Neonatal Transitional Care Nurses

Working on the postnatal ward, but as part of the NICU team and under the supervision of the Neonatal Community Sister

It is a rotational post: based on the postnatal ward and doing one shift per rota on NICU / SCBU as well.

Post holders will have the responsibility of continuing the work of the Trust's journey towards implementing Transitional Care pathway within the unit.

The role's key focus is to facilitate the implementation and evaluation of care pathways within Transitional Care (TC) by keeping mothers and babies together and preventing avoidable admissions to the neonatal unit.

It will involve working with the Inpatient Maternity Matron and Lead Midwives strategically and operationally to meet the British Association of Perinatal Medicine (BAPM) recommendations and Framework for Neonatal Transitional Care in accordance with guidelines. Successful implementation of TC also requires joint working between midwifery, neonatal staff, Neonatal Community Out reach Team ( NCOT) and paediatric services.

The post holders will be responsible for providing care for new-borns who require TC. For example, IVAB therapy, and phototherapy.

The role will involve striving for consistent delivery of high-quality care

This is integral to the philosophy of family-centred care within the maternity unit.

Main duties of the job

In addition to the above, the post holders will be actively involved in midwifery education. The post holders will need to ensure that they keep up to date with Neonatal Transitional Care developments.

Key Responsibilities

Identify deteriorating babies, take the appropriate action to manage the situation, liaising with the multidisciplinary team as appropriate.

Assess care needs, plan follow-up of any babies identified as requiring TC in the postnatal period.

Work with parents/carers to assess, teach, support, and guide them to carry out effective care of the infant requiring a higher level of supervision.

Safely administer prescribed medications.

Develop TC in line with the Trust's guidelines, striving to raise the TC provided in line with the BAPM Framework.

Document TC in the Baby's Maternity Clinical Digital record and ensure appropriate communication with MDT across the maternity pathway.

Responsible for auditing TC care pathways, term admissions and practice against best practice standards and develop regular reporting mechanism to the MDT.

Physical Skills

Deliver core neonatal clinical skills including a range of duties to ensure transitional care pathway and the neonate's comfort at all times.

Educational

Identify training needs and plan training delivery for anyone involved in caring for babies on TC, in collaboration with the Practice Development Team and asoutlined by BAPM framework.

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 any 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 Trust believes that as a public sector organisation we have an obligation to have recruitment, training, promotion and other formal employment policies and procedures that are sensitives 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. needs.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Key Responsibilities

• Offer professional advice and support to women whose babies require TC within the Maternity Inpatient services.
• Identifies deteriorating babies and takes the appropriate action to manage the situation, liaising with the multidisciplinary team as appropriate.
• Work in partnership with the midwives on the postnatal ward
• Works, in partnership with parents/carers to assess, teach, support, and guide them to carry out effective care of the infant requiring a higher level of supervision on the postnatal wards.
• Safely administer prescribed medications and monitor their effects.
• To maintain up-to-date procedures, policies, and guidelines applicable to the service and to write TC reports as required.
• Provide TC with the aim to support mothers as the primary care providers for their babys routine newborn care, including other aspects of care that do not require admission to the Neonatal unit but can be provided on TC.
• To support initiatives towards achieving and sustaining TC in line with the Trusts guidelines, striving to raise the TC provided in line with the BAPM Framework for transitional Care.
• To ensure that the TC service meets Patient Safety Standard No. 4- Demonstrate that you have transitional care services in place to minimise separation of mothers and their babies and to support the recommendations made in the Avoiding Term Admissions into Neonatal units Programme.
• It will also help deliver IEA14 from the final Ockenden report regarding: Neonatal and maternity care providers, commissioners and networks must agree on pathways of care including the designation of each unit and on the level of neonatal care that is provided.
• Support the Neonatal and Maternity in the weekly review of term admissions to the neonatal unit identifying themes and trends which should inform improvement projects.
• To document TC Care in the Babys Maternity Clinical Digital record to ensure that contextual assessment is ongoing, and to ensure improvements in communication with MDT across the maternity pathway.
• To liaise with administrative staff to enter TC Babies admission episodes on BadgerNet and include TC activity in quarterly reports to inform future planning
• To be responsible for auditing TC care pathways so that all babies identified as requiring TC care are able to receive care based on acceptable standards.
• Audit of practice against best practice standards, development of regular reporting mechanism on progress made to the Lead for the service and Maternity Management Team
• To act as a resource for staff in both hospital and community settings.
• To maintain own clinical competency in respect of TC and wider nursing and Neonatal practice, and opportunities for professional development.
• To develop and sustain resources for use by staff and mothers that support and promote TC.
• To maintain an active role in clinical governance initiatives.
• To investigate incidents, reported via the Trust Datix systems, related to TC such as where babies have been re-admitted requiring phototherapy and auditing of re-admissions requiring TC.
• Post holder will be involved in clinical governance processes.
• To have in-depth knowledge and understanding of local and national TC strategies and directives and to disseminate this to Whittington Health healthcare professionals and staff as required.
• To be responsible for the assessment of care needs, plan follow-up of any babies identified as requiring TC in the postnatal period.

Physical Skills

Delivers core neonatal clinical skills which include a range of duties to ensure the neonates comfort at all times, this will include for example:

• Administration of Intravenous injections and IV therapy
• Caring for neonates with Jaundice requiring phototherapy
• Helping to establish feeding in neonates
• Assisting with hygiene needs
• Deliver emergency resuscitation
• Maintain a safe working environment
• Educating parents in resuscitation training
• Delivery of infection prevention and control skills are utilised and adhered to

Educational/ Professional

• To identify training needs for anyone involved in caring for babies on TC with regards to all aspects of TC, in collaboration with the Practice Development Team. Ensure that the effective use of the Trust Mandatory Training database to monitor staff training needs and that attendance is adhered to.
• Identify and devise a plan how to deliver training to staff for other care pathways that should be delivered in TC as outlined by BAPM framework
• To contribute to identifying and meeting own learning needs.
• To Maintain own clinical competency in respect of Neonatal Transitional Care and wider nursing and Neonatal nursing, utilising opportunities and professional development.
• To demonstrate a personal commitment to attaining educational, research and clinical skills and to sharing expertise and experience with colleagues both within the team and from other clinical areas.
• To demonstrate a professional commitment to personal development in line with the clinical area and PDR requirements.
• Participate in the Trusts personal development and appraisal system.
• Participate in clinical supervision/reflective practice, working within the Trusts systems and professional guidelines.
• Is wholly accountable for his/her practice and takes every reasonable opportunity to sustain and improve his/her knowledge and professional competence.

Person Specification

Education and Qualification

Essential

• To be a registered Band 6 Nurse
• Educated to degree level

Desirable

• Ability to do NIPE

Knowledge and Understanding

Essential

• Demonstrates significant Professional Clinical knowledge and experience acquired at Band 6 or above within neonatal nursing
• Understanding of local, national and international strategies relevant to Neonatal Transitional Care (TC)

Experience

Essential

• Significant experience of supporting mothers and newborn babies
• NNU/NICU

Desirable

• Experience of clinical audit/quality issues within the health care setting

Employer details

Employer name

Whittington Hospital NHS Trust

Address

Whittington Health

Magdala Avenue

London

N19 5NF

Any attachments will be accessible after you click to apply.

220-WHT-2578