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The role emphasises the importance of strong communication skills and a passion for food and nutrition, as the post-holder will interact with diverse individuals and work as part of a multi-disciplinary team. While much of the work will be office-based, the assistant will also have opportunities for home visits and to contribute to training efforts for both patients and professionals. Flexible working arrangements are encouraged, and the position offers a unique chance to gain varied experience within the field of dietetics.
First Dietitians is a friendly, approachable team of 24 dietitians, dietetic assistants and administrators, delivering adult and paediatric services across East Surrey and parts of West Sussex in a range of community settings, including clinics, specialist schools and patients own homes.
Our vision is to be a trailblazer for food and nutrition and we are committed to service development through public involvement, quality improvement and innovative new service models. We encourage all members of the team to be involved in service development to improve the efficiency of our services and patient experience.
This is an exciting opportunity to work with us as a dietetic assistant. You will have an integral role supporting the delivery of diabetes group education and the running of the service we provide to patients with diabetes in the East Surrey area. You will also support our adult and paediatric teams, working closely with the lead community dietitians to support our patients in the community.
As a key member of the multi-disciplinary team you will be uniquely placed to build relationships with our patients and their families, positively influencing their health and wellbeing. You will work as an autonomous assistant practitioner, with appropriate levels of supervision and support, contributing to the delivery of excellent nutritional care by the team.
We recognise the importance of flexible working; we encourage you to discuss opportunities for this at interview.
As a dietetic assistant, you will work across our diabetes, adult and paediatric services and in a variety of settings. The role offers a good deal of opportunity to gain experience in different areas of dietetics. Tasks will include:
- Organising, planning and delivering group education to patients newly diagnosed with type 2 diabetes (appropriate training will be given to become a DESMOND accredited educator)
- Contacting patients by phone, e-mail or letter to book education sessions, clinic appointments and home visits
- Visiting patients in care homes or their own homes to carry out nutritional assessments
- Working with the lead community dietitians to improve the service where possible
This list is not exhaustive and all tasks are important to ensure the service runs smoothly and that patients receive the best possible care. Excellent communication and people skills are paramount as you will be communicating with a wide range of individuals on a daily basis, but a background in general administration and evidence of good planning and organisational skills would be desirable.
We are looking for a team player who cares about patients and has an interest in food and nutrition. Our mission is changing lives through food and we pride ourselves on the wide variety of skills and knowledge the team possesses. There will be ample opportunities to contribute to and take part in continuing professional development.
About us
The post-holder will act as an autonomous assistant practitioner, although with supervision and support, contributing to the delivery of excellent nutritional care by the First Dietitians Team.
To assist the qualified dietitians in providing high quality interventions within the service, to maintain or improve the health, independence, and quality of life of patients by working as part of the multi-disciplinary/multi-agency team.
Manage own workload, prioritising time and activities on a daily basis and planning ongoing tasks to meet the changing needs of the total group of patients. This role is non-routine in order to meet the various changing demands within the team caseload.
The role also includes a wide range of support tasks in addition to patient focused time. All the tasks are important to ensure the service runs smoothly and that patients receive the best possible service. Good communication and people skills are at the core of all of the duties involved in this post as information exchanged can be complex.
The post-holder may support the delivery of education and training to other professionals and patients, including the delivery of diabetes education. They will work in close liaison with the team, other Healthcare Professionals and Homecare Companies.
Although many duties will be office-based, the post-holder will also visit patients in their own homes and schools.
When completing your application please refer to both the Application Guide and full Job Description - these can be found under supporting documents.
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