Rotational Physiotherapist

at  Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Clinical To be professionally and legally responsible for all aspects of your work, including the management of patients in your care. To be able to carry and prioritise your own designated clinical caseload, working as an autonomous practitioner without direct supervision. To undertake proficient physiotherapy assessments in line with department and professional standards, utilising all relevant and available clinical information in order to form diagnoses, and/or establish impairments and limitations. To use appropriate and effective assessment and treatment techniques including comprehensive subjective and objective assessments and appropriate therapeutic handling skills.
To use good communication skills to agree physiotherapy goals with individual patients using previous experience to ensure goals are specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and appropriately timed. To involve all members of the multidisciplinary team in this process as appropriate. To use clinical reasoning, understanding of the medical diagnosis, previous experience and knowledge of treatment options to plan and implement individual physiotherapy programs for all patients including those with complex conditions. To make effective use of treatment options such as advice, gait re-education, exercise prescription and provision of appropriate therapeutic aids/equipment.
To monitor and evaluate treatment to measure progress and to ensure effectiveness of the intervention and to identify quickly when treatment requires modifying. To use clinical reasoning skills to modify treatment interventions and to recognise when advice/assistance from supervisor is required. To interpret and analyse relevant clinical and non-clinical facts to formulate accurate prognoses and develop appropriate discharge plans. To be able to identify and managed risk in complex acutely ill patients and support junior staff in this clinical reasoning.
To be able to identify and manage risk in complex manual handling scenarios i.e. management of bariatric patients and support junior staff in this clinical reasoning. To be able to identify risk regarding patient discharge in collaboration with the Occupational therapists. To provide comprehensive written records of assessment and treatment according to departmental, professional and legal standards.
To determine the patients understanding of the physiotherapy intervention in order to gain valid, informed consent and to be able to work within a legal framework with patients who lack capacity to consent to treatment. To use a range of verbal and non-verbal communication tools when communicating with patients/carers to maximise the patients rehabilitation potential. This will include communication with people with complex communication difficulties such as those with artificial airways, dysphasia, deafness, and dementia; mental health problems, those who have difficulty accepting their diagnosis and young children. Also communicating with people who speak English as a second language with the use of an interpreter.
To work closely with the multi-disciplinary team including, attending and/or organising multi-disciplinary team meetings such as case conferences, ward rounds and discharge planning meetings to communicate information about individual patient progress and prognosis. To be responsible for the safe and competent use of all physiotherapy equipment in line with department standards. To be responsible for the safe and appropriate provision of physiotherapy aids and equipment to patients in line with department standards. To manage clinical risk within own caseload.
To be an active member of the respiratory evening and on-call rota and work without supervision and support while on-call and during weekends. Professional To comply with the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy codes of professional conduct at all times. To be responsible for personal continuing professional development by the use of self-directed learning, reflective practice, active participation in the in-service training program including giving presentations and attendance at post graduate courses as agreed in your personal development plan and to maintain an up to date CPD portfolio. To further develop understanding and use of evidence based practice, physiotherapy techniques, therapeutic handling skills and detailed knowledge of particular conditions.
To be involved with implementing evidence based practice into the day to day clinical service of the team To be responsible for the appraisals of band 5 staff during their rotations and Therapy Assistants and be responsible for fulfilling your agreed objectives and personal development plan. To be responsible for the teaching and assessment of graduate level therapeutic skills and knowledge to physiotherapy students. To be involved in data collection during any research and audits being undertaken in each area and to be able to monitor and implement change To have the opportunity to lead, or be involved in, a research project, using research grants, in conjunction with the Therapy Research Champions. To understand and apply clinical governance principles to your own caseload and to be involved in departmental clinical governance sessions.
Organisational To demonstrate good time management and organisational skills during daily management of own workload and to be able to adapt flexibly to sudden changes in workload. To be involved in identifying pressures in clinical case load and support band 7 to re distribute staff to meet these needs. In absence of Band 7 to be responsible for overseeing the caseload for the team. To ensure timely communication of assessment findings, treatment and outcomes to other involved disciplines through the provision of social services reports, discharge letters etc.
To make appropriate and timely referrals to other physiotherapists and other members of the multidisciplinary team when required. To keep accurate and up-to-date patient records and statistics at all times in line with departmental, professional and legal standards. To be responsible for the induction, teaching and supervision of junior staff, students and assistants and contribute to their performance assessment by providing feedback to their seniors. To be responsible for complying with all mandatory training requirements.
To be responsible for the safe use of all therapeutic equipment and aids (including gym equipment, respiratory equipment and electrotherapy) by patients. To delegate specific tasks to therapy assistants in line with departmental and professional guidelines. To support Band 7 and when delegated to lead to service and policy developments. To carry an identified bleep.
Effort To carry out assessment and treatment using manual and therapeutic handling techniques which require moderate to high physical effort and concentration, frequently during each working day. To comply with the trust manual handling policy at all times. To work alone at times, depending on on-call rotas. To deal sensitively with patients who have a high level of anxiety or aggression due to, for example, pain, fear, or dementia.
To be able to convey sympathetically unwelcome news regarding functional progress or diagnosis to patients and carers. This job involves regular exposure to unpleasant working conditions e.g. body fluids including urine, faeces and sputum and occasional exposure to verbal and physical aggression. This job involves regular weekend working and on-call commitments.
The provision of 7 day services and extended hours working is currently being reviewed across the Department. General Covid-19 vaccination is a condition of employment for this role, unless an exemption applies. The successful applicant may have contact with vulnerable service users and we will therefore seek proof of being fully vaccinated during the recruitment process

Please refer the Job description for details