Community Assistant Practitioner

The Norfolk Community Health and Care NHS Trust Diabetes Team is primarily based in West Norfolk. We are a growing, friendly, and supportive team who provide care for people living with diabetes in a variety of settings including clinics, patient’s homes and care settings. We are a team of highly skilled, motivated individuals, each offering their own areas of expertise and we pride ourselves on delivering high standards of care at all times, while embracing change and innovation. As a team we are consistently looking at ways to improve the delivery of care we provide and educational support to other health care providers.
You will work within the Diabetes Team providing knowledge and skills.
You will be managing your own caseload assigned by the Diabetes Specialist Nurse.
The role will include health education to the service users, their families, carers', and other agencies involved in their care management.
The role requires flexible working.
To contribute to the delivery of high standards of health care to patients within their own homes, care homes, the travelling community and in clinics, by assessing, planning, implementing and evaluating packages of care.
To work under the supervision of Diabetes Specialist Nurse to assess and review patients with diabetes to optimise treatment regimes, including but not exclusive to, educating in insulin self-management, supporting assessment through use of Libre device and undertaking diabetic foot checks.
Clinical
**The post holder will**:
Assess patients with straightforward requirements based on predetermined department protocols.
Prepare for, carry out and monitor assessments and treatments in specified clinical areas, and discharge in line with predetermined department protocols.
Modify and progress intervention / treatment using own clinical reasoning, notifying a qualified practitioner accordingly.
Prepare for and develop individual/group activities to meet defined intervention needs.
Monitor patients and promptly alert a qualified practitioner when there are unexpected changes.
Demonstrate problem solving, and contribute to the solution, working with colleagues.
Make basic judgements on patients’ response to prescribed treatment, and report findings to a qualified practitioner.
Plan and prioritise own visits to delegated patients, and ensure these are documented in personal work diary.
Ensure patient held records are completed for each visit, and that SystmOne inputting is completed on a daily basis.
Where there are barriers to understanding, such as hearing impairment, mental capacity impairment and other difficulties in comprehension, explanations require adjustments in order to gain understanding, consent and concordance.
Be required to use tact and persuasive skills in order to gain the patient’s co-operation in their treatment/care/management plan.
Liaise with GPs, Social Services, inpatient teams, other allied health care professionals and the voluntary sector to ensure identified needs are met and care co-ordinated appropriately.
To participate in multi-disciplinary/multi-agency meetings as appropriate, e.g. Gold Standard Framework.
Communicate with patients/carers by exchanging factual information, reassurance, tact and empathy.
Establish and maintain appropriate working relationships with colleagues, patients, carers and other health care professionals.
Demonstrate dexterity and coordination when undertaking treatment of patients where accuracy is important, e.g. taking blood sugars, venepuncture, supervising transfers, passive exercises.
Be responsible for ensuring equipment is used safely, following appropriate training, and that it is maintained appropriately.
Contribute to the requisitioning of supplies and equipment through electronic ordering systems.
Work predominantly independently on specified tasks, with regular clinical support and supervision by a qualified practitioner.
Work with qualified practitioners with group work/clinics as required.
Demonstrate an awareness and understanding of consent, and gain consent as appropriate following department policy.
Share responsibility for maintaining store cupboards, pool cars, cleaning specialist equipment and general house keeping tasks.
Share responsibility for indirect patient contact tasks, such as, answering telephones, arranging appointments, processing referrals and inputting activity data.
Will be exposed to bodily fluids, infected material, blood products on a daily basis, therefore must utilise universal precautions and adhere to infection control policies.
Demonstrate basic IT and standard keyboard skills.
Professional
**The post holder will**:
To be an active member of the in-service training programme by attendance at and participation in staff meetings, training sessions, courses and reflective practice.
To participate in the staff appraisal scheme as an appraisee, maintaining a dynamic personal development plan.
To provide peer support to other carers.
To develop competencies to