Lymphoedema Specialist

Job responsibilities

Line Manager: Lead Lymphoedema Nurse Specialist

Professionally Accountable to: Head of Therapies

Clinical responsibilities

To provide specialist support, advice and information to patients, their families and carers and other health care professionals on all aspects of lymphoedema, including the promotion of self-management.

To work as an autonomous expert practitioner, assessing physiological and/or psychological functioning in complex clinical situations leading to the development of specialised programmes of care; identifying long term and short term treatment objectives through negotiation with patients and carers.

To follow appropriate guidelines and policies when dealing with body fluids e.g. lymphorrhoea.

To use relevant specialist assessment strategies and provide specialist care for patients with primary and secondary lymphoedema, including patients with life-limiting conditions.

Use of specialist skills and knowledge to ensure the safe and effective use of relevant equipment provided for the assessment, treatment and evaluation of a patients lymphoedema.

To maintain clinical credibility through practice and to utilise the findings of relevant research and evidence-based practice to optimise high quality care for the patient with lymphoedema.

To provide clinical support and guidance for the Lymphoedema Key workers, Assistant Practitioners, Health Care Assistants and less experienced staff, including bank cover, adopting strategies which facilitate their knowledge, skills and practice development in all aspects of lymphoedema management.

Make appropriate referrals to the multi-disciplinary team, ensuring seamless service for patients and an integrated approach to care management between organisations and agencies.

Leadership/management responsibilities

To have responsibility for the day-to-day running of lymphoedema clinics (both in-house and in an outreach capacity) to ensure that they meet the needs of the patient and those of the service.

To be aware of budget implications and facilitate a cost-effective service by managing the use of resources within guidance given by the Lead Lymphoedema Nurse Specialist and Head of Therapies. To bring to the attention of the Lead Lymphoedema Nurse Specialist any aspect of patient care that may have resource implications.

To liaise with key staff in order to maintain the upkeep of equipment used within the department and outreach clinics to ensure its safe, effective and accurate use with patients.

To utilise the hospice information systems to supply statistical evidence required for resource management and clinical audit of the service

Representational role

To develop and maintain resource and teaching materials for use by patients, their families and staff within St Margarets Hospice and other clinical and educational settings.

To participate in educational programmes for visitors (including medical students, nursing staff, medical practitioners, Trustees) to the lymphoedema service.

To fulfil internal and external teaching and presentation commitments, including post graduate courses, as agreed by the Lead Lymphoedema Nurse Specialist, providing specialist training on all aspects of lymphoedema and the service.

Research and development responsibilities

To participate in research, clinical audit and standard setting at a local, regional and national level and to monitor and review practice regularly.

To utilise research findings in the delivery of a specialist lymphoedema service and to disseminate relevant information concerning research.

Responsibility for strategy, policy and protocol development

Contribute to the development of St Margarets Hospice Lymphoedema Policies and Protocols in liaison with Lead Lymphoedema Nurse Specialist, Head of Therapies and Director of Clinical Governance.

To support the local implementation of lymphoedema policies and treatment protocols, ensuring consistency of service and appropriate standards of practice in primary and secondary care settings.

Make recommendations for the future development of the service and actively contribute to the implementation of the Hospice Strategic Business Plan and Operational Objectives as required.

Communication and people

To work across organisational and professional boundaries to promote the palliative care philosophy and an understanding of the management of lymphoedema, helping to ensure an integrated approach to care management between organisations and agencies.

Communicate effectively with people about highly complex or sensitive topics and/or in difficult situations; managing patient/carer expectations relating to realistic treatment outcomes and the extremes of emotion associated with cancer, other life-limiting illnesses and palliative care; supporting anxious or distressed patients and relatives as necessary.

Work collaboratively with all relevant health and social care professionals and agencies establishing clear lines of communication, good liaison and professional working relationships across all departments and agencies.

For Organisation C

Qualifications

Essential

• First level registration or professional qualification.
• Post-graduate Diploma in the management of Chronic Oedema or working towards.
• Demonstrable in-depth post-graduate experience or study of a broad range of relevant techniques at degree level or equivalent

Desirable

• Recognised teaching qualification/relevant teaching experience`
• Post-graduate qualification in Manual Lymphatic drainage.

Experience

Essential

• Minimum of two years post-registration knowledge and experience of lymphoedema.
• Significant experience of multi-disciplinary / multi-agency working.
• Evidence of the operational management of service delivery.
• Demonstrates expert clinical decision making in the assessment of patients with chronic oedema regardless of cause with the implementation and evaluation of treatment plans plus patient-centred short and long-term goals.
• Demonstrates experience in developing and delivering education programmes to health care professionals and patients

Communication and People Skills

Essential

• Demonstrates evidence of self-development and development of others.
• Excellent interpersonal skills with particular ability to liaise effectively with patients, the multidisciplinary team and across organisations with individuals at a range of levels.
• Ability to communicate effectively with people about difficult or sensitive topics and/or in difficult situations.
• Computer literate, able to use work documents, spreadsheets and e-mail communication.
• Excellent verbal, written and personal communication skills: confident and articulate.
• Ability to supervise junior colleagues and facilitate their development.
• Ability to show tact and manage boundaries.
• Ability to manage conflict situations.

Desirable

• Understanding of user and carer perspectives.

Organisational & IT Skills

Essential

• Effective caseload and workload management.
• Ability to develop policies and guidelines to support quality provision of lymphoedema management.
• Ability to be innovative and respond to change.
• Ability to make decisions, organise, prioritise and meet deadlines

Desirable

• Ability to analyse and interpret data
• Ability to work flexibly across all palliative care settings.

Special Knowledge

Essential

• Proven specialist palliative care knowledge and skills.
• Ability to demonstrate a clear understanding of palliative care and the needs of patients and families.

Other requirements

Essential

• Ability to travel to undertake community, outreach and domiciliary work.
• Ability to take on unscheduled tasks and work under pressure.
• Ability to adopt to changing or conflicting priorities.
• Ability to work as part of a team or individually.

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).