Specialty Occupational Therapist - (Acute and Emergency Medicine)

Job overview

Dear Prospective Candidate,

This role would be ideal for an individual who is dynamic and enthusiastic with a passion for Acute and Emergency Medicine, and someone who will promote and educate on the importance of early intervention, risk management and safe discharge planning. The Therapy team at the Horton have a key role in managing frailty and the successful candidate will be involved in the assessment, intervention and discharge planning for this cohort of patients.

As part of the multi-disciplinary team, you will screen individuals across Acute and Emergency Medicine, commence holistic assessments using a frailty assessment tool and clinically reason a safe discharge or admittance plan with a focus on early intervention and a Home First pathway.

You will join an already well respected team of Physiotherapists, Occupational Therapists and Therapy Assistants who work within Frailty, General Medicine and Trauma at the Horton. There will be an expectation to support the wider team not only clinically, but also from a learning, teaching and supervisory perspective.

If you are interested in applying for this post and feel you meet the criteria, please do not hesitate to contact myself to discuss this role further. We are open to flexible working requests if the hours stated do not meet your needs.

Best wishes,

Hannah Spencer, Horton Therapy Clinical lead

Main duties of the job

Alongside support from other therapists and wider members of the Acute and Emergency Medicine team, the successful candidate will provide high quality, safe and effective Occupational Therapy to patients attending the Emergency Department, Emergency Assessment Unit and Acute General Medical wards. Within these fast-paced area, there will be the expectation to assess the needs of individuals attending the department with a promotion of early intervention, Frailty specific assessments and discharge planning. Alongside this, support for the wider team will be required, depending on service priorities.

You will be expected to work collaboratively with the wider multi-disciplinary team including the undertaking of joint assessments, liaising with families and places of residence and providing follow-up treatment and handover plans to inpatient or community teams.

Support from senior members of the team will be provided and education, training and development will be promoted. Active participation in quality improvement, clinical audit and research projects will be encouraged to enable relevant and best practice to be delivered.

The ability to work across 7 days is required.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Main Duties and responsibilities Communication

• To be able to communicate your recommendations and clinical reasoning in a timely and concise manner.
• To consistently deploy excellent communication and engagement skills enabling effective working relationships with all members of the multi-professional team.
• To effectively communicate with patients and their carers/family members, including the sensitive management of complex issues.
• To overcome barriers to effective communication, such as those caused by pathological impairment or language differences, by deploying effective mitigating strategies.
• To engage and build relationships with external agencies and providers to enhance patient care, continuity and outcomes.
• To be able to motivate and positively influence others through effective verbal and non-verbal communication skills.
• Be able to write complex reports accurately describing patients’ clinical status and management.

Clinical Responsibilities

• To enact the professional and legal responsibilities for all aspects of the post-holders own clinical practice.
• To carry out comprehensive assessments for individuals attending the Emergency Department and on inpatient wards. This will include using frailty and risk assessment tools.
• To formulate and deliver comprehensive treatment, rehabilitation and discharge plans, based on clinical skills and evidence-based practice.
• To evaluate patient progress on inpatient wards against agreed treatment goals and be able to modify plans accordingly.
• To determine a patient’s mental capacity to understand and to gain informed consent for treatment. To work within a legal framework with patients who lack the capacity to consent and are deprived of their liberty.
• To maintain accurate written records using an electronic patient record system and maintain fidelity to professional standards.
• To determine and mitigate for risk of patient and staff harm using the agreed risk assessment frameworks and the Trust’s manual handling policy.
• To demonstrate physical ability to carry out Occupational Therapy assessment and interventions including manual therapy techniques and therapeutic handling.
• To represent Occupational Therapy and/or individual patients at multi disciplinary team meetings, to ensure delivery of co-ordinated care.
• To contribute to the provision of a seven-day service.

Leadership and management

• To be responsible for the competent use and maintenance of rehabilitation equipment and support others in the effective and safe use of this equipment.
• To assist in the supervision, teaching and appraisal of junior staff and assistants.
• To undertake delegated tasks and roles from the team lead and be able to deputise for them on occasions.
• To effectively plan and organise own time, patient caseload, meetings, training and be able to adjust plans as required according to staffing levels and unpredictable factors.
• To assist in the planning of junior staff, students and assistant timetables and deputise for senior staff in organisational duties.

Education and training

• To organise and contribute to the team’s training and education programme.
• To contribute to the education of multidisciplinary groups, patients, families and carers as appropriate.
• To be responsible for individual undergraduate student supervision and practice-based learning.
• To adopt a proactive approach in learning from others within, and outside of the Occupational Therapy profession.
• To be responsible for continuing professional development and maintain a portfolio record to evidence this.
• To maintain contemporary knowledge to apply and maintain best practice in acute and general medicine and rehabilitation.
• To actively participate in the department’s quality improvement and clinical audit programme through the completion of authorised projects
• To implement and maintain evidenced-based practice through continuing professional development.
• To ensure good working knowledge and application of national and local clinical standards