Job summary
Exciting Opportunity: MND Specialist Practitioner
Are you passionate about making a real difference in the lives of people living with Motor Neurone Disease (MND)? We're looking for an exceptional, compassionate, and proactive MND Specialist Practitioner to join our dynamic multidisciplinary team.
In this rewarding role, you'll provide expert clinical support, holistic care, and specialist advice to individuals and families affected by MND -- helping them navigate every stage of their journey with dignity, empathy, and confidence. You'll work collaboratively with healthcare professionals across services, lead on best practice, and drive innovation in MND care.
If you're a skilled clinician with a commitment to person-centred care, continuous learning, and making a tangible impact, this is your chance to play a key part in shaping high-quality, specialist support for people living with MND.
Main duties of the job
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Provide expert, specialist assessment, advice and management for people living with Motor Neurone Disease (MND), ensuring high-quality, evidence-based, and person-centred care.
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Act as a key worker and main point of contact for patients, families and carers, offering specialist guidance, emotional support, and coordination of care across all stages of the disease trajectory.
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Work autonomously and as part of the Community Neuro Rehab Team (CNRT) and wider MDTincluding neurology, respiratory, palliative care, therapy services and community teams -- to ensure a coordinated, holistic approach to care.
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Develop, implement and regularly review personalised care plans, proactively addressing changing needs and supporting advance care planning discussions in line with patient preferences.
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Provide specialist advice and education to colleagues across primary, secondary and community care settings to enhance knowledge, skills and confidence in the management of MND
About us
We are the main provider of NHS community services across East and West Sussex, with 6,000 staff serving 1.3 million people. We deliver essential care to adults and children, helping them manage their health, avoid hospital admissions, and reduce hospital stays.
Our Trust vision is to provide excellent care at the heart of the community. We offer opportunities across medical, clinical, support, and corporate services.
Why work for us?o Positive 2024 NHS Staff Survey results, highlighting compassionate leadership and wellbeingo Varied environments: community hospitals, patients' homes, and bases across Sussexo Flexible working options: part-time, flexi-time, annualised hours, and flexi-retiremento Excellent training, development, and research opportunitieso Accredited Living Wage Employer, we ensure fair pay for all our staffo Cost-effective workplace nurseries in Crawley, Hove, and Brightono Active EMBRACE, Disability & Wellbeing, LGBTQIA+, and Religion & Belief networkso Level 3 Disability Confident Leader and Veteran Aware Trust
Our values--Compassionate Care, Working Together, Achieving Ambitions, Delivering Excellence--guide everything we do.
We embrace diversity and encourage applications from all backgrounds, particularly from ethnically diverse, disabled, and LGBTQIA+ individuals. We aim to create an inclusive environment and support reasonable adjustments during recruitment.
This post may close early if sufficient applications are received.
Job description
Job responsibilities
3. Main tasksa) Perform advanced assessments, where appropriate to the profession,utilising specialist tools and evidence-based methods to support diagnosis and treatment planning.b) Routinely liaise with primary/secondary/community and other agencies involved in the management of patients with specialist needs.c) To manage caseloads and staff working in a specialist role ensuring a timely response to patients and colleagues/partners.d) To ensure that the post holder and the specialist team are working to agreed service specifications and specialist standards of care.e) To prepare performance reports in line with agreed service key performance indicators.f) To provide timely specialist advice and support to patients, their relatives and carers, other SCFT staff and our colleagues and partners inprimary/secondary and third sector organisations.g) To design, deliver and evaluate education and training programmesdelivered to patients, staff and partners.h) To design, deliver and evaluate staff and team development plans including annual appraisals.i) To work as a specialist member of the MDT working within a community of practice ensuring specialist clinical support is accessible and responsive to patients, their carers and colleagues.j) Promote, monitor and maintain best practice standards and health, safety and security within the specialist service.
4. Main responsibilitiesa) Conduct advanced clinical assessments within your professional scope to support differential diagnosis and initiate treatment plans.b) To identify, develop and review policies within the neuro-specialist area, benchmarking the service against NICE guidance relevant to a range of neurological conditions. To work within SCFT policies and guidancec) To organise and prioritise specialty service projects assisting senior service managers in the development of the specialist service and set rotas and work plans for staff working within the serviced) To directly line manage junior members of the specialist team includingnursing, therapy and support staff as required. To assist service managers in the performance management of the team and individuals and to take thelead in recruitment processes for the specialist servicee) Act as a mentor and/or clinical educator to junior team members, students, and support staff in line with your professional registration requirements.f) To design, deliver and evaluate programmes of education and trainingprovided to SCFT and to partner organisations/bodiesg) To support the effective use of resources within the specialist neuro service by contributing to informed financial decision-making. This includes working collaboratively with the designated budget holder to support financial planning, cost improvement initiatives, and service efficiencies. The post holder is also responsible for ensuring the appropriate registration, maintenance, and safe use of equipment, including the upkeep of asset and maintenance registers relevant to their area of responsibility.To work with thetrust research & development dept and partners in conducting and evaluating research and audit activity within the specialityh) To work across other services within SCFT in response to operationalchallenges ensuring practice is within sphere of competencei) Where the post holder holds a valid Independent or SupplementaryPrescribing qualification (e.g., for nurses, physiotherapists, or pharmacists),they may undertake prescribing responsibilities in line with their professionalcompetence, scope of practice, local clinical guidelines, and Trust policy.Prescribing must relate only to patients within the practitioners ownCommunity Neuro Specialist Practitioner caseload. Non-medical prescribers(NMPs) remain personally accountable for their prescribing decisions and areresponsible for maintaining safe practice, staying up to date, and workingstrictly within their individual level of clinical competence.
Job description
Job responsibilities
3. Main tasksa) Perform advanced assessments, where appropriate to the profession,utilising specialist tools and evidence-based methods to support diagnosis and treatment planning.b) Routinely liaise with primary/secondary/community and other agencies involved in the management of patients with specialist needs.c) To manage caseloads and staff working in a specialist role ensuring a timely response to patients and colleagues/partners.d) To ensure that the post holder and the specialist team are working to agreed service specifications and specialist standards of care.e) To prepare performance reports in line with agreed service key performance indicators.f) To provide timely specialist advice and support to patients, their relatives and carers, other SCFT staff and our colleagues and partners inprimary/secondary and third sector organisations.g) To design, deliver and evaluate education and training programmesdelivered to patients, staff and partners.h) To design, deliver and evaluate staff and team development plans including annual appraisals.i) To work as a specialist member of the MDT working within a community of practice ensuring specialist clinical support is accessible and responsive to patients, their carers and colleagues.j) Promote, monitor and maintain best practice standards and health, safety and security within the specialist service.
4. Main responsibilitiesa) Conduct advanced clinical assessments within your professional scope to support differential diagnosis and initiate treatment plans.b) To identify, develop and review policies within the neuro-specialist area, benchmarking the service against NICE guidance relevant to a range of neurological conditions. To work within SCFT policies and guidancec) To organise and prioritise specialty service projects assisting senior service managers in the development of the specialist service and set rotas and work plans for staff working within the serviced) To directly line manage junior members of the specialist team includingnursing, therapy and support staff as required. To assist service managers in the performance management of the team and individuals and to take thelead in recruitment processes for the specialist servicee) Act as a mentor and/or clinical educator to junior team members, students, and support staff in line with your professional registration requirements.f) To design, deliver and evaluate programmes of education and trainingprovided to SCFT and to partner organisations/bodiesg) To support the effective use of resources within the specialist neuro service by contributing to informed financial decision-making. This includes working collaboratively with the designated budget holder to support financial planning, cost improvement initiatives, and service efficiencies. The post holder is also responsible for ensuring the appropriate registration, maintenance, and safe use of equipment, including the upkeep of asset and maintenance registers relevant to their area of responsibility.To work with thetrust research & development dept and partners in conducting and evaluating research and audit activity within the specialityh) To work across other services within SCFT in response to operationalchallenges ensuring practice is within sphere of competencei) Where the post holder holds a valid Independent or SupplementaryPrescribing qualification (e.g., for nurses, physiotherapists, or pharmacists),they may undertake prescribing responsibilities in line with their professionalcompetence, scope of practice, local clinical guidelines, and Trust policy.Prescribing must relate only to patients within the practitioners ownCommunity Neuro Specialist Practitioner caseload. Non-medical prescribers(NMPs) remain personally accountable for their prescribing decisions and areresponsible for maintaining safe practice, staying up to date, and workingstrictly within their individual level of clinical competence.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Registered General Nurse or Allied Health Professional
- Evidence of CPD to underpin clinical reasoning in neurological assessment, diagnosis and care planning
Desirable
- Advanced physical assessment
- Relevant postgraduate qualification or modules in neurology or long-term neurological conditions
- Advanced medicines management
- Relevant teaching module/course or be willing to work towards
Experience
Essential
- Significant post registration experience with a neuro caseload
- Experience of multi professional and cross organisational work
- Experience of working in a community setting
- Experience of project/service development
Desirable
- Experience in developing integrated or community-based neuro services
- Experience of performance management including reporting against targets and risk management
Other requirements
Essential
- Ability to travel independently across the locality
Skills
Essential
- Excellent communication skills
- Competent computer skills
- Comprehensive and specialist assessment skills
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Registered General Nurse or Allied Health Professional
- Evidence of CPD to underpin clinical reasoning in neurological assessment, diagnosis and care planning
Desirable
- Advanced physical assessment
- Relevant postgraduate qualification or modules in neurology or long-term neurological conditions
- Advanced medicines management
- Relevant teaching module/course or be willing to work towards
Experience
Essential
- Significant post registration experience with a neuro caseload
- Experience of multi professional and cross organisational work
- Experience of working in a community setting
- Experience of project/service development
Desirable
- Experience in developing integrated or community-based neuro services
- Experience of performance management including reporting against targets and risk management
Other requirements
Essential
- Ability to travel independently across the locality
Skills
Essential
- Excellent communication skills
- Competent computer skills
- Comprehensive and specialist assessment skills
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.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Additional information
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.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
