Highly Specialist Occupational Therapist (Band 7)

We are looking for an experienced and enthusiastic clinician to join our friendly and exciting team at the Community Post Covid Service (CPCS) in order to deliver services to residents in Haringey, Islington and have commenced delivery of services to Enfield.

You will be expected to have a broad range of experience of occupational therapyand be able to provide advanced clinical assessment and treatment of patients with symptoms relating to Long COVID/Post-COVID-19 syndrome within a biopsychosocial and goal-orientated framework.

Experience of using fatigue management and cognitive rehabilitation is desirable as is delivery of group work across digital platforms.

You will be jointly responsible for providing clinical and therapeutic guidance to colleagues working with people with complex needs, to enable the team to undertake service development, changes of service, practice, and ways of working to enable effective inter-discipline working.

CPCS is a new service that continues to develop and change in line with the growing knowledge base of how best to treat clients using supported self management techniques. We work closely with UCLH Post Covid Clinic and with community teams across NCL.

Main duties of the job

Main duties of the job

Your role of as a Band 7 Occupational Therapist will:

• Provide clinical mentorship/supervision, teaching and support to other members of the multidisciplinary team.
• Participate in and lead on-going service development within the department and other community services/voluntary organisations.
• Take the lead and contribute to service development in line with local, regional and national policy directives.
• The post holder will get the opportunity to develop their skills and expertise working alongside individuals in geographical areas that are rich in cultural diversity.
• The post holder will need to take into consideration highly complex socioeconomic issues impacting on individuals' health and well-being.
• Managing complex cases you will provide specialist assessments, interventions and guidance to support clients with self management strategies.
• You will be expected to supervise junior staff members.
• Support service managers to implement change.

About us

Whittington Health serves a richly diverse population and works hard to ensure that all our services are fair and equally accessible to everyone. Nowhere is this more obvious than in the way we look after our staff. We aim to employ a workforce which is as representative as possible of this population, so we are open to the value of differences in age, disability, gender, marital status, pregnancy and maternity, race, sexual orientation, and religion or belief. The Trustbelieves that as a public sector organisation we have an obligation to have recruitment, training, promotion and other formal employment policies and procedures that are sensitive to these differences. We think that by doing so, we are better able to treat our patients as well as being a better place to work.

Job description

Job responsibilities

CLINICAL

To be professionally and legally accountable for all work undertaken. To work within the standards and guidelines of the team, the Trust, BAOT, HPC AND COT code of ethics.

To independently manage a caseload of complex cases, providing specialist occupational therapy assessment and interventions to clients with complex physical, cognitive and psycho-social needs arising from their medical conditions. To provide this service in the most appropriate setting to the client, e.g. remotely, in a clinic or at the clients home.

Undertake advanced clinical assessment, treatment and evaluation of patients as anautonomous practitioner with symptoms of Long COVID which may include: respiratory, cardiovascular, generalized, neurological, gastrointestinal, musculoskeletal, ear, nose and throat, dermatological, psychological/psychiatric (see COVID-19 Rapid Guideline: Managing the Long-term effects of COVID-19).

Be able to independently evaluate progress and adapt intervention as necessary.

Carry out competent risk assessments when indicated for the psychological wellbeing of patients.

Maintain accurate and up to date documentation for all of patient caseload in interdisciplinary records.

Be highly skilled in effective, sensitive, communication with patients with Long COVID, including discussion of sensitive information with patients and relevant parties. This will also include communication with patients where there is a language barrier.

Be skilled in the management of clients in group settings such as symptom management programmes working closely with other members of the interdisciplinary team.

Act as a resource for other members of the team in symptom management strategies relating to discipline specialty.

Carrying out assessment and 1:1 treatment with clients with complex health, psychological and social needs requiring management of unpredictable situations, a problem-solving approach, empathy and negotiation skills.

Ensuring that activity data is collected regularly and accurately, in line with Trust guidelines.

Be responsible for developing written and multimedia resources in Long Covid for patients and the multidisciplinary team.

Participate in/ lead training in the management of Long COVID/Post-COVID 19 Syndrome within the team, wider Long Term Condition Teams, to GPs and other specialities/community organisations.

Provide expert advice to educational establishments, workplaces and other community resources to promote clients successful (re) engagement in education / work / leisure in the community within appropriate professional capacity.

Support, advise and provide education for patients and their carers as appropriate.

Liaise with Whittington, external statutory and voluntary agencies to maximise engagement in the community. This may include providing advice / joint working on housing, benefits and care plans.

Set a high personal standard of evidence-based practice and maintain up to date knowledge of clinical professional development in the field of occupational therapy and incorporate this appropriately into clinical practice. This involves regular attendance at internal and external training e.g. special interest groups in Long COVID.

Ensure the patients management is goal directed, liaising closely with the multi-disciplinary team to enable effective discharge planning and act as a key worker when allocated.

Participate fully in the interdisciplinary approach to rehabilitation working closely with all disciplines of the team and participating in team meetings and case reviews.

Be an active member of the in-service training programme. Plan, organise and deliver specialist advice and teaching to colleagues, students and other members of the MDT.

Work within Trust and Departmental policies and procedures.

Other Duties:

In conjunction with service leads, establish service priorities and contribute to the development of the service.

Be actively involved in service development through quality and clinical audit.

Contribute to wider audit, clinical governance and research initiatives as required.

Contribute to and participate in effective risk assessment. Provide point of contact for third sector groups and organisations such as local authority benefit and housing teams.

This job description outlines the current main responsibilities of the post. However, the duties of the post may change and develop over time and this job description may, therefore be amended in consultation with the post holder.

We expect the post holder to have a can do attitude and be willing to work in a flexible manner within the MDT to work together to achieve the best outcomes for the service user. The post holder will receive a thorough induction and regular operational supervision.

Person Specification

Skills and abilities

Essential

• Ability to assess and implement appropriate treatment for a range of long term conditions including cognitive, perceptual and behavioural difficulties.
• Able to manage caseload and to prioritise under pressure for self and team.
• Effective discharge planning skills.
• Demonstrate effective communication skills with all disciplines
• Clear, concise verbal and written reporting skills.
• Able to work well within an MDT
• Teaching skills with a range of groups.
• Able to supervise and appraise staff and identify development /training needs.
• Be familiar with Windows based packages, including word and e-mail and willing to use virtual technology such as Attend Anywhere, MS Teams
• Awareness of own competency level and how to seek appropriate help.
• Able to supervise and develop Occupational Therapy students.

Desirable

• Assessment and treatment skills in related fields e.g. fatigue management neurocognitive rehabilitation persistent pain
• Understanding of place and experience of stakeholder engagement and coproduction

Education/Qualifications

Essential

• Degree or Diploma in Occupational therapy
• Registration with the Health Care Professions Council

Desirable

• Member of relevant clinical interest group
• Further study in related area, including post graduate courses relevant to long COVID/Post- COVID 19 Syndrome and psychological approaches to LTCs such as CBT/ACT/Mindfulness

Experience

Essential

• Broad clinical experience in Occupational therapy at band 6 level and ideally band 7.
• Broad clinical experience in working with adults with long term conditions.
• Evidence of staff supervision and appraisal experience
• Experience of facilitating groups.

Desirable

• Experience of working in a variety of settings including community.
• Experience of working with adults with Long COVID/Post-COVID Syndrome
• Experience of working in a psychologically informed way with patients presenting with emotional distress and comorbid mental health problems

Knowledge

Essential

• Knowledge/understanding of confidentiality issues
• Awareness of current NHS issues relevant to Long COVID/Post-COVID Syndrome
• Current occupational therapy practice in the delivery of services to patients with Long COVID/Post-COVID Syndrome or related conditions
• Models of Occupational Therapy practice and application of activity analysis.
• Biopsychosocial models and approaches to helping people living with fatigue, joint and muscular pain, brain fog and shortness of breath.
• Outcome measures and other quality issues e.g. audit.
• Risk management and clinical governance issues.

Desirable

• Advanced knowledge of the audit cycle and its uses.
• Health needs in a multicultural community.
• Knowledge of psychologically informed approaches to physical health conditions such as CBT, ACT & Mindfulness

Other requirements

Essential

• Understanding of the Trust values
• Commitment and adherence to the Equality Act
• Able to work in a flexible way to suit the needs of the service. Represents self and team in a professional manner.
• Ability to travel around the London Boroughs of Haringey, Islington and Enfield as required.

Employer details

Employer name

Whittington Hospital NHS Trust

Address

Whittington Hospital/Remote

Magdala Avenue

London

N19 5NF

Any attachments will be accessible after you click to apply.

220-WHT-2551