Palliative Care Social Worker - Fixed 2 year term

Job description

Job responsibilities

Working as part of a multi-disciplinary team, providing a specialist palliative care social work service to Hospice patients, their families and carers.

Complete a holistic psychosocial assessment of need, and formulate a care plan to address those needs, in collaboration with Hospice patients, families, carers, and other service providers.

Support Hospice patients, families and carers with the practical and emotional implications of facing a life-limiting illness.

Support Hospice patients, families and carers in making decisions about their future needs as they adjust to a new and changing situation, and offer appropriate interventions. This includes work with Hospice patients, families and carers coming to terms with the illness and possible death of someone close.

Working as a skilled communicator, effectively liaise with other agencies when attempting to meet need.

Assess the needs of the bereaved, and provide bereavement support to individuals, families and groups as appropriate.

Maintain accurate and appropriate records, including the computerised database, and provide reports and statistics as required.

Evaluate the effectiveness of social work practice, and participate in multi-disciplinary audit.

Critically evaluate research and assist in the implementation of evidence-based best practice in all aspects of patient care.

Participate in/contribute to relevant research projects.

Provide a key role in the development of clinical policies, protocols and guidelines in liaison with the Head of Clinical Services.

Learning & Development

Assist in the formal and informal education initiatives to staff, patients and carers to achieve effective clinical outcomes.

Support the development of health and social care professionals on placement with the Hospice, providing mentorship and assessment if appropriate and as requested by the Head of Clinical Services, to include fulfilling the Practice Assessor role for Social Work students.

Encourage individual practitioners and teams to participate in the education strategy to develop palliative care knowledge and competence in their own practice.

Promote a learning environment which actively facilitates learning and structured personal development for health and social care professionals.

Have a commitment to lifelong learning and continue to undertake own professional development in accordance with codes of practice of relevant professional bodies, Social Care Wales and the Social Services and Wellbeing act.

Perform a key role in delivering both formal and informal education initiatives to other professionals, patients, their families and carers to achieve effective clinical outcomes.

Positively commit to Hospice of the Valleys performance management process including annual appraisals and one to one meetings, taking responsibility for personal professional development.

Deliver and participate in education programmes and specifically attend teaching identified to meet your development aims and objectives and the objectives of the organisation.

Participate in all statutory and mandatory training as required.

Participate in the Hospice IPR system, setting realistic objectives in order to maintain a personal professional profile and demonstrate a high level of specialist practice.

Professional

Contribute to effective multidisciplinary team working and discussion, actively contributing to the in house development of standards of care, audit tools and outcome measures related to the service.

Attendance at meetings to optimise team working and allow for an effective and seamless patient journey to improve the patients quality of life through high standards of practice in palliative care.

Use of critical reflective skills and facilitation skills to evaluate current practice.

To receive and participate in clinical supervision.

Support practice development through participation in complex case discussion/reflection with members of the MDT and other Health and Social Care professionals as appropriate.

Effectively utilise the resources required to meet service objectives.

Assist in the supervision and review of volunteers working with the Hospice of the Valleys.

Work to maintain the values, mission and aims of Hospice of the Valleys.

Practice and promote confidentiality at all times, complying with the Hospices GDPR policies appropriate to your area of work.

Demonstrate efficient time management and flexible attitude to working patterns.

Work within Hospice policies, procedures and guidelines.

Treat everyone with respect and dignity.

Communication

Communicate respectfully in an open, accurate, straightforward and confidential way with colleagues across the organisation.

General Responsibilities

Respect and support all colleagues, working collaboratively across the organisation.

Maintain a professional, friendly and positive influence, maintaining awareness of how your behaviour can affect and influence the behaviour of others.

Maintain reasonable care for your health, safety and welfare and that of other people who may be affected by your actions. These responsibilities apply at all times whilst you are at work or on duty and apply to all Hospice premises and whilst working in the community, in other professional establishments or in patients homes.

To represent Hospice of the Valleys in the community and public domain as appropriate.

Contribute toward clinical and corporate governance agendas as appropriate.

Be conversant with and adhere to Hospice of the Valleys policies and procedures at all times.

This is an outline job description and may be subject to change, according to the needs of the Organisation.

Person Specification

Skills & Knowledge

Essential

• Understanding of life-limiting illness, loss and grief and their impact
• Knowledge of legislation relevant to role
• Knowledge of the welfare benefits system
• Ability to work as part of a team
• Able to manage own workload
• Good communication skills, verbal and written
• Excellent interpersonal skills
• Good time management and organisation skills
• Knowledge of principles of research and audit
• Ability to translate evidence into practice
• IT competency with email, internet, MS Office

Desirable

• Presentation skills
• Experience of undertaking research and audit

Experience

Essential

• Multidisciplinary working within a rapidly changing health and social care environment
• Effective assessment and intervention in relation to complex needs
• Effective communication and liaison with other agencies

Desirable

• Working in a specialist palliative care setting
• Working with people with life limiting illness
• Working with bereaved people

Qualifications/Professional Registration

Essential

• Degree, diploma or equivalent in Social Work
• Professional Registration (SCW & any other relevant)
• Evidence of recent CPD

Desirable

• Palliative care qualification
• Counselling qualification
• PQ assessor and / or any PQ qualifications

Personal Qualities

Essential

• Personal grief resolved sufficiently to perform in an environment with exposure to bereavement concerns
• Ability to work with people affected by a life limiting illness or bereavement and the emotional impact this has
• Self-aware with critical reflective ability
• Flexible and adaptable to variety of tasks within the role

Other

Essential

• Car owner/driver

Qualifications

Essential

• Qualifications / Professional Registration
• Degree, diploma or equivalent in Social Work
• Professional Registration (SCW & any other relevant)
• Evidence of recent CPD
• Multidisciplinary working within a rapidly changing health and social care environment
• Effective assessment and intervention in relation to complex needs
• Effective communication and liaison with other agencies
• Understanding of life-limiting illness, loss and grief and their impact
• Knowledge of legislation relevant to role
• Knowledge of the welfare benefits system
• Ability to work as part of a team
• Able to manage own workload
• Good communication skills, verbal and written
• Excellent interpersonal skills
• Good time management and organisation skills
• Knowledge of principles of research and audit
• Ability to translate evidence into practice
• IT competency with email, internet, MS Office
• Personal grief resolved sufficiently to perform in an environment with exposure to bereavement concerns
• Ability to work with people affected by a life limiting illness or bereavement and the emotional impact this has
• Self-aware with critical reflective ability
• Flexible and adaptable to variety of tasks within the role
• Car owner / driver

Desirable

• Palliative care qualification
• Counselling qualification
• PQ assessor and / or any PQ qualifications
• Working in a specialist palliative care setting
• Working with people with life limiting illness
• Working with bereaved people
• Presentation skills
• Experience of undertaking research and audit

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

Hospice of the Valleys

Address

Festival Drive

Ebbw Vale

Gwent

NP23 8XF

Employer's website

https://www.hospiceofthevalleys.org.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)