Practice Nurse

Job description

Job responsibilities

Role Purpose

To have skills to enable the Practice to meet its agreed aims and objectives within an efficient, safe and effective working environment whilst maintaining the highest standards of confidentiality and probity.

To work as a part of the primary healthcare team providing general medical services to the patients of the Practice.

Develop, organise and manage the day to day delivery of services to Practice patients.

Liaise closely with the Partners, Practice Business Manager and other Team members.

Primary Responsibilities

This job description covers the major areas of Practice management but the requirements of the role are constantly changing. The following list of responsibilities is not designed to be exclusive but serves to illustrate the scope of the role.

Job responsibilities

Assist in and perform routine tasks related to patient care as directed by senior nursing staff and GPs

Cytology

Wound care / ulcer care/Doppler

Removal of Sutures

New Patient Medicals/Urinalysis

Repeat pill checks

Asthma/Peak Flow Readings/Spirometry

Venepuncture

Hypertension Management

Ear syringing

Childhood immunisations

Requesting pathology tests, for example urine culture, swabs

Interest in Diabetes or Coronary Heart Disease and Contraception.

Additional responsibilities

Maintaining and cleaning of medical equipment.

Maintaining GP and Nurses rooms, stocking and rotating items as required

Chaperoning and assisting patients who are being examined by another clinician.

Maintain general tidiness and cleanliness of nurses and treatment rooms

Ordering of Health Promotion Literature

Ordering of stock

Ordering of vaccines to maintain stock levels

Participation in administrative systems in the Practice

At all times there will be a need to maintain accurate records

Attend and participate in any Practice meetings when required.

On occasion there may be a requirement to undertake home visits

Any other delegated duties appropriate to the post

Personal/Professional development:

The post-holder will participate in any training programme implemented by the practice as part of this employment, such training to include:

Participation in an annual individual performance review, including taking responsibility for maintaining a record of own personal and/or professional development

Taking responsibility for own development, learning and performance and demonstrating skills and activities to others who are undertaking similar work

Quality

The post-holder will strive to maintain quality within the practice, and will:

Alert other team members to issues of quality and risk

Assess own performance and take accountability for own actions, either directly or under supervision

Contribute to the effectiveness of the team by reflecting on own and team activities and making suggestions on ways to improve and enhance the teams performance

Work effectively with individuals in other agencies to meet patients needs

Effectively manage own time, workload and resources

Communication

The post-holder should recognize the importance of effective communication within the team and will strive to:

Communicate effectively with other team members

Communicate effectively with patients and carers

Recognize peoples needs for alternative methods of communication and respond accordingly

Contribution to the implementation of services

The post-holder will:

Apply practice policies, standards and guidance

Discuss with other members of the team how the policies, standards and guidelines will affect own work

Participate in audit where appropriate

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.

Behave in a manner which is welcoming to and of the individual, is non-judgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings priorities and rights.

Confidentiality

In the course of seeking treatment, patients furnish the Practice with 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 Practice Nurse will have access to confidential information relating to patients and their Carers, Practice staff and other healthcare workers. The Practice Nurse will 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 implement and lead on a full range of promotion and management their own and others health and safety and infection control as defined in the practice Health & Safety policy, the practice Health & Safety manual, and the practice Infection Control policy and published procedures. This will include (but will not be limited to):

Using personal security systems within the workplace according to Practice guidelines

Awareness of national standards of infection control and cleanliness and regulatory / contractual / professional requirements, and good practice guidelines

Responsible for the correct and safe management of the specimens process including collection, labelling, handling, use of correct and clean containers, storage and transport arrangements

Management and maintenance of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for the practice including provision, ordering, availability and on-going correct usage by staff

Responsible for hand hygiene across the practice

Ownership of infection control and clinically based patient care protocols, and implementation of those protocols across the practice

Active observation of current working practices across the practice in relation to infection control, cleanliness and related activities, ensuring that procedures are followed and weaknesses / training needs are identified, escalating issues as appropriate

Identifying the risks involved in work activities and undertaking such activities in a way that manages those risks across clinical and patient process

Making effective use of training to update knowledge and skills, and initiate and manage the training of others across the full range of infection control and patient processes

Monitoring practice facilities and equipment in relation to infection control, ensuring that provision of hand cleansing facilities, wipes etc are sufficient to ensure a good clinical working environment. Lack of facilities to be escalated as appropriate.

Safe management of sharps procedures including training, use, storage and disposal

Using appropriate infection control procedures, maintaining work areas in a tidy, clean and sterile, and safe way, free from hazards. Initiation of remedial / corrective action where needed or escalation to responsible management

Actively identifying, reporting, and correction of health and safety hazards and infection hazards immediately when recognised

Keeping own work areas and general / patient areas generally clean, sterile, identifying issues and hazards / risks in relation to other work areas within the business, and assuming responsibility in the maintenance of general standards of cleanliness across the business in consultation (where appropriate) with other sector managers

Undertaking periodic infection control training (minimum twice annually)

Routine management of own team / team areas, and maintenance of work space standards

Waste management including collection, handling, segregation, container management, storage and collection

Spillage control procedures, management and training

Decontamination control procedures, management and training, and equipment maintenance

Maintenance of sterile environments

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

• Experience of working as a practice nurse.
• Experience working within a GP Practice
• Experience of working with SystmOne
• Experience of managing infection control / fridge monitoring / stock checking etc.

Desirable

• Working as a senior practice nurse, enabling healthcare assistants to work alongside you for further training and support as we are a training practice.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details

Employer name

Albany Practice

Address

Brentford Health Centre

Boston Manor Road

Brentford

Middlesex

TW8 8DS

Employer's website

https://albanypractice.co.uk (Opens in a new tab)