on a sound knowledge of evidenced based practise a treatment options.

4. Formulate initial diagnosis and prognosis in order to recommend best course of intervention and develop comprehensive discharge plans.

5. To take delegated responsibility from the Band 7 clinician for managing patient/clients with particular conditions and be responsible providing specialist assessment and treatment plans for patients with these conditions.

6. Evaluate patient progress, reassess and alter treatment programmes as required.

7. To have the ability to undertake self-directed/loan working in a variety of locations.

Qualifications

• Degree in Physiotherapy
• HCPC registration
• Clinical Educators Certificate

Experience

• Advanced clinical knowledge relevant to the current environment and evidence of evidence-based practise in relevant health setting
• Awareness of own strengths and limitations
• Knowledge of relevant national policies and guidance and relevant assessment tools
• Experience of line managing team including setting objectives, conducting appraisals and effective delegation and coordination
• Evidence of effective working within an MDT
• Experience of service development
• Demonstrate experience of problem-solving approaches
• Audit and research in a clinical area

Skills

• Demonstrates ability to motivate team performance to achieve objectives
• Ability to prioritise and work to deadlines
• Ability to communicate effectively in a variety of settings
• Accurate record keeping, report writing and IT skills including presentation skills
• Have a flexible approach to working with good time management

Other

• Ability to travel to various hospital locations

Our Values

• We are Kind
• We are Open
• We are Inclusive

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.

We also 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.

We also commit to offering an interview to all armed forces veterans who meet the minimum criteria for the job (the essential criteria) listed in the personal specification.

The Trust operates anonymous shortlisting where no personal information about you, including your name or personal details are shared with the recruiting manager. No equality information is shared at any time during the recruitment process with the recruiting manager or other people involved in the decision‑making process.

The equality monitoring information you provide is used in the following situations: to review our recruitment practices; where a job is limited to a specific person to verify their eligibility to apply; and to offer disability reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Please note if applicable, applicants will be required to pay for their DBS check. Costs are deducted from salary following appointment.

If you have not already done so, you are therefore encouraged to enrol for the DBS Update Service to which a small annual fee of £13 per year applies.

Flexible Working

We actively support flexible working patterns throughout MWL. Changes made to the NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook mean that:
All employees have the right to request flexible working from day one of employment.
There is no limit on the number of requests they can make.
Employees have the right to make requests, have them considered, regardless of the reason.

At Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, we will consider requests for flexible working. We would also encourage you to also discuss flexible working options at interview stage.

Working for Team MWL

Staff recognition is especially important to us; as well as performance reviews and appraisals, we recognise staff through Employee of the month. Along with supporting you to achieve your career goals we offer a generous pension scheme, unsocial hours payments (where applicable), 27 days annual leave on commencement (pro rata) and access to a range of NHS discounts. Our Staff Health and Wellbeing programme offer a variety of services.

The Trust is a non‑smoking across all our sites. Failure to follow this rule could lead to disciplinary action. For more information, see the Smoke Free NHS website.

You will be expected to undertake the Trusts' commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults.

Before applying, we encourage you to review the Trusts Values and Behaviours which are We are KIND, We are OPEN, We are INCLUSIVE, which can be found here.

An applicant guide to help and support you with your application and what to expect during your recruitment journey can be accessed in the supporting documents.

Good luck with your application. We hope to welcome you to Team MWL very soon.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.