Infant Feeding Team Midwife
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Job overview
Part Time 15 hours per week.
We are recruiting an enthusiastic and motivated Midwife to join our Infant feeding team at MWL. We are an outstanding team of supportive and dedicated Midwifery and Medical staff, helping to further the outstanding 5 star patient care provided by all.The Infant Feeding Midwife will work as part of the Infant Feeding Team under the supervision of the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator. They will support the development and implementation of National and International Frameworks and Standards specific to the speciality in relation to infant feeding to achieve and maintain UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative.
Providing expert advice and clinical practice to all levels of staff and mothers through educational programmes and evaluation of infant feeding practices.
We are looking for a highly knowledgeable professional in the field of infant feeding who can provide valuable information and support to colleagues
An Enhanced DBS with barred lists for both Adults & Children is required for this post
Main duties of the job- To act as a resource for staff in both a hospital and community setting.
- To offer professional advice and support to women attending the Infant Feeding Clinic.
- To provide antenatal breastfeeding workshops for expectant mothers to encourage mothers, prior to the birth of their infant, to consider and make an informed choice on the feeding method they will use.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to develop and maintain a framework in which all professionals are using evidence-based practice in respect of infant feeding
- To provide advice and act as a resource for all professionals, parents and outside agencies in respect of issues relating to all aspects of infant feeding.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to develop and sustain resources for use by staff and mothers that support and promote breastfeeding practices.
- To act as a link with relevant outside agencies e.g., UK Baby Friendly, National Childbirth Trust, La Leche League and Representatives of Suppliers of Breast Milk Substitutes.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to develop and implement an Infant Feeding Strategy / Policies for Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (MWL) and improve care by changing feeding practices and ideals within the Trust.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to work in collaboration with Integrated Care Boards (ICB)
Working for our organisation
Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust serves a population of over 600,000 with a workforce of over 9000 dedicated and skilled staff across 21 sites.
We strongly believe that the communities we serve should all have access to Five Star Patient Care.
Our Services:
Acute Care
Providing emergency and maternity services at Whiston, Southport and Ormskirk hospitals, and medical and surgical specialties across all our sites.
Primary Care
Providing primary care services at Marshalls Cross Medical Centre situated in St Helens Hospital.
Community Services
Providing adult community services for St Helens and a wheelchair service in Chorley, South Ribble, and West Lancashire. Our inpatient unit at Newton Community Hospital is where patients needing acute hospital beds can continue rehabilitation, freeing up space for more unwell patients.We also provide urgent care at our Urgent Treatment Centre located in St Helens town centre.
Specialist Regional Services
We provide the Mersey Regional Burns & Plastic Surgery Unit at Whiston Hospital and the Spinal Injuries Unit at Southport Hospital to more than 4 million people across the whole of Merseyside, West Lancashire, Cheshire, Isle of Man and North Wales.
Achievements:
- Rated Outstanding by CQC Inspection August 2018
- Top 100 places to work in the NHS (NHS Employers & Health Service Journal)
- National Preceptorship Accreditation (2023) for Nursing & AHP Preceptorship Programme
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
KEY DUTIES- To act as a resource for staff in both a hospital and community setting.
- To offer professional advice and support to women attending the Infant Feeding Clinic.
- To provide antenatal breastfeeding workshops for expectant mothers to encourage mothers, prior to the birth of their infant, to consider and make an informed choice on the feeding method they will use.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to develop and maintain a framework in which all professionals are using evidence-based practice in respect of infant feeding
- To provide advice and act as a resource for all professionals, parents and outside agencies in respect of issues relating to all aspects of infant feeding.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to develop and sustain resources for use by staff and mothers that support and promote breastfeeding practices.
- To act as a link with relevant outside agencies e.g., UK Baby Friendly, National Childbirth Trust, La Leche League and Representatives of Suppliers of Breast Milk Substitutes.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to develop and implement an Infant Feeding Strategy / Policies for Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (MWL) and improve care by changing feeding practices and ideals within the Trust.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to work in collaboration with Integrated Care Boards (ICB)
- To act as a resource for parents and thereby improve health outcomes by providing advice, counselling, support, and training in respect of infant feeding for special needs babies both acute and chronic health needs.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to develop and deliver programmes of care including specialist and highly complex advice for babies and mothers in hospital and in the community and record personally generated clinical observations.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to facilitate the drop-in clinic that women can access for infant feeding issues.
- To assist under supervision with investigating incidents, reported via the Trust Datix systems, related to infant feeding such as where babies have been re-admitted with feeding problems and auditing of re-admissions.
- To be responsible for the documentation and record keeping of patients, collecting, and recording breast feeding data and supporting the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to summit the data.
- To provide and support mothers and sick babies experiencing feeding difficulties.
- To give skilled care to mother / baby and the family and be an excellent communicator between parents and health professionals, showing empathy, sensitivity, and reassuring parents at upsetting and difficult times.
- To possess analytical and judgmental skills to assess complex feeding problems and refer as appropriate.
- To work autonomously as a practitioner in the field of infant feeding.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to establish and maintain effective channels of communication with health care professionals, parents and outside agencies.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to identify service needs and priorities in relation to infant feeding and contribute to the development and implementation of the Directorates objectives / business plans.
- To work flexibly to the needs of the role and the service.
- To maintain professional registration with the NMC and fulfil revalidation requirements.
- To abide by the legal requirements and statutory rules relating to practice and to be familiar with all NMC publications this may affect his / her role, responsibilities, and accountability.
- To demonstrate the ability to plan and organise own workload and to work to deadlines.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to organise meetings and plan strategies with ICB.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator in the development of policies / guidelines and to ensure the dissemination to appropriate professionals through communication networks.
- To deputise at midwifery meetings and other directive meetings as part of the team if the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator cannot attend.
- To be fully able to use the Trust computerised systems (once trained) integral to the running of the Maternity Service.
- To maintain efficient multi-disciplinary communication systems within the area of responsibility reporting to the midwifery manager / shift leaders as appropriate.
- To ensure midwifery records are legible, accurate, contemporaneous, signed, dated, and maintained in accordance with Nursing Midwifery Council (NMC) policies and guidelines, and Trust Policies relating to Record Keeping.
- To develop and utilise advanced communication methods and skills, such as negotiating, and empowering language to effectively communicate complex, sensitive, and often distressing information, to women and their families in a way they understand. Employ these skills to effectively address and overcome any barriers and promote an open and honest culture with service users and their families in keeping with the Trust Duty of Candour policy.
- To support and train Peer Counsellors, who can then support breast feeding women in the hospital and in their local communities.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator in designing and delivering education and training to all professionals and students, thereby enabling evidence-based practice, and improving the quality and consistency of advice given to parents by all health care professionals.
- To ensure that they keep up to date with infant feeding developments by attending conferences, courses etc.
- To be responsible for his / her own competence by developing a high level of requisite knowledge, skills, and attitude necessary for the role of Infant Feeding Specialist Midwife.
- To be actively involved in women and midwifery education, which will include the need to facilitate any training needs as identified, providing, and delivering education and training for the hospital and community maternity staff
- To provide infant feeding training and updates for all grades of staff.
- To be personally responsible for ensuring participation in in-service training programmes, including mandatory requirements, and continuing professional development needs as required of a Midwife.
- To facilitate meeting the needs of all learners, by proactively contributing to provide a good learning environment and maximising opportunities in clinical and non-clinical teaching.
- To be a role model for all students, junior midwives and support staff, utilising quality leadership and supervision skills.
- To participate in the mentoring and preceptorship of newly qualified midwives to assist with their development and competency to perform specific clinical and non-clinical tasks.
- To attend mandatory annual updating and maintain competence in respect of Health and Safety, Fire and Resuscitation Procedures and infection control etc.
- To be aware of the Major Incident Policy and drills.
- To contribute towards monitoring and evaluating standards of care and undertaking the regular appraisal of assigned staff, supporting them to receive agreed training, setting clear and achievable objectives appropriate to the grade and role, liaising with the ward manager as appropriate.
- To supervise, delegate and co-ordinate the professional work of midwifery and other staff within the team as directed.
- To act in an advisory and guiding role for all aspects of midwifery care in a sensitive and non-judgemental manner.
- To attend and participate in departmental / team meetings and act as a representative when necessary to other committees / groups.
- To be proactive in the prevention and de-escalation of informal and formal complaints, and the initial management of informal complaints, including reporting to the Ward / Dept Manager / Shift Leader on the initial outcome of actions taken.
- To be fully aware of and act in accordance with the Trust Complaints Management Policy.
- To contribute to and encourage patient and public feedback / involvement at a local level.
- To support the Friends and Family process.
- To proactively contribute towards ensuring a healthy, supportive, team working environment, that enables colleagues to enjoy their time at work.
- To assist and support cost improvement ideas and share these with the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator.
- To utilise resources and supplies effectively and economically, reporting deficiencies to the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator.
- To ensure the effective and efficient utilisation of staff.
- To support the Infant Feeding Co-ordinator to plan and design appropriate audit tools whereby trends in infant nutrition and feeding can be monitored against both local and national standards.
- To participate in research and clinical audit programmes, in order to foster innovative, best practice, and contribute to the development, improvement and advancement of services and quality initiatives.
- To identify audit topics that would improve the service to women and enable learning to be shared.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria- Registered Midwife, with current NMC registration
- Educated to degree level.
- Mentorship module/ENB 997.
- Specific training in breastfeeding / lactation management via an accredited course.
- Tongue tie practitioner or willingness to undertake training to be competent in tongue tie identification and division.
- Unicef BFI Train the Trainer Course.
Knowledge and Experience
Essential criteria- Evidence of continuing professional development.
- Evidence of supporting and enabling mothers to breastfeed.
- Understanding of local, national, and international strategies relevant to breastfeeding.
- Significant experience of supporting mothers in the relevant areas to gender respect from all levels of staff.
- Knowledge of requirements for implementation of Baby Friendly Initiative (BFI).
- Experience of clinical audit / quality issues within the health care setting.
- Experience of undertaking midwifery research and audit.
- Experience of implementing and influencing guidelines and standards.
Skills
Essential criteria- Excellent communication skills
- Excellent clinical skills
- Good computer skills
- Good presentation skills
- Able to demonstrate awareness of research related to midwifery practice.
- Ability to work efficiently on a multidisciplinary basis both internal and external to the organisation.
- Resourceful, and demonstrates an ability to work on own initiative and prioritise work load effectively.
Other
Essential criteria- Evidence of fulfilling PREP
- Flexible approach to working pattern.
- Car owner/access to a car for community rotation with insurance for business use
Thank you for considering an application to work for Mersey West Lancashire NHS Trust. You are part of an exciting and forward-thinking NHS Trust who are one of the best places to work for in England.
Given sometimes we receive a high volume of applications to work for us, please be aware, that we may close a vacancy earlier than stated should a sufficient number of applications be received from which a shortlist can be confirmed. Therefore, you are advised to apply at your earliest convenience.
The Trust may contact you during the recruitment process for your feedback on your experience. We always aim for continuous improvement in our practice.
Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion
We actively cultivate a professional environment of fairness, equality, dignity, and respect for all individuals. We welcome individuals from all backgrounds and value the unique skills, perspective and experience you bring. We are grounded in the belief that diversity enhances our collective strength, fostering innovation and excellence within our workforce.We welcome all applications irrespective of people’s race, disability, gender, sexual orientation, religion/belief, age, gender identity, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy/maternity and in particular those from under- represented groups.
As a Disability Confident Leader, we commit to offering an interview to all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the job (the essential criteria) listed in the personal specification. If you wish to apply under this Guaranteed Interview Scheme, please indicate this on the online application form.
If you are having difficulty completing an online application, or require any disability reasonable adjustments, to the application process, please contact [email protected]
We also commit to offering an interview to all armed forces veterans who meet the minimum criteria for the job (the essential criteria) listed in the personal specification. If you wish to apply under this Guaranteed Interview Scheme, please indicate this on the online application form.
The Trust operates anonymous shortlisting where no personal information about you, including your name or personal details are shared with the recruiting manager. No equality information is shared at any time during the recruitment process with the recruiting manager or other people involved in the decision-making process.
The equality monitoring information you provide is used in the following situations: to review our recruitment practices; where a job is limited to a specific person to verify their eligibility to apply; and to offer disability reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process.
Certificate of Sponsorship
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years.Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
Following the recent update on UK immigration policy for those on a Health and Care Visa or Skilled Worker Visa, please click here to check your eligibility before applying for this post as we may be unable to provide sponsorship.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
If this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Please note if applicable, applicants will be required to pay for their DBS check. Costs are deducted from salary following appointment.
If you have not already done so, you are therefore encouraged to enrol for the DBS Update Service to which a small annual fee of £13 per year applies.
Flexible Working
We actively support flexible working patterns throughout MWL. Changes made to the NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook mean that:
- All employees have the right to request flexible working from day one of employment.
- There is no limit on the number of requests they can make.
- Employees have the right to make requests, have them considered, regardless of the reason.
At Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, we will consider requests for flexible working. We would also encourage you to also discuss flexible working options at interview stage.
Working for Team MWL
Staff recognition is especially important to us; as well as performance reviews and appraisals, we recognise staff through Employee of the month. Along with supporting you to achieve your career goals we offer a generous pension scheme, unsocial hours payments (where applicable), 27 days annual leave on commencement (pro rata) and access to a range of NHS discounts.Our Staff Health and Wellbeing programme offer a variety of services.
The Trust is a non-smoking across all our sites. Failure to follow this rule could lead to disciplinary action. For more information, see the Smoke Free NHS website
You must ensure that your application, including personal statements and behaviour examples, are truthful and factually accurate. Please note plagiarism can include presenting the ideas and experience of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own.
The Trust will not accept applications which are found to be AI generated.
Additional Information
Before applying, we encourage you to review the Trusts Values and Behaviours which are We are KIND, We are OPEN, We are INCLUSIVE, which can be found here.
An applicant guide to help and support you with your application and what to expect during your recruitment journey can be accessed in the supporting documents.
Good luck with your application. We hope to welcome you to Team MWL very soon.