Job summary

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a dynamic and enthusiastic individual to join the award-winning Diabetes Team in the role of a Diabetes Specialist Dietitian.

The dietitian will be part of the wider diabetes multidisciplinary team which has a strong commitment to improving standards of diabetes care locally. We are looking for someone with a passion for diabetes and an eagerness to develop their knowledge in this area, providing specialist support and education for patients and their families and other health care professionals.

The role involves working autonomously as well as within the multidisciplinary team across St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals. Training and support will be provided.

We have an excellent staff supervision and appraisal system which supports the development of individuals and their services. You will be encouraged to engage in service improvement projects. We take student dietitians, and the successful applicant will have an active role supporting student training.

Main duties of the job

You will be trained to support several clinical and group education sessions in the specialist area of diabetes, gaining skills and expertise working with patients living with various types of diabetes including type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

The dietetic clinics will include 'Insulin healthy food & lifestyle' for those new to insulin, 'Insulin carbohydrate counting education' (ICE) for those wishing to learn to carbohydrate count, general clinics for patients with diabetes including those newly diagnosed or those with other co-morbidities such as renal disease.

The successful applicant will have the opportunity to work with some endocrine patients providing dietary advice to those with elevated cholesterol levels or reactive hypoglycaemia. All the dietitian clinics are part of a patient pathway so excellent communication skills is needed as you will be working closely with diabetes consultants, nurses, and dietitians. There will also be the opportunity to cover some other specialist areas in diabetes during annual leave such as diabetes antenatal care.

Our philosophy is to keep the patient at the heart of everything we do. We look for people who are committed to being part of a healthcare team that delivers an excellent, caring service to our patients.

About us

St Helens & Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is the only acute Trust in Cheshire and Merseyside and one of the few in the country to achieve OUTSTANDING rated by the Care Quality Commission.

We provide a full range of acute adult services to our local population of circa 360,000 and provide tertiary services across the North West, North Wales, and Isle of Man. We are a Major Trauma Unit and the Mersey Regional Burns Unit.

Our '5 Star Patient Care' strategy is at the heart of what we do; supporting our vision to provide world class services for all our patients by getting it right for every patient, every time.

Our latest achievements include:

• Acute Trust of the Year HSJ Awards November 2019
• Trust rated Outstanding by CQC Inspection August 2018
• Top 100 places to work in the NHS (NHS Employers & Health Service Journal)
• Best acute Trust in the North West for quality of care (NHS Staff Survey 2021)
• Best place to work in the North West (NHS Staff Survey 2021)
• Awarded National Preceptorship Accreditation (2023) for our Nursing & AHP Preceptorship Programme

In the NHS Staff Survey 2021 the Trust scored the highest marks in the North West for the following areas:

• Standard of care
• Best place to work
• Care of patients being the Trust's priority
• Staff engagement
• Staff morale
• Compassionate & inclusive
• Providing safe environments for staff

Please see attached Wellbeing & Benefits booklet for more information on our benefits for staff. Accessible version available upon request.

Job description

Job responsibilities

KEY DUTIES

• To be professional and legally responsible and accountable for all aspects of your own work including the management of patients/clients in your care.
• To ensure a high standard of clinical care for the patients/clients under your care, and support more junior staff to do likewise.
• To undertake a comprehensive assessment of patients/clients including those with diverse or complex presentations/multi pathologies; use specialist clinical reasoning skills and appropriate assessment techniques to provide an accurate diagnosis of their condition
• Formulate and deliver an individual treatment programme using assessment, reasoning skills and treatment skills based on a sound knowledge of evidence-based practice and treatment options. Formulate an initial diagnosis and prognoses in order to recommend best course of intervention and develop comprehensive discharge plans
• To take delegated responsibility from the Band 7 clinician for managing patients/clients with particular conditions and be responsible for providing specialist assessment and treatment plans for patients with these conditions.
• Evaluate patient progress, reassess, and alter treatment programmes as required
• To have the ability to undertake self-directed/lone working in a variety of locations

CLINICAL & PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES

• To maintain Professional Registration
• To work within Trust clinical guidelines, HPC and Registrant Body guidelines and to have a working knowledge of national and local standards and monitor own and others quality of practise against these
• To be responsible for a designated area of work, as delegated by a senior clinician.
• Plan and organise efficiently and effectively patient/client caseload, and use of time for self and more junior staff
• To be responsible for equipment used in carrying out clinical duties, and to adhere to policy, including competence to use equipment and to ensure the safe use of equipment by others through teaching, training, and supervision of practice
• To provide spontaneous and planned advice, teaching and instruction to relatives, carers, and other professionals to promote understanding of the aims of treatment and to ensure a consistent approach to patient care
• To provide specialist clinical advice to colleagues working within other clinical areas
• To provide specialist clinical advice, teaching, and training to other members of the MDT regarding the management of patients
• To train, supervise and performance manage more junior staff and students. This will include the use of formal appraisal documentation
• To communicate effectively with patients and carers to maximise potential and to ensure understanding of their condition
• To assess capacity, gain valid informed consent and have the ability to work within a legal framework with patients/clients who lack capacity to consent to treatment
• To communicate highly sensitive information effectively with all patient groups/clients/carers where there may be difficulties in accepting or understanding information
• To maintain tact and diplomacy and use highly developed communication skills when working in situations which may become hostile/antagonistic including potential complaints as per Trust Policy

ADMINISTRATIVE RESPONSIBILITIES

• To maintain accurate, comprehensive, and up to date documentation, in line with legal and local requirements, and communicate assessment and treatment results to the appropriate disciplines in the form of reports and letters
• To undertake as directed the collection of appropriate data and statistics for the use of the department
• To communicate effectively and work collaboratively with the Multi-Disciplinary Team (MDT) to ensure delivery of a co-ordinated multidisciplinary service. This will include participating in a variety of MDT, internal and external agency meetings, and forums plus, other forms of verbal/written communication as necessary including report writing and referrals to other agencies

TEACHING & TRAINING RESPONSBILITIES

• To maintain own clinical professional development (CPD) by keeping abreast of any new trends and developments and incorporate them as appropriate into your work. To support junior staff to do likewise
• To be an active member of relevant training programmes attending and delivering presentations and training sessions at staff meetings, tutorials, and by attending external courses and being a reflective practitioner
• To participate in the supervision scheme as supervisor and supervisee

LINE MANAGEMENT/SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Delivering change within sphere of practice, when and where indicated, to improve service delivery.
• Influencing, motivating, supporting, and enabling others to contribute towards the effectiveness and success of the Therapy Team
• To provide specialist advice and guidance in working with colleagues locally to ensure best practice across all disciplines in the assessment, treatment, and long-term management of patients/ clients within sphere of practice.
• To deputise for the band 7 in terms of operational issues
• To take responsibility for their own specialist and complex decision making and the decisions of their team which effect service delivery
• To undertake any other duties that might be considered appropriate by senior staff
• To participate in working parties developing policy changes within speciality which will impact on all service users

CLINICAL GOVERNANCE, RESEARCH & AUDIT

• To adhere to the appropriate Registrant Body code of Ethics and Professional Conduct and facilitate compliance of staff with local and national standards of practice
• Implement policy and service development changes as directed
• To demonstrate a sound understanding of clinical governance and risk management and apply to work situation
• To undertake the measurement and evaluation of your work and current practices through the use of evidence-based practice projects, audit, and outcome measures under the guidance of senior staff. Make recommendations for change and to implement change
• To comply with the organisational and departmental policies and procedures and to be involved in the reviewing and updating as appropriate
• To support research activity within the Service
• To engage actively in practice development, evaluation, audit, and research activities relevant to service to promote evidence-based practice

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Degree in Nutrition and Dietetics
• HCPC registration

Desirable

• Clinical Educators Certificate - Student Assessment Skills (SAS training)
• Post Grad accredited study e.g., MSc in relevant health studies

knowledge & Experience

Essential

• Clinical Knowledge relevant to the Care Environment and evidence of Evidence Based Practise in relevant health setting
• Awareness of own strengths and limitations
• Knowledge of relevant National policies and Guidance and relevant Assessment tools
• Experience of line managing a team including setting objectives, conducting appraisals and effective delegation and co-ordination
• Evidence of effective working within an MDT
• Experience of Service development
• Demonstrate experience of problem-solving approaches
• Demonstrates continuous Professional Development

Desirable

• Audit and research in a clinical area
• Knowledge and experience of measuring and reporting on outcome measures

Skills

Essential

• Demonstrates ability to motivate team performance to achieve objectives
• Ability to prioritise and work to deadlines
• Ability to communicate effectively in a variety of settings
• Accurate record keeping, report writing and IT skills
• Any attachments will be accessible after you click to apply.
  
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