Associate Practitioner (XR04)

Leeds Teaching Hospitals

This job is now closed

Job summary

Do you want to expand your existing clinical skills and knowledge of cardiology and work within a large and friendly team at one of the largest cardiac departments in the country?

The Cardio-Respiratory department at Leeds Teaching Hospitals is looking to recruit an Associate Practitioner to support the cardiac diagnostic services. This is a new position within our existing Associate Practitioner workforce. The successful candidate will work closely with the Cardiac Physiologists/Scientists and assist them with the expansion of our cardiac devices and remote monitoring services.

We are looking for an individual who is passionate, motivated and enthusiastic about delivering high quality patient care. This role would be an ideal opportunity for experienced cardiographers or those from other backgrounds who have experience and proven abilities in ECG interpretation.

The role is based at Leeds General Infirmary working full time Monday - Friday 08:30-17:00 with some flexibility.

Main duties of the job

We are looking for individuals with clinical experience and a basic knowledge and understanding of cardiology. Applicants should have the ability to record, interpret and report ECG's.

The successful applicant will support the ambulatory and remote monitoring services, analysing and reporting ECG recordings and escalating abnormal findings to the senior clinical team. Training on analysis equipment will be given but experience is desirable. The successful applicant will also assist the Cardiac Physiologists/Scientists with the implantation of Loop Recorders, programming the devices and scheduling their follow-up appointments.

In addition, the role will include administrative duties such as stock level management and ordering. Applicants should possess excellent communication skills as the role requires an ability to communicate complex or technical concepts to patients in a manner that can be understood and potentially with people who are anxious about their condition.

About us

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is one of the largest acute health providers in the UK and CQC rated as GOOD. The successful applicant will join a team of over 120 staff members and will work closely with expert colleagues across the department, developing your own knowledge and skills at the same time.

At LTHT, we aim to be a fair and supportive hospital with positive, caring teams who are champions of the Leeds Way values. Our values are part of what make us different from other Trusts, so we see this as a strength, as well as a responsibility. They have been developed by our staff and set out what they see as important to how we work. Our five values are:

Patient-centred

Collaborative

Fair

Accountable

Empowered

Leeds Teaching Hospitals is committed to our process of redeploying 'at risk' members of our existing workforce to new roles. As such, all our job adverts are subject to this policy and we reserve the right to close, delay or remove adverts while this process is completed. If you do experience a delay in the shortlisting stage of the recruitment cycle, please bear with us while this process is completed, and contact the named contact if you have any questions.

Date posted

22 March 2023

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 4

Salary

£23,949 to £26,282 a year

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

C9298-CRS-075

Job locations

Leeds General Infirmary

Great George Street

Leeds

LS1 3EX

Job description

Job responsibilities

Principal Duties & Areas of Responsibility

Clinical Duties

Carries out all aspects of clinical and administration work as approved by their line manager, working within established codes of practice and local departmental standard operating procedures.

To be professionally and legally accountable for all aspect of own work, including the management of patients in your care and dealing with their specific needs.

Routinely undertakes assessment of both in-patients and out-patients prior to a range of investigations and uses own discretion in order to ensure the patient is suitable for the investigation.

Communicates with all members of the multidisciplinary team to ensure the best possible care for patients, including: negotiating, reassurance, empathy, and persuasiveness.

Communicates sensitive information about routine and complex investigations to patients and relatives/carers including children and those with learning and/or physical disabilities.

Calibrates and manipulates a wide range of complex, expensive, technical equipment which process, create, update and store information. Identifies any automatically generated reports that are false and or inaccurate, escalating any errors to the appropriate member of LTHT staff.

Performs / provides factual reports on a number of investigations on a region-wide range of patients including acutely ill paediatric and elderly patients and those with a range of physical and learning disabilities.

Clinical investigations would be dependent on the applicants skill set and area of clinical focus and may include but are not limited to:

- Ambulatory and remote monitoring analysis and reporting

- Perform, interpret and report 12 lead electrocardiographs (ECG)

- Assist with exercising testing procedures

- Assist with Tilt testing procedures

- Assist with invasive procedures

Demonstrates personal duty of care for safe use of expensive and highly complex equipment. Is responsible for ensuring that others are fully trained in the safe use of such equipment within their specialist area.

Responsible for maintenance of stock levels and consumables and for day to day security of expensive equipment, e.g. portable devices. Reporting equipment faults in accordance with departmental policy.

Professional

Responsible for maintaining own technical proficiencies and competencies in clinical areas.

Maintains and develops current knowledge of evidence based practice in each clinical area.

Responsible for reporting clinical incidents and adverse events to the appropriate Team Manager / Service Manager.

Responsible for formal mentorship and input into coordination of training of designated junior staff and students.

Be an active member of the in-service training programme by attendance at, and participation in, in-service training programmes, tutorials, individual training sessions, external courses and peer review.

Regularly provides training in fundamental cardiac techniques to trainees and junior staff members.

Undertakes Continuing Professional Development (CPD) in accordance with Personal Development Plan (PDP) as developed with Line Manager.

Attends and participates in departmental staff meetings.

Frequently undertakes collection of data for use in audit, research projects and equipment testing.

Works in close liaison with other staff members to ensure efficient and effective delivery of service, contributing to maintaining a friendly and welcoming working atmosphere.

Organisational

Responsible for ensuring the Leeds Way Values and LTHT vision is integrated within the Cardio-Respiratory CSU.

Demonstrates the ability to prioritise and organise the clinical caseload within a designated area of cardiology.

Responsible for obtaining, transmitting and storing information relating to the delivery of a care service.

Keep accurate and timely records, inputting accurate data into the departmental databases allowing for the production of statistical resource information for accurate billing.

Other

Communicates with all members of the multidisciplinary team to ensure the best possible care for the patient. Including giving detailed advice to other specialist professions which will influence patient care/outcomes. Communication skills including:

- Negotiating, e.g. with physicians who demand investigations not achievable within the service limitations.

- Reassurance, e.g. to patients who are anxious about their clinical findings.

- Persuasiveness, e.g. to young children who are scared to undergo clinical procedures.

Immediate Life Support training essential during procedures performed on acutely ill patients and those at very high risk of sudden cardiac death.

Expected to undertake informal training by means of periodic in-house assessments.

To comply with the Trusts manual handling policy at all times.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Principal Duties & Areas of Responsibility

Clinical Duties

Carries out all aspects of clinical and administration work as approved by their line manager, working within established codes of practice and local departmental standard operating procedures.

To be professionally and legally accountable for all aspect of own work, including the management of patients in your care and dealing with their specific needs.

Routinely undertakes assessment of both in-patients and out-patients prior to a range of investigations and uses own discretion in order to ensure the patient is suitable for the investigation.

Communicates with all members of the multidisciplinary team to ensure the best possible care for patients, including: negotiating, reassurance, empathy, and persuasiveness.

Communicates sensitive information about routine and complex investigations to patients and relatives/carers including children and those with learning and/or physical disabilities.

Clinical investigations would be dependent on the applicants skill set and area of clinical focus and may include but are not limited to:

- Ambulatory and remote monitoring analysis and reporting

- Perform, interpret and report 12 lead electrocardiographs (ECG)

- Assist with exercising testing procedures

- Assist with Tilt testing procedures

- Assist with invasive procedures

Professional

Responsible for maintaining own technical proficiencies and competencies in clinical areas.

Maintains and develops current knowledge of evidence based practice in each clinical area.

Responsible for reporting clinical incidents and adverse events to the appropriate Team Manager / Service Manager.

Responsible for formal mentorship and input into coordination of training of designated junior staff and students.

Regularly provides training in fundamental cardiac techniques to trainees and junior staff members.

Undertakes Continuing Professional Development (CPD) in accordance with Personal Development Plan (PDP) as developed with Line Manager.

Attends and participates in departmental staff meetings.

Frequently undertakes collection of data for use in audit, research projects and equipment testing.

Works in close liaison with other staff members to ensure efficient and effective delivery of service, contributing to maintaining a friendly and welcoming working atmosphere.

Organisational

Responsible for ensuring the Leeds Way Values and LTHT vision is integrated within the Cardio-Respiratory CSU.

Demonstrates the ability to prioritise and organise the clinical caseload within a designated area of cardiology.

Responsible for obtaining, transmitting and storing information relating to the delivery of a care service.

Keep accurate and timely records, inputting accurate data into the departmental databases allowing for the production of statistical resource information for accurate billing.

Other

- Negotiating, e.g. with physicians who demand investigations not achievable within the service limitations.

- Reassurance, e.g. to patients who are anxious about their clinical findings.

- Persuasiveness, e.g. to young children who are scared to undergo clinical procedures.

Immediate Life Support training essential during procedures performed on acutely ill patients and those at very high risk of sudden cardiac death.

Expected to undertake informal training by means of periodic in-house assessments.

To comply with the Trusts manual handling policy at all times.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

GCSEs grade A-C in Maths and English, or equivalent.
Basic Life Support Training
SCST Certificate in ECG, or equivalent, or experience and proven competency in performing, interpreting and reporting ECGs.

Desirable

Immediate Life Support Training
SCST Diploma in ECG

Skills and Behaviours

Essential

Professional attitude
Promotes the importance of service quality
Relates well to people at all levels
Able to work autonomously
Good attendance record

Desirable

Supervisory experience
Capable of lateral thinking

Experience

Essential

Theoretical knowledge of a broad range of fundamental cardio-respiratory investigations
Maintains own continued professional development
Competency in performing, interpreting and reporting ECGs
Recognises normal and abnormal rhythms

Desirable

Experience in Cardio-Respiratory departments.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

GCSEs grade A-C in Maths and English, or equivalent.
Basic Life Support Training
SCST Certificate in ECG, or equivalent, or experience and proven competency in performing, interpreting and reporting ECGs.

Desirable

Immediate Life Support Training
SCST Diploma in ECG

Skills and Behaviours

Essential

Professional attitude
Promotes the importance of service quality
Relates well to people at all levels
Able to work autonomously
Good attendance record

Desirable

Supervisory experience
Capable of lateral thinking

Experience

Essential

Theoretical knowledge of a broad range of fundamental cardio-respiratory investigations
Maintains own continued professional development
Competency in performing, interpreting and reporting ECGs
Recognises normal and abnormal rhythms

Desirable

Experience in Cardio-Respiratory departments.

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

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).

Additional information