Physician Associate

**JOB DESCRIPTION and PERSON SPECIFICATION**

Job Details

**Job Title**: **Physician Associate**

**Salary: £41,659 to £47,672 depending on experience**

**Reports to: PCN Manager**

**Accountable to: PCN Clinical Director**

**The opportunity**:
Cross Gates Primary Care Network includes four practices working across seven sites: Ashfield and The Grange Medical Centre, Colton Mill and The Grange Medical Centre, Family Doctors and Manston Surgery. The PCN has a patient population of 30,000 including patients living across 5 care homes.

We believe in providing a holistic approach to managing patient care and supporting individuals to meet their own needs and aspirations. You will be part of an organisation whose leadership team are supportive and innovative, focused on change and transforming services.

We are looking to expand our team by employing a Physician Associate to work alongside our practices and PCN staff. Our PCN staff currently includes Clinical Pharmacists, Pharmacy Technician, Advanced Care Practitioner, Care Coordinators, Mental Health Practitioner, Nurse Associates, Dietitian and Specialist Dementia Nurse.

**Job Purpose**

As a PA you will be acting within your professional boundaries, providing care for patients from initial history taking, clinical assessment, diagnosis, treatment, and evaluation of their care under the supervision of a GP. You will demonstrate safe, clinical decision-making and expert care for patients within the general practice, in consultation with the duty GP. You will work with the multi-disciplinary general practice team to support the delivery of policy and procedures and meet the needs of patients.

Mentorship and supervision will be provided by designated senior medical personnel. The level and type of supervision will be dependent on the post holder’s skills and knowledge and determined by the organisation’s clinical governance arrangements. You will follow recommended annual appraisals and continuing professional development set out by the Faculty of Physician Associates (FPA). The main scope/purpose of the role:

- To deliver a high standard of patient care using advanced autonomous clinical skills with in-depth theoretical knowledge and evidence-based practice working under the supervision of a GP. The level of supervision will be in line with the post holders experience and will be reviewed on a regular basis to support the post holding becoming an autonomous practitioner.
- To manage a clinical caseload and deal with presenting patient’s needs in a primary care setting
- To actively support the PCN and practices with the delivery of LES and DES contracts achieving QOF and IIF indicators.
- To lead and develop the service of annual health checks for LD & SMI patients.
- To provide clinical leadership where appropriate within the practice and support other members of the team to develop and maintain clinical skills appropriate to your role and expertise.
- To remain flexible to the clinical needs of patients and the PCN services provided for them. The PCN and supporting clinicians will make effort to accommodate your own personal development objectives in pursuing this principle.

**Main duties of the job**
- Provide first point of contact for patients presenting with undifferentiated, undiagnosed problems, utilising history taking, physical examination, problem-solving and clinical decision-making skills to establish a working diagnosis and management plan working in partnership with patients.
- Undertake as agreed surgery-based consultations for emergency or routine problems including management of long-term conditions. In addition, undertake telephone consultations / home visits and participate in duty rotas
- Instigate necessary invasive and non-invasive diagnostic tests or investigations and interpret findings/reports within the scope of a PA’s practice. Discuss the result and implications of laboratory investigations with patients
- Utilise clinical guidelines and promote evidence-based practice
- Offer a holistic service to patients and their families, developing where appropriate an on-going plan of care/support with an emphasis on prevention and self-care
- Refer patients directly to other services or agencies using appropriate referral pathways
- Ensure safe handover of care within and outside the practice as appropriate
- Work directly with members of the practice primary health care team and support integrated patient centred care through appropriate working with wider primary care / social care networks
- Identify community health needs and participate in the development of patient/family-centred strategies to address them
- Contribute to the practice quality targets to consistently achieve high standards of safe, evidence-based, cost-effective patient care and service delivery

**Generic Responsibilities**

**Personal & Professional development**
- Maintain continued education by attendance at courses as deemed essential for professi