Lead ChaplainNHS

Job summary

We are looking for an experienced healthcare chaplain of any faith tradition to lead our team andto work with us in providing spiritual, pastoral and religious care to patients, relatives and staff. This post will be based in our acute team and will work across our three hospitals (Warwick, Stratford and Leamington Rehabilitation Hospital).

You will join a well-established, creative and committed team in a Trust which is very supportive of the chaplaincy service. The wider team includes over 40 very well trained, active chaplaincy volunteers.

You will be expected to participate in our emergency out of hours on call provision, which also includes call-outs to the Myton Hospices at Coventry and Warwick. We anticipate this to require being on call one night a week and one weekend a month.

For an informal conversation or more information, please contact Rev Ricarda Witcombe, Lead Chaplain: [email protected]

Main duties of the job

The Lead Chaplain is responsible for leading the delivery of multi-faith and belief Chaplaincy services across the Trust.

The Lead Chaplain will work closely with the Head of Patient Experience, Volunteering & Chaplaincy to plan, manage, and improve chaplaincy services, ensuring that patients, families, and staff receive appropriate religious, spiritual, and pastoral support.

They will have management responsibility for healthcare chaplains, honorary chaplains and chaplaincy volunteers and ensure there is an on-call chaplaincy provision out of hours.

The Lead Chaplain with will work within the Council for Professional Chaplains and Pastoral Carers Code of Conduct.

Job description

Communication Skills and Working Relationships

Lead by example through presence, visibility and behaviours of compassion, inclusivity and the values of the Trust. Visit patients and staff in wards and departments regularly and offer appropriate existential/spiritual care as required.

Foster respect and understanding of the religious, spiritual and pastoral traditions and practices of the diverse communities the Trust serves and are represented in the workforce.

Liaise with other healthcare staff so that spiritual assessment and care form part of the continuum of care and attend multi-disciplinary meetings and department meetings as and when attendance is considered necessary.

Participate in disseminating information concerning healthcare to communities reducing obstacles, where religious and cultural considerations are involved.

Ensure the day-to-day continuity of services across all sites and the capability to maintain critical functions in response to unforeseen circumstances, unpredictable workloads, and staff shortages.

Represent chaplains at senior clinical, governance and strategic management meetings, and promote the role of chaplains within the Trust and in wider professional and health service networks.

Inform and influence relevant Trust-wide policies, guidelines and standards through contributing expert knowledge and professional experience.

Provide guidance and assurance to the Trust Patient Experience Group on matters relating to religious, spiritual and pastoral care for patients, families and staff.

Educate and advocate for the value of spirituality in health and wellbeing and the role of chaplains.

Educate healthcare staff in recognising and responding to patients spiritual needs and how to work effectively with chaplains.

Provide training and support to chaplaincy volunteers, students on placement and new chaplaincy colleagues as they join the team.

Ensure an inclusive approach to developing and delivering chaplaincy services

Develop and support a volunteering programme to enhance the experience of chaplaincy care and contributes to the relationship between Chaplaincy and local faith communities and belief groups.

Analytical and Judgement Skills

Prioritise workload of themselves and others, assess performance and provide clear constructive feedback to team members.

Drive professional development and service improvement and foster leadership at all levels to support excellence in patient care and service delivery.

Responsible for a total managed staff of 3.24 WTE

Manage the departments staff to high standards including the recruitment, induction, appraisal and development of staff.

Ensure that all aspects of staff management comply with Trust policies and relevant professional regulations including processes and procedures to ensure that staff are competent and safe practitioners.

Monitor, review and plan the departments workforce to meet the changing needs of the service and the strategic demands of the Trust.

Planning and Organisational Skills

Establish and maintain capable and resilient structures within the department that support staff in the delivery of services and provide clear lines of communication and accountability.

Promote staff wellbeing and chaplaincys 24/7 support in response to spiritual or emotional needs, especially in times of crisis (e.g. bereavement).

Nurture the chaplaincy team, providing opportunities for professional supervision and continuing professional development and training.

Conduct regular team meetings and regular reflective practice within the department.

Co-ordinate pastoral, spiritual and religious care across the Trust.

Make provision for the spiritual//existential/religious needs of all patients, family members, carers and staff, so that all are enabled to continue to practice their faith/beliefs in a health care setting.

Enable the Chaplaincy to act as a pastoral/spiritual/religious/ethical resource to the Trust, seeking opportunities to provide appropriate service and advice within the hospital.

Freedom to Act

Initiate and take responsibility for own work pattern within the parameters of national standards and Trust polices

Management Responsibility

Ensure that the Chaplaincy Service meets all relevant service and professional standards including NHS England NHS Chaplaincy Guidelines and the Council for Professional Chaplains and Pastoral Carers Standards for Healthcare Chaplaincy Services.

Lead the profession in sustainable innovation that is informed by current evidence, diffuses fresh thinking and new ideas, and supports staff in developing best practice.

Support a culture of professional learning, reflexivity, and the continuous development of practice.

Ensure all staff within the chaplaincy service receive an annual appraisal and fulfil the requirements of mandatory training and all other relevant training necessary for safe and competent practice. Appraise directly line-managed chaplains and support their on-going professional and career development.

Demonstrate commitment to own professional development.

Respond to complaints and implement remedial action as appropriate in accordance with trust polices

Responsibility for Patient Care

Be readily available and supportive to relatives and patients, particularly those who are bereaved or struggling with diagnosis, and those who are close to the end of life, to ensure that sensitive, efficient, and appropriate pastoral or spiritual care is given at all times.

Provide specialised advice, and make provision for complex pastoral/spiritual/existential/religious support to patients and their relatives

Respond to the practical and existential needs arising from the impact of illness, death and dying on individuals and families. This includes being part of the teams delivering care to palliative and end of life patients, and those experiencing pregnancy and baby loss at any gestation.

To facilitate, when requested, visits to patients by their own faith leader

To ensure that self and members of the chaplaincy team have the knowledge and skills to act as keyworker, when required, in the event of the sudden unexpected death of an infant or child (SUDIC)

Be a part of the chaplaincy response within the Trusts major incident plans and response.

About us

Come and join a Trust rated Outstanding by the CQC. South Warwickshire University NHS Foundation Trust have been rated as outstanding following our latest inspection by the CQC and we are recruiting new staff to come and help us improve even further. In addition our staff survey results have placed us 4th in the country for recommended place to work.

We provide services across Warwickshire and beyond ranging from Hospitals in Warwick, Stratford-Upon-Avon, Royal Leamington Spa and Shipston-on Stour to Community Services across the county. We are a progressive, expanding organisation with great ambition around improving quality, integrating pathways and delivering high levels of productivity.Our values can be summed up in one sentence. We are 'Trusted to provide safe, inclusive, effective and compassionate care'. Throughout the recruitment process you will be asked to think about how you demonstrate these values and how they impact on your work. It doesn't matter what role you do, whether it is patient facing or not, we are all working in the same way with our values at the core.

As part of our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion we encourage all applicants to complete a short survey. This can be accessed via the link below:

https://forms.office.com/e/ahWY3eAGM2

We appreciate you completing the survey.