Staff Nurse - Chemotherapy Day Unit QEH

Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust, (LGT), is a community-focused provider of local and acute care, delivering high-quality services to over one million people living across the London boroughs of Lewisham, Greenwich, and Bexley. We provide whole-life care and are here to support our communities to live healthier lives as well as taking care of them when they need us the most.

Employing almost 7,500 colleagues, affectionately known as Team LGT, we provide services at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich, University Hospital Lewisham, and at over a dozen community settings in Lewisham. We also provide some services at Queen Mary’s Hospital in Sidcup.

We have recently launched our new vision and values to mark the LGT10 – the tenth anniversary of our Trust forming in 2013. Our trust vision is to be exceptional. In the quality of our patient care; our support for colleagues; and in the difference we make through our partnerships and in our communities.

To achieve this we value Respect, Compassion, and Inclusion; Being accountable over staying comfortable; Listening over always knowing best; and Succeeding together over achieving alone. You can read more about our visions and values here

Our hospitals and community sites provide a wide range of inpatient and outpatient services, as well as emergency and planned care. The Trust is rated as “good” or “outstanding” in over three-quarters of the services inspected by the Care Quality Commission.

Every year our work includes performing 10,000 procedures in our theatres; bringing seven and a half thousand new lives into the world; carrying out 570,000 visits to patients in their homes or communities and providing emergency care for more than 300,000 patients arriving in our busy Urgent and Emergency Departments.

LGT is a centre for the education and training of medical students enrolled with King’s College London’s GKT School of Medical Education. We are a training centre for nurses, midwives and allied health professionals. We are pioneering new roles that will support the changing needs of our patients and are one of the largest employers of physician associates in the country.

We are committed to working with our partners to deliver the best outcomes for our local communities. This means playing an active role in the South East London Integrated Care System (ICS), and in formal partnerships including the South East London Acute Provider Collaborative, provider partnerships with our local mental health trusts and borough-based boards of the ICS in Bexley, Greenwich and Lewisham.

Job overview

Staff nurse band 5 x 1

Full time - Staff Nurse Vacancy in Chemotherapy Day Unit -QEH Site (Permanent)

SACT administration skills are not essential as full training and support will be provided. It would be expected that the successful candidate will complete an externally accredited SACT course at some point in the future. So, if this field of nursing is what you aspire to, this is the ideal next step if you have the right blend of skills and commitment to join our team of SACT nurses.

Our provision of high standards of care is recognised by our patients via patient feedback and recognition at Trust staff awards. Our teams are proud of our excellent reputation within the Trust and extended cancer community.

The unit has been reviewing its service provision and working patterns and is moving towards some changes, including introducing 9.5 hour shifts between 08:00 and 18:00 and some Saturday working on a rota basis.

Saturday working would be limited to one Saturday in every 4 week period

PLEASE NOTE: We may not be able to offer sponsorship for this post

• To provide high standards of evidence based nursing care in the delivery of Systemic Anti-Cancer Therapy/supportive treatments in the Chemotherapy Day Unit.
• Where appropriate, work flexibly across Chemotherapy Day Units at QEH and David Whitmore, Suite 8 UHL.
• To work in close collaboration with the multidisciplinary team members to include pharmacists, dieticians, Acute Oncology Service, palliative care team and other site-specific clinical nurse specialists.
• The post holder will work in collaboration with the Unit Manager and team in identifying the developmental and educational needs of staff focusing on the care required by patients.
• To assess patients and monitor condition while on treatment.
• To provide advice and signposting for patients, carers and colleagues.
• To work collaboratively with the chemotherapy team to maintain safe standards of care within the NMC code of conduct and in line with Trust policies
• To participate in educational and training opportunities offered by the team to members of staff across the trust.

PLEASE NOTE: We may not be able to offer sponsorship for this post

Working for our organisation

Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust provides services for the local people in Lewisham, Greenwich, Bexley and other parts of South East London.

With a turnover of around £700 million, we provide services at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich, University Hospital Lewisham and a range of community settings in Lewisham. We also provide some services at Queen Mary’s Hospital in Sidcup.

We are accredited as a flexible working employer offering a number of flexible working options for staff. We are also accredited as a London Living Wage employer for our substantive, bank and contractors.

The department has a strong work ethic, there is collaborative team working across inpatient wards, chemotherapy day units and other divisions in the organisation.

Working as part of wider multidisciplinary teams, we play a critical role in securing high quality care and excellent outcomes.

We foster an inclusive and diverse workforce with an open and transparent approach to communications.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Job Summary:

• To provide high standards of evidence based nursing care in the delivery of Systemic Anti-Cancer Therapy/supportive treatments in the Chemotherapy Day Unit.
• Where appropriate, work flexibly across Chemotherapy Day Unit QEH and David Whitmore, Suite 8 UHL.
• To work in close collaboration with the multidisciplinary team members, pharmacists, dieticians, Acute Oncology Service, palliative care team and other site specific clinical nurse specialists.
• The post holder will work in collaboration with the Unit Manager and team in identifying the developmental and educational needs of staff focusing on the care required by patients.
• To assess patients and monitor condition while on treatment.
• To provide advice and signposting for patients, carers and colleagues.
• To work collaboratively with the chemotherapy team to maintain safe standards of care within the NMC code of conduct and in line with Trust policies
• To participate in educational and training opportunities offered by the team to members of staff across the trust.

Key Result areas

1. To offer advanced clinical knowledge and expertise in relation to nursing practice and specialist clinical knowledge pertaining to the service.
2. To demonstrate clinical competence related to the support of patients receiving chemotherapy and other treatments delivered within the service.
3. To help ensure that care delivery is patient focused and that sound elements of research-based practice are introduced, maintained and audited.
4. To participate in the setting, implementing and evaluation of clinical practice standards within the team and unit, and meeting standards within Clinical Governance and government targets.
5. To act as advocate to patients to ensure a patient-orientated approach to the delivery of care and meeting standards within Clinical Governance and Government targets.
6. To contribute to the maintenance of patient held records, where appropriate.
7. To provide appropriate information to patients and their carers / families regarding their disease, treatment, services available to them, and the mechanism for emergency treatment, particularly in relation to neutropenic sepsis.
8. To provide emotional / spiritual support for patients and their carers / families, referring to other relevant professional where appropriate.
9. To support management of the service budget, manpower (including recruitment) and skill mix in order to ensure the effective day-to-day running of the day unit environment.
10. To maintain accurate and legible records of all clinical and legal documentation with regard to Statutory and Trust Policies.
11. To identify the specific education needs of individual patients and carers and facilitate meeting those needs

1. To work with the Unit manager in the assessment of the short and long term development needs of the team.
2. A close working relationship will be maintained with the Unit sisters and other staff for clinical and educational purposes.
3. With the Unit Manager and unit sisters participate in Quality assurance initiatives and ongoing nursing audits, with resulting changes in practice being implemented.
4. To participate in reviewing practice with other nurses within the Trust and to attend relevant meetings and working parties.
5. In conjunction with other members of the nursing team identify the training and education needs of non-specialist colleagues – in order to promote specific skills related to the service speciality.
6. To work collaboratively with the team to provide teaching programmes / opportunities to meet these needs.

1. With the Unit Manager and unit sisters be involved in the evaluation of their roles, having consideration for the most effective use of staff.
2. To take an active role in off-duty planning, ensuring an effective skill mix within the available resources.
3. Along with other members of the team maintain safe stock levels of equipment
4. To be always aware of new ways of managing resources to increase efficiency and reduce waste

1. To liaise with and facilitate effective communication within the multi-disciplinary team.
2. In conjunction with the Unit Manager, unit sisters and CNSs, to advise and support non – specialist professionals who care for cancer / haematology patients – including issues relating to chemotherapy treatment and side effects, the safe handling of cytotoxic drugs, care of intravenous lines, and neutropenic sepsis protocols.
3. To act as a role model and mentor to other staff, providing informal education and support for them in their provision of care to cancer / haematology patients

Person specification

Qualifications & Training

• 1st level registration NMC

• Degree level

Experience

• Excellent interpersonal skills, both verbal and written
• Able to formulate and verbalise views
• Able to anticipate and forward plan

• Computer Literate

Knowledge & Skills

• Ability to work under pressure and remain calm – Able to recognise stress in self and others and support colleagues through stressful situations.

We reserve the right to close the post before the stated closing date, please apply early. We do not contact applicants with the outcome of the shortlisting. If you have been shortlisted, you will receive an invite to an assessment day or interview.

We have a number of active staff networks including Disability, LGBT+, Multicultural Inclusion and Women’s staff networks to bring staff together and celebrate diversity across our whole workforce.

Please note, not all roles will meet the criteria for a skilled worker visa.