Chronic Disease Nurse- Respiratory inWorkington inWorkington PUBLISHED 29 OCT 2024

The Workington GP Practice has an exciting opportunity for an experienced Chronic Disease Nurse who specialise in respiratory conditions to join the practice.

The ideal candidate will have a strong background in general nursing and have specialised skills, knowledge and qualifications in respiratory conditions.

This role involves providing high-quality nursing care, managing and supporting patients with respiratory conditions and working collaboratively with other health care professionals to ensure the best outcomes for patients.

About us

• To carry out spirometry if indicated, and interpret the results
• To carry out Feno testing on patients.
• Work with patients to support adherence to prescribed treatments.
• Carry out holistic and thorough reviews of patients with asthma and COPD
• To initiate investigations for patients on respiratory pathways
• Implement and evaluate individual care plans for patients with asthma and COPD, ensuring they have an understanding of how to manage any exacerbations or changes in symptoms
• To recommend and prescribe (where qualified to do so) inhaled therapies in line with local and national guidance, aiming for good symptom control
• On occasion be required to visit patients in their own homes
• Keep up to date with the latest developments in respiratory management and integrate evidence-based practices into patient care
• Provide patients with teaching to ensure good inhaler technique
• Advise, support and if required, administer vaccinations recommended for respiratory patients, including influenza, COVID and pneumonia vaccines
• To carry out home visits for respiratory patients who are not able to attend the surgery
• Maintain clear, accurate, legible, timely written documentation in patient notes providing a record of care delivered
• Mentor and support other nursing staff and students within the practice
• Attend relevant training and workshops to enhance knowledge and skills
• Accept accountability and responsibility for own safe clinical practice
• Awareness of the environmental impact of inhalers and working closely with patients to swap to other inhaler which meet the patients need and the environment
• Awareness of the Quality Outcomes Framework targets and other local incentives for the improvement of care given
• Use of the relevant practice templates to ensure correct clinical coding enabling the practice to reach targets and provide effective and holistic care to the patient
• On occasion a requirement to carry out other tasks. This will be dependent upon factors such as workload and staffing levels

Confidentiality:

• In the course of seeking treatment, patients entrust us with, or allow us to gather, sensitive information in relation to their health and other matters. They do so in confidence and have the right to expect that staff will respect their privacy and act appropriately
• In the performance of the duties outlined in this job description, the post-holder may have access to confidential information relating to patients and their carers, practice staff and other healthcare workers. They may also have access to information relating to the practice as a business organisation. All such information from any source is to be regarded as strictly confidential
• Information relating to patients, carers, colleagues, other healthcare workers or the business of the practice may only be divulged to authorised persons in accordance with the practice policies and procedures relating to confidentiality and the protection of personal and sensitive data.

Health & safety:

• The post-holder will assist in promoting and maintaining their own and others health, safety and security as defined in the practice Health & Safety policy, the practice Health & Safety manual, and the practice Infection Control policy and published procedures. This will include:
• Using personal security systems within the workplace according to practice guidelines
• Identifying the risks involved in work activities and undertaking such activities in a way that manages those risks
• Making effective use of training to update knowledge and skills
• Using appropriate infection control procedures, maintaining work areas in a tidy and safe way and free from hazards
• Actively reporting of health and safety hazards and infection hazards immediately when recognised
• Keeping own work areas and general / patient areas generally clean, assisting in the maintenance of general standards of cleanliness consistent with the scope of the job holders role
• Undertaking periodic infection control training (minimum annually)
• Reporting potential risks identified

Equality and diversity:

• The post-holder will support the equality, diversity and rights of patients, carers and colleagues, to include:
• Acting in a way that recognises the importance of peoples rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with practice procedures and policies, and current legislation
• Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs and beliefs of patients, carers and colleagues
• Behaving in a manner which is welcoming to and of the individual, is non-judgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings priorities and rights.

Personal/Professional development:

• The post-holder will participate in any training programme implemented by the practice as part of this employment, such training to include:
• Participation in an annual individual performance review, including taking responsibility for maintaining a record of own personal and/or professional development
• Taking responsibility for own development, learning and performance and demonstrating skills and activities to others who are undertaking similar work

Quality:

The post-holder will strive to maintain quality within the practice, and will:

• Alert other team members to issues of quality and risk
• Assess own performance and take accountability for own actions, either directly or under supervision
• Contribute to the effectiveness of the team by reflecting on own and team activities and making suggestions on ways to improve and enhance the teams performance
• Work effectively with individuals in other agencies to meet patients needs
• Effectively manage own time, workload and resources

Communication:

The post-holder should recognise the importance of effective communication within the team and will strive to:

• Communicate effectively with other team members
• Communicate effectively with patients and carers
• Recognise peoples needs for alternative methods of communication and respond accordingly

Contribution to the implementation of services:

The post-holder will:

• Apply practice policies, standards and guidance
• Discuss with other members of the team how the policies, standards and guidelines will affect own work
• Participate in audit where appropriate