Diabetes Dietician - Surrey Downs H&C

at  Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust

APPLICANT REQUIREMENTS

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.

MAIN DUTIES OF THE JOB

• Communicate effectively with medical, nursing and other professional staff in both acute and community services.
• Provide expert dietetic advice to the multidisciplinary team through attendance and participation in multidisciplinary team meetings, educational meetings and clinical governance meetings.
• Be responsible for ensuring that patients and carers have consented prior to dietetic intervention in line with professional guidelines.
• Ability to utilise developed communication and teaching skills to educate the diverse and multicultural diabetes population with barriers to understanding the essential, highly complex carbohydrate counting principles both on a one to one basis and in groups.
• Provide highly complex nutrition counselling using complex strategies (such as cognitive behavioural therapy, motivational skills) to engage, educate and reassure patients, helping to overcome barriers to change.
• Advise the medical/obstetric team regarding adaptation of medications for the management of diabetes based on interpretation of biochemical parameters and current dietary intake, social situation and preference of the patient.
• Give specialised advice on physical activity in line with current Diabetes UK and British Dietetic Association.

DETAILED JOB DESCRIPTION AND MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES

• Support the Diabetes team to meet the competencies of the job role by undergoing training in house or if required externally.
• Participate in the recruitment and selection of junior members of staff.
• Responsible for the clinical supervision of junior dietetic staff.
• Responsible for the ordering and maintenance of adequate stock levels of patient related resources within the clinic.
• Information and reporting
• Ensure safe practice through development of a caseload management plan.
• Undertake risk assessment and reporting of critical incidents as outlined in the Trust policy.
• Contribute to and participate fully in team, interdisciplinary work practice and service delivery, and communicate and work in co-operation with other team members to provide integrated quality care for the service user.
• Be an active member of the BDA specialist interest group (where appropriate).
• Be an active team member of the Dietetic Department in the Trust
• Technology or system support
• Provide expert training in the use of monitoring equipment and training in review of results in various evolving applications
• Continuous Subcutaneous Insulin infusion education
• Flash monitoring and CGM training
• Service improvement & Policy Development
• Participate in mandatory training and recommended training programmes in accordance with departmental/hospital guidelines
• Organise, coordinate and plan diabetes courses.
• Training of staff to be competent in this area
• Research, develop, produce and publish evidence-based departmental literature in the area of specialisation, including use of patient forums and questionnaires.
• Trained to trainer level in the use of blood glucose monitoring meters and technologies.
• Develop specific diabetes related nutritional teaching programmes for groups of medical staff, multi-professionals, Midwives and medical students within the trust
• Develop and lead the teaching of the nutritional management of the specialist area as opportunities arise.
• Actively participate in the departmental working groups to improve dietetic services as required.
• Responsible for the development and undertaking of the specialist diabetes training programme of the department’s junior staff.
• Contribute to operational and strategic planning for the diabetes dietetic service
• Initiate and participate in regular research and audit within the area of diabetes medicine in line with departmental research and audit procedures
• Maintain standards of practice and levels of clinical knowledge by participating in continuous professional development initiatives and attendance at relevant courses as appropriate