Neonatal Healthcare Assistant
Job overview
University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust is delighted to offer a fantastic opportunity to work with us.
Southampton Neonatal Unit is looking for highly motivated, enthusiastic individuals to join our friendly Woodland Ward Special Care Team. As we expand our Neonatal service, we are looking for highly motivated individuals who are dedicated to delivering high quality, family integrated care.
Please see below for detailed job description of the role.
Main duties of the job
Nursing staff are responsible for care of the babies at a ratio of 1 nurse to 4 babies. You will be responsible for taking observations, supporting feeding through a variety of methods, providing cares including nappies, looking after intravenous cannulas and fluids, taking blood gases and samples and assisting with procedures.You will help to facilitate and support feeding progression, including breastfeeding. A crucial part of this role is providing family support, you will be required to guide and advise parents in caring for their baby, helping them to bond and empowering them.
This also encompasses emotional support, ensuring the family access the services they require including social care.
Here at UHS we are committed to ‘Always improving’. You will be well supported to further and enhance your clinical skills, knowledge and expertise to develop from novice to expert within neonatal special care nursing. We have a designated education team with an induction programme and supernumerary time.We also create a culture for Quality Improvement through feedback, audit and research.
We are committed to ‘Working together’. Creating a culture of kindness and respect with effective communication within the team. To Inclusivity and diversity, with ‘Freedom to speak up’ champions, creating an open and honest work environment.
Working for our organisation
University Hospital Southampton is one of England's largest acute teaching Trusts, offering a wide range of learning and development opportunities to support your career aspirations.
Located on the south coast with an international airport and direct rail links to London, Southampton offers an ideal setting to live and work, with the New Forest, South Downs and Jurassic Coast.
We believe that using technology wisely shows strong time management and commitment to innovation. However, personalizing your recruitment application to highlight your unique skills and experiences is crucial. Relying too heavily on generic, AI-generated content instead of drawing from your own strengths and accomplishments may lead to your application being rejected if multiple candidates present identical or similar information.
At UHS we’re committed to providing a flexible working environment where possible. Whether you are balancing family, study, or your wellbeing with your career, we want to support you so you can help our patients.
At UHS, we proudly champion individuality, recognizing that outstanding care is only possible with a diverse, inclusive team. We’re committed to creating an anti-racist, anti-discriminatory environment where everyone feels valued, safe, and empowered to make a meaningful impact in our communities.We welcome applicants of all backgrounds, identities, and experiences to join us in building a healthcare community where everyone can belong, thrive, and contribute.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Southampton Neonatal Unit is looking for highly motivated, enthusiastic individuals to join our friendly Woodland Ward Special Care Team. As we expand our Neonatal service, we are looking for highly motivated individuals who are dedicated to delivering high quality, family integrated care.
You will need:
- To provide compassionate support to parents enabling them to care for their baby whilst on Woodland Ward; this includes changing nappies, guidance with feeding, holding, and bonding with their baby, ensuring family and carers are at the centre of everything you do.
- To assist with all aspects of infant feeding via naso gastric tube, to undertake tube feeding and understands the complication of tube feeding.
- To assist with infant feeding development. Provide mothers with information on the importance of breastmilk for their baby and advocating for breastfeeding; this includes support for establishing a milk supply and moving on to breastfeeding. Where mothers wish to bottle feed, support is provided to enable paced responsive bottle feeding.
- To observes and record blood pressure, temperature, heart rate, respirations and colour having knowledge of the normal range and report any variance from normal to the registered nurse.
- To carry out blood sugar measurements, administer oxygen therapy as directed by Qualified nurse/doctor, to care for peripheral I.V. site
- To assist, as delegated, in an emergency, ensuring that assistance is summoned immediately.
- To prepare and maintain medical equipment used in neonatal care, ensuring they are ready for use and are cleaned appropriately.
- To Maintain high standards of cleanliness and infection control across the neonatal unit, ensuring compliance with Trust policies and procedures.
- To Collaborate with all members of the multidisciplinary team within the Neonatal Unit and the Princess Anne Hospital and ensures a team approach to care.
- The ability to recognise personal limitations in your knowledge and competence, acknowledging these to other members of the neonatal team.
- To work within Trust Policies to maintain confidentiality of verbal and written information and ensures that any disclosure is consistent with Statutory and Trust Policy.
- To be open, honest and willing to acknowledge when something has gone wrong. Make timely apologies and take action to report incidents, including near misses; to ensure that as an organisation we learn.
- To continuously seek to reduce harm by speaking up to managers and leaders if you believe that a lack of skills, knowledge or resources places patients at a risk of harm or if your concerns are not being listened to. Managers and leaders must listen to others when they raise concerns and take action.
- To work with all staff providing services to patients and children and are reminded of your responsibility to adhere to Trust and departmental child protection and safeguarding policies including employment checks.
We have 2 clinical psychologists that provide support to staff through self-referral.
Person specification
Qualifications, Knowledge & Experience
Essential criteria- Level 3 qualification in healthcare, e.g. NVQ or equivalent i.e. CACHE Childcare Level 3 or NNEB
- Experience working with Neonates/ paediatrics
- Numeracy and literacy skills at level 2 (GCSE grade C/4 or above) or equivalent as a minimum standard
- Able to demonstrate an understanding of the importance of confidentiality and data protection
- Willing to engage with and learn from peers
- Self-motivated and conscientious
- Aware of personal limitations
- Previous experience in a hospital or community medical setting
- Care Certificate qualification or commitment to undertaking
- Commitment to undertaking additional training corresponding to speciality
- IT Skills
- Evidence of continuous professional development
Values & Behaviours
Essential criteria- Patients First
- Always Improving
- Working Together
Please be advised that this vacancy may close earlier than stated if we receive a large number of applications. We will not accept any applications or queries via agencies, under any circumstances.
For more information about our Trust
https://careers.uhs.nhs.uk
Getting to work - our travel promise
Getting to work should be as easy as possible and that’s why we have introduced the UHS travel promise – a commitment from the Trust that we will provide reasonable travel options for every member of staff. Every member of staff can apply for a permit to use our park & ride facility.Eligibility for on-site parking is dependent on the nature and requirement of the role. All staff can also access a range of discounted benefits relating to travel including reduced price bus tickets, purchase of salary sacrifice bikes and ultra-low emission cars.
Our commitment to equality
Equality remains at the centre of our policymaking, service delivery, and employment practice, giving all employees equal opportunity to develop, apply for promotions, and have working arrangements that enable them to achieve a manageable work-life balance.
UHS actively promotes a work environment free from harassment and discrimination and provides training for managers and staff to ensure this happens. We also closely monitor recruitment activity, training, development, and employment practices to ensure equality of practice with regard to race, colour, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, gender, sexual orientation, disability, marital status and age.
How and why we use your information
The Trust is under a duty to protect the public funds it administers, and to this end may use the information you have provided on this form for the prevention and detection of fraud. It may also share this information with other bodies responsible for auditing or administering public funds for these purposes.
The European General Data Protection Regulations enhances individuals’ rights and safeguards all of their data in place under the DPA.
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