Physician Associate

**Physician Associate**

**Kendal Primary Care Network**

**Post: Physician Associate**

**Accountable to: Kendal PCN and Morecambe Bay Primary Care Collaborative**

**Reports to: Kendal PCN Support Lead**

**Hours: 37.5 hours per week**

**Salary: £41,659-£45,000 depending on experience**

**Base: The Ferguson Centre, The Gillinggate Centre, Kendal**

**Role**

Kendal Primary Care Network is a network of 3 practices serving a population of nearly 38,000 patients.

This is a great opportunity to develop skills and experience in a team-based, high-quality environment. You will be working with the whole multi-disciplinary team with clinical supervision, to increase access of quality care for patients. The PA will be joining a keen and varied team of clinicians and will be well supported with CPD and on-going opportunities for career development.

The aim of this role is to continue to widen the variety and availability of clinician-based care to patients across Kendal, and improve the delivery and efficiency of patient focused care. The applicant will need to be motivated and enthusiastic to join a team open to ongoing change and development.

Our Physician Associate’s core hours are between 0800 and 1830 Monday to Friday. Some of their hours will contribute towards the PCNs enhanced access clinics - typically a few Saturday surgeries per month or weekly evening hours between 1830 and 2000.

**Responsibilities**
- To participate in all treatment and preventative healthcare services as delegated and agreed by the supervising GP(s).
- To provide first point of contact care for patients presenting with undifferentiated, undiag
- nosed problems by utilising history-taking, physical examination, and clinical decision-mak
- ing skills to establish a working diagnosis and management plan in partnership with the pa
- tient (and their carers where applicable).
- To consult and refer patients to physicians, medical specialists, and other health profes
- sionals as appropriate.
- To contribute to the clinical development of the PCN through appropriate systems to man
- age common chronic medical conditions, ensuring compliance with national guidelines and other quality initiatives as required.
- Dependent on practice need, to support the management of patient’s conditions through offering specialised clinics following appropriate training including (but not limited to) fam
- ily planning, baby checks, COPD, asthma, diabetes, and anticoagulation.
- Dependent on practice need, to be part of the Care Home Team contributing to the im
- proved delivery of care to homes.
- To utilise clinical guidelines and promote evidence-based practice and partake in clinical audits, significant event reviews and other research and analysis tasks.
- To participate in duty rotas; undertaking face-to-face, telephone, and online consultations for emergency or routine problems as determined by the PCN and each practice, including management of patients with long-term conditions.
- To undertake home and care home visits when required, either face to face or via digital technologies.
- To develop and agree a personal development plan (PDP) utilising a reflective approach to practice, operating under appropriate clinical supervision.
- To recommend and explain appropriate diagnostic tests and treatment.
- To request and interpret results of laboratory investigations when necessary, within the scope of ordering investigations appropriate to the PA role.
- To instruct and educate patients in preventative health care and provide health/disease promotion advice, alongside analysing and acting on diagnostic test results.
- To discuss history, examination, and any medication discussions with clinical supervisor, to enable their safe prescribing when necessary.
- To fully document all aspects of patient care on the electronic patient care record and complete all required paperwork for legal and administrative purposes.
- To seek help and supervision when appropriate and work alongside all clinicians within the

MDT to both seek guidance and support other team members as needed.
- To attend practice meetings, learning sessions, group discussions and huddles, or similar as needed.
- The above is only an outline of the tasks, responsibilities and outcomes required of the role. The job holder will carry out any other duties as may reasonably be required by Ken
- dal Primary Care Network.

**Person Specification**:
**Qualifications** **Essentials** **Desirable**

Completed a post-graduate physician associate course (either PG X

Diploma or MSc)

Maintained professional registration with the Faculty of Physician X
Associates and/or the General Medical council following imple
- mentation of statutory regulation, working within the latest code of professional conduct (CIPD).

Evidence of UK Physician Associate (PA) National Re-Certification X
Exam, which needs to be retaken every six years.

Evidence of highly specialist clinical training in relevant areas