Health Care Support Worker

About Us:

The Confederation, Hillingdon CIC works with General Practice and other healthcare providers to deliver its vision for Hillingdon to deliver the best primary care outcomes for patients in the whole of London. We are a not-for-profit community interest company. The Confederation works to develop and support individual GP practices, PCNs and Neighbourhoods and their changing needs. We deliver excellent clinical services ourselves both at scale and complementary to General Practice. We are the provider representative voice for local General Practice into the wider NHS and other Partners. We are of the NHS but independent, innovative and transformational.

The Confederation determines to develop as an attractive place to work, providing rewarding roles and opportunities to grow in order to attract and retain great staff that in turn delivers our vision.

Our Values:

Job Summary

A Healthcare Support Worker will work within a multi-professional team in a GP setting, providing, support, care, and treatment to patients, within guidelines and protocols identified for the role.

Primary Responsibilities

• Supports health promotion and prevention activities across the PCN, including smoking cessation, weight management, and lifestyle interventions
• Plays a key role in vaccination and immunisation programmes within the PCN
• Works within a Multi-Disciplinary Team to support patients with long-term conditions and health inequalities;
• Provides clinical support to registered nurses and other healthcare professionals within the PCN;
• Delivers basic clinical care interventions under supervision, supporting continuity of care and patient safety initiatives.
• Taking and recording Blood Pressure, height & weight
• Performing ECGs and Phlebotomy
• Assisting with chronic disease monitoring
• Conducting health checks
• Assisting GPs and nursed with minor procedures
• Updating patient records and ensuring accurate documentation

Personal / Professional Development

• Post holder must hold a care certificate or work towards one
• Participation in an annual individual performance review, including taking responsibility for maintaining a record of own personal and/or professional development
• Taking responsibility for own development, learning and performance and demonstrating skills and activities to others who are undertaking similar work
• Inform the lead GP of any concerns regarding role and any professional development needed
• Be aware of own professional boundaries and what to do when you have reached them

Quality

• The post-holder will strive to maintain quality within the Practice, and will:
• Alert other team members to issues of quality and risk
• Work to practice protocols
• Assess own performance and take accountability for own actions, either directly or under supervision
• Contribute to the effectiveness of the team by reflecting on own and team activities and making suggestions on ways to improve and enhance the teams performance
• Work effectively with individuals in other agencies to meet patients needs
• Effectively manage own time, workload and resources

Contribution to the Implementation of Services

The post-holder will:

• Apply Practice policies, standards and guidance
• Discuss with other members of the team how the policies, standards and guidelines will affect own work
• Participate in audit where appropriate

Health and Safety/Risk Management

The post-holder will assist in promoting and maintaining their own and others health, safety and security as defined in the Practice Health & Safety Policy, to include:

• Using personal security systems within the workplace according to Practice guidelines
• Identifying the risks involved in work activities and undertaking such activities in a way that manages those risks
• Making effective use of training to update knowledge and skills
• Using appropriate infection control procedures, maintaining work areas in a tidy and safe way and free from hazards
• Reporting potential risks identified
• The post-holder must comply at all times with all local Health and Safety policies, in particular by following agreed safe working procedures and reporting incidents using the organisations Incident Reporting System.
• The post-holder will comply with the Data Protection Act and the Access to Health Records Act

Equality and Diversity

• The post-holder must co-operate with all policies and procedures designed to ensure equality of employment. Co-workers, patients and visitors must be treated equally irrespective of gender, ethnic origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, religion etc.
• Acting in a way that recognises the importance of peoples rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with Practice procedures and policies, and current legislation
• Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs and beliefs of patients, carers and colleagues
• Behaving in a manner which is welcoming to and of the individual, is non-judgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings priorities and rights.
• Acting in a way that recognizes the importance of peoples rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with Practice procedures and policies, and current legislation
• Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs and beliefs of patients, carers and colleagues
• Behaving in a manner which is welcoming to and of the individual, is non-judgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings priorities and rights.

Patient Confidentiality

• The post holder must at all times respect patient confidentiality and, in particular, the confidentiality of electronically stored personal data in line with the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation and in keeping with The Confederation Information Governance Policy and procedures.
• The post holder should not divulge patient information unless sanctioned by the line manager and required for the role.
• In the course of seeking treatment, patients entrust us with, or allow us to gather, sensitive information in relation to their health and other matters. They do so in confidence and have the right to expect that staff will respect their privacy and act appropriately
• In the performance of the duties outlined in this Job Description, the post-holder may have access to confidential information relating to patients and their carers, practice staff and other healthcare workers. They may also have access to information relating to the Practice as a business organisation. All such information from any source is to be regarded as strictly confidential
• Information relating to patients, carers, colleagues, other healthcare workers or the business of the Practice may only be divulged to authorised persons in accordance with the Practice policies and procedures relating to confidentiality and the protection of personal and sensitive data

Communication & Working Relationships

The post-holder should recognise the importance of effective communication within the team and will strive to:

• Communicate effectively with other team members
• Be familiar in all mediums of communications such as email, tasks, telephone etc
• Communicate effectively with patients and carers
• Recognise peoples needs for alternative methods of communication and respond accordingly
• Communicate effectively to outside agencies
• Communicate clearly with their lead GP
• Establish and maintain effective communication pathways at all times with project team members.

Special Working Conditions

• The post-holder is required to travel independently between sites (where applicable), and to attend meetings etc. hosted by other agencies.

Job Description Agreement

This job description is intended to provide an outline of the key tasks and responsibilities only. There may be other duties required of the post-holder commensurate with the position. This description will be open to regular review and may be amended to take into account development within The Confederation. All members of staff should be prepared to take on additional duties or relinquish existing duties in order to maintain the efficient running of the service or function.

This job description is intended as a basic guide to the scope and responsibilities of the post and is not exhaustive. It will be subject to regular review and amendment as necessary in consultation with the post holder.

Person Specification

Essential Criteria

• GCSE Grade A to C in English and Maths
• Has or willing to work towards a care certificate or equivalent qualification
• Experience of coordinating tasks and liaising with multiple healthcare professionals both internal and external to the organisation.
• Experience of using technology and digital tools
• Self Motivation
• Adaptable
• Immunisation Status HEP B / MMR

Desirable Criteria

• Primary Care experience as a Healthcare Assistant, Practice Administrator, or other.
• Experience of working with healthcare professionals and or previous experience in the NHS or social care or relevant field.
• Experience of using clinical systems such as EMIS.
• Full Driving Licence