Clinical Nurse Specialist Rapid Response ServiceNHS

Job summary

The Clinical Nurse Specialist will respond to urgent referrals, carrying out rapid specialist palliative care assessments for patients in their own home, developing immediate care/ support plans in relation to patients urgent and unaddressed specialist palliative care needs.

The Rapid Response Service responds to unplanned community palliative care referrals across the Staffordshire St Giles Hospice catchment area. The service currently operates seven days a week between 08:00 and 20:00, with phase two extending provision to 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

The second phase of the Rapid Response Service will entail on a virtual ward comprising 20 virtual beds for patients across our St Giles Staffordshire catchment and in support of our neighbouring hospices.

Main duties of the job

The role will provide clinical assessment, supporting the management of complex care pathways, contributing to audit and service development, and providing staff supervision in line with organisational and professional standards. Referrals may be received from 111/999, GPs, allied health professionals, community, hospice, acute and virtual ward teams, as well as directly from patients, families and carers.

The post holder will work flexibly in the delivery of specialist palliative care and support to patients, families, and carers in the place they consider to be home across the St Giles catchment area, with sensitivity to their changing physical, psychological, social, and spiritual needs, including action within two hours of urgent referral acceptance where required.

To provide rapid access to specialist assessment, advice, and care, working collaboratively with existing care providers and initiating referrals to additional services where these will enhance patient and family support. To communicate, coordinate, and liaise with the patients usual care team, including GPs, District Nurses, and other palliative care services, ensuring timely updates on patient condition, identified needs, and any significant changes, while maintaining accurate and contemporaneous clinical records.

Working autonomously and in collaboration with internal colleagues, along with other community, primary care, acute and virtual ward colleagues, the post holder will support.

Job description

Key responsibilities

Prioritise and triage patients presenting with a range of conditions including palliative, EOL and acute conditions, making any necessary referrals in an appropriate manner.

Support the team in implementing and evaluating personalised care planning, providing individual specialised treatment plans, ReSPECT and advanced care planning for patients.

Support the team in providing specialist palliative care and support to patients and their families in the place they call home, as required and in accordance with evidence-based clinical practice.

Process and interpret pathology and other diagnostic results as required.

Support the team in dealing with clinical emergencies.

Liaise with external services and agencies and the patients usual community teams to ensure the patient continues to be supported appropriately.

Liaise with virtual ward teams to support timely assessment, shared care planning, escalation and safe community-based management where appropriate.

Delegate clinical responsibility appropriately, ensuring safe practice and that the task is within the individuals scope of practice.

Work closely with the St Giles at Home community teams in supporting the needs of all patients under the community services.

General management, supervision, teaching and training

Maintain and develop clinical skills and specialist palliative care knowledge through active participation in caseload management, in-house training, relevant external study days, and continuing professional development.

In conjunction with the line manager, establish and develop effective relationships with internal and external colleagues, agencies, and organisations to promote the clinical services offered by the hospice.

Participate in clinical supervision.

Attend meetings within the hospice as required.

In conjunction with other clinical departments, participate in the delivery of training programmes regarding referral processes and the advice line for hospice staff, external referrers and other interested groups.

Provide cover for colleagues as required and appropriate.

Maintain strict confidentiality in relation to staff, patient, and service information within St Giles Hospice.

Participate in risk assessment and contribute to the clinical and corporate governance agenda as appropriate.

Support and participate in shared learning within the system.

Continually review clinical practices, responding to national policies and initiatives where appropriate.

Participate in the review of significant and near-miss events applying a structured approach.

Participate in regular annual staff performance and development review.

Produce work of a high standard and always promote quality.

Uphold St Giles Hospice policies and its commitment to equal opportunities for all current and potential members of staff and patients.

Keep up to date on all matters relating to St Giles Hospice procedures and policies.

Adhere to the professional standards set by the relevant professional body, ensuring registration remains current and engaging in continuous professional development.

Uphold the Hospice philosophy, which is based on an interdisciplinary approach, and participate fully in this model of care.

Maintain accurate, timely and contemporaneous records in line with professional standards, information governance requirements, consent, confidentiality and data protection legislation.

Recognise and escalate concerns relating to deteriorating patients, urgent symptom management, medication-related queries, risk, safeguarding, or unsafe situations in accordance with Hospice policies and agreed clinical pathways.

Comply with lone working, community working and personal safety procedures where duties require contact with patients, families, carers or professionals outside the Hospice setting.

Demonstrate emotional resilience and seek appropriate support, supervision and debriefing when managing distressing, complex or sensitive conversations with patients, families, carers and professionals.

Work in accordance with the NMC Code, maintain current professional registration, and take responsibility for revalidation and continuing professional development.

Adhere to St Giles Hospice safeguarding policies and procedures, recognising and reporting concerns relating to adults, children, families or carers in line with statutory requirements.

Just so you know:

We may review applications before the application review date, however, if you apply after the application review date, your application may not be considered. We will accept applications until we have successfully filled the role, this may be earlier than the closing date.

If you have not heard within 14 days of the application close date, then please consider that your application has been unsuccessful at this time.

As part of your application your data will be managed in line with St Giles Hospice Privacy Policy and kept for 6 months. If you would like to see this in full, please visit https://www.stgileshospice.com/privacy-policy/

About us

St Giles Hospice is a registered charity founded in 1983 by the Reverend Paul Brothwell, originally to improve the care of local people dying with cancer.

We now support patients, and their loved ones, living with a terminal illness. Our dedicated team provides individually-tailored care, free of charge, either at the hospice or in patients own homes across our communities.

We spend close to £10 million a year providing our specialist services. With less than a quarter of this funded by the Government, we rely heavily on donations and income generation from the local community.