Community palliative care clinical nurse specialist inRochester inRochester PUBLISHED TUE 14 JAN 2025

We are looking for an experienced and highly motivated nurse who is passionate about palliative and end of life care to join our community based Palliative & End of Life Care Team. You will play an active part in the implementation of evidence-based, guideline recommended palliative care as well as supporting with education and research/audit.

Applications for the post are welcome from nurses with experience in palliative and end-of-life care. Attention to detail and excellent communication skills are a prerequisite. The ability to work collaboratively with community teams, coordinate care, provide specialist clinical advice and be able to work as an autonomous practitioner are essential.

We are a friendly and supportive team who look to foster a culture of continuous learning and development. Our priority is ensuring consistently outstanding patient and carer experience; to facilitate this we understand the importance of caring for our staff and ensuring where possible they have every opportunity to develop as a practitioner.

About us

Job purpose

To work within the policy framework of Medway Community Healthcare in its provision of specialist palliative and supportive care by supporting Community Specialist palliative care team (CPCT) based at the Wisdom Hospice. Ensuring that the clinical aims, objectives and social values of the organisation and service are met.

Foster good working relationships and communicate with members of our community based partners as well the rest of the specialist palliative care teams based at Wisdom Hospice

To actively participate in the delivery of a consistently high standard of specialised palliative care

1. Communication and relationship skills

• To provide a therapeutic relationship with designated palliative care patient carers and their families.
• To develop and sustain effective working partnerships with the acute trust team and other specialist services.
• Ensure good practice in managing patient information between the different care settings and teams. Ensure that patient documentation is accurate.
• Understanding of IT i.e. email and other systems that improve communication within the service.
• Attend and participate in relevant meetings promoting good communication between health care providers and continuity of care for patients and families.
• Represent the organisation in a specialist hospital palliative care role at internal and external meetings as required.

1. Knowledge, training and experience

• Registered Nurse, Degree level with appropriate post registration experience
• Further education/evidence of CPD in palliative care
• Ideally have a Non Medical Prescriber qualification, or willingness to work towards
• Have completed an Advanced Assessment skills module, or willingness to work towards

• To be able to demonstrate knowledge of NMC code of Practice
• To have knowledge of NHS Key documents in relation to palliative and end of life care.
• Experience of planning, providing and evaluating education sessions
• Experience of working in different health care settings.
• Experience of how audit, research and evidence based practice can influence excellent care.
• Experience of providing therapeutic interventions to individuals and families facing change, loss and bereavement.

1. Analytical and judgement skills

• Undertake an integrated, holistic assessment of patients referred into the service, following assessment, plan and evaluate care liaising with the nominated CNS regarding your actions.

• Following identification of needs (physical, psychosocial and spiritual) refer on to other team members, agencies as appropriate.
• Monitor patient needs and interventions and appropriately report to the identified key worker.
• In conjunction with service users and the multi-disciplinary team, develop and review care plans to meet identified specialist needs.
• Be a resource of specialised knowledge and clinical expertise to promote the delivery of CPCT and respond timely to changes in the service users circumstances.
• Analyse and rigorously review all aspects of the service users management plan interpreting information provided and using knowledge and judgement to provide specialist advice to recommend adjustments or new courses of action.

1. Planning and organisational skills

• Work in partnership with MCH and our community partners to provide advance care planning that includes anticipatory prescribing and organisation of palliative care service delivery.
• Actively participate and contribute to the weekly, multi-disciplinary, palliative care meetings discussing individual patient and carer needs.
• Organise, plan, and prioritise patient contacts within a defined caseload.
• Able to manage workload flow in a productive, timely and effective manner
• Act as a role model in the coordination and delivery of CPCT.
• Ensure compliance with relevant processes which support the patient and carers experience across MCH and palliative care are followed.
• Support service users to adjust to and manage change in their lives, to maximise their potential within the constraints of their illness and circumstances.

1. Physical skills

• To attend meetings both on and off site.
• To transport, clean and operate small pieces of equipment i.e. syringe driver, nebuliser in line with organisations codes of practice.
• Excellent computer skills

1. Responsibility for patient / client care

• Ensure patients, families and carers are informed of the services available to them; this will facilitate an informed decision as to preferred place of care and death
• To discuss patients/families/carers emotional/physical/psychological/spiritual needs with sensitivity.
• Deliver palliative care in partnership with community partners and specialist community services.
• Provide appropriate information and education to patients/carers/families on their condition, treatment options, side effects and future prognosis supported by the wider multi-disciplinary team.
• Understand data protection, patient confidentiality and NHS Medways policy.
• Act sensitively in the role of advocate in order to enable and promote service user involvement in informed decision making.

• Provide information and advice to service users, colleagues and other health and social care professional agencies.

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1. Responsibility for policy and service development implementation

• Liaise with team lead, any ideas or proposals for service improvement.
• Discusses and agrees within the team the implication and direction of current and proposed policy within their current practice
• Ability to adapt to the changing needs of services provided.
• Contributes to the development of the specialist palliative care nursing services through reflection within the team and as an individual.
• Ensure clinical placements are effectively facilitated, creating a positive environment.
• Take a pro-active role in the preparation of information for audits/reports and evaluations ensuring actions are identified and acted on accordingly.
• Be fully conversant with organisational policies in relation to interventions and care planning including specialist palliative care guidelines, standard operational procedures and CPCT.

1. Responsibilities for financial and physical resources

• Ensure specialist equipment is tested and checked in a timely manner in line with organisations policy.

• Prioritise patient care whilst taking into consideration cost effectiveness of journeys
• Appropriate use of organisations provided mobile phone, laptop, use of email and internet access.

1. Responsibilities for human resources (HR)

• Promote the use of reflection and retrospective case reviews with health care, care home and specialist teams.
• Ensure a supportive approach to working with health and social care partners by providing regular face to face contact

1. Responsibilities for information resources

• Ensure all electronic, paper-based records and data systems are completed, up to date and filed appropriately.
• Ensure confidentiality of patient information is maintained at all times in line with organisations policy.
• Ensure regular checking of email account and reading of cascaded organisational information.
• Ensure ability to access organisations intranet and navigate to find relevant information i.e. policy documents.

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

• Take an active role in allocated service audit and research projects.
• Maintain core competency for nursing practice within specialist palliative care
• Seek to expand current competency in line with service development and personal professional objectives.

1. Freedom to act

• Be accountable for own actions and professional development maintaining a safe and competent practice.
• Adhere to professional codes of conduct as appropriate.
• Is professionally and legally accountable for aspects of own practise.

1. Physical effort (refer to effort factor questionnaire)

• The role will be based at the Wisdom Hospice, with some cross working at Medway Maritime Hospital. The post holder will need to be able to move from site to site in a timely manner including in periods of heavy traffic and use of motorway if necessary.

1. Mental effort (refer to effort factor questionnaire)

• Ability to cope with interruptions and re-prioritisation of workload.
• Concentration required and maintained during patient assessment and planning care
• To be a resource to generalist care staff and provision for responsive specialist palliative care advice.

1. Emotional effort (refer to effort factor questionnaire)

• Dealing with on a daily basis patients/families/carers who are facing difficult decisions and facing death, providing support in a calm empathic manner.
• Constant exposure to loss and bereavement and highly distressing situations.

1. Working conditions (refer to effort factor questionnaire)

• Direct exposure to smell and body fluids
• Potential risk of dealing with distress, angry and aggressive patients/families/carers
• Lone Working
• Flexibility to contribute to a 24/7 service delivery