NEWHAM CHILDREN'S OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY SERVICE

Band 5 Children's Occupational Therapist : Full-time

Come and join a fantastic community Occupational Therapy Service. Work alongside a team of 22 Occupational Therapists supported by a team of Occupational Therapy Assistants and skilled admin staff.

Main duties of the job

To manage a caseload of children aged up to 18 years with a range of conditions that are impacting on their ability to be able to fully participate and engage in activities of daily living.

To complete assessments, writing individual reports and programmes, implementing groups, providing advice to parents and schools and reviewing outcomes with a functional based focus.

Work as part of the OT service and with members of the wider MDT within Specialist Services for Children and Young People.

To work alongside teaching assistants, teachers, families and carers to achieve outcomes for individual clients, providing support, programmes, ideas, advice and assessment

About us

Our mission is to make a positive difference to people's lives by improving the quality of life for all we serve. Our values are: We Care, We Respect, We are Inclusive - so we are looking for people who live and breathe these qualities when supporting service users and carers, and in their relationships with colleagues in the Trust and our partner organisations.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Please see JD (Job Description) and PS (Personal Specification) for full details of role requirements.

Person Specification

Education/ Qualification/ Training

Essential

• Occupational Therapy Degree or equivalent
• Registration with Health Professions Council
• Maintenance of continuing professional development portfolio

Experience

Essential

• The ability to demonstrate continued learning during student placements
• Experience of a range of student placements

Desirable

• Previous experience of working with children in any setting is an advantage and this may include voluntary experiences
• Post graduate experience in paediatrics

Knowledge and Skills

Essential

• Ability to work and communicate with a wide range of professionals as a member of a multidisciplinary team e.g.: other health professionals, education staff, Social Services and other statutory and voluntary organisations.
• Ability to establish a therapeutic relationship with a client and their carers/families motivating them to participate in the therapeutic process
• Ability to sustain concentration and maintain a pro-active role during the assessment and treatment of a client
• Ability to undertake all aspects of the occupational therapy process
• Ability to conduct an initial assessment on the needs of clients
• Ability to administer and interpret standardised tests relevant to client group when diagnosing specific problems e.g. perceptual and cognitive deficits
• Ability to analyse the assessment information, then devise and implement occupational therapy treatment programmes specific to the individual client
• Ability to review /evaluate treatment programmes and modify them accordingly
• Ability to plan and coordinate treatment to be implemented by others e.g. teachers and education support workers
• Ability to devise and implement discharge plans to ensure a safe and effective discharge
• Ability to use manual handling skills e.g. when positioning or transferring client in preparation for treatment
• Ability to develop and apply specialist knowledge and skills in advising others on the care and treatment of children in relation to the specific specialism
• Ability to carry out therapeutic interventions including gross and fine motor activities using manual dexterity skills and physical stamina
• Ability to demonstrate empathy with clients and their carers/family ensuring that effective communication is achieved, particularly where barriers to understanding exist
• Ability to impart information to clients/ children and their families/carers regarding their medical condition and the occupational therapy assessment and interventions
• Ability to provide emotional support to the client and his/her parents/carers and family in stressful situations e.g. coming to terms with the impact of a new or ongoing diagnosis and it's implications for the child and family on their daily lives
• Ability to manage (initially with support) difficult situations e.g. children who can exhibit challenging behaviours
• Ability to apply safe manual handling techniques to children with complex disabilities
• Ability to work with both individuals and groups in a therapeutic setting
• Ability to prioritise own workload taking into account both clinical and non-clinical elements
• Evidence of good communication skills, both written and verbal, in relation to clinical and other areas of work.
• Ability to reflect and appraise own performance
• Ability to use information technology including emails, Microsoft word, excel and power point and maintain electronic care records, and produce reports for use by others both internal and external to the Trust, e.g. assessment reports, advice on special educational needs
• Knowledge of theory and practice of occupational therapy with a range of client groups
• Knowledge of the principles of clinical governance and its application.
• Knowledge of safe manual handling principles and techniques

Desirable

• Ability to train parents/carers in the safe use of equipment issued to them e.g. seating systems
• Evidence of a good understanding of normal child development and the implications of special needs
• Knowledge of legislation affecting our work with children.
• Some knowledge of the roles of other disciplines and agencies involved in the wider MDT.
• Knowledge of national policies relevant to different client groups

Other

Essential

• Ability and willingness to work on a number of different sites and to work alone within various community locations e.g. schools, children's centres, homes, various clinic settings
• Physically able to undertake assessments, and undertake therapeutic manoeuvers with client group including using equipment and mat work.
• Able to travel independently to community settings around the Borough

Employer details

Employer name

East London NHS Foundation Trust

Address

West Ham Lane Health Centre

84 West Ham Lane

Stratford, London

E15 4PT

Any attachments will be accessible after you click to apply.

363-SS5629871