Paramedic (First Contact Practitioner)

We are excited to be recruiting a First Contact Paramedic (FCP) to join our growing PCN workforce and paramedic team in South Islington PCN (SIPCN). SIPCN consists of 7 practices and covers a population of around 70,000 patients in the South of the borough. The practices provide high quality patient care and are committed to working collaboratively to successfully integrate new teams and services.

We are looking for highly motivated and enthusiastic Paramedic to work alongside our clinical teams and will provide complementary skills to our existing clinical and non-clinical PCN team. The Paramedic will have a key role in delivering proactive care to our most vulnerable patients on home visits or face-to-face in clinics, as well as supporting the delivery of the Network Contract DES service specifications and other local population health initiatives. The paramedic will also support their practices duty clinics via the assessment and management of acutely unwell patients.

Key relationships will include the PCN Clinical Directors, other PCN Workforce and Education Leads, the IGPF network team and Training Hub leads to consider training and support needs, supervision and wider strategic work on development of the PCN paramedic workforce., Paramedics will be expected to work autonomously within primary care at an advanced level of practice, using their enhanced clinical assessment and treatment skills, to provide ongoing and coordinated care to the most vulnerable patients with complex needs within the PCN.

The paramedic will have the capability to make sound judgements in the absence of full information and to manage varying degrees of risk when there is complex, competing or ambiguous information or uncertainty. They will work closely with the wider MDT to deliver joined up care, referring to other specialist providers and services when necessary.
1. Assess, diagnose, plan, implement and evaluate treatment/interventions and care for patients that have been identified as high risk, those presenting with an undifferentiated diagnosis, and patients with complex needs
2. Clinically examine and assess patient needs from a physiological and psychological perspective, and plan clinical care accordingly
3. Priorities health problems and intervene appropriately to assist the patient in complex, urgent or emergency situations, including initiation of effective emergency care
4. Diagnose and manage both acute and chronic conditions, integrating both drug- and non-drug-based treatment methods into a management plan.

Islington GP Federation (IGPF) is a new, rapidly growing organisation representing 31 practices; we have established ourselves as a leader in new ways of working, including running Islingtons extended access primary care services (I:HUB) as well as supporting the Islington Primary Care Networks (PCNs). Our current range of services includes I:HUB, Community ENT, Integrated Community Gynaecology, practice-based pharmacists and a range of practice support mechanisms.

IGPF works very closely with a range of partners including the regional commissioning group, NHS England, Healthy London Partnership, Public Health, local hospitals such as the Whittington Health and the London Borough of Islington.

IGPF is the host organisation for the PCN workforce and over the last few years has been working with the Islington Training Hub to create training and development programmes that meet the need of all staff working in primary care.