Community Health Care Assistant

Band 3

Job overview

Midhurst Macmillan specialist palliative care service are looking for an experienced dynamic health care assistant/support worker who is  passionate about the patient experience and the delivery of quality ,patient focused care.

The health care assistant will work as part of a multi-disciplinary team to provide comprehensive palliative nursing care, advice and support to patients and carers living in the community across three Clinical Commissioning Groups and a geographical patch of approximately 400 square miles.

As a Macmillan Community Health care Assistant, you will be part of the nursing team delivering safe and effective care to patients with palliative care needs in their own homes, supporting their families, liaising with other health professionals, keeping health records, and participating in administration tasks.

1. Communication and working relationships

This health care assistant involves collaborating with Community Nurses, Primary Care Teams, other Health Care Professionals and Agencies to meet complex patients care needs.

Communication is a key part of the role, and you will be required to manage challenging conversations with sensitivity and understanding.

          You will need to seek consent from patients and their carers to share                information with other Health Care Professionals.

Health Care Assistant Main duties 

1. Key responsibilities

• You will be required to use Trust documents, Instruction Charts and Care Plans in planning patient care
• You will be required to understand key End of Life issues and trends
• You will participate in mandatory, statutory and developmental education and training
• You will be responsible for adhering to policy such as Infection Control, Medical Devices, Health and Safety, and Information Governance regarding equipment issued to you such as laptops and mobile telephones
• Demonstrate personal accountability in everyday practice
• To provide direct care and support as directed by the Team, referring to Care Plans, Trust Policies and Procedures
• To demonstrate an ability to organise self and plan day to day workload in an effective and efficient way. Show an understanding of cost effectiveness and use of all resources available
• Undertake basic clinical tests ensuring that the patient and their significant others are given all relevant information as appropriate and in an appropriate manner
• You will at times be required to support and move patients under the manual handling rules and regulations and use appropriate moving and handling equipment
• You will be required to deal with bodily fluids
• To show an understanding of the principles of Infection Prevention and Control

 

Working for our organisation

We are the main provider of NHS community services across East and West Sussex. Our 6,000 staff serve a population of 1.3 million providing essential medical, nursing, and therapeutic care to adults and children.

Our Trust vision is to provide excellent care at the heart of the community, helping people plan, manage, adapt to changes in their health, supporting avoidable hospital admissions and reducing hospital stay times.

We have opportunities for everyone across our wide variety of services including medical, clinical, support and corporate services.

Why work for us?

• Positive 2023 NHS Staff Survey results, scoring highly in compassionate culture & leadership, and staff wellbeing support
• Variety of working environments across the community, in patients’ homes, within our community hospitals and bases across the county
• Supportive flexible working patterns such as: part time, flexi time, annualised hours, and flexi retirement options
• Excellent training and development opportunities
• Research opportunities
• Cost-effective workplace nurseries in Crawley, Hove and Brighton
• Thriving BAME, Disability and Wellbeing, LGBT+ and Religion and Belief staff networks
• Level 3 accredited Disability Confident Leader, committed to creating inclusive workplaces
• Veteran Aware Trust, achieving accreditation from Veterans Covenant Healthcare Alliance (VCHA)
• Located in stunning Sussex, with easy access to the South Downs and the coast
• Access to a wide range of benefits and discounts for NHS staff

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

1. Key responsibilities

• You will be required to use Trust documents, Instruction Charts and Care Plans in planning patient care
• You will be required to understand key End of Life issues and trends
• You will participate in mandatory, statutory and developmental education and training
• You will be responsible for adhering to policy such as Infection Control, Medical Devices, Health and Safety, and Information Governance regarding equipment issued to you such as laptops and mobile telephones
• Demonstrate personal accountability in everyday practice
• To provide direct care and support as directed by the Team, referring to Care Plans, Trust Policies and Procedures
• To demonstrate an ability to organise self and plan day to day workload in an effective and efficient way. Show an understanding of cost effectiveness and use of all resources available
• Undertake basic clinical tests ensuring that the patient and their significant others are given all relevant information as appropriate and in an appropriate manner
• You will at times be required to support and move patients under the manual handling rules and regulations and use appropriate moving and handling equipment
• You will be required to deal with bodily fluids
• To show an understanding of the principles of Infection Prevention and Control

Main Tasks

•        Offer personal care to the patients
• Participate in agreed packages of care funded by Continuing Health Care
• Offer Respite Sits to enable families to have a break
•  Assessment, documentation and reporting of the patient’s condition
• Offer emotional support to patients and families
• Learn the use of touch techniques such as massage
• Meet information needs
• Be a team player and show support to your colleagues
• Work closely with other Health Professionals
• Learn how to order equipment and supplies
• Support the team with general administrative work
• Develop skills to triage telephone calls to the service
• Participate in the Trust’s Appraisal and Supervision Programme
• Represent the employing organisation in a positive way

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria

• ability to use a computer
• ability to drive

Desirable criteria

• carers certificate or diploma or degree

Experience

Essential criteria

• minimum of 2 years experience in community, nursing home or hospital

Desirable criteria

• experience in palliative care

Skills

Essential criteria

• good communication skills
• ability to drive
• ability to work shift work

At the heart of how we operate is our Trust values:

• Compassionate Care
• Working Together,
• Achieving Ambitions
• Delivering Excellence

Our values are fundamental to the high-quality care we provide to the people who need us. We are proud to be a community that cares, delivering our services as a team whilst supporting our employees as individuals.