Detailed job description and main responsibilities

1.          Communication and relationship skills

 

·   Ability to communicate clearly with patients/service users and team members.

 

·   Good written and verbal communication skills.

 

·   Good teaching and presentation skills.

 

·   Communicate effectively with patients and carers and other health care professionals using a wide range of verbal and non-verbal communication tools to share assessment findings, agree treatment plans, progress rehabilitation, give advice, teaching etc.  This will include patients with communication and comprehension difficulties and those who may be unable to accept diagnosis/prognosis.

 

·   To liaise with health and social care professionals regarding patient care, treatment progress and discharge planning.

 

·   To work with and delegate work under protocol to rehab assistants and support workers where appropriate.

 

·   To be responsible for the supervision of less senior staff and students as allocated by the manager.

 

·   To assist with student learning.

 

 

2.          Knowledge, training and experience

 

·   Specialist knowledge of assessment (including standard assessments) and treatment of complex patients with long term conditions requiring rehabilitation, including falls.

·   Recognised degree / diploma in Physiotherapy

·   Evidence of continual professional development

·   Clinical educator training (desirable)

·   Completed core rotations at junior level or B5 experience in rehabilitation services

·   Supervision of other staff and students

·   Delegation of work to junior physiotherapists and physiotherapy assistants

·   Evidence based practice in the musculoskeletal field

·   Effective time management and organisational skills

·   Flexible and responsive to the needs of the service

·   Basic IT skills

·   Presentation skills (desirable)

·   Team leadership and team building skills (desirable)

·   Knowledge of current legislation and national guidelines affecting relevant practice.

·   Good understanding of the balance between professional and service needs.

·   Good understanding of Clinical governance and managing risk in your own work.

·   Awareness of safeguarding issues.

 

 

3.          Analytical and judgement skills

 

·   To assess patient understanding of treatment proposals, gain valid informed consent and have the capacity to work within a legal framework with patients who lack the capacity to consent to treatment.

 

·   To maintain HPC registration, CSP, organisation and departmental standards, guidelines and policies ensuring quality of service, monitoring own and less senior members of staffs quality of practice.

 

·   Maintain appropriate communication with the senior clinicians participating in regular supervision of caseload and seeking new skills when appropriate.

 

·   To undertake, record, continually review and work within individual patient risk assessments in line with local policy, referring to the team lead where risk cannot be safely reduced/managed.

 

·   To manage clinical and non-clinical risk within own role according to team and organisation protocols including the development of individual patients’ clinical risk assessments and provide the team lead with information to assist with these.

 

4.          Planning and organisational skills

 

·   To keep up to date, accurate, problem orientated medical records in physiotherapy and MDT notes in line with organisational policy, legal requirements and professional standards and to provide written reports, discharge summaries in a timely fashion and to ensure staff within the area of responsibility do likewise.

 

·   To ensure the effective collection and timely submission of clinical information and data to support decision making and the management and delivery of care.

 

·   To maintain a high level of specialist knowledge in the management of musculoskeletal conditions, falls and long term conditions maintaining own clinical professional development by keeping abreast of new developments and incorporating them as necessary into your work. To maintain a Continuing Professional Development portfolio which reflects development.

 

·   To plan, organise and prioritise own workload, balancing other patient related and professional demands ensuring that these remain in accordance with those of the team as a whole and assisting / guiding more junior physiotherapists, technical instructors and physiotherapy assistants to do likewise.

 

·   To work with, and delegate work under protocol to, Physiotherapy Assistants and Technical Instructors.

 

·   Be actively involved in the planning, delivery and participation of the in-service training programme, professional clinical groups, peer review groups, attendance at external course and all other professional development activities.

 

5.          Physical skills

 

·   Basic keyboard skills for use of computer/laptop.

 

·   Ability to travel to dispersed sites in a timely manner.

 

·   Experience in use of moving and handling equipment.

 

·  To deliver individualised physiotherapy treatment programmes using a broad range of physiotherapeutic skills in individual and group settings.

 

·  Responsible for own safe and competent use of all gym and electrical equipment, patient appliances and aids from own caseload.

 

·  To demonstrate highly developed dexterity and co-ordinated palpatory skills for the assessment and manual treatments of patients.

 

 

6.          Responsibility for patient / client care

 

·   To be professionally and legally accountable for all aspects of own work including responsibility of an allocated patient caseload/workload.

 

·   To undertake assessment of patients including those with diverse and complex presentations and conditions: using clinical reasoning skills and assessment techniques to formulate individualised treatment plans and programmes.

 

·   To deliver individualised physiotherapy treatment programmes using a broad range of physiotherapeutic skills in individual and group settings.

 

·   To continually reassess patient progress, adapting treatment plans accordingly and developing discharge plans.

 

·   To refer patients appropriately to other health and social care services according to protocol providing timely and detailed information to ensure good continuity of care.

 

·   To assess patient understanding of treatment proposals, gain valid informed consent and have the capacity to work within a legal framework with patients who lack the capacity to consent to treatment.

 

·   To keep up to date, accurate treatment records in physiotherapy and MDT notes in line with organisation policy, legal requirements and professional standards and to provide written reports, discharge summaries etc. as required: to support the Centre manager in ensuring all team members achieve these standards.

 

·   To attend and actively contribute at MDT meetings, case conferences etc., treatment programmes, goals and discharge planning as required.

 

·   To assess patients for standard and bespoke aids and appliances, request their provision and teach patients and carers in their safe application and use, assisting less senior staff where needed.

 

·   To abide by the Rule of Professional Conduct of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy.

 

7.          Responsibility for policy and service development implementation

 

·   To comply with organisation, departmental and organisation policies and procedures and be involved in commenting on and proposing change to, policies and protocols.

 

8.          Responsibilities for financial and physical resources

 

·   To be responsible in ensuring the safe and competent use of all equipment and facilities, ensuring faulty items are removed from use and reported for action.

 

9.          Responsibilities for human resources (HR)

 

·   Participate in the organisations staff appraisal system as an appraisee and appraiser, including the agreement of Personal Development Plans.

 

·   To teach, assess and contribute to the appraisal and development of the physiotherapy assistant.

 

·   To contribute to the planning of speciality placements for undergraduate students training, supervising and contributing to their formal assessment.

 

·   Ensure that your own practice and that of staff under your supervision meet required legal, service and professional standards.

 

10.       Responsibilities for information resources

 

·   To collect and submit all data and statistics as required in a timely and accurate manner and ensure team members do so.

 

11.       Responsibilities for research and development (R&D)

 

·   To participate in team and service audits identifying areas for study in conjunction with the centre manager.

 

12.       Freedom to act

 

·   To be accountable for own professional action and recognise own professional boundaries.

 

·   To demonstrate knowledge of and adherence to the CSP professional guidelines and to abide by the code of professional practise as set out by the HPC.

 

·   To manage a specialist caseload independently, demonstrate ability to work as part of a team and assume leadership responsibilities if needed.

 

 

13.       Physical effort (refer to effort factor questionnaire)

 

14.       Mental effort (refer to effort factor questionnaire)

 

 

15.       Emotional effort (refer to effort factor questionnaire)

 

 

16.       Working conditions (refer to effort factor questionnaire)

 

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