Assistant Practitioner

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Assistant Practitioner to join the Nutrition and Dietetic team.

This is a fixed term role until 18th January 2027 to cover maternity leave.

Based in the community you will work in care homes and occasionally small hospitals assessing and reviewing patients who are at risk of malnutrition.

You will be responsible for supporting the use of the Malnutrition Universal Screening Tool (MUST) and promoting food first principles across East Suffolk.

You will focus on improving nutrition, and the quality of life of older people. You will be expected to work with patients on a one to one basis with the ability to communicate nutrition care plans effectively.

You will be involved in running training and education sessions for community staff.

You will be expected to work without direct supervision but under the direction of qualified staff to carry out specific duties in the community. You will receive support and training to meet set competencies.

The Dietetic Team consists of 26 Dietitians and 7 Dietetic Support Staff. We are also supported by secretarial and administrative staff. You will have access to regular supervision and have opportunities to undertake continuing professional development as identified by your training objectives, including work shadowing and tutorials.

We are a well-recognised department for student training in partnership with the University of Hertfordshire and you will be expected to support this programme.

To work without direct supervision but under the direction of qualified staff to carry out specific duties in the community and hospital setting.

To assist the dietitian in the planning, implementation and evaluation of dietetic interventions.

To take responsibility for handover, prioritising own workload and referring to Dietitian where appropriate.

To communicate complex and sensitive information effectively to patients and their carers.

To perform specific interventions as identified by competency achievement including

To monitor and evaluate individualised care plans for patients on nutrition support on a regular basis as determined by department protocols

To promote the use of nutritional screening using MUST and encourage the completion of food record charts and weight charts as required.

To advise on food first and food fortification techniques

We are ESNEFT and we provide hospital and community health services to almost one million people across east Suffolk and north Essex. Our dedicated staff deliver care from acute hospitals in Colchester and Ipswich, community hospitals, surgeries, community clinics and in patients' own homes.

We are one of the largest NHS organisations in England, employing more than 12,000 staff.

We pride ourselves on supporting our staff. We offer a wide range of training and development opportunities, as well as flexible working options.

Along with supporting you to achieve your career goals we offer a generous pension scheme, unsocial hours payments (where applicable), 27 days annual leave on commencement (pro rata) and access to a range of NHS discounts. Our Staff Health and Wellbeing programme offer a variety of services.

Our philosophy is that Time Matters to everyone. Across the Trust, we concentrate on improving the things we do and removing those which cause time delays for our staff and patients.

We are investing in our commitment to Time Matters with a partnership with leading electronic patient record (EPR) supplier Epic. This digital transformation will bring what's widely regarded as the world's best EPR system to ESNEFT, transforming life in hospital for staff and patients.

If you are passionate about patient care and want to develop your skills and knowledge, then we want to hear from you.

Find out about living and working here -

If you require any further information, please contact Sara Hills, Community Team Leader on or email or Catherine Dyson Professional Lead for Dietetics on or email