Health Play Specialist
Job overview
A fantastic opportunity has arisen for a permanent Health Play Specialists to work within the Therapeutic and Specialised Play Service at Royal Manchester Children's Hospital, including Wythenshawe and Trafford Hospitals.
You will be employed as part of the Therapeutic and Specialised Play Service and working hours may change to reflect the department or ward you are linked to, for example earliest shifts 7.30am - 3.30pm, latest shift 11am - 7pm.
The applicant must hold the Foundation Degree in Healthcare Play Specialism or the previous Level 4 qualification. Alongside this they will be required to hold an up to date registration with the Health Play Specialist Education Trust. Alternatively students who are due to qualify in 2025 may apply.
The post holder will play a valuable role in the care of patients within the hospital, improving the patient journey and experience. They should be proactive, flexible and motivated, being able to work both individually and as part of a team.
Main duties of the job
The Therapeutic and Specialised Play Service is a well established team, working throughout the trust.
We strive for high standards of care and work together to ensure our babies, children and young people have positive experiences whilst in hospital. We encourage personal development with yearly objectives, working task groups and relevant learning opportunities.
Working within our team allows for a valuable support network, scope to work in various hospitals and services throughout the trust and opportunities for sharing best practice.
Techniques such as procedural preparation, distraction/diversional therapy and developmental play will be an integral part of the role. The Health Play Specialist will work with patients within the ward or department area, as well as taking patient referrals from a variety of professionals.
They will be working within a multi-disciplinary team including the medical and clinical staff, Allied Health Professionals, the Youth Service, Specialist Nurses and the Focus Support Team.
The post holder will be expected to complete thorough electronic documentation in patient notes, and attend any relevant meetings.
The Health Play Specialist will be part of organising and taking part in patient experience agendas including events and Public Health initiatives.
Working for our organisation
MFT is one of the largest NHS Trusts in England with a turnover of £2.8bn & is on a different scale than most other NHS Trusts. We’re creating an exceptional integrated health & social care system for the 1 million patients who rely on our services every year.
Bringing together 10 hospitals & community services from across Manchester, Trafford & beyond, we champion collaborative working & transformation, encouraging our 30,000 workforce to pursue their most ambitious goals. We set standards that other Trusts seek to emulate so you’ll benefit from a scale of opportunity that is nothing short of extraordinary.
We’ve also created a digitally enabled organisation to improve clinical quality, patient & staff experience, operational effectiveness & driving research, and innovation through the introduction of Hive; our Electronic Patient Record system which launched in September 2022.
We’re proud to be a major academic Research Centre & Education provider, providing you with a robust infrastructure to encourage and facilitate high-quality research programmes. What’s more, we’re excited to be embarking on our Green Plan which sets out how MFT continues to play its part in making healthcare more sustainable.
At MFT, we create and foster a culture of inclusion and belonging, provide equal opportunities for career development that are fair, open, and transparent, protecting your health and wellbeing and shaping the future of our organisation together.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
To find out more about the key responsibilities and the specific skills and experience you’ll need, take a look at the Job Description & Person Specification attachments under the ‘Supporting Documents’ heading. So that you’re even more equipped to make an informed decision to apply to us, you’ll need to take time to read the ‘Candidate Essentials Guide’ that sits with the Job Description and Person Specification.This document provides you with details about the Trust, our benefits and outlines how ‘we care for you as you care for others’. Most importantly, it also contains critical information you’ll need to be aware of before you submit an application form.
Diversity Matters
MFT is committed to promoting equality of opportunity, celebrating and valuing diversity and eliminating any form of unlawful discrimination across our workforce, ensuring our people are truly representative of the communities we serve. All individuals regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation are encouraged to apply for this post.As an inclusive employer, we are here to support you. If you have any special requirements to help you with your application, email our team at [email protected].
We’re looking forward to hearing from you
Person specification
Registration with HPSET
Essential criteria- HPSET registration
- Healthcare Play Specialism, Foundation Degree/Level 4 or qualifying 2025
- Post qualification experience in a healthcare setting
- Experience working with young people
- Experience working with additional needs such as Autism