County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust

Sleep Healthcare Assistant

The closing date is 17 March 2026

Job summary

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a highly motivated HCA to work as a health care assistant, within a forward thinking Organisation that delivers a patient centered approach to support a diagnosis of Obstructive sleep apnoea on patients.

This is a 6 month fixed term contract as a limited project.

There are approximately 8,000 patients established on treatment for Sleep disordered breathing within the County Durham and Darlington.

As a member of the sleep service you will have the opportunity to develop your skills and knowledge of sleep disordered breathing to enhance the care that patients receive. This includes being able to provide life style advice and offer DVLA guidance and undertake complex diagnositic interpretation of sleep studies.

This role will be predominantly hospital based. You will be responsible for direct patient care and HCA led clinics both on a 1:1 and group capacity, telephone clinics for reviewing patients established on treatment. There is also an expectation to safely offer patient initiated follow up where necessary and liaising closely with other members of the sleep service.

Main duties of the job

The role will involve both direct and indirect patient contact. You will work closely with the other members of the sleep service and relevant members of the MDT.

The sleep service recieves over 3,000 referrals for Sleep studies with approximately 60-80% of those studies being reported as positive requiring follow up and potential treatment. You will be responsible for acurately analysing sleep studies. The service consists of both face to face and telephone reviews for both new diagnosis of patients and reviews of those established on treatment. It will also involve distributing new equipment and trouble shooting a variety of potential problems.

The service has recently changed due to increase in capacity and demand and some clinics are now delivered in a group set up. You will be responsible for supporting the senior sleep nurses with these sessions which include delivering a presentation to a small number of same sex patients and commencing treatment.

There is also the requirement to answer telephone and email concerns from patients and liaise closely with other members of the sleep service.

About us

If you are being interviewed you must accept an interview slot in the system to continue, even if you have arranged with the manager.

You must be able to produce ALL certificates stated essential in the person specification or you will not be able to complete pre-employment checks.

We provide hospital services from two acute sites - Darlington Memorial Hospital and University Hospital of North Durham. We have a centre for planned care in Bishop Auckland and provide care from community hospitals in Chester-le-Street, Shotley Bridge, Barnard Castle, Sedgefield and Weardale as well as over 80 other community based settings and providing care in patients' homes.

We particularly welcome applications from disabled and Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) candidates as BAME and disabled people are currently under-represented.

Full Job Descriptions can be found in the adverts supporting documents.

Over reliance on AI-generated content is discouraged and may diminish the applicant's chances of success.

For the most up-to-date information on visa requirements and eligibility, please check online to determine whether you can apply.

From April 9th 2025 - Healthcare assistants - You must have been employed for a minimum of two years of as a HCA Band 3 within the NHS for the Trust to consider sponsorship (we will only consider sponsorship if you meet this criteria and have a current visa expiring within 3 months).

Date posted

10 March 2026

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 4

Salary

£27,485 to £30,162 a year

Contract

Fixed term

Duration

6 months

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

C9439-2526-1242

Job locations

Bishop Auckland General Hospital

Cockton Hill Road

Bishop Auckland

County Durham

DL14 6AD

Job description

Job responsibilities

To work alongside the existing Sleep Specialist nurses, to provide a high level of

specialist knowledge to patients and other health care professionals.

To deliver both review telephone and face to face clinics of patients established on CPAP therapy

Trouble shooting problems with CPAP devices and equipment and arranging suitable follow up or delivery of equipment

Regular answering of queries from both patients with pre-exsisting OSA and pre-formal diagnosis.

Use advanced communication skills to enable clear understanding of sleep results and treatment options.

Understanding the mechanics of Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) and relevant equipment.

Understand remote monitoring (Airview) and when to adjust pressures and settings to ensure optimal patient treatment.

Ability to arrange patient initiated follow up (PIFU)

Ability to cross cover if required (DMH or UHND)