Job responsibilities
Clinical
1. To be professionally and legally responsible and accountable for all aspects of your own work including the management of patients in your care.
2. To provide holistic evidence-based/best practice care to patients in accordance with National and Organisational approved policies/procedures and individual care plans.
3. To undertake a comprehensive assessment of patients including those with diverse or complex presentations/multi pathologies; use advanced clinical reasoning skills and manual assessment techniques to provide an accurate clinical diagnosis of their condition.
4. To demonstrate highly developed dexterity, co-ordination and palpatory senses for assessment and manual treatment of patients.
5. Use an extensive range of verbal and non-verbal communication tools to communicate effectively with patients/carers; to motivate, gain co-operation, to progress rehabilitation and treatment programmes. This will include patients who may have difficulties in understanding or communicating; e.g.: patients may be dysphasic, depressed, deaf, visually impaired or who may be unable to accept diagnosis, or realistic expectations of Physiotherapy intervention
6. Formulate and commence an individual physiotherapy treatment programme based on a sound knowledge of evidence based practice and treatment options using clinical assessment, reasoning skills and knowledge of treatment skills e.g. manual physiotherapy techniques, patient education, and other alternative options.
7. Evaluate patient progress, reassess and alter treatment programmes if required.
8. To provide spontaneous and planned advice, teaching and instruction to patients, relatives, carers and other professionals, to promote understanding of the aims of physiotherapy, and to ensure a consistent approach to patient care.
9. To problem solve and liaise as soon as possible to the most appropriate clinician for problems that may arise.
10. To review with Band 6 Physiotherapist any clinical issues or concerns.
11. To participate in organising and planning caseload to meet service and patient priorities. Readjusting plans as situations change/arise.
12. To maintain accurate records, which are confidential, contemporaneous, legible and all care given to be documented. These records may be paper or an IT based system and must be maintained as specified in the Organisational Policies, Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) guidelines and Government directives. The post holder will be expected to oversee the standard of patients’ records by audit or peer review and have a regular open discussion with team members.
13. To undertake comprehensive risk assessments of all situations associated with the care of patients in order to ensure colleagues and the carers’ safety. This might include the assessment, provision of equipment and providing education to ensure its safe use.
14. To comply with all infection control policies and guidance, attend relevant updates and report issues of concern to their immediate line manager .
15. To monitor and maintain the health, safety and security of self and others in the team and patients.
16. To be conversant with the vulnerable adult and child protection procedures and policies of the organisation.
17. To be responsible for organising own time management on a daily basis in line with caseload demands balancing patient needs with the administrative aspects of the role.
18. To work within challenging and unpredictable environments e.g. patients’ homes, which may have constraints and require adaptability
19. To provide education and continuing support to patients, family and carers.
20. To identify areas of improvement of practice and communicate to the line manager.
21. To be aware of organisational, professional and national developments within Community Care and work within these guidelines e.g. NSF, NICE.
22. To initiate and participate in Clinical Supervision.
23. To be involved in audit and research.
24. To be aware of and abide by the Organisation approved Policies, Standards and Quality Assurance Initiatives.
25. To be involved in all aspects of clinical governance including audits and effective and safe use of resources and equipment..
26. To work jointly with other health and social care colleagues and services (for example medical, nursing, Social Services, private sector and therapy colleagues) to ensure patients’ identified rehabilitation and care needs are met through delivery of a
coordinated multi-disciplinary service.
27. To advise on and prescribe as appropriate, and in line with Organisational and departmental policies and procedures, both general and specialist rehabilitation aids, equipment and recommend low-level adaptations for patients referred to Community Therapy.
28. To assess capacity, gain valid informed consent, which must be documented and have the ability to work within a legal framework with patients who lack capacity to consent to treatment. To comply with local confidentiality policies, child protection and vulnerable adult procedures.
29. To represent Livewell Southwest externally (locally, regionally and nationally) regarding physiotherapy services provided to patients in the hospital and community.
Professional
1. Works within the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) and HCPC’s Codes of professional standards.
2. To maintain own clinical professional development (CPD) by keeping abreast of any new trends and developments, National Service Frameworks and NICE guidelines, and incorporate them as necessary into your own practice.
3. To regularly teach, train and supervise support workers and students. This will include the use of formal supervision and appraisal documentation.
4. To be an active member of the in-service training programme by the attendance and delivering presentations and training sessions at staff meetings, tutorials, training sessions in house and by attending external/organising courses and practising reflective practice.
5. To communicate effectively and work collaboratively with Social, Health and other agency colleagues, at all levels to ensure delivery of a co-ordinated multidisciplinary service. This will include case conferences, Safeguarding Adults and DOLS meetings.
6. To participate in the staff appraisal scheme and Personal Development Plan (PDP) as both appraiser and appraisee
7. To undertake the measurement and evaluation of your work and current practices through the use of Evidence Based Practice projects, audit and outcome measures, either individually or with the Team Leader. Make recommendations for change.
8. To demonstrate a sound understanding of Clinical Governance and Risk Management and apply to work situation.
9. To undertake Clinical Supervision, in line with LSW Policy, both as supervisor and supervisee.
10. To provide training and supervision to Physiotherapy undergraduate students on clinical fieldwork placements within Community Therapy in line with University’s syllabi and student assessment procedures. (This would be to a graduate standard following appropriate training as a clinical educator).
Organisational
1. To be responsible for a designated area of work, as agreed with the Band 6 Physiotherapist, and to plan and organise efficiently and effectively with regard to patients management and use of time.
2. To decide priorities for own work area, balancing other patient related and professional demands, and ensure that these remain in accordance with those of the Therapy Team as a whole.
3. To be responsible for the use of electrotherapy and other equipment used in carrying out physiotherapy duties, and to adhere to Organisational and departmental policy, including competence to use equipment and to ensure the safe use of equipment by others through, teaching, training and supervision of practice.
4. To be actively involved in the collection and entry of appropriate data and statistics in line with Therapy Team and Organisational policies and procedures.
5. To be aware of Health and Safety aspects of your work and implement any policies, which may be required to improve the safety of your work area, including your prompt recording and reporting of incidents to senior staff, and ensuring that equipment use is safe.
6. To undertake any other duties that might be considered appropriate by the Therapy Manager or the Locality Manager of the Community Rehabilitation Team.
Communication:
1. To report and record of all incidents and near misses relating to health, safety, security, fire, physical violence, aggression and verbal abuse.
2. To develop and maintain effective and appropriate communication networks with other members of the wider health and social care community and other agencies.
3. To effectively communicate with patients, their relatives and carers, including sensitive and accurate information about their condition.
4. To provide and receive complex, sensitive and confidential information and overcome potential barriers to communication, such as language, disability as well as dealing with concordance and barriers from patients to the prescribed treatment.
5. To be able to communicate the role and eligibility criteria of the service.
6. To maintain accurate and up to date patient records and inform other professionals about changes in patients’ condition.
7. To act as a patient advocate as required ensuring individual needs, preferences and choices are delivered by the service.
8. If the post holder is supplied with a mobile phone and a lone worker device they are for work purposes and are expected to abide by policy.
