Head and Neck Cancer Specialist Nurse

at  Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

You should be able to work autonomously to establish and manage a caseload of patients presenting with head and neck disease whilst working as part of the multi-professional team. Maintain responsibility and accountability for all elements of professional nursing practice. Support caseload of other nursing team members in their absence. You will be able to contribute to the multidisciplinary discussion, leading on the assessment, care planning and co-ordination of care; provide specialist advice and psychosocial support to patients across all health care settings, whilst acting in the best interests of clients and respecting professional boundaries.
As a result communicating actions by clinical staff for the safe and timely delivery of patient care. You should be able to work in collaboration with the other head and neck nurses within the team, receiving new referrals and co-ordinate care through the patient pathway; acting as the key worker. Establish methods to assess, diagnose, treat and evaluate new patients in the clinical area identifying their psychological, physiological, emotional, spiritual and cultural needs in relation to their disease and proposed treatment. It is expected that you will provide specialist advice, support and clinical information in the management of head and neck disease across the health community, in conjunction with the multidisciplinary team, to all disciplines of staff, patients and their carers in accordance with current evidence based practice.
You will have the knowledge to provide counselling and act as the patients advocate when informed discussion may lead to choices being made with regard to care and all the treatment options, to maximise the involvement of patients and their carers in all relevant decisions to empower a patient to make an informed choice. Negotiate with multidisciplinary team members, ensuring effective development, implementation and evaluation of individual programmes of care for patients within the Head and neck speciality to agree a pathway of care. You will be able to organise and run nurse-led follow up clinics, performing clinical examinations, obtaining informed consent from patients and making decisions with regard to patient treatments in conjunction with the multidisciplinary team or by agreed policies and procedures, in order to maintain the flow of patients through the system and to ensure continuity of holistic assessment. If the patient requires, you will arrange direct admission of patients presenting with complications of treatment or needing supportive therapy, using protocols developed and agreed by the multi disciplinary team.
It is expected that you will forge links between all health care settings to maximise opportunities to improve nursing care and the environment in which care is delivered, by maintaining a highly visible profile and through regular contact with clinical staff, patients and their carers. Maintains effective communication with patients, carers and professionals to ensure seamless service delivery. The succesful person will establish strong links with the Palliative Care Services supporting and encouraging the implementation and use of end of life tools within practice. You will provides specialist formal and informal education for all disciplines of staff in a range of healthcare settings, patients and carers across a wide range of subjects.
At suitable intervals it will be necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of treatments performed and, where appropriate discharge patients within agreed protocols. As a member of the Head and Neck Multi-Disciplinary Team expectations would be to contribute to specialist development and management of the Head and neck service, ensuring that core developments reflect national guidelines, recommendations and research findings. You will contribute to the work and developments of services as a result of the cancer Network Site Specific Group for Head and neck Cancer. You will establish effective systems to provide evidence based written and verbal information that is clear, honest and consistent; Ensuring patients have easy access to advice and information at any time of the day and out of hours.
A s head and Neck specialist nurse you will be present during bad news consultations in order to offer support and further information tailored to the individuals needs. It is important you raise awareness and promote health living, supporting cancer prevention programmes both locally and nationally. It is essential that you contribute to the Head and Neck nursing service in the development and provision of Breast services through the implementation of the nursing contribution to cancer care and the strategic programme of action in relation to national cancer programmes. The postholder will be a core member of the Trust Head and Neck Cancer Management Group & member of East Midlands BCN forum, actively driving the service by planning and organising, in collaboration with the Lead Cancer Nurse and other key professionals, to explore and promote new ways of working to ensure that cancer-nursing policies and procedures reflect best practice, Trust philosophy and current National Guidance.
They will contribute to the development of policies, involvement in quality and audit initiatives. They will demonstrates research awareness by reviewing practice, contributing ideas and participating in evaluation, audit, research and education within the Head and Neck speciality. The successful candidate will have a responsibility for developing and maintaining personal portfolio/revalidation and actively participating in clinical supervision. Continues to keep clinically up to date.
You will contribute to the development and implementation of the Trusts Programme objectives and national targets for waiting list times. The postholder has no budgetary responsibility but should observe a personal duty of care for equipment and resources used in the course of work. The postholder will be a core member of the Head and Neck cancer multidisciplinary team with the ultimate responsibility for the compilation of an accurate selection of patients for MDT discussion; liaising with all disciplines that interface with care delivery for the patient group and developing excellent working relationships with support services

Please refer the Job description for details