Highly Specialised In-patient Paediatric Physiotherapist

at  Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust

We have an exciting opportunity for an experienced paediatric clinician to take on the role as a highly specialised inpatient paediatric physiotherapist.
This role will be based at University Hospital Lewisham leading the inpatient paediatric physiotherapy service and specialist paediatric clinics.
You must be highly skilled in respiratory and paediatric physiotherapy and have experience in managing a complex clinical caseload. Excellent teaching and supervision skills will be essential.
The post holder will also be required to develop and maintain senior respiratory physiotherapy skills and competence, as the Therapies team operates a 7-day working service within the Trust and the post-holder will be required to work at weekends and overnight on calls on a roster basis .
To lead a high quality, effective and efficient paediatric physiotherapy service.
To utilise highly specialised and expert clinical reasoning skills and physiotherapy knowledge to manage an autonomous caseload and provide support to the paediatric therapy team for University Hospital Lewisham under the guidance of a clinical specialist paediatric physiotherapist
To be the lead therapist for the cystic fibrosis service at University Hospital Lewisham
Ensuring development of the service in line with evidence-based practice and working across the whole paediatric pathway.
The role will include a complex clinical caseload, clinical governance activity, supervision and the development of rotational members of staff and provide clinical education to undergraduates. The post holder will also coordinate a rolling programme of audit and training within the pathway.
Our people are our greatest asset. When we feel supported and happy at work, this positivity reaches those very people we are here for, the patients. Engaged employees perform at their best and our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI) initiatives contribute to cultivate a culture of engagement. We have four staff networks, a corporate EDI Team and a suite of programmes and events which aim to insert the 5 aspirations:
Improving representation at senior levels of staff with disabilities, from black, Asian, and ethnic minorities background, identify as LGBTQ+ and women, through improved recruitment and leadership development
Widening access (anchor institution) and employability
Improving the experience of staff with disability
Improving the EDI literacy and confidence of trust staff through training and development
Making equalities mainstream

JOB PURPOSE

The Physiotherapy Team Lead for Paediatrics at University Hospital Lewisham (UHL) provides clinical leadership to physiotherapy staff working in this pathway on this site. The postholder is an experienced clinician who independently manages a significant general and varied paediatric clinical caseload.
The postholder supervises the day to day running of the paediatric physiotherapy team and is line managed by the cross-site clinical specialist paediatric physiotherapist.
In conjunction with the cross-site clinical specialist paediatric physiotherapist, the post holder coordinates a rolling program of education, clinical evaluation, audit and research within the paediatric pathway at UHL including on-call competencies for staff and establishing close links with the paediatric team at Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
As part of the senior clinical physiotherapy team on the UHL site, the post-holder will deputize for the inpatient lead as required.
The post is based on the University Hospital Lewisham site but may at times be asked to work on other sites in order to maintain service levels.
The Therapies team operates a 7-day working week within the Trust and the post-holder will be required to work at weekends and overnight on calls on a roster basis.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Clinical
To undertake all aspects of clinical duties and to carry a significant caseload of patients as an autonomous practitioner, including those with complex presentations
To work at an advanced level and to be professionally and legally accountable for a highly-specialised patient caseload and to decide priorities for own work area, balancing other patient related and professional demands
To be professionally and legally responsible and accountable for all aspects of own work, and of the local pathway teams’ work. This will include the management of clinical risk, clinical governance, knowledge of indications and precautions of chosen techniques in line with national and trust clinical guidelines and protocols where they exist.
To assess patients’ capacity, gain valid and informed consent to treatment and where such capacity is lacking/absent to work within a legal framework in the management of the patient
To undertake the comprehensive assessment and accurate diagnosis of patients including those with complex presentation, using investigative, palpatory, analytical and clinical reasoning skills
Under supervision of the Physiotherapy Inpatient Site Lead to request diagnostic procedures that will inform clinical decision making as appropriate to individual competency level and the job role
To undertake physical treatment techniques utilising highly developed manual skills
To formulate individualised clinical management programs, utilising a wide range of treatment skills and options to plan a highly-specialised program of care
To use recognised outcome measures to evaluate the effect of physiotherapy interventions and ensure that treatment program are progressing appropriately
To provide spontaneous and planned expert advice, teaching and instruction to relatives, carers, other disciplines and agencies. To promote understanding of the aims of physiotherapy and to ensure continuation of the treatment program. To be consulted by staff within the local pathway and the trust
To participate in and where indicated, initiate multidisciplinary / multi-agency team meetings and case conferences to ensure the co-ordination of patient care. This may include the review of patient progress and discharge planning
To ensure accurate, comprehensive and up to date clinical records are maintained in accordance with Trust guidance and professionally agreed criteria
To identify and employ suitable verbal and non-verbal communication skills with patients where there may be barriers to understanding or the inability to accept diagnosis. To facilitate the best possible communication outcome in every situation and use appropriate services, e.g. interpreters, SALT
To ensure that individual practice and that of the local pathway team is patient focused and patient views are incorporated into treatment planning
To employ appropriate skills such as persuasion, motivation and negotiation to gain co-operation in the continuation of the agreed treatment program
To communicate with empathy, patient information which may be of a complex and sensitive nature including details of prognosis or disability that may be unwelcome
To receive complex patient related information from patients, relatives, carers and other professionals to effectively plan and develop individual case management
To communicate and advise regarding complex patient related information effectively to ensure collaborative working within the physiotherapy service and with other professionals across health and other agencies to ensure the delivery of a coordinated multidisciplinary service
To be integral in discharge planning including liaison with referring hospitals or community staff to which patients are discharged, providing timely discharge reports
To produce comprehensive patient related reposts for other disciplines or agencies relating to assessment findings and or treatment outcomes
To undertake an extended scope role as appropriate to the needs of the service and supervised by the Physiotherapy Site Lead and Paediatric Clinical Specialist (an extended scope practioner undertakes delegated responsibility on behalf of medical practioner(s) including the independent management of complete episodes of care of patients from referral to discharge)
To undertake the measurement and evaluation of work through audit, outcome measurement, the application of evidence-based practice and research where appropriate. To identify and initiate audit projects to review current clinical practice within the pathway
To facilitate the implementation and evaluation of physiotherapy clinical outcomes within a designated pathway and monitor adherence with professional and national standards
To work to Trust and Chartered Society of Physiotherapy clinical guidelines and have a good working knowledge of relevant national standards to which quality of practice should be monitored.
To raise physiotherapy staff awareness of current clinical developments and the implication these may have on clinical practice
To be accessible and provide expert clinical advice to colleagues in particular for complex case management
Once considered competent to participate in the on-call, week-end, bank holiday and extended working rotas where clinically appropriate
To fully participate in whatever pattern of working (including 7-day rosters, weekend working and oncalls) is required by the service in the future
All clinical staff are accountable and responsible for their own clinical competence and should limit their actions to those for which they are deemed competent in line with guidance from their professional bodies.
Education Training and Research
1. To educate patients/relatives/carers regarding the nature of the condition and the aims of physiotherapy intervention
2. To be responsible for maintaining own competency to practice through continuing professional development activities including reflective practice, review of current research and relevant literature, maintenance of a personal portfolio and the attendance of specialist training courses as identified within a personal development plan
3. To participate in peer review as appropriate
4. To take an active role in appropriate uni professional and multi professional research initiatives
5. To provide regular training for designated pathway staff in local site
6. In collaboration with the Physiotherapy Inpatient Site Lead, to initiate implementation of new working practices on designated site
7. In collaboration with the Physiotherapy Inpatient Site Lead, to prepare, co-ordinate, participate and contribute to the delivery if a specific in-service training program for staff in the designated pathway
8. To train, assess and confirm competency of staff within the pathway on designated site
9. To undertake the tuition, supervision and performance assessment of undergraduate physiotherapy students. This will include working with universities to ensure the standard of practice and teaching meets the standards set by the degree level qualification
10. To provide specialist teaching and instruction to other disciplines to ensure a consistent approach to patient care
11. To assist / support colleagues undertaking higher education, audit and research projects
12. To participate in mandatory / statutory training as required by the trust and national standards
13. To maintain state registration with the Heath Professions Council (HPC) and to provide evidence of that registration annually upon reques