Clinical Director for Discharge and Flow

Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trust provides child and adult mental health services, learning disability, wellbeing, older people's and eating disorder services across Norfolk and Suffolk.

We are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion and want to reflect the diversity of our local communities within our teams. We welcome applications from all talented individuals with the relevant qualifications, skills, knowledge and experience

YOUR APPLICATION

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Job overview

This role is fundamentally about transforming patient care delivery across NSFT by ensuring that every patient attains timely access to the most appropriate care in the most suitable environment.

The individual appointed will lead a comprehensive programme that tackles patient access and flow by overseeing, and refining a Trust-wide flow plan. This plan isn’t just a document—it’s a dynamic roadmap designed to eliminate bottlenecks, reduce delays, and foster seamless transitions for our service users.

This role sits at the intersection of clinical insight and operational strategy. It calls for an individual who can navigate the complexities of healthcare delivery while influencing diverse teams to adopt innovative solutions. The emphasis isn’t solely on mitigating today's challenges; it’s on building a resilient framework that supports continued improvement into the future.

Main duties of the job

Key Responsibilities Include:

• Strategic Leadership: Directing the development and execution of a flow plan that touches every facet of NSFT’s operations. This involves not just planning but the consistent evaluation and adaptation of strategies to meet evolving patient needs.
• Collaboration: Working closely with Bed Management Teams and Locality Leads to ensure that operational insights and frontline experiences inform system-wide improvements. This collaborative approach is vital for creating practical and sustainable solutions.
• Delay Reduction: Undertaking detailed analysis to understand where delays occur and driving targeted interventions to reduce these delays. This might involve analysing patient pathways, coordinating with different departments, and engaging with external partners.
• Clinical Decision-Making: Playing an essential role within the Health and Social Care system in arbitrating complex clinical decisions that, if unresolved, can lead to care delays. This requires a balanced understanding of clinical imperatives, operational constraints, and the nuances of patient care.
• Resource Planning: Assessing both local and central resourcing needs to ensure that improvements in patient flow are not only implemented but sustained. This will involve sophisticated forecasting and a keen eye on both immediate fixes and long-term investments.

Working for our organisation

Here at NSFT we pride ourselves on being a welcoming, talented, friendly and supportive team who like nothing better than sharing experiences and learning from each other. In addition to ongoing training and development opportunities, we are committed to providing an environment in which you can thrive.

Why work for us? We have challenges as a Trust, but we have ambitious aspirations, are pushing ahead with exciting transformation work and we need dedicated individuals to support us on our journey. We have strong, established professional networks coupled with an exceptional leadership team who will ensure you are truly cared for and cared about.

We have excellent shopping, eating out, top ranking schooling and affordable house prices too.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

For more information, please see attached job description.

We welcome pre-application conversations, so please do not hesitate to contact us.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Healthcare degree or professional qualification (current)
• Substantive Medical Consultant
• Full professional registration and in good standing with the GMC
• Psychiatry CCT

• Management and/or leadership or quality Improvement qualification or equivalent experience

Experience

• Significant experience of clinical leadership at senior level, meeting objectives and performance management targets
• Experience/comprehen sive knowledge of Experience of working at Trust Board level or equivalent Understanding of the local, regional and national commissioning environment and standards expected by commissioners Application Form / Interview / References Page | 9 JD Ver.3.0 June 2024 operational bed management and flow related issues including management of acute out of area placements

EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES Apart from its legal duties in relation to equality and diversity, the Trust recognises and actively promotes the benefits of a diverse workforce and is committed to treating all employees with dignity and respect regardless of race, gender, disability, age, sexual orientation, religion or belief.

As a part of the Disability Confident Employer Guaranteed Interview Scheme we interview all disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the job vacancy (outlined in the Person Specification).. We encourage you to indicate your eligibility through TRAC jobs when applying.

DISCLOSURE AND BARRING SERVICE CHECK (formerly CRB)

FOR POSTS WITH DIRECT SERVICE USER CONTACT - Please be advised that due to recent changes in the DBS Service, organisations no longer receive copies of DBS Disclosures – these are sent directly to candidates only. Therefore, it will be your responsibility, if successful, to ensure that this is taken to the appointing officer as soon as you receive it.

Alternatively, if you have subscribed to the update service, we will be able to check your status once we have your authority to do so.

The Trust has now introduced a DBS Update Service which is a contractual requirement. You need to subscribe when you have applied for your DBS clearance and there is a time limit to subscribe of 19 days after receipt of your DBS disclosure. Please ensure that this is completed within the set time scale.

This update service is an annual subscription at a cost of £16 to you. This will enable the Trust to have instant online access to your DBS record, with your consent, and so will remove the need for you to have to apply for this repeat check again.