Gym Instructor

The Cavell Centre Occupational Therapy Team are looking for a well-motivated, enthusiastic person to join our team as a full time Band 4 Gym Instructor. This role will be working across our adult inpatient mental health and learning disability wards.

In return you will have the benefit of joining a well-established, supportive, modern, and patient centred Occupational Therapy Team at the Cavell Centre. This post is operationally managed by an Occupational Therapist Advanced Practitioner, with clinical supervision from a Specialist Physiotherapist.

1. Two reasons why you want this job
2. Two reasons why we should hire you for this role
- To provide opportunities for patients within the acute inpatient adult mental health and learning disability wards, to engage in regular physical activity, group exercises and individual exercise programmes.
- To receive referrals for patients, to induct to the gym, provide individual fitness programmes and monitor progress.
- To support the development of an ongoing physical activities timetable for the adult inpatient services at the Cavell Centre, under the guidance of OT & Physio staff.

Cambridgeshire & Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust is a health & social care organisation dedicated to providing high quality care with compassion to improve the health & wellbeing of the people we care for, as well as supporting & empowering them to lead a fulfilling life.

Our clinical teams deliver many NHS services not only via inpatient and primary care setting but also with the community. These services include Children, Adult & Older Peoples mental & physical health, Forensic & Specialist mental health, Learning Disabilities, Primary Care & Liaison psychiatry, Substance misuse, Social care, Research & Development.

Please refer to the attached job description and person specification for full details of responsibilities
- Responsibility for completing gym inductions with patients and staff, ensuring safe and appropriate use of equipment.
- Ensuring referrals have been completed with all required information, prior to any gym induction taking place.
- To be responsible for managing a designated caseload, following referral and instruction, and to organise this efficiently and effectively with regard to clinical priorities and use of time.
- To carry out initial gym and health screening assessments, as required, with indirect supervision.
- The gym instructor will screen referrals for patients to attend the gym for suitability and refers any concerns to line management.
- To assess patients’ level of physical fitness, formulate plans to engage patients in designated exercise programmes and promote the inclusion of these in daily routines.
- To carry out regular reviews of patients’ progress, outcomes of interventions, and develop exercise programmes accordingly.
- Ensuring cleaning schedule in line with infection control policy.
- Carrying out general tasks including routine maintenance and cleaning duties.
- To liaise with outside agencies regarding onward referral for engagement in exercise and physical activity opportunities following discharge from inpatient services, providing a link between the inpatient and community pathways.
- To conduct specialist ward based and sports hall exercise groups, appropriate to specific patient needs and preferences.
- To develop and conduct 1:1 ward-based exercise programmes for individuals unable to engage in group sessions.
- To ensure a high quality of record keeping and document patient’s engagement in physical activity and exercise within individual care plans.
- To organise and deliver physical activity in line with health promotion.
- To be aware, when treating patients, of all physical needs, and liaise with appropriate members of the multi disciplinary team, to address these accordingly, referring to physiotherapy services if necessary.
- To communicate effectively with patients using the skills of motivation to support engagement in physical activity.