Community Occupational Therapist | Norfolk Community Health and Care NHS Trust

As part of the growth and development of The Intermediate Care team, we have an exciting opportunity to recruit additional Band 6 Occupational Therapists. These roles will serve all aspects of the Intermediate Care Team. This includes Goodwins Hall in King's Lynn and the Nordelph Unit in Downham Market with the potential to expand with additional beds in the area.

The Therapy Team delivers quality evidence-based care to patients in the Intermediate Care Rehabilitation beds and the patient's own homes to facilitate early supported discharge.

The successful candidate will need to be able to demonstrate effective communication skills, problem solving skills and be resilient and able to cope in changing and challenging situations. Previous experience in discharge planning and development of robust rehab programmes in a rehabilitation setting would be desired. The expectation of the post-holder would be to carry out Therapy assessments for patients in the rehabilitation setting. Visits in the community may be planned or unplanned depending on the need.

Clinical supervision will be provided by a band 7 Clinical Lead Physiotherapist. We offer the opportunity to work in an experienced and supportive team with opportunities for ongoing professional development.

Main Duties & Responsibilities

Key Areas

1. To assess and prescribe treatment packages for patients with long term conditions, the frail & elderly, palliative care and rehabilitation needs for example, to achieve quality of life and independence where possible.

2. To work within the designated team to facilitate early discharge from hospital

3. To work within the designated team to prevent unnecessary admission to hospital

4. To provide in-reach to Intermediate Care Beds or Nordelph unit

5. To work with all health care professionals, and statutory/non statutory agencies to provide a seamless, integrated service to our service users.

Apply now to join an organisation that has been awarded an 'Outstanding' rating by the Care Quality Commission (CQC), the highest possible rating and the first stand-alone NHS community trust in the country to be awarded the title.

Working in Kings Lynn is accessible from Cambridge, Lincolnshire & South Norfolk.

The right candidate will be required to travel and work between Goodwins Hall in King's Lynn and the Nordelph Unit in Downham Market.

The post holder will:

6. Undertake comprehensive therapy assessments of patients including those with a complex presentation, using investigative, analytical and clinical reasoning skills, and formulate a graded treatment plan.

7. Formulate and execute individualised occupational/physio therapy treatment plans of patients including those with complex presentation, in collaboration with the integrated team, other agencies and the patient, utilising a wide range of treatment skills.

8. Provide assessment of functional ability and safety of patients in the community, to identify care, equipment, adaptation and therapy needs.

9. Assess & plan treatment including teaching patients to utilise techniques & equipment to maximise their functional ability.

10. Be aware of Assistive Technology and make referrals for this as required.

11. Assess patients' holistic needs, communicating complex and sensitive information to patients and carers as to their assessment, diagnosis, prognosis and treatment plan.

12. Communicate effectively with patients and carers to maximise rehabilitation and treatment potential, and to aid motivation and understanding throughout the treatment process.

13. Where there are barriers to understanding, such as hearing impairment, mental capacity impairment and other difficulties in comprehension, explanations require adjustments in order to gain understanding, consent and concordance.

14. Be required to use tact and persuasive skills in order to gain the patient's co-operation in their treatment plan.

15. Liaise with GPs, Social Services, inpatient teams, other allied health care professionals and the voluntary sector to ensure identified needs are met and care co-ordinated appropriately

16. Participate in multi-disciplinary/multi-agency meetings as appropriate, e.g. Gold Standard Framework.

17. Be responsible for ensuring workload for self and others is planned and prioritised according to service targets and needs.

18. Ensure patient held records are completed for each visit, and that SystmOne inputting is completed on a daily basis.

19. Plan and organise specialist services within the integrated team.

20. Demonstrate dexterity and co-ordination when using specialist equipment and fine tools, manual and mobilising skills.

21. Order equipment and supplies via electronic ordering systems for use within the team.

22. Be aware of budget and ensure all effort is made to work within this.

23. Ensure informed consent is obtained prior to initiating interventions.

24. Will be exposed to bodily fluids, infected material, blood products on a daily basis, therefore must utilise universal precautions and adhere to infection control policies.

Disability Confident
About Disability Confident
A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that declares they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer. It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. For more details please go to Disability Confident.