End of Life Facilitator - Clinical Nurse Specialist
Job overview
As a registered nurse and degree holder, you will have proven experience working in supportive/palliative care and/or oncology, demonstrated by relevant qualifications.
To undertake and evaluate the effectiveness of generic and specialist end of life and bereavement care interventions which are consistent with evidence based practice, whilst transferring and applying knowledge and skills to meet the patients’ needs.
You will also be a non-medical prescriber (or be willing to work towards this) which will enhance autonomous clinical decision making and practice and be part of our out of hours service.
This post is also to facilitate palliative, end of life care and bereavement support teaching within the Trust.
Main duties of the job
To undertake and evaluate the effectiveness of generic and specialist end of life and bereavement care interventions which are consistent with evidence based practice, whilst transferring and applying knowledge and skills to meet the patients’ needs.
To evaluate palliative care & end of life teaching currently being carried out by the supportive care team, and to assess if any areas of palliative & end of life care are not being addressed.
Independently deliver significant news to patients with complex psychological needs and support both patients and their carers. Demonstrate advanced communication skills when dealing with difficult or challenging situations.
Manage clinical caseload, prioritising patient need across in-patient and out-patient settings to enable rapid response to referrals for urgent advice.
To actively lead on service development, education, research and audit and provide mentorship to relevant staff.
To discuss and agree short, medium or long term goals for bereavement care, prioritize and develop plans with the multi-professional team.
We will offer you an environment where you will be encouraged and supported in making a real difference to the delivery of patient care
Working for our organisation
The Christie is one of Europe’s leading cancer centres, treating over 60,000 patients a year. We are based in Manchester and serve a population of 3.2 million across Greater Manchester & Cheshire, but as a national specialist around 15% patients are referred to us from other parts of the country.
We provide radiotherapy through one of the largest radiotherapy departments in the world; chemotherapy on site and through 14 other hospitals; highly specialist surgery for complex and rare cancer; and a wide range of support and diagnostic services.We are also an international leader in research, with world first breakthroughs for over 100 years.
We run one of the largest early clinical trial units in Europe with over 300 trials every year. Cancer research in Manchester, most of which is undertaken on the Christie site, has been officially ranked the best in the UK.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Clinical Responsibilities- To undertake and demonstrate expert clinical knowledge and advanced skills for the management of patients with complex and intractable problems through direct clinical input.
- To provide clinical advice regarding end of life care to clinical staff, patients and their families/carers.
Discuss and agree with colleagues end of life and bereavement assessment and care delivery processes incorporating current practice, evidence base, future trends and developments in care, timeliness of interventions and their related risks.
To undertake and evaluate the effectiveness of generic and specialist end of life and bereavement care interventions which are consistent with evidence based practice, whilst transferring and applying knowledge and skills to meet the patients’ needs.
To monitor the effectiveness of the end of life and bereavement care programs and renegotiate/redesign where indicated to meet patient and carer needs.
To explain clearly to staff the benefits and risks of different end of life and bereavement care interventions, the alternative approaches available and the role of the multi-professional team.
To discuss and agree short, medium or long term goals for bereavement care, prioritise and develop plans with the multi-professional team.
To utilise specialist knowledge to enable colleagues to develop their competence in using different interventions in end of life and bereavement care.- Independently assess, implement, and evaluate patients with complex and intractable problems using holistic needs assessment.
To refer to other specialists when needs and risks are beyond one’s own scope of practice.
To educate the multidisciplinary team in co-ordinating and participating in end of life & bereavement discussions, and recommending best course of action as necessary.
To practice as a non-medical prescriber.- Independently deliver significant news to patients with complex psychological needs and support both patients and their carers.
- Demonstrate advanced communication skills when dealing with difficult or challenging situations.
- Manage clinical caseload, prioritising patient need across in-patient and out-patient settings to enable rapid response to referrals for urgent advice.
- Lead multi-disciplinary discussions on current caseload within the Trust to ensure continuity and co-ordination of optimum patient care.
- Establish and maintain effective communication with patients and patients and carers/relatives within the clinical setting using effective strategies to overcome barriers to communication.
- Utilise and respond to sensitive information appropriately.
- Work collaboratively with the multi professional team to ensure patient’s needs are met.
- Maintain accurate legible and timely written/verbal/electronic reports which inform other members of the team, patients and their carers/relatives.
- Act as a patient advocate in promoting and delivering the highest standard of nursing care.
- Participate in the provision of out-of-hours specialist palliative care advice and 7 day working as per rota and operational policy.
- Work collaboratively with other professionals and agencies across Greater Manchester to ensure patient needs are met, especially in relation to on-going supportive & palliative care needs and discharge arrangements.
- To be flexible to the changes within the Supportive Care Team and within the organisation.
- To maintain advanced communication skills.
- To evaluate palliative care & end of life teaching currently being carried out by the supportive care team, and to assess if any areas of palliative & end of life care are not being addressed.
- To audit current palliative and end of life care teaching, to help identify areas for improvement.
To support the matrons, ward managers and clinical educators to coordinate palliative & end of life education.
To promote the palliative care approach and facilitate the development of best practice and education within the Trust.
To promote research/evidence based practice, audit (e.g. NACEL) and benchmark clinical outcomes to inform and participate in setting clinical standards ensuring that legislation, policies and procedures are applied correctly within own service.
To contribute to the development of end of life care through participation in the identification and provision of training and development needs, providing on-going support and working with others to identify the effectiveness of service development against agreed criteria.
To participate in the education of pre and post registered nurses, medical staff, AHP’s, patients and carers and participate in curriculum development where appropriate.
Promote patient and public involvement to enhance service development.
To influence the development of the supportive care strategy at the Trust.- Provide evidenced based education, information and training for a range of disciplines both internally and externally to the organisation.
- Disseminate best practice through presentation at regional, national and international palliative care/oncology conferences.
- Be aware of current research associated with supportive and palliative care practice and utilise same in ensuring evidence-based practice at local level.
- Maintain up to date, high standards of palliative care skills and knowledge and maintain awareness of professional/national issues.
- Maintain own professional status and ensure that the NMC requirements for registration are met and adhered to.
- Ensure all relevant nursing policies, procedures and guidelines are adhered to.
- Participate in team and directorate meetings as required
Provide statements regarding untoward incidents, as requested by the Senior Nurse
Ensure all staff attend Trust mandatory training annually
Maintain registration and nursing competencies, and comply with the NMC Code of Professional Conduct, and related documents.
Contribute to clinical governance and research & development initiatives
Support and contribute to the development of quality improvement strategies within the Supportive Care Team and contribute and effective use of physical and financial resources.- Contribute to the writing of protocols relevant to specialist palliative, end of life and bereavement care.
- Promote patient and public involvement activities in the specialist area, leading to service improvement
- Promote people’s equality, diversity and rights to shape appropriate service provision that is equitable and accessible.
This job description is an outline of the key tasks and responsibilities of the role and is not intended as an exhaustive list. The job will change over time to reflect the changing needs of the Trust and its services, as well as personal development needs of the post holder.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria- NMC Registered Nurse
- Degree in Nursing/Healthcare related subject
- Post registration qualification in palliative /oncology care
- Teaching & assessing module
- Non-Medical Prescribing, or working towards
- Management / leadership qualification
- Masters level study
- Clinical Skills level 6/7 module
- Counselling qualification
- Qualification in bereavement care
Experience
Essential criteria- Experience in specialist palliative/oncology setting
- Experience of audit/research
- Participation in service development and implementation of change
- Able to work autonomously and part of a team
- Experience providing Bereavement support
Skills
Essential criteria- Advanced communication skills
- Able to perform advanced clinical assessment skills
- Leadership/management skills
- Ability to produce high standard written and verbal reports
- Ability to develop effective interpersonal relationship with colleagues across health and social care setting
- Ability to work to deadlines
- Evidence of writing protocols/standards
Knowledge
Essential criteria- Knowledge of professional and NHS issues, and policy relating to supportive, palliative and cancer care
- Evidence of continuing professional development
- Good understanding of research and audit
Values
Essential criteria- Ability to demonstrate the organisational values and behaviours
- Committed to professional development.
- Confidence to adapt to an evolving and changing service
Other
Essential criteria- Flexible – able to work unsocial hours
- Enthusiastic and motivated
- Highly committed and motivated
- Conscientious and hardworking with a high organisational ability
- Able to work without supervision
- Ability to remain calm under pressure
- Application Information - If you have not heard from us within four weeks of the closing date, I regret that on this occasion your application will have been unsuccessful.
- Sponsorship Information - We are an approved sponsoring organisation. Applications will be considered from applicants requiring sponsorship alongside all other applications. Please be aware, not all roles are eligible for sponsorship. You can review the list of eligible role and requirements on the government website.
- Pre-Employment Checks - To confirm your suitability for the role, we will carry out pre-employment checks in line with NHS Employment Check Standards. These include:
- Identity verification
- Right to work check
- Disclosure and barring service (DBS)/Criminal record check (dependent on role, payment of this will be the applicants responsibility)
- Professional registration and/or qualification check
- Occupational health assessment
- Employment history and reference validation
All applicants external to The Christie NHS Foundation Trust will be required to provide their HMRC employment history to cover the most recent three years employment. This information will used to validate employment history and references.
If you require sponsorship, we will assess your eligibility based on current government guidance. If the role is not eligible and you cannot demonstrate your right to work, your conditional offer may be withdrawn.
✅ If You're Offered the Role - you will be agreeing to The Christie NHS Foundation Trust transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are offered a job information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.Please note, all communication regarding your application will be made via email, please ensure you check your junk/spam folders as emails are sometimes filtered there.
The Inter-Authority Transfer (IAT) process is a critical and beneficial component of ESR and will form part of the recruitment process. In the event that you are successful following interview your previous NHS employment data, if applicable will be transferred from your current / most recent employer.
- Sponsorship Information - We are an approved sponsoring organisation. Applications will be considered from applicants requiring sponsorship alongside all other applications. Please be aware, not all roles are eligible for sponsorship. You can review the list of eligible role and requirements on the government website.
- No Smoking Policy - You should be aware the Trust operates a No Smoking Policy and therefore employees are not permitted to smoke at work.
- Additional Information - We want to ensure that everyone who works at the Christie or uses our services is welcomed, valued and treated with dignity and respect. The Christie values diversity and is committed to ensuring equal opportunities for all and fair representation across the organisation at all levels. In support of these commitments, we particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and other ethnic minority people and people with disabilities for this post. Appointment will be only on merit.
We are committed to creating a balanced and diverse workforce. As such we welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. Together we will foster inclusion and tackle inequity and health inequalities in cancer care.
As users of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy.
The Christie NHS Foundation Trust is committed to the highest standards of ethical conduct and integrity in all our activities. We have a zero-tolerance approach to modern slavery in any of its forms, including slavery, servitude, forced or compulsory labour, and human trafficking.We are fully committed to acting ethically and with transparency in all our business dealings and relationships, and to implementing and enforcing effective systems and controls to ensure modern slavery is not taking place anywhere in our organisation or supply chains.