PCN Social Prescribing Link Worker -Northolt Greenford Perivale

Job description

Job responsibilities

Referrals

Promote social prescribing, its role in self-management, and the wider determinants of health.

As part of the PCN multi-disciplinary team, build relationships with staff in GP practices within the local PCN, attending relevant MDT meetings, giving information and feedback on social prescribing.

Be proactive in developing strong links with all local agencies to encourage referrals, recognising what they need to be confident in the service to make appropriate referrals.

Work in partnership with all local agencies to raise awareness of social prescribing and how partnership working can reduce pressure on statutory services, improve health outcomes and enable a holistic approach to care.

Provide referral agencies with regular updates about social prescribing, including training for their staff and how to access information to encourage appropriate referrals.

Seek regular feedback about the quality of service and impact of social prescribing on referral agencies.

Be proactive in encouraging self-referrals and connecting with all local communities, particularly those communities that statutory agencies may find hard to reach.

Provide personalised support

Meet people on a one-to-one basis, making home visits where appropriate within organisations policies and procedures. Give people time to tell their stories and focus on what matters to me. Build trust with the person, providing non-judgemental support, respecting diversity and lifestyle choices. Work from a strength-based approach focusing on a persons assets.

Be a friendly source of information about health, wellbeing and prevention approaches.

Help people identify the wider issues that impact on their health and wellbeing, such as debt, poor housing, being unemployed, loneliness and caring responsibilities.

Work with the person, their families and carers and consider how they can all be supported through social prescribing.

Help people maintain or regain independence through living skills, adaptations, enablement approaches and simple safeguards.

Work with individuals to co-produce a simple personalised support plan to address the persons health and wellbeing needs based on the persons priorities, interests, values and motivations including what they can expect from the groups, activities and services they are being connected to and what the person can do for themselves to improve their health and wellbeing.

Where appropriate, physically introduce people to community groups, activities and statutory services, ensuring they are comfortable.

Follow up to ensure they are happy, able to engage, included and receiving good support.

Seek advice and support from the GP supervisor and/or identified individual(s) to discuss patient-related concerns e.g. abuse, domestic violence and support with mental health, referring the patient back to the GP or other suitable health professional if required.

If necessary assist/facilitate a GP appointment for the delivery of healthcare and attend with the person/family if appropriate.

Support community groups and VCSE organisations to receive referrals

Develop supportive relationships with local VCSE organisations, community groups and statutory services, to make timely, appropriate and supported referrals for the person being introduced.

Work collectively with all local partners to ensure community groups are strong and sustainable

Work with commissioners and local partners to identify unmet needs within the community and gaps in community provision.

Encourage people who have been connected to community support through social prescribing to volunteer and give their time freely to others, building their skills and confidence and strengthening community resilience.

Develop a team of volunteers within your service to provide buddying support for people, starting new groups and finding creative community solutions to local issues.

Encourage people, their families and carers to provide peer support and to do things together, such as setting up new community groups or volunteering.

Data capture

Work sensitively with people, their families and carers to capture key information, enabling tracking of the impact of social prescribing on their health and wellbeing.

Encourage people, their families and carers to provide feedback and to share their stories about the impact of social prescribing on their lives.

Support referral agencies to provide appropriate information about the person they are referring. Provide appropriate feedback to referral agencies about the people they referred.

Work closely within the MDT and with GP practices within the PCN to ensure that the social prescribing referral codes are inputted into clinical systems (as outlined in the Network Contract DES), adhering to data protection legislation and data sharing agreements.

Professional development

Work with your supervising GP and/or line manager (if different) to undertake continual personal and professional development, taking an active part in reviewing and developing the roles and responsibilities.

Adhere to organisational policies and procedures, including confidentiality, safeguarding, lone working, information governance, and health and safety.

Work with your supervising GPs, practice managers and network managers to access regular supervision, to enable you to deal effectively with the difficult issues that people present.

Miscellaneous

Work as part of the healthcare team to seek feedback, continually improve the service and contribute to business planning.

Undertake any tasks consistent with the level of the post and the scope of the role, ensuring that work is delivered in a timely and effective manner.

Duties may vary from time to time, without changing the general character of the post or the level of responsibility.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• NVQ Level 3, Advanced level or equivalent qualifications or working towards
• Demonstrable commitment to professional and personal development

Desirable

• Training in motivational coaching and interviewing or equivalent experience

Experience

Essential

• Experience of working directly in a community development context, adult health and social care, learning support or public health/health improvement (including unpaid work).
• Experience of supporting people, their families and carers in a related role (including unpaid work).
• Experience of supporting people with their mental health, either in a paid, unpaid or informal capacity.
• Experience of data collection and using tools to measure the impact of services.
• Experience of partnership/collaborative working and of building relationships across a variety of organisations.

Desirable

• Experience of working with the VCSE sector (in a paid or unpaid capacity), including with volunteers and small community groups.

Other

Essential

• Knowledge of the personalised care approach.
• Understanding of the wider determinants of health, including social, economic and environmental factors and their impact on communities, individuals, their families and carers.
• Knowledge of community development approaches.
• Knowledge of IT systems, including ability to use word processing skills, emails and the internet to create simple plans and reports.
• Local knowledge of VCSE and community services in the locality
• Knowledge of how the NHS works, including primary care.
• Meets DBS reference standards and has a clear criminal record, in line with the law on spent convictions.
• Willingness to work flexible hours when required to meet work demands

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.

Employer details

Employer name

Ealing GP Federation

Address

Hillview Surgery

179c Bilton Road

Greenford

London

UB6 7HQ

Employer's website

http://www.ealinggp.com/ (Opens in a new tab)