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Asthma Specialist Physiotherapist

Employer
Portsmouth Hospitals University NHS Trust
Location
Portsmouth
Salary
£33,706 to £40,588 a year
Closing date
1 Jun 2023

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Profession
Physiotherapist, Other allied health
Grade
Band 6
Contract Type
Permanent
Hours
Full Time
Job summary

Are you a physiotherapist looking for a new challenge or professional development? Are you keen to work as part of a dynamic and welcoming team? If so, an exciting opportunity has arisen for an asthma specialist physiotherapist within the Portsmouth Severe Asthma Service.This unique post forms an integral part of the MDT within the dynamic Portsmouth Severe Asthma Service, delivering expert assessment and treatment for patients with severe and difficult to treat asthma. As aTertiary referral centre, the role requires the provision of comprehensive and holistic physiotherapy management to patients with poorly controlled asthma in line with the requirements of the NHS England Severe Asthma Service Specification and the National Asthma and COPD Audit Programme.

This is an exciting opportunity for a Band 5 physiotherapist looking to take the next step in their career, or a Band 6 wishing to develop their knowledge and skills within a highly regarded team. We look forward to hearing from you.

Main duties of the job

You will deliver care in both the in-patient setting and outpatients alongside the asthma nursing and medical team.As an autonomous practitioner delivering clinics, you will assess and treat common co-morbidities in severe asthma, including breathing pattern disorders and cough management. You will also optimise disease control using a variety of specialist respiratory physiotherapy approaches and techniques, with training and supervision provided by a specialist asthma physiotherapy lead. Outcomes of these clinics are presented at the weekly asthma MDT meeting, which is essential in informing decisions and subsequent management of patients with severe asthma.This post is vital in managing the high referral numbers to the service both locally and from tertiary referral sites.

Another exciting opportunity the role offers is to become involved in research which is firmly embedded within the asthma team. Working collaboratively with the respiratory research team ensures all patients are offered the opportunity to participate in research and continues to develop a research culture within the team and PHUT.To date, the asthma team have been integral in the delivery of research projects including ABRS, SCORES, Victory, Propellor and the EMOTIONS study, with the outcomes of these studies presented at National and International conferences.

About us

The Trust is committed to driving excellence in care for our patients and communities and was rated good by the Care Quality Commission report published 2020 and became a University Hospital. We are ranked as the third in the country for research; embedding education and training across the organisation and we continuously strive to achieve our core values which are at the heart of everything we do. The Trusts main hub is the Queen Alexandra Hospital, starting life as a military hospital over a century ago and now one of the largest hospitals on the south coast and you may have seen us on the TV series Nurses on the Ward. The Trust provides comprehensive secondary care and specialist services to a local population of 675,000 people across South East Hampshire. The Trust employs over 8,000 staff and are #ProudtobePHU; our patients come from all walks of life and so do we. We hire great people from a wide variety of backgrounds, not just because its the right thing to do, but because it makes our hospital stronger. If you share our values and our enthusiasm for providing outstanding care and support for patients, colleagues and our community you will find a home at PHU. In recruiting for our team, we welcome the unique contributions that you can bring in terms of your education, opinions, culture, ethnicity, race, sex, gender identity and expression, nation of origin, age, languages spoken, veterans status, colour, religion, disability, sexual orientation and beliefs.

Job description

Job responsibilities

  • To provide specialist care, as part of the Asthma MDT, for patients with asthma, severe asthma and associated conditions to ensure delivery of high-quality, patient-centred care with a focus on education, self-management and personalised care.
  • To work as an integral part of the Asthma MDT in the delivery of a comprehensive systematic assessment for all patients with difficult asthma, in an out-patient secondary and tertiary care setting, in line with the NHS England Severe Asthma Service Specification.
  • To assess and manage common co-morbidities in asthma, severe asthma and associated conditions including breathing pattern disorders and upper airway dysfunction.
  • To initiate, deliver and monitor advanced asthma therapies including biological therapies
  • As an autonomous practitioner to provide a point of contact for asthma patients, their carers and other healthcare professionals to obtain advice, education and support with a focus on admission avoidance and supporting self-management.
  • To deliver an expert and holistic asthma review for patients with poorly controlled asthma requiring hospital admission in line with the requirements of the National Asthma and COPD Audit Programme (including upload of data for the rolling audit programme) and to provide early follow-up reviews for these patients as well as those attending the Emergency Department with asthma attacks.
  • To support the Asthma MDT in the delivery of all NHS England Specialised Commissioning requirements for the Portsmouth Severe Asthma Service including the NHS England Quality Surveillance Programme and the national Severe Asthma Registry.
  • To ensure every patient is offered the opportunity to participate in high-quality clinical research working within a team that embeds research within the clinical pathway.
Delivery of high-quality patient care
  • As an autonomous practitioner ensure delivery of high-quality, patient-centred care with a focus on personalised care and education for patients (and their carers) to support them in the self-management of their condition and recognising changing health needs.
  • Work as an integral part of the Asthma MDT in the delivery of a comprehensive systematic assessment for all patients with difficult asthma, in a secondary and tertiary care setting, in line with the NHS England Severe Asthma Service Specification.
  • Assess and manage common co-morbidities in asthma, severe asthma and associated conditions including breathing pattern disorders and upper airway dysfunction as well as supporting patients to optimise airway clearance and physical activity levels.
  • Review patients with asthma, severe asthma and associated conditions in physiotherapist-led asthma clinics including new referrals to the asthma service, post-hospital discharges and patients requiring close follow-up including those on steroid weaning programmes and pregnant women.
  • Accept referrals to agreed criteria and work across professional boundaries and in partnership with other healthcare professionals to deliver coordinated programmes of care adapting practice to the needs of the asthma service.
  • Support the triaging of referrals to the asthma service and out-patient clinic lists to best utilise available clinical resources.
  • Implement and review changes in treatments for asthma and common asthma related co-morbidities in accordance with local and national guidelines and with the support of medical colleagues.
  • Adopt a solution focused approach and work flexibly to meet the needs of the service ensuring optimal patient care (this may include undertaking clinics at primary care and spoke sites).
The Asthma MDT and delivery of advanced asthma therapies
  • Identify, collect and participate in the evaluation of information at the Asthma MDT meetings.
  • Work closely with the Asthma Administrative team to make referrals to inter-dependent specialties as requested by Consultants and the Asthma MDT as well as triaging clinic lists and arranging necessary investigations prior to clinic review
  • Initiate, deliver and monitor advanced asthma therapies including biological therapies in line with local and national guidelines ensuring cases are discussed at the Asthma MDT meeting where appropriate.
Supporting patients with asthma exacerbations
  • Provide an expert and holistic asthma review, in line with local and national guidelines, for patients with poorly controlled asthma within an in-patient setting (including some Emergency Department attendances) and to support discharge where appropriate.
  • For patients hospitalised with asthma exacerbations this includes the delivery of admission and discharge care bundles in line with the requirements of the National Asthma and COPD Audit Programme (NACAP) incorporating elements of education, self-management planning and inhaler technique.
  • Ensure the upload of data to the NACAP database in a timely fashion (this will be a combined responsibility).
  • Provide early follow-up reviews for all patients with asthma discharged from hospital and the Emergency Department both by telephone and in the out-patient clinic setting.

Working effectively with colleagues
  • Liaise with patients and colleagues in primary and secondary care to ensure robust assessments of treatment adherence and clear understanding of the underlying reasons for this.
  • Create and maintain effective communication between primary/secondary care and the Asthma MDT in relation to patient care always ensuring timely and accurate communication with patients and colleagues.
  • Work with the paediatric services to provide a specialist asthma nurse service for adolescents transitioning into the adult asthma care service.

Supporting patients and their carers
  • Provide a telephone support and assessment service for patients with asthma, severe asthma and associated conditions acting as a point of contact for patients, their carers and other healthcare professionals working in a primary and secondary care as well as other Severe Asthma Centres with a focus on admission avoidance and supporting self-management.
  • Support the wider MDT in the management of complex patients at high-risk of adverse asthma outcomes to ensure timely and appropriate management of these patients (this may include attendance at best interest meetings, case conferences and ward rounds).
  • Facilitate patients and their carers taking an active role in their care. Undertake practice sensitive to the needs of patients, carers and relatives from multi-cultural backgrounds. Communicate in ways that empower them to make informed choices about their health and healthcare.
  • Assess patients understanding of proposed treatments or investigations ensuring valid informed consent and where appropriate working according to local and national guidelines for patients who do not have capacity to consent to treatment.
  • Act as the patients advocate at Asthma MDT meetings particularly around the discussion of treatment options.

Severe Asthma Centre requirements
  • Support the Asthma MDT in the delivery of all NHS England Specialised Commissioning requirements for the Portsmouth Severe Asthma Service including the NHS England Quality Surveillance Programme the national Severe Asthma Registry. This includes the collection and upload of data as well as obtaining consent for upload of data to the national Severe Asthma Registry.
  • Work within the aims and philosophies of the Wessex Asthma Network and to develop guidelines, protocols, integrated care-pathways and educational materials in conjunction with the Wessex Asthma Network.

Maintaining knowledge and competencies
  • Maintain core competencies for the role including being able to perform spirometry (with reversibility testing), exhaled nitric oxide measurements (and other airway inflammommetry techniques), skin prick allergy testing and venepuncture as required for patient care with the potential to develop new skills according to the needs of the Asthma Service.
  • Work within the clinical guidelines of the Trusts and the Chartered Society of Physiotherapists with a good working knowledge of national and local standards and monitor quality of practice as appropriate.
  • Maintain knowledge of the diagnosis and management of asthma, severe asthma and related conditions adhering to evidence-based practice.
  • Keep accurate, legible and timely records of patients care and be professionally accountable for all aspects of your own work including the management of patients in your care.

Management/Leadership
  • Contribute to the delivery of recognised national standards of care for patients with asthma, severe asthma and associated conditions. This includes the delivery of all NHS England Specialised Commissioning requirements for the Portsmouth Severe Asthma Service including the NHS England Quality Surveillance Programme the national Severe Asthma Registry and the adult asthma component of the National Asthma and COPD Audit Programme.
  • Work within competency level with an awareness of personal limitations.
  • Manage clinical risk within your patient case-load
  • Co-ordinate clinical cover and manage the variable and unpredictable caseload of patients on the wards and respond to urgent referrals as appropriate.
  • Initiate change within the team to ensure staff are adequately supported, delivery of service is optimal, and that patient needs are being met.
  • Manage, and help staff to manage, stressful, upsetting or emotional situations in an empathic manner.
  • Take an active role in service development and embr
    Any attachments will be accessible after you click to apply.

    C8192-MD-23-0503

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