Senior Sister

Job overview

To lead, develop and co-ordinate unit and multi-disciplinary team to ensure consistent safe and effective patient care is delivered within the available resources. Ensuring a visible presence across a full range of clinical every day shifts; role modelling professional standards and being accessible to patients, visitors and staff at all times.

To ensure compliance with legislation and local policies on health and safety, infection prevention and control and environmental risk assessment for the ward; thereby leading the ward team in the prevention of healthcare associated infection and managing risks in the practice environment that affect patient safety.

To lead by example, working with patients and their families to assess their needs, developing and evaluating individualised plans of care and to be accountable for the oversight of all aspects of quality governance, risk management and safety for the unit

Main duties of the job

The unit manager is at the centre of patient care; a clinical expert who leads, manages and educates, thereby improving patient outcomes, ensuring effective team work, delivering high quality care within available resources.

Main duties and responsibilities are, but not limited to;

• Professionally accountable for ensuring safety and quality in the unit.
• Accountable for maintaining own practice as a registered practitioner in line with professional requirements to revalidate tri-annually
• Ensure that knowledge, skills and competencies are up to date for self and others.
• Ensure that all staff who report to you receive annual appraisal and personal development opportunities
• To provide clinical leadership to small team of urology nurses.
• Promote effective communication, keeping the team up to date on local and national strategies and objectives, ensuring a shared commitment to achieving goals.
• Utilise the knowledge and skills of the wider team to promote learning and development opportunities for staff.
• To work collaboratively with Medical staff, clinical nurse specialists, advanced nurse practitioners, service leads and community teams in the delivery of a comprehensive outpatient based urological diagnostic and treatment service
• Review and investigate all Datix reported incidents for the ward, implementing actions to mitigate risk of reoccurrence. Monitor trends and escalate concerns with unit manager.
• To lead by example; demonstrate expertise in all aspects of planning and delivering safe and timely hospital discharge for patients.
• Engage with patients and their families/carer to achieve effective, safe and timely discharge from hospital.
• First point of contact for patient, family and carer feedback about the unit, including positive and negative experiences of care and treatment.

The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust (PAHT) is proud to care for the communities of West Essex, delivering safe, compassionate, and high-quality services. We are part of the Neighbourhood Wavea national programme that's changing how care is delivered by focusing on prevention, early support, and more joined-up services across health, social care, and the voluntary sector.

This means we're working more closely with local partners to bring care closer to home and support people to live healthier, more independent lives.

We're a supportive and inclusive organisation that values its people. We offer development opportunities, flexible working, and a strong focus on wellbeing. As a Disability Confident and equal opportunities employer, we welcome applicants from all backgrounds and experiences.

Join us and help shape the future of care in West Essex.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The unit manager is at the centre of patient care; a clinical expert who leads, manages and educates, thereby improving patient outcomes, ensuring effective team work, delivering high quality care within available resources.

Indicators for success include evidently strong safety culture including high incident reporting and low harm incidents, risks clearly identified on the risk register and known by ward staff, evidence of learning from incidents and complaints/feedback, low staff absence and staff turnover constant with trust target, and improved patient outcomes in terms of infection prevention and control metrics, essential care and other nursing parameters, and patient satisfaction.

The ward manager responsibilities align with the Ward Leaders Handbook Responsible for collaborating with the team to develop a ward strategy that aligns with the Trust vision and strategic direction.

• Professionally accountable for ensuring safety and quality in the unit.

• Accountable for maintaining own practice as a registered practitioner in line with professional requirements to revalidate tri-annually.

• Lead the recruitment, selection, development and retention of the ward team; utilising HR policies and procedures to effectively manage the team.

• Ensure that knowledge, skills and competencies are up to date for self and others.
• Ensure staff are competent to practice safely and effectively.
• Ensure that the ward is performing in line with national and organisational goals.
• Ensure that all staff who report to you receive annual appraisal and personal development opportunities.
• Responsible for the monitoring and management of staff sickness absence, utilising HR policies and procedures to facilitate reasonable adjustments to enable safe return to work.
• Always promote and champion equality, diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
• Utilise HR policies and procedures to address issues related to staff performance; providing coaching, counselling and opportunities for individual development and escalating concerns where attainment of essential skills not met.
• To provide clinical leadership to small team of urology nurses.
• Promote effective communication, keeping the team up to date on local and national strategies and objectives, ensuring a shared commitment to achieving goals.
• Utilise the knowledge and skills of the wider team to promote learning and development opportunities for staff.
• To work collaboratively with Medical staff, clinical nurse specialists, advanced nurse practitioners service leads and community teams in the delivery of a comprehensive outpatient based urological diagnostic and treatment service
• Recognise and optimise the potential by ensuring every team member has regular 1:1 meeting (minimum every 8 weeks), annual appraisal and personal development planning in line with the requirements of the ward and their career goals.
• Maintain compliance with statutory and mandatory training for the whole team, enabling Ward Manager Job Description Final version August 2020 attendance or time out to complete modules.
• Foster an environment and culture for learning within the team.
• Competently provide training and teaching for the team to ensure they have the necessary knowledge and skills to competently deliver their roles.
• Oversee the development of students and learners in the workplace; including undertaking the role of assessor in practice and sign off mentor.
• Recruit, develop and maintain a workforce that are fit for purpose.

• Lead the Being Open process with patients, families and carers; through the application of Duty of Candour.

• Responsible for the safe storage and administration of medicines; investigating all errors and omissions to ensure learning and minimise risks to patients.

• Ensure that you and your team are trained and competent in all aspects of safeguarding.
• Responsible for the application of health and safety legislation and local policies including Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) and provision of First Aid in the ward environment.
• Responsible for ensuring that all equipment is functioning and fit for purpose; decommission and report any faults.
• Ensure staff are suitably trained in the use of all equipment and are knowledgeable about the process for reporting faults and decommissioning all faulty equipment.
• Ensure compliance with all required Care Quality Commission (CQC) standards, taking action to address variation or non-compliance in order that your ward is always inspection ready.
• Undertake self-assessment and peer assessment of all key lines of enquiry (KLOES) in your clinical area and those of your peers, to ensure compliance with the CQC Assurance framework.
• Review and investigate all Datix reported incidents for the ward, implementing actions to mitigate risk of reoccurrence. Monitor trends and escalate concerns with ward matron.
• Ensure escalation of incidents through the Trust governance structure, including formal presentation of incident findings, evidence of immediate actions taken to mitigate risk.
• Promote a culture of learning and improvement within the ward and the wider organisation.
• Encourage patient feedback; manage positive and negative impact of care through formal complaints, PALs or bedside feedback. Be able to demonstrate changes in practice and learning from feedback.
• Lead comprehensive investigations into incidents and complaints, share findings with patients, families, colleagues in the ward and the wider organisation; identifying learning and actions taken to improve.
• Minimise risk of avoidable harm; identify and manage risks in your ward through a range of clinical and non-clinical risk assessments.
• Maintain and update the ward electronic risk register; escalate new or emerging risks within the Health Care Group (HCG) via the ward matron and PSQ team.
• Maintain a clean and uncluttered environment.
• Responsible for ensuring that the clinical environment and all equipment are fit for use; escalating any risks, identifying any faulty equipment and removing it from use until repaired.

• Lead and direct the ward team in compliance and maintenance of IP&C procedures.

• Lead regular audits to assess compliance with cleanliness and IP&C standards including hand hygiene.

• Ensure the safe use and storage of equipment; making sure that you and your staff are competent in the use and decontamination of equipment.
• Ensure personal competence in the use of all relevant information systems to support patient and staff responsibilities (see section 4).
• Produce written reports, improvement plans and correspondence with service users, commissioners and regulators.
• Optimise the use of electronic equipment, invasive and non-invasive procedures to meet the personal and individualised needs of patients.
• Manage allocated budget, complying with the demands of budgetary resources.
• Support the procurement of cost-effective equipment and services, contributing to necessary business cases to support the allocation of capital funds.
• Ensure effective use of temporary workforce; balancing manpower, workload and budgetary implications to achieve the safest and most cost- effective arrangements.
• Develop fit for purpose cost effective staff rosters, utilising the electronic roster system.
• To lead by example; demonstrate expertise in all aspects of planning and delivering safe and timely hospital discharge for patients.
• Engage with patients and their families/carer to achieve effective, safe and timely discharge from hospital.
• Monitor the quality and effectiveness of patient discharge; review ward performance against key performance indicators such as length of stay.
• Facilitate multi professional decision making that leads to timely safe and effective discharge.
• Responsible for ensuring every patient receives all relevant assessments and that staff work with patients and their families to achieve individualised plans of care.
• Ensure patients personal belongings and valuables are kept safe.
• Oversee effective communication with patients and their families; keeping them updated and involved in decisions about their care, treatment and discharge plans.
• Seek ways of receiving real-time feedback from patients and families; review and respond to their views and those highlighted from the FFT and Inpatient survey data.
• First point of contact for patient, family and carer feedback about the unit, including positive and negative experiences of care and treatment.

• Engage with patients, carers and family members verbally, face to face and in writing to resolve issues and concerns and introduce improved ways of working.

• Maintain professional standards for own competence in line with the NMC Code and Allied health professional standards

• Skilled and trained in the delivery of advanced life support.
• Skilled and competent to administer intravenous medicines.
• Committed to providing effective compassionate care to those with dementia or delirium; undertake available training to enhance expertise.
• Clearly articulate the skills and competencies required by your team and facilitate attainment utilising a training needs analysis approach.
• Provide clinical supervision to the ward team and students in placement; actively promote the use of reflection, role modelling and leading by example.
• Promote compassionate and effective end of life care; involving patients, families and carers to achieve individualised plans of care and achieve preferred place of death.
• Provide consistent safe, evidence based and clinically effective care on the unit, every day.
• Keep up to date on findings from research and audit; implementing new ways of working to optimise patient outcome and experience.
• Use a full range of communication methods, including verbal, non-verbal and written to acquire, interpret and record knowledge and understanding.
• Oversee compliance with professional record keeping standards; audit and respond to variable compliance.
• Lead service improvement and implement change on the ward to optimise the quality and efficacy of services.
• Participate in the delivery of quality improvement plans associated with CQC ratings and recommendations.
• Deliver and actively monitor agreed key performance indicators.
• Monitor the outcome of services provided in your ward, respond to any shortcomings.
• Deliver safer staffing requirements; undertake 6 monthly skill-mix review against patient workload; clinical acuity and dependency.
• Lead your team in effectively assessing the changing dependency and acuity needs of your patients; demonstrate a flexible approach to the changing skill-mix requirements on each shift to support Trust wide patient safety demands.
• Attend national nursing events and share learning with peers on return to the Trust.
• Participate in networking opportunities in the Trust and across the wider health and social care economy to enable sharing of ideas and benchmarking practice.
• The unit manager will be expected to utilise all electronic clinical equipment to support patient assessment, care and treatment delivery. Competence in the use of a range of Digital technology