Specialist Early Years Paediatric Occupational Therapist

Specialist Early Years Paediatric Occupational Therapist Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust

An exciting opportunity has arisen to join the Early Years integrated Physiotherapy & Occupational Therapy service at Sheffield Children's NHS Trust.

Based at Ryegate Children's Centre, you will be a key member of the Early Years team, providing occupation-based early intervention for infants and children from 0 - 5 years of age with physical and / or learning disabilities. The team is experienced, supportive, compassionate and is passionate in providing family centred care to those they work with.

You should have a passion for working with children with disabilities and be a compassionate, accountable individual who treats all colleagues, patients and service users with respect and seeks to deliver excellence in your role. You will share the Trust values and be committed to equality, diversity and inclusion.

Main duties of the job

• To provide a high standard of occupational therapy care as a member of the multi-disciplinary team within the Early Years team, based at Ryegate Children's Centre.
• To provide a specialised and high standard of occupational therapy that includes the assessment, treatment and management of children within the Early Year's Service with children and young people with severe and complex physical and learning disabilities.
• To perform occupational therapy assessments of infants and children presenting with a wide range of conditions and problems.
• To provide a diagnosis of the problem related to occupational therapy.
• To develop highly skilled knowledge in order to deliver an individualised treatment programme for each infant and child.
• To work collaboratively with parents to support their relationship with their infant or child and set goals for therapeutic intervention related to Occupational Therapy.
• To independently manage a personal caseload of children within a defined area of the service or a particular client group, working without direct supervision.
• To undertake all aspects of clinical duties as a developing autonomous practitioner and access the advice, training and support from senior therapists where appropriate.

About us

Sheffield Children's is one of three independent, specialist paediatric hospitals in the country, providing dedicated healthcare for children and young people across community, mental health and acute specialist settings.

We have three overarching aims that set the direction for the Trust in our vision "to create a healthier future for children and young people."

• Outstanding patient care
• Brilliant place to work
• Leader in children's health

Our commitment to rewarding colleagues is demonstrated through our brilliant reward and benefits offer including; generous annual leave entitlement and pension scheme and access to salary sacrifice schemes such as cycle to work and lease cars.

We are committed to supporting colleagues from different heritages and lifestyles while at work. This is supported through the offer we have in place for flexible working and the three equality network groups we have in place. Colleagues are encouraged to join these groups and request flexible working.

Job responsibilities

CLINICAL

• To be professionally and legally accountable for all aspects of own work, including the management of infants and children in your care.
• To undertake advanced clinical assessments of infants and children and use clinical reasoning skills and analytical assessment techniques to provide an accurate diagnosis of the specific problems related to occupational therapy.
• To design and deliver an individualised or group programme of intervention based on sound knowledge of evidenced based practice and treatment options using clinical assessment, reasoning skills and knowledge of treatment options.
• To manage a delegated caseload of infants and children with particular conditions and with appropriate supervision and support, be responsible for providing assessment, treatment and discharge / transition plans.
• To recommend the best course of intervention, taking into account such factors as level of understanding, social circumstances, environmental factors etc.
• To gain valid informed consent and work within a legal framework for patients who lack capacity to consent to treatment.
• To be proficient in the use of a range of verbal and non-verbal communication skills to communicate effectively with young people / parents / carers.
• To possess highly developed communication and interpersonal skills required to ensure the delivery of effective care, taking into account the complex and variety of difficulties presented e.g. age; physical; emotional; cultural; cognitive, social and behavioural.
• To effectively communicate, negotiate and explain the assessment findings and treatment plans in a non-judgmental and considered manner to young people / parents / carers and other agencies e.g. GPs, Consultants, social care and education services which may occasionally include issues regarding child protection.
• To evaluate the infants and childs progress, reassess and suggest changes to treatment programmes as required, monitoring effect using sound measurement and validated outcome measures.
• To manage clinical and non-clinical risk within own case load.
• To work within Trust and RCOTs clinical guidelines, have a good working knowledge of national and local standards and monitor own and others quality of practice as required.
• To be responsible for maintaining accurate and comprehensive patient records in line with local and RCOT standards of practice.

PROFESSIONAL

• To undertake risk assessments on a daily basis, for example; work space, equipment, clients and staff using judgement skills to make the necessary adjustments in line with health and safety regulations.
• To comply with the Health and Safety at work regulations and all other health, safety and security standards in accordance with Trust policies.
• To treat as confidential all information obtained during the course of duties undertaken.
• To participate in the staff performance review scheme, be responsible for maintaining own competency to practice through CPD activities and maintain a portfolio which reflects personal development.
• To attend and participate in the Trust mandatory training plus departmental in-service training.
• To adhere to departmental and Trust policies and procedures.
• To maintain and develop current knowledge of evidenced based practice developing specialist knowledge of particular conditions and patient types.
• To undertake the measurement and evaluation of your work and current practices, through the use of evidenced based practice projects, audit and outcome measures.
• To be an active member of the in-service training programme by attendance at, and participation in formal learning, supervision sessions, peer review / support and external courses.
• To undertake, as directed the collection of clinical activity data for service management and other data for use in audit or research.
• To undertake audit and research into specific areas of clinical practice and service delivery using a range of methodologies as part of multi-disciplinary audit / research and departmental initiatives.
• To be actively involved in professional clinical groups such as the journal club, action learning set, CYPF-SS interest groups and other professional development activities.

ORGANISATIONAL

• To be responsible for the supervision and delegation of appropriate tasks to more junior staff, assistants and students.
• To ensure that your own practice and that of any staff / students under your supervision meets the required professional standards, including HCPC and RCOT rules of professional conduct.
• To deputise for Advanced Occupational Therapists or Physiotherapists in their absence, taking responsibility for operational management of the area to meet service priorities on a daily basis.
• To be responsible for organising and planning own caseload to meet service and patient priorities, readjusting plans as situations change / arise.
• To contribute to the development, implementation and promotion of departmental and Trust policies and procedures.
• To ensure effective use of time, resources and organisational skills in order to promote an organised and efficient working environment

Inclusive Recruitment & Selection

We are committed to being an inclusive employer and accurate data capture is an important part of that to ensure we are supportive and representative. Our aim is to ensure that all applicants can see themselves in the available categories on our application form, but we recognise that some of our data capture fields are not inclusive. We have flagged this with our system provider to ask for change.

We offer encouragement and active support to applicants with additional needs, including those from ethnic minorities, with disabilities and members of the LGBTQ+ community. If you wish to adjust any aspect of the recruitment process or wish to find out more about our recruitment & selection processes, please get in touch with our Recruitment Manager: Catherine.Gilbert7@nhs.net

We are continually reviewing our recruitment & selection process to support the long-term aim of Sheffield Childrens being a champion of Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion. If you have any ideas for improvement, please get in touch with Catherine Gilbert at Catherine.Gilbert7@nhs.net

Trust Values

The Trust is committed to providing great quality patient care and keep children, young people and families at the heart of what we do by following our CARE values:

Compassion leading by kindness and showing empathy, understanding and respect

Accountability striving to do the right thing and owning responsibility

Respect value differences, tackling inequality and fostering a culture of inclusion

Excellence delivering a high-quality standard of care

Person Specification Experience

• Variety of significant and relevant experience to include and a working knowledge of a broad variety of conditions
• Experience of normal child development
• Significant and relevant post-graduate occupational therapy experience
• Experience of working as part of a multi-disciplinary team.
• Paediatric experience in one or more different settings e.g. child development centre and community.
• Experience of parent / child relationship and complex family dynamics
• Upper limb thermoplastic splinting.
• Involvement in audit, research or service evaluation.

knowledge and Skills

• Understanding of the legal responsibilities of the profession.
• Knowledge of clinical governance and it's implications for services
• Understanding of family / team dynamics and how to develop working relationships with all involved in the child's care.
• Understanding of the impact of disability / hospitalisation on children and their families.
• Understanding of data protection, confidentiality and health and safety requirements in meeting the needs of the child and family.
• Ability to present information, written and verbal in a clear and logical manner.
• Ability to organise, prioritise and delegate appropriately.
• Ability to keep accurate and legible clinical records.
• Ability to cope working in a stressful environment and within emotional or challenging situations.
• Problem solving approach
• Ability to communicate effectively and work well within a multi-professional team.
• Knowledge of consent issues specific to paediatrics.
• Simple research methodology.
• Ability to organise internal / external courses.

Personal Attributes

• High level of interpersonal skills.
• Physically able to perform the duties of the job which includes manual handling.
• Reliable, punctual, flexible.
• Attitude and desire to learn
• Access to a car for commuting between homes and schools around the city, and delivering small pieces of therapy equipment. Evidence of car insurance for this activity.

Qualifications and Training

• HCPC registration
• Diploma / Degree in Occupational Therapy.
• Evidence of CPD maintained in a portfolio including attendance at recent, relevant postgraduate courses and in-service training.
• Portfolio evidence of reflective practice.
• Demonstration of interest in infants and children through training
• Membership of the RCOT.
• Involvement in RCOT special interest groups.

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.

Sheffield Children’s NHS Foundation Trust

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