Urgent Community Response - Health and Therapy Assistant

at  Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust

Do you want to come and work for the NHS? Join us as a Health and Therapy Assistant and make a difference every day! We are offering a range of flexible working opportunities that can be personalised to fit you and your life.
Our Urgent Community Response Service provides urgent care and therapy to people aged 18 and over, in their own home, to help them avoid being admitted to hospital. It also supports people to return home following a hospital stay.
The service runs every day of the year from 8am to 8pm and teams are based across Sussex in:
East Sussex – Brighton and Hove, and Lewes
West Sussex – Chichester, Crawley, Horsham, Haywards Heath and Worthing
The teams respond to referrals within two hours, providing rapid access to a range of health and social care professionals, including Health and Therapy Assistants, Occupational Therapists, Nurses, Paramedics and Physiotherapists.
Their short-term support helps people manage a health crisis or illness, medication needs, feeding and hydration, to ensure that they can remain in their own home safely and live more independently for longer.
As a Health and Therapy Assistant you will be providing personal, health and therapy care for people across Sussex with acute and diverse needs. Your day will be varied and interesting, supporting people to achieve greater independence in their daily lives.
You will assist multi-disciplinary colleagues in the ongoing assessment and provision of care and reablement. This includes simple clinical and therapeutic procedures such as taking physical observations, venepuncture, administering medications, simple wound care, rehabilitation programmes and equipment provision. You will observe changes in peoples’ status and keep your team informed through verbal updates and accurate record keeping.
You don’t need previous experience; we’ll train you on the job, supporting you to be the best that you can be. Your training as a Healthcare and Therapy Assistant will include basic nursing and therapy skills and we’ll support you to achieve the Care Certificate.
With experience and further training, you could further your career in health care opening opportunities to train as a Nursing Associate. With the appropriate qualifications and experience, you could also go on to train as one of the many degree-level healthcare professionals such as a Nurse, Podiatrist, Midwife or Therapist.
There are so many opportunities to progress with us!
You will be part of a supported induction programme and offered job relevant training to ensure that you feel confident and able to undertake this role to the best of your ability while being able to reach your own potential through personal development along with peer and supervisory support.
The team works closely with other services within Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust, as well as our acute and community partners, GPs, South East Coast Ambulance Service (SECAmb), adult social care and voluntary and third sector organisations.
Why work for us?
Positive 2021 NHS Staff Survey results with compassionate culture and leadership, and support for staff wellbeing, scoring highly
Rated ‘Good’ with ’Outstanding’ features by the Care Quality Commission (CQC)
Located in stunning Sussex, with easy access to the South Downs and the coast
A great variety of working environments, in the community, in patients’ homes and in our community hospitals
Excellent training and development opportunities
Real Living Wage Employer, with great rates of pay
Supportive flexible working patterns such as part time, flexi time, annualised hours etc.
Supportive team environments
Cost-effective and convenient workplace nurseries in Crawley, Hove and Brighton
Thriving BAME, Disability and Wellbeing, LGBT+ and Religion and Belief staff networks
Accredited Level 3 Disability Confident Leader, committed to creating inclusive workplaces

General standard of education to GSCE level or equivalent
NVQ level 2 or equivalent (in health and social care applicable subject), or be willing to achieve this
Evidence of consistent pattern of learning from education, training and experience
Basic understanding of statutory health and social services
Basic numeracy and ability to write simple reports
To be able to work with minimal supervision either in isolation or as a member of the team
To be able to use time effectively and prioritise work through good organisational skills
To be able to maintain confidentiality and deal with sensitive information
To be able to use recognised IT packages e.g. Microsoft Office including Excel
To be able to use of IT systems and keyboard skills including accurate data recording skills
To be able to use strong interpersonal skills and appropriate empathetic and tactful manner
To be able to communicate effectively with customers, carers and health and care specialist services and colleagues
To be able to work effectively as individual but also as part of larger team
An understanding of the principles of equal opportunities in relation to staff and patients
Car driver (Valid Driving License for use in the UK)and access to a vehicle for work purposes
Willingness to undertake training to develop within the role
For a detailed job description and main responsibilities please see the attached supporting documents.
We often receive a high number of applications for this role so please be aware that the vacancy may close earlier than stated.
If you would like to discuss this role or find out more, you can contact our Operational Team Leads, Claudia Mendes, 07789983928, claudia.ferreira-mendes@nhs.ne