Clinical Physiologist/Scientist Neurophysiology Tech

Job description

Job responsibilities

Post Title: Specialist Clinical Physiologist (Neurophysiology)

Pay Band: Band 6

Contract: Perminant

Location / Department: Neurophysiology

Accountable to: Kelly Bill

Reports to: Kelly Bill

Ref:

Key Working Relationships: Patients, carers, clinical and non clinical members of staff. Also including other professional organisations

Risk Assessment: Manual handling activities, exposure to bodily fluids, needle stick injury, cross infection, lone working, aggressive and abusive behaviour and unpredictable patients and visitors. Exposure to emotionally distressing situations, VDU and contained hazardous materials.

Job Purpose:

• Provides unsupervised specialist Neurodiagnostic investigations to patients of all ages with neurological or psychiatric disorders attending the department and across non-dedicated environments for the Worcestershire Hospitals, surrounding community trusts and GPs. .
• To work with all members of the multi disciplinary team.
• Undertakes interpretation of results and provision of factual reports.
• Works both alone and collaboratively on a day-to-day basis to ensure that the service needs are met.
• Supervision of junior staff.
• Participates in training and education of junior and other staff groups
• To organise and manage administrative duties

Key Duties:

Main duties and responsibilities

Clinical

1. Monitor and maintain high professional standards of Neurophysiological services to patients and will initiate remedial action where necessary.
2. Work collaboratively with other professionals and agencies to ensure service(s) meet changing healthcare needs.
3. Demonstrates leadership and support to other junior Neurophysiological staff in dealing with difficult and conflicting situations including those of a clinical and professional nature.
4. Participates in the implementation of policies.
5. Plans reports and interprets a range of basic, specialist and minimal highly complex Neurophysiological investigations to a high level of competence to patients. Using own initiative to derive the best clinical interpretation of neurophysiological investigations. On patients with neurological, non- neurological, psychiatric, learning disabilities, labile mental states and substance dependant conditions.

Specialist Neurophysiological investigations;

- Perform Electroencephalographic (EEG) investigations employing current standard techniques (digital) with out supervision in the EEG laboratory taking appropriate action(s) where necessary. Also perform EEGs on the ward. These are to be performed on all ages and in a variety of clinical circumstances.

- Perform emergency EEGs on ITU (Intensive Therapy Unit), SCBUs (Special Care Baby Unit) or general wards this could be on or off site, appropriate action taken where necessary.

- Perform EEG investigations using special techniques. These include activated recording using hyperventilation and photic stimulation. Recordings following sleep deprivation, using video, a non-routine nature, e.g. postural change,

- Performs Nerve conduction studies for Carpel tunnel syndrome (CTS)

- Assist with EMG (Electromyography) examinations and Nerve conduction Studies with the Clinical Neurophysiologist

- Performs all modality of evoked potentials on all age groups both for Neurological and Opthamological purposes.

- Performs full calibration, faults and machine checks on all neurophysiological equipment and appropriate action taken where necessary.

Advanced Neurophysiological investigations;

- Initiates and takes appropriate unsupervised action where further nerve conduction studies may be needed e.g. Needs lower limbs studies when screening CTS in a diabetic patient.

- Recordings during the administration of medication (e.g. Chloral hydrate Thiapentone), recordings during general anaesthesia, recording during stimulation of

1. In the absence of a Consultant Neurophysiologist/Consultant Scientist, selects pages of EEG to be interpreted and reported on, with a potential for treatment and/or diagnosis.
2. Maintain continuous professional development appropriate to the range of Neurophysiological services to patients.
3. Provides an on call EEG service when required.
4. Undertakes simple fault remedy, cleaning and maintenance of recording equipment or apparatus within the department including care and maintenance of electrodes and other apparatus.
5. Knowledge and ability to use emergency equipment and manual handling aids.
6. Provides simple advice for major lifestyle changes to both patients and medical staff, where necessary with advice from senior members of staff.

Managerial and Leadership

1. Facilitate the management of junior Neurophysiological staff
2. Undertakes responsibility for the efficient and effective management of own physical resources.
3. Contributes to the effective and efficient use of information resources, ensuring effective patient reporting and data storage. To include archiving techniques both paper and digital.
4. Contributes to the maintenance of statistical information as required for statistical and other management purposes.
5. Contribute to health and safety and quality assurance policies to patients, staff and visitors.
6. To attend Trust, Regional and National meetings relating to issues of Neurophysiological Services provision.
7. Participate in Trust/Region wide projects.
8. Participate in counselling, grievance, and discipline and welfare matters and where appropriate implementing disciplinary procedures.
9. Promote and ensure equality, diversity and rights for all.

Education Training and Development.

1. Participate in the implementation of education and training of Neurophysiologists and other staff groups in line with mandatory, professional and personal development according to service needs. Remedial action taken as necessary.
2. Promote staff compliance with CPD guidelines, professional code of conduct and evaluate the effect of development on the service delivery.
3. Provide clinical supervision /mentorship for other staff.
4. To participate in the teaching and training in the Neurophysiology to a broad range of healthcare workers including medical, AHP, nursing, HCS etc.
5. Contributes to and coordinate individual training plans and funding to support staff development and training needs.
6. To ensure personal compliance with regards to mandatory, professional and personal development according to service needs.
7. To ensure personal compliance with CPD guidelines, professional codes of conduct and evaluate the ecce t of development on service delivery.

Clinical Governance and Audit.

1. Participates in audit to ensure compliance with and development of professional and local policies and procedures and clinical standard/ guidelines.
2. Contribute to patient and public involvement in the development of Neurophysiology Services(s).
3. To facilitate investigation of complaints regarding the service(s) and to report the findings to the trust in accordance with local procedure and to take remedial action if appropriate.
4. Work with agreed Trust, local and national policies and protocols to include child protection and data protection issues.
5. Initiates and participates with occasional research and development programmes.
6. Facilitates and ensures patient and public involvement in the development of Neurophysiology Services(s).

Financial management responsibilities

Contribute to the maintenance of statistical information as required for statistical and other management purposes

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

• Appropriate post qualification experience.
• Practical experience and familiarity with the range of basic and advanced Neurological investigations
• Ability to perform a wide range of basic Neurophysiological investigations and/or
• Able to interpret specialist Neurophysiological investigations results and patient conditions
• Ability to communicate complex and sensitive information in a variety of forms to patients, relatives and carers including children and patients with learning or physical disabilities.
• Ability to work autonomously, co-ordinate, plan and prioritise
• Able to undertake complex eye-hand coordination tasks such as electrode placement and dexterity and co-ordination for use of diagnostic equipment.
• IT literate
• Managerial skills
• Teaching training skills

Desirable

• Supervisor experience

Additional skills

Essential

• Exposure to unpleasant conditions such as body odours, aggression (verbal and occasionally physical) and contained chemicals
• Able to motivate and lead staff
• Ability to manage change
• Organised

Qualifications

Essential

• BTEC HNC/D in MPPM / BSc Hons Clinical Physiology (Neurophysiology) or equivalent
• Professional body examination
• HCPC or RCCP/AHCS registration

Desirable

• Training qualifications
• Experience of training

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).

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).

Employer details

Employer name

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust

Address

Charles Hastings Way

Worcester

Worcestershire

WR5 1DD

Employer's website

https://www.worcsacute.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)