JOB DESCRIPTION Job Title: Reporting to (title): Tissue Viability Nurse Specialist Deputy Director of Nursing - Tissue Viability Professionally Accountable to (title): Responsible for Supervising (if appropriate): Department & Directorate: Director of Nursing Tissue Viability Support Tissue Viability Nurse Tissue Viability Corporate Nursing JOB SUMMARY The post holder is responsible for the development of the highest standards of clinical Tissue Viability nursing practice within MEHT based on the latest evidence based practice. They will act as a highly specialised role model for all members of staff within the Trust. Their role will be to empower all grades of clinical staff to competently assess and manage wounds of varying complexities, healing by both primary and secondary intention. The post holder s role will support all grades of clinical staff in safely and competently managing wound care complications (appropriately involving the Tissue Viability Service as outlined in the Trusts Tissue Viability referral criteria). The post holder will work in collaboration with the Tissue Viability Lead Nurse to review / develop and implement tissue viability wound policies, assessment tools, care planning and management guidelines, in collaboration with all members of the multidisciplinary team. The role requires the post holder to assist the Lead Nurse to assess, identify, and plan the tissue viability training needs of all health care personnel within the Multidisciplinary Team of MEHT. Delivery of various educational strategies will include ward and classroom based teaching, study days and expansion of the MEHT Tissue Viability intranet page (utilising care plans, care pathways, video clips, hot links and any other educational resources.) The successful candidate will play a key role in driving a zero tolerance to hospital acquired pressure ulcers across the organisation and will work in partnership with Ward Managers / Sisters and the Mid-Essex CCG Tissue Viability Nurse Manager to reduce pressure ulcer incidence across the local health economy.
PRINCIPLE DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES Provide expert advice, advanced specialist skills, expert clinical practice and knowledge, utilising best available evidence within tissue viability and wound management. To work in partnership with the Divisional Teams to support other professionals to manage tissue viability and wound management. To assess, plan, implement and evaluate programmes of care, actively seeking evidence based practice, which will improve the quality of care and meet the needs of the patient. To provide support and advice to nursing, medical and therapy staff in relation to tissue viability and wound management. To provide support and advice to patients and their carers relating to tissue viability, wound infection and wound management. To liaise with members of the CCG when relevant, (including responding to Pressure Ulcer Alerts). To work in collaboration with the Tissue Viability Lead Nurse in setting goals and benchmarking standards of care within tissue viability. Develop tools to improve the quality of the service and co-ordinate clinical services across the Department. Work collaboratively with the Tissue Viability Lead Nurse to develop the existing Stop the pressure and campaign to reduce the incidence of hospital acquired pressure ulcers in conjunction with the Director of Nursing Sustain an effective means of capturing pressure ulcer incidence and participate in root cause analysis of incidence. Lead on national and local initiatives directly related to tissue viability - High Impact Actions Essence of Care., Harm Free Care, Safety Thermometer and Safety Express Provide regular reports to inform the Director of Nursing on monthly pressure ulcer incidence and quarterly Pressure Ulcer Prevalence in progressing towards zero incidence of avoidable pressure damage throughout the MEHT. Support the production of relevant reports for the Director of Nursing Work collaboratively with the Tissue Viability Lead Nurse in ensuring all Tissue Viability documentation is maintained to the Trust standard (and available on the Tissue Viability Intranet Page). To network with other Tissue Viability Nurse Specialists throughout the UK, joining the appropriate organisations in order to collaborate, share and benchmark practices and initiatives.
KEY AREAS 1. Communication Working collaboratively with the Tissue Viability Lead Nurse in co-ordinating the Tissue Viability Link Nurse Group to disseminate tissue viability issues through each department within the Trust, through regular meetings and training sessions. Act as an advocate for the patient and their family enabling them to express their needs effectively when dealing with the multidisciplinary team. To deal with complex and sensitive information and be able to communicate this information in a delicate and sensitive manner to patients and their family. Working collaboratively with the Tissue Viability Lead Nurse in providing support mechanisms for sharing good practice within the Wards/Department and Trust wide. Maintain and promote effective communication with all members of the multidisciplinary team and other Wards and Department. 2. People and Self Management Demonstrates advanced professional knowledge and skills for clinical competency and assumes responsibility for own professional development* with the support of the Tissue Viability Lead Nurse and Head of Professional Development. (* e.g. attending leg ulcer professional development courses / degree level modules in Tissue Viability at Maldon / University of Hertfordshire.) To act as a role model and clinical expert, providing evidence based practice for staff and multidisciplinary team members in relation to tissue viability and wound management. To work autonomously, when required, having accountability for decisions made (in accordance with the NMC Code of Conduct). Encourages and supervises other Nurses to develop their clinical skills, assesses advanced clinical competencies and nursing knowledge. 3. Policy Development and Practice Work collaboratively with the Lead Nurse Tissue Viability in developing tissue viability policy s or service development including its practical implementation. When appropriate, participate promptly and effectively with the investigation of Pressure Ulcer Alerts, complaints and serious incidents in line with Trust policy and procedure. To be actively involved in the development of Trust Tissue Viability Policies and Procedures at ward / department level, including their dissemination & implementation.
4. Service Development To ensure the constant provision of effective, high quality care to all patients with compromised tissue viability. To lead in the development of tissue viability related protocols and procedures in conjunction with other members of the multidisciplinary team. To develop the Tissue Viability Service, making changes and ensuring effective adherence to governance requirements. To support the Lead Nurse Tissue Viability in the business planning process, helping to identify areas for service development within tissue viability. Be innovative in widening professional boundaries in Tissue Viability Nursing. To attend conferences and present new findings or developments in tissue viability. 5. Resource Management Assist the ward / department Senior Sister/Charge Nurse in the effective and efficient use of resources by adhering to the procedures for the use of supplies and ordering or accessing of equipment. In collaboration with the Tissue Viability Lead Nurse be responsible for the procurement or maintenance of all physical assets or supplies for Tissue Viability. In conjunction with Directorate Teams and Lead Nurse Tissue Viability, identify, analyse and discuss cost pressure and financial constraints within Tissue Viability. Negotiate with Procurement, Pharmacy, Wound Care Representatives and Suppliers, ensuring appropriate and effective management of wounds and pressure ulcers occurs. Ensuring cost effectiveness and aiding in cost reduction where necessary. 6. Information Management In collaboration with the Lead Nurse Tissue Viability, be responsible for reporting on pressure ulcer incidence and prevalence within the Trust as part of government requirements. To be actively involved in maintaining accurate and quality data. Ensure audit and research findings are disseminated appropriately and recommendations implemented. In collaboration with the Lead Nurse Tissue Viability authors and reviews literature and leaflets for tissue viability and wound management.
7. Research/ Audit In collaboration with the Lead Nurse Tissue Viability & Research and Development Team: Develop research projects pertaining to tissue viability and wound management. Participate in tissue viability and wound management audit, quality assurance activities and research projects. Evaluates and implements findings with the multi-disciplinary team to maintain and improve care. Recommend areas where local audit is needed conduct the audit and analyse the data with support. Maintain an active awareness of clinical and professional developments within tissue viability and to disseminate that knowledge to all colleagues. Be proactive in identifying and recommending relevant areas for research within tissue viability which will benefit patient care. Influence the workplace to have a culture where nursing/allied health professional audit and research are valued and to promote the appropriate utilisation of those findings. Attend and present at tissue viability and wound management conferences. This job profile is not a definitive or exhaustive list of responsibilities but identifies the key responsibilities and tasks of the postholder. The specific objectives of the postholder will be subject to review as part of the Appraisal and Development Plan process. Prevention and control of healthcare associated infections: The post holder is accountable and responsible for the prevention and control of healthcare associated infections and must comply with the standards set by the Health Act 2006: Code of practice for the prevention and control of Healthcare Associated infections (Revised January 2008) Decontamination Each member of staff is responsible for maintaining a safe environment for all patients, visitors and other staff members. This includes ensuring that all instrumentation and equipment is adequately decontaminated before use and the patient environment is clean and safe. Also that hands are appropriately cleaned between each patient. Safeguarding Children and Young People: All staff are responsible for ensuring that they are familiar with and adhere to Mid Essex Hospital Services Trust (MEHT) Safeguarding procedures and guidelines, in conjunction with the Essex Safeguarding Children policies and
Southend, Essex and Thurrock (SET) procedures. All healthcare workers who come into contact with children, parents and carers in the course of their work have a responsibility to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people up to the age of 18 years as directed by the Children s Act 1989/2004. All Health professionals have a responsibility even when the health professional does not work directly with a child but may be seeing their parent, carer or other significant adult All staff are required to attend Safeguarding awareness training for Children, Young People and Vulnerable Adults. Some staff groups will be required to attend additional safeguarding training relevant to their role. This is in line with the Guidance outlined in the Intercollegiate Document (2014) Safeguarding Children and Young People: Roles and Competencies for Health Care Staff. This post will require that the individual has a minimum of Level 3 competencies in both Safeguarding Children and Safeguarding Adults and in addition has completed multi-agency relevant training delivered through Safeguarding Boards Safeguarding Adults All staff are responsible for complying with MEHT Trust policies on adult safeguarding in conjunction with the guidelines established by the Essex Safeguarding Adult Board and SET (Southend, Essex and Thurrock) SAF procedures. All staff are responsible for identifying potential abuse of adults and reporting it accordingly. All staff are required to attend Safeguarding awareness training for Children, Young People and Vulnerable Adults. Some staff groups will be required to attend additional safeguarding training relevant to their role. This is in line with the Guidance outlined in the Intercollegiate document (April 2006) Safeguarding Children and Young People: Roles and Competencies for Health Care Staff. Information Governance All staff must be familiar with and comply with the contents of the Information Governance Handbook, a personal copy will be provided at Induction to all staff All staff are required to maintain confidentiality of patient and trust information as set out in the Trust s Confidentiality Policy All staff are required to read and comply with all policies that are issued relating to the electronic security of Trust information
All staff who create, access, transfer, modify sensitive trust records have a responsibility to be both accurate and timely and ensure that all the information that they record either on paper or electronically is complete For all clinical posts Ensure 100% compliance with hand hygiene and high impact intervention protocols. Demonstrate effective leadership by ensuring all clinical staff, whoever they may be, are aware of their responsibilities in relations to infection prevention and control. Be responsible for ensuring the highest possible standards of cleanliness within the ward/clinical area and ensure all staff are familiar with escalation procedures for additional cleaning. All staff involved in bed allocation are required to undertake an IPC risk assessment for each patient, documenting their assessment on ExtraMed For all posts requiring professional registration You are required by law to maintain professional registration for the duration of your employment and cannot be lawfully employed should registration lapse. Lapsing may render you subject to disciplinary action. You are also required to abide by the codes of professional practice as detailed by the professional body (Nursing and Midwifery Council, General Medical Council, Health & Care Professions Council etc) For all posts that have line manager or supervisory responsbilities You are responsible for managing the staff who report into this position in a fair and non discriminatory manner. All staff that report to this position must have an appraisal once a year as a minimum. You are responsible for ensuring that all staff for which you assume manager or supervisory responsibilities are aware of, and comply with all Trust policies and procedures that relate to electronic security. This will include: - Auditing practice against the most recent policy or instruction and adapting work patterns accordingly. - Ensuring staff compliance with all security related instructions relating to equipment held. Staff Member (Name): Staff Member (Signature): Date:
Manager (Name): Manager (Signature): Date: Terms of Employment Band: 7 Superannuation: Hours of duty: Annual leave: Terms and Conditions of Service: Membership of the scheme is voluntary. You will automatically join the NHS Pension Scheme, but it is possible to opt out and make your own private pension arrangements. Unless notified otherwise all staff will be brought into the scheme, therefore a contribution of 5% to 14.5% of gross salary is payable. The percentage contribution is based on Annual Pensionable Pay. 37.5 hours per week 27 days per leave year (less than 5 years NHS Service), 29 days per leave year (more than 5 years service but less than 10 years NHS Service), 33 days per leave year (more than 10 years NHS Service). This is exclusive of Public Holidays. The NHS leave year runs from 1 April - 31 March NHS Staff Council
PERSON SPECIFICATION Job Title: Reporting to (title): Tissue Viability Nurse Specialist Deputy Director of Nursing - Tissue Viability Professionally Accountable to (title): Responsible for Supervising (if appropriate): Department & Directorate: Director of Nursing Tissue Viability Support Tissue Viability Corporate Nursing Measurement codes: A = Application Form, P = Pre-employment Checks, I =Interview, R = References, AC = Assessment Centre, F = Formal Documentation Essential Criteria How Measured Desirable Criteria How Measured Education & qualifications First level Registered Nurse with the NMC. Degree level education A A Educated to MSc Level or planning to undertake A Specialist Tissue Viability Course A All staff are expected to take responsibility for their own continual personal development Teaching Qualification ENB 998/PG cert or equivalent Knowledge & Experience Evidence of active involvement in the management and reduction of hospital acquired pressure ulcers Experience in change management Evidence of relevant experience working within health care setting managing patients with Tissue Viability needs Relevant post-registration experience at least 2 years as band 6 or above within tissue viability Skills and Aptitudes Leadership skills. Evidence of continuing professional development Proven excellent communication skills both orally and in writing. /R
Flexible to change. Able to prioritise and meet deadlines. Able to use initiative. Demonstrates an awareness of the wider NHS organisation and its service developments. Demonstrates evidence of applying current research to practice /R /R /R Personal Attributes Other Factors Self-belief Self-awareness Driven to improve Personal integrity Reflexivity Able to consistently adopt behaviours that demonstrate a commitment to and understanding of the Trust values to towards everyone who uses or delivers our patient services. Enhanced DBS Clearance P