Specialist Speech and Language Therapist

Band 6 - 37.5 hours - Permanent

There has never been a more exciting time to join the ISCAN (Integrated Service for Children with Additional Needs) team. As a member of our team you will have the opportunity to be involved in the development of innovative approaches to redesign pathways with the goal of delivering improved care for our children and families across Tameside and Glossop specifically around their speech, language and communication needs.

As a member of the Children's Speech and Language Therapy team, you join an established team of therapists, therapy assistants and be ableto work closely alongside other Allied Health Professionals and nursing staff as part of our ISCAN Service. Within the Speech and Language Therapy Team, you will have the opportunity to develop both clinical and leadership skills within your specialist area, with support and guidance from Team Leaders and our operational team.

Main duties of the job

The postholder:

• Takes full responsibility for a personal caseload of paediatric clients with complex speech sound disorders
• Has a specific interest in Speech sounds disorders and phonological related difficulties in children manages this specialist caseload.
• Delivers a specialist SLT service to the children's workforce including staff in educational establishments.
• Works within local education and health settings, including local schools and colleges and private nurseries.

About us

Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust serves a community of 250,000 people across Tameside & Glossop. We provide a range of quality services both within the hospital and across our community for both adults and children. Our vision is to improve health outcomes for our population and influence wider determinants of health through collaboration with our health & care partners.

We have a clear set of values & behaviours which we expect all of our staff to demonstrate & these are:

• Safety
• Care
• Respect
• Communication
• Learning

We believe that the best organisations are those that reflect the communities they serve. We are therefore seeking to improve the diversity of our workforce to make it truly representative of our local population.

We actively encourage applications irrespective of race, age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, marriage & civil partnership, or pregnancy or maternity. Recognising those communities that are underrepresented within our workforce, we would particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian & minority ethnic candidates, LGBTQ+ & Disabled people.

Benefits include flexible working, 27-33 days annual leave plus bank holidays, sick pay, NHS Pension Scheme, free eye tests and health checks, gym discount, free bicycle loan scheme, salary sacrifice car scheme, support with stress, bereavement, relationships, finance, and much more.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Communications

To work closely and often for extended periods with clients referred for SLT and with their families/carers these clients will have a range of complex difficulties. Some clients will have additional needs such as hearing impairment, learning difficulties, psychological or emotional difficulties. Clients may not have English as their first language and interpreter services will be required.

To communicate to clients and their families/carers information about highly complex communication difficulties, to ensure they understand and consent to assessment and can participate fully in decision making regarding management. This may include giving unwelcome or difficult to accept information e.g. around the seriousness, implications or long-term nature of the difficulty.

To develop and use collaborative styles of working that emphasise interdisciplinary consultation and joint working, such as in educational context and with children with highly complex needs. To negotiate packages of therapy care with clients/carers who may initially be reluctant.

To provide written reports, presenting complex information in a clear and accessible way reports may be provided to carers, schools, GPs, medical consultants and other AHPs. Verbal feedback is also frequently given to other professionals and SLT colleagues

To build and maintain good working relationships and communication with a wide range of other professionals within Health, Education, Social Services and other sectors.

Responsibility for Patient Care

To deliver quality, safe care for all patients To autonomously manage a caseload of paediatric clients which will include children with complex and significant communication difficulties.

To independently identify assessment needs and carry out and interpret appropriate and detailed assessments of complex, specialist speech sound and phonological disorders. To make differential diagnosis on the basis of complex evidence from assessment to assess the wider communication environment for clients e.g. school, home etc. The post holder will work in a range of settings, including clients homes, schools and clinics.

To identify and deliver specialist care plans for highly complex cases, seeking support as appropriate (e.g. team leader), and to use discretion in generating and implementing appropriate strategies for caseload management. To evaluate the outcomes of SLT intervention using measurable, specific outcomes, to review management and adapt care plans accordingly.

To demonstrate reflective practice, reflecting on practice both independently and with peers to demonstrate problem-solving skills in a peer-review/support context and identify own strengths and opportunities for development.

To provide specialist advice to clients, carers, school staff, Allied Health Professional (AHPs), medical staff and others regarding the management/treatment of patients with communication difficulties.

To direct clients/carers to appropriate voluntary agencies and external services for support and information.

To assist patients/service users/carers/relatives during incidental contacts.

Planning and organising

To organise own workload effectively, prioritising tasks and planning ahead by setting both long/short-term goals for children with complex Speech, language and communication needs.

To work with Speech and Language Support Assistants and junior members of staff providing programmes of therapy to be used with individual clients and supervising their implementation.

To organise and plan own day to day workload or activities in order to meet the demands of the job role.

To delegate lesser complex cases to junior members of staff with support and mentoring when needed

Responsibilities for Physical and / or Financial Resources

To monitor and maintain equipment and stock kept for own use this will include test materials and disposables, therapy materials, audio and video recording equipment.

To ensure any equipment or material that is loaned to clients or families is safe, well maintained and appropriately used.

To ensure safe and efficient use of equipment, resources and consumables at all times.

Responsibility for Policy and Service Development and Implementation

To be familiar with and adhere to Trust and departmental policies and procedures, including mandatory training.

To be familiar with and adhere to national and local clinical guidelines. To develop and implement policies and procedures in paediatric speech and language therapy.

To ensure attendance at all mandatory training and to attend regular staff meetings with at least 75% attendance.

To be aware of, comment on and/or actively participate in changes on policies, procedures or service developments.

To oversee development of own specialist pathway, evaluate effectiveness and link in with the whole SALT department and wider MDT working.

To embrace and support line management and the department in making service improvements effective within the workplace.

Responsibilities for Human Resources and Leadership

To be aware of and observe all HR policies and know where to access these. To provide leadership, supervision and management to other members of the team undertaking additional training as appropriate e.g. carrying out PDRs.

To support new or less experienced work colleagues

Responsibilities for Teaching and Training

To act as clinical supervisor for SLT undergraduate students.

To participate in the training and induction of SLTs, assistants/ volunteers.

To deliver and develop specialist training (e.g. AAC training, Speech Sounds training) in settings (nurseries, schools, SLT department) to AHPs, carers, schools staff, childminders etc.

To act as mentor for newly qualified staff and contribute to their RCSLT Competency Framework to provide advice and support to assistants and volunteers.

To offer second opinions and support junior member of staff for more complex cases

Responsibilities for data and information resources

To maintain comprehensive, accurate and up-to-date case notes for clients, adhering to professional and PCT standards.

To undertake data collection as required by the PCT and submit timely and accurate data as required this will include information about patient contacts, caseload figures and activity levels.

Research, Development and Audit

To undertake and participate in surveys/ audits as required by the SLT co-ordinator or manager.

To participate in and submit data for research being carried out by others, e.g. university research projects this is unlikely to be a regular or frequent requirement of the post.

To reflect on own practice, identifying areas of strength and need to be aware of the value of formal clinical supervision and to participate in formal and/or informal supervision.

To keep up to date with emerging evidence bases to support assessment and planning for children with Speech sound disorders To be willing to access specialist training to develop own clinical skills and knowledge

Physical Skills and Effort

To apply highly developed listening and visual observation skills with clients and others in a range of settings, e.g. during structured one-to-one sessions, home visits, working both with direct observation and using audio and video recordings. This will include tasks such as making phonetic and linguistic transcriptions, analysing speech and voice patterns.

To work in a range of settings, including the community and will have to transport therapy and assessment materials, casenotes etc. Limited space will be available in some environments and therapists will frequently be required to sit in awkward positions with children. For some clients, the therapist will need to manoeuvre and position wheelchairs. Carrying and bending are frequent requirements of this post.

The post-holder is frequently required to concentrate intensely for up to 2 hours e.g. whilst assessing clients, carrying out treatment or making observations in naturalistic settings. The post holder needs to be able to actively respond under these circumstances.

The SLT is required to work in non-optimal settings (e.g. in schools and clients homes) where lack of sound proofing, frequent distractions, lack of suitable space make concentration more difficult.

The SLT will work with clients who are experiencing health and social difficulties, and offer support to families and carers in distressing or difficult circumstances such as when giving unwelcome news about a diagnosis, explaining the limits of SLT intervention or discussing the long-term implications of a clients difficulties.

Clients may include children with life-limiting conditions, such as brain tumours, epilepsy etc the post holder needs the ability to cope with bereavements and to support families and carers. The post holder may be involved in child protection or safeguarding issues and to support colleagues in responding to safeguarding issues.

The post-holder will work in a range of settings, e.g. schools, clients homes. Home visiting may expose the SLT to: cigarette smoke, aggressive pets, etc.

The post-holder will do some lone working, and may encounter verbal and physical aggression. Through working with clients with severe behavioural or emotional difficulties the SLT may be exposed to aggressive or inappropriate behaviours.

Travelling around the community will entail time spent out of doors and in inclement weather, e.g. awaiting access to homes/ schools.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

Any attachments will be accessible after you click to apply.

245-AHP6CSALT-05-23