Job responsibilities
Job Responsibilities:
Clinical Practice
Assess and treat patients presenting with undifferentiated and undiagnosed acute illness or long term conditions, for adults and children, mental and physical health.
Telephone consultations and queries.
Undertake selected home visits for acute illness and long-term condition management.
To contribute to the practice providing convenience to patients through extended hours.
Clinically assess, diagnose, plan, implement and evaluate interventions and treatments for patients with potentially complex needs.
To order diagnostic tests and initiate referrals as appropriate for patient need. To admit directly to hospital in acute medical need, undertaking a comprehensive handover. To interpret findings or reports and take responsibility for following up your patients.
To prioritise health problems and intervene appropriately to assist patients in complex, urgent or emergency situations, including initiation of effective emergency care.
To provide safe, evidence-based, cost-effective, individualised patient care, following practice policies and promoting consistency.
To prescribe (adhering to national and Area Prescribing Committee formulary unless a clear justification) and integrate both drug and non-drug-based treatments into a management plan. To provide information and advice on prescribed or over-the-counter medication on medication regimens, side-effects and interactions.
To provide counselling and health education.
Recording clear, complete and contemporaneous consultation notes to agreed standards.
To contribute to the practice achieving its quality and prescribing targets to sustain the high standards of patient care and service delivery.
To work with patients and their carers in order to support compliance with and adherence to prescribed treatments.
To accept referrals from other members of the Practice or wider community team.
To use practice information technology systems, including Vision, Docman, Ask-My-GP etc, and to learn systems that are unfamiliar in order to promote consistency.
To recognise and work within own competence and professional code of conduct as regulated by the NMC.
Training
To take responsibility for identifying all personal training needs with the Partners and participating in clinical supervision.
To promote a learning environment for patients, nurses and other health care professionals.
Attend training and events organised by the practice or other agencies, where appropriate (eg protected learning time).
To contribute to the planning and implementation of the teaching and mentorship of existing staff, medical students, Practice Nurses, Assistant Practitioners, Health Care Assistants and Phlebotomists within the practice.
Contribute to the development of local guidelines, protocols and standards.
Communication
Utilise and demonstrate sensitive communication styles, to ensure patients are fully informed and consent to treatment.
To communicate with and support patients and carers who are receiving bad news.
Communicate effectively with patients and carers, recognising the need for alternative methods to overcome different levels of understanding, cultural background, and preferred ways of communicating.
To maintain effective communication within the practice and with external stakeholders and organisations.
To delegate clearly and appropriately, adopting the principles of safe practice and assessment of competence.
To attend and contribute to practice and primary care team meetings.
Leadership
As a senior clinical member of staff, you are expected to uphold and promote the values of the practice and provide an example in following policies and procedures.
To support mentorship.
To contribute to the development of practice policies and procedures.
To assess the impact of policy implementation on care delivery.
To keep abreast of national developments, including clinical guidelines and enhanced service specifications as they come along.
Audit
Monitor the effectiveness of their own clinical practice through quality assurance strategies such as the use of audit and peer review.
In collaboration with the Partners, to take on lead areas within the Practice.
To work collaboratively with other practices and the Clinical Commissioning Group/NHS England to measure quality.
Confidentiality
In the course of seeking treatment, patients entrust us with, or allow us to gather, sensitive information in relation to their health and other matters. They do so in confidence and have the right to expect that staff will respect their privacy and act appropriately.
In the performance of the duties outlined in this Job Description, the post-holder may have access to confidential information relating to patients and their carers, practice staff and other healthcare workers. They may also have access to information relating to the practice as a business organisation. All such information from any source is to be regarded as strictly confidential.
Information relating to patients, carers, colleagues, other healthcare workers or the business of the practice may only be divulged to authorised persons in accordance with the practice policies and procedures relating to confidentiality and the protection of personal and sensitive data.
Health & Safety
The post-holder will assist in promoting and maintaining their own and others health, safety and security as defined in the practice Health & Safety Policy, to include:
Using personal security systems within the workplace according to practice guidelines.
Identifying the risks involved in work activities and undertaking such activities in a way that manages those risks.
Making effective use of training to update knowledge and skills.
Using appropriate infection control procedures, maintaining work areas in a tidy and safe way and free from hazards.
Reporting potential risks identified.
Equality and Diversity
The post-holder will support the equality, diversity and rights of patients, carers and colleagues, to include:
Acting in a way that recognises the importance of peoples rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with practice procedures and policies, and current legislation.
Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs and beliefs of patients, carers and colleagues.
Behaving in a manner which is welcoming to and of the individual, is non-judgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings priorities and rights.
Summary
The post holder is required to be an essential, highly skilled, well-motivated member of the practitioner team working hand-in-hand with our GPs. They are expected to autonomously assess, diagnose, treat and review clinical decisions affecting patient care. They will be expected to provide clinical leadership through the GPs and the Practice Manager.
