Choose Well - Choose WWL
Job overview
Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Trust (WWL) are looking to recruit an exceptional individual (Registered Nurse (RMN/RGN/RNLD) or other Healthcare registered professional) with a passion for dementia care to join our team.
Combining direct work with patients and families with supporting the best practice of health and social care professionals, you will call upon your knowledge of holistic and therapeutic working in order to improve the experience of carer’s / families affected by dementia during their acute stay and across care transitions.
Employed by WWL and being based at the Royal Albert Infirmary, you will work as part of a team with the dementia practitioner lead, to maintain and strengthen your clinical expertise as a specialist practitioner.
You will receive on-going support and professional development. You will have the opportunity to access relevant post-graduate courses and develop professionally, informed by National guidance.
Main duties of the job
The primary focus of the dementia practitioner role is to deliver person–centred and relationship- centred care dementia care within operational areas of WWL to improve the experience of carers/families affected by dementia*.
• Deliver evidence based dementia care and support improvements in the experience for families affected by dementia.*
• Provide and utilise advance comprehensive assessment, care planning and psycho-social interventions to enhance the quality of life of those affected by dementia and their carers/ families.
• Support workforce development in dementia to improve staff knowledge and skills across the organisation.
• Support the delivery of key quality and performance indicators relating to dementia care, including the experience of families.
• Apply a recognised framework at a specialist level, including person-centred care, therapeutic skills, and triadic relationships, sharing knowledge, best practice and critical reflective practice.
*We defines this as the person living with dementia and others who may be carers or family members
Working for our organisation
Choose Well - Choose WWL
Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust are the proud providers of acute hospital and community services to the people of the Wigan Borough and surrounding areas. At WWL, we value our staff believing that ‘happy staff, makes for happy patients’. We have a recognised track record in staff engagement, and living our values ‘the WWL Way’.
WWL are committed to placing the patient at the heart of everything we do, and in the provision of safe, effective care that acknowledges and ensures dignity. With this in mind we are seeking to recruit people who share our values and beliefs.
At WWL we value the benefits a rich and diverse workforce brings to our community and therefore welcome applications from all sections of society.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Key results from the job holder
• Advise on the care of people with dementia and their carers/families with complex care needs from peri-diagnosis to post bereavement support.
• Provide specialist nursing assessment, using a recognised Framework for carers/families affected by dementia during hospital admission.
• Support identification and management of co morbidities and frailty for people with dementia and their carers/families.
• Develop and support person-centred care plans for people with dementia including positive risk management (e.g. falls, delirium, depression, incontinence)
• Deliver relationship and family-centred approaches to care, which meet the needs of people with dementia, carers/families and staff.
• Provide a range of psychosocial interventions and emotional support to promote health and wellbeing for people with dementia and their carers/families.
• Support people with dementia, carers/families and staff to understand and respond to changes in behaviour and relationships as a result of dementia.
• Ensure that all legal requirements relating to mental capacity, safeguarding and mental health are considered and adhered to in relation to patient care.
• Act as an advocate for people with dementia and their carers/families to promote their rights and best interests.
• Participate in case conferences and best interest meetings where required.
• Work collaboratively with health, social and voluntary sector services to achieve coordinated care.
• Manage care transitions and support effective discharge for people with dementia and their carers/families in order to reduce frequency of admissions and length of stay.
• Ensure that care is delivered in accordance with relevant local and national guidelines and all relevant WWL policies.
• Recognise the limits of own competency and professional boundaries and make appropriate and timely referrals to other services where required.
• To maintain professional registration in line with professional body guidance
• Support the band 7 dementia lead with the development of a new service and patient pathways.
Planning and Organisational Duties
• Ensure all practice is carried out in accordance with the agreed policies and procedures of WWL, and your professional body.
• To attend and actively participate in practice development days, clinical supervision, and continuing professional development.
• To develop own competence .
• Contribute to the development of policies, procedures and protocols relevant to dementia care within Wrightington, Wigan & Leigh NHS Foundation.
• Ensure compliance with Trust clinical governance requirements.
• Participate in clinical supervision / mentoring within WWL where required.
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of evidence-based recommendations on supporting people with dementia and their carers/families.
Communications and Key Working Relationships
• Support the audit and evaluation of quality improvements and initiatives aimed at improving the delivery of dementia care within WWL.
• Collect quantitative and qualitative data to support the evaluation and audit of the dementia Nurse Service.
• Maintain clinical records using the dementia Nurse data recording system and provide verbal and written feedback appropriately and as required
• Ensure recorded information and data recorded is relevant, accurate, and complete and captured in a contemporaneous manner.
• Work in partnership with colleagues to provide support and information to families, particularly around advance care planning, best interest decisions and end of life care.
• Work proactively with key local and national stakeholders to develop more integrated care pathways and holistic models of care, through dissemination of specialist skills and knowledge.
Responsibility for Teaching
• Support innovative dementia training and education to staff within the Trust at all levels, to improve staff attitudes, knowledge, skills and confidence, in line with best practice and guidance.
• Participate in and/or support formal training events promoting best practice in dementia care.
• Provide advice on the delivery of evidence based best practice in dementia care
• Act as a clinical role model to others, including student nurses, and mentoring other staff as required.
• Support the development and delivery of work streams as part of the Trust’s Dementia Strategy
• Provide mentorship and offer clinical expertise to the staff in the departments caring for people with dementia and their carers/families within WWL
• Support delivery of the dementia care policy for WWL to improve identification, assessment, ongoing support and effective discharge for people with dementia and their family carer.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
1. Registered Nurse RMN/RGN/RNLD
2. Formal knowledge of dementia / older people are acquired through clinical post-graduate education
Experience
Essential criteria
3. Significant post-registration clinical experience of working with people with dementia and their carers/ supporters in different settings
4. Experience of recent involvement in practice / service development
5. Experience of working with groups and individuals in a variety of roles and settings
6. Demonstrated experience of working as an auntonomous practitioner
7. Demonstrated ability to lead and manage services
8. Experience of professional supervision of staff
9. Experience of audit / evaluating clinic practice
Skills
Essential criteria
10. Incorporating and demonstrating all of the 6 Admiral Nurse competencies including person centred care, therapeutic skills, triadic relationship, sharing knowledge, best practice and critical reflective practice at enhanced specialist level
11. Ability to use a range of therapeutic skills
12. Effective role- modelling
13. Collaborative and multi- agency working
14. Critical reflection
15. Facilitator and arbitrator
16. Acting as a decision maker and advocate
17. Good organisational skills
18. Experience of developing a service
19. Enhanced communication skills
20. Ability to provide supervision, critical companionship and support to team members
21. Ability to operate effectively with a constantly developing relationship with key stakeholders and associated agencies
22. Able to work on own initiative
23. Ability to work in groups/one to one
24. Ability to build constructive relationships with warmth and empathy
25. Ability to treat families affected by dementia with respect and dignity, adopting a culturally sensitive approach that considers the needs of the whole person
26. Ability to learn through practice
27. Positive mental attitude and a willingness to discuss and negotiate issues and ideas with the appropriate team / individual
Knowledge
Essential criteria
28. Understanding practice and promoting person -centred and relationship centred care
29. Enhanced knowledge of dementia and theraputic working with families and organisations
30. Application of sources of research and research methods to evaluate practice
Desirable criteria
31. Knowledge of research methods and methodologies
Additional
Essential criteria
32. Flexibility and creativity
33. Flexible approach to meet the needs of the service
34. Speak English to an appropriate standard relevant to their role, i.e. with confidence and accuracy, using correct sentence structures and vocabulary, and without hesitation
Use of Artificial Intelligence in Job Applications
If you choose to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) or other automated tools to help draft your application, please ensure all content is personalised and an accurate reflection of your own skills, experience and professional judgement. AI may be useful for idea generation, grammar, or formatting, but it must not replace your own supporting statement or be relied on as the sole source of content.
Wrightington Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust does not advocate reliance on AI during applications and expects applications to be genuine and tailored to the role; over-reliance on AI-generated text may negatively affect your application.
For further information and best practice on using AI when applying for NHS roles, please refer to the attached “Applying for a role in the NHS guidance”.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Documents to download
35. Dementia Practitioner Job Description (PDF, 272.4KB)
36. Dementia Practitioner Person Specification (PDF, 80.4KB)
37. What WWL can offer you (PDF, 42.7KB)
38. Applying for NHS vacancies guidance (PDF, 241.2KB)
Apply online now
Further details / informal visits contact
NameMark OakleyJob titleLead Admiral NurseEmail addressmark.oakley@wwl.nhs.ukTelephone number01942 778612
If you have problems applying, contact
Address Buckingham Row
Brick Kiln Lane
Wigan
WN1 1XX
Telephone 07786529393