Overall purpose of post:

The post holder is responsible for the pre-operative anaesthetic and medical assessment of patients being prepared for a variety of surgical procedures.

Provide a comprehensive anaesthetic and medical assessment, including baseline outcome measurement, ensuring that all necessary investigations and results are collated prior to the patient's admission.

Liaise with Anaesthetists/Surgeons regarding potential medical problems and issues regarding surgery. This role will also include appropriate onward referral to primary and secondary care providers to ensure pre-operative health is optimised.

Act as the co-ordinator of care until the patient is admitted for surgery.

• To effectively manage a caseload of patients/clients
• To actively develop evidence based clinical nursing practice in line with current research and guidelines
• To liaise closely with clinic administrators regarding booked admissions, cancellations and DNA's.
• To liaise closely with ward managers, consultant surgeons and anaesthetic staff, nurse specialists, dieticians, therapists, discharge coordinator and MDT regarding complex admissions and patients with potential discharge problems.
• The post involves working across Trust sites in Oxford.

Main duties of the job

Clinical

1. To provide specialist nursing advice and support to patients, their families and other healthcare professionals from point of decision to carry out surgical intervention through to admission.

2. To actively contribute to the reduction of length of stay.

3. To carry out detailed preoperative assessment of elective patients, including initiation of discharge planning procedures.

4. Assist with the development of assessment and referral protocols and guidelines with medical/anaesthetic/nursing staff.

5. Perform and document medical and nursing pre-operative assessment. This includes patient history, health screening and carrying out a medical examination. Give pre-operative advice and support and initiate appropriate referral to other members of the multi-disciplinary team, as part of the patient's surgical pathway.

6. To carry out/ initiate preoperative investigations/diagnostic tests in line with existing pre-assessment protocols & NICE guidance.

7. Exercise clinical judgement and decision making about patients' needs in terms of suitability for surgery, consulting Clinicians as necessary.

See the Attached Job Description for more details.

About us

Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is one of the largest NHS teaching trusts in the country. It provides a wide range of general and specialist clinical services and is a base for medical education, training and research. The Trust comprises four hospitals - the John Radcliffe Hospital, Churchill Hospital and Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre in Headington and the Horton General Hospital in Banbury.

Our values, standards and behaviours define the quality of clinical care we offer and the professional relationships we make with our patients, colleagues and the wider community.

We call this Delivering Compassionate Excellence and its focus is on our values of compassion, respect, learning, delivery, improvement and excellence.

These values put patients at the heart of what we do and underpin the quality healthcare we would like for ourselves or a member of our family. Watch how we set out to deliver compassionate excellence via the OUH YouTube channel.

Job description

Job responsibilities

1. To provide specialist nursing advice and support to patients, their families and other healthcare professionals from point of decision to carry out surgical intervention through to admission.

2. To actively contribute to the reduction of length of stay.

3. To carry out detailed preoperative assessment of elective patients, including initiation of discharge planning procedures.

4. Assist with the development of assessment and referral protocols and guidelines with medical/anaesthetic/nursing staff.

5. Perform and document medical and nursing pre-operative assessment. This includes patient history, health screening and carrying out a medical examination. Give pre-operative advice and support and initiate appropriate referral to other members of the multi-disciplinary team, as part of the patients surgical pathway.

6. To carry out/ initiate preoperative investigations/diagnostic tests in line with existing pre-assessment protocols & NICE guidance.

7. Exercise clinical judgement and decision making about patients needs in terms of suitability for surgery, consulting Clinicians as necessary.

8. To be responsible for following up and reviewing investigation results and alerting appropriate clinicians as necessary.

See Attached Job Description for more details.

Person Specification

Education and Qualifications

Essential

• RGN - Current first or second level NMC Registration
• Evidence of continuing education & professional development
• Teaching /Mentoring Qualification (For band 6)
• Computer literacy

Desirable

• Nursing Degree or working towards

Skills / abilities/attributes

Essential

• Excellent verbal fluency and written communication skills.
• Able to manage difficult situations effectively and to work under pressure.
• Able to prioritise and meet deadlines, working in an organised way with excellent time management skills.
• Ability to plan & coordinate projects to specific timescales
• Effective negotiation skills.
• Interest Highly professional attitude and calm temperament.
• Knowledge of current clinical developments within nursing
• Phlebotomy skilled
• Good use of IT skills

Desirable

• Leadership Potential & Motivational Skills.

Experience

Essential

• Minimum of 3 years post registration experience.
• Ability to analyse complex information, form judgements, weigh risks and provide advice accordingly, often within tight timescales
• Experience of caring for patients undergoing surgery
• Patient assessment/history taking skills.
• Able to work in an environment with frequent interruptions.
• Able to work within stressful and unpredictable situations.
• Demonstrates awareness of delivery of a balanced budget

Desirable

• Post qualification medical and surgical ward experience.
• Recent clinical practice experience in Preoperative Assessment/Anaesthetics
• Experience of working in an outpatient setting

Knowledge

Essential

• Knowledge of relevant surgical specialities and chronic health conditions.
• Knowledge of aims of Preoperative Assessment.

Desirable

• Demonstrates an understanding of the principles of research.

Disposition

Essential

• Passionate about nursing.
• Able to demonstrate MDT working.
• Assertive.
• Team player but also able to work independently.
• Calm under pressure

Desirable

• Demonstrate commitment to departmental and Trust wide initiatives.

Other requirements

Essential

• Flexibility

Desirable

• Ability to travel and work between sites.

Employer details

Employer name

Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Address

John Radcliffe Hospital

Headley Way, Headington

Oxford

OX3 9DU

Any attachments will be accessible after you click to apply.

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