Clinical Nurse Specialist

Job responsibilities

Our Team

The Community Clinical Nurse Specialist team (CNS) offer advice and support to patients living in their own place of residence, including care homes. Working with other health care professionals including GP's, the team provide oversight and guidance, to ensure best practice for patients and families, keeping the patient at the centre of care and allowing them autonomy in decision making. This highly skilled team support patients and families with managing symptoms, advance care planning and navigating their illness throughout its trajectory.

Main Purpose & Scope

The Community Clinical Nurse Specialist (CNS) is responsible for effectively managing and coordinating a caseload of patients and their families living with specialist palliative and end of life care needs.

The prime purpose is to ensure a flexible, responsive and needs led approach to patient centred care.

A key element will be to actively contribute to the Patient Services clinical governance framework to influence care through participation in education, training, research and audit initiatives.

There is a requirement to provide CNS support in the community setting and throughout the out of hours period.

Key Accountabilities and areas of responsibility

Scope and Limits of Authority

The CNS is required to plan and organise their own day to day work in collaboration with their team members, and make clinical decisions to support patients with complex and often rapidly changing specialist palliative/end of life care needs.

The CNS is required to identify issues that require onward referral to the multi-professional team and facilitate, where appropriate patient discharge.

The CNS does not have any direct budgetary responsibility.

Equality & Diversity

Prospect Hospice is committed to encouraging a diverse and inclusive working environment. We recognise that promoting diversity and eliminating discrimination in our workplace will bring benefits for our people, our business and the communities we serve.

We are committed to ensuring that all employees and job applicants are provided with equality of opportunity in employment and applications from individuals are encouraged regardless of age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, offending background, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief and marriage and civil partnerships.

Safeguarding

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all those we support. As part of our SAFER recruitment processes, offers of employment will be subject to thorough checks, which may include a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, satisfactory references, online and social media checks and verification of qualifications. We expect all staff to share this commitment and to adhere to our safeguarding policies and procedures at all times.

You must tell us about any unspent conviction, cautions, reprimands or warnings under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975.

Prospect Hospice does not hold a Home Office Sponsor Licence under the UK Immigration System, therefore candidates are required to have eligibility to live and work in the UK prior to applying.

Other

Essential

• Full driving licence and access to car.

Experience

Essential

• Registered Nurse with relevant post registration experience.
• To have an understanding and adequate knowledge base regarding effective symptom control management within palliative and end of life care and have the confidence to make safe recommendations for symptom control.
• Knowledge of the principles of clinical governance and clinical supervision.
• Experience of leading and coordinating the care of a patient with complex palliative care needs.
• Experience of using reflective processes as a framework to improve practice.

Desirable

• Knowledge of hospice philosophy, policy and palliative care principles.
• Knowledge of current National Palliative Care guidance and initiatives.
• Informal and formal teaching experience.

Personal Qualities

Essential

• Proactive and acts on initiative.
• Acts as a positive ambassador for the Hospice.
• Commitment to and ability to demonstrate Prospect Hospice values and behaviours at all times.
• Able to maintain the highest professional standards at all times, and act as a true ambassador for the Hospice.
• To be authentic, open honest and transparent.
• Have a track record of working inclusively and a genuine appreciation of the value of diversity.

Skills

Essential

• The ability to respond effectively in situations where the needs of palliative care patients are changing rapidly.
• Ability to liaise effectively with other agencies to positively influence outcomes for palliative care patients.
• Excellent communication and negotiation skills, able to communicate effectively at all levels.
• Effective strategies and approaches to facilitate coping with emotional demands of role, particularly exposure to loss and patient death.
• Innovative approach to problem solving.
• Able to plan and manage own workload and activities.
• Able to work to tight deadlines.

Desirable

• Advanced clinical decision-making skills.

Qualifications

Essential

• NMC Registration.
• First level degree, or demonstrate willingness and ability to complete degree in palliative care or related area.
• Demonstrate the ability and willingness to complete relevant level III studies. This would include Patient Assessment, Clinical Reasoning Module (PACE), non-medical prescribing, Care of the Dying Module, Advanced Communications Course and mentorship course.
• Evidence of professional development within specialist palliative care.

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).