Kingston Hospital - First Acute Trust in London to be rated Outstanding by CQC for Overall Quality and Leadership
Kingston Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is a district general hospital situated in a beautiful and remarkable part of the country – close to London yet surrounded by royal parks, historic buildings and the River Thames. We are located on a single site in Kingston upon Thames, Surrey and run several outpatient clinics in neighbouring areas including Raynes Park Health Centre and Teddington Memorial Hospital.
We employ just under 5000 staff who proudly and efficiently support over 350,000 people locally through a full range of diagnostic and treatment services and we have a national reputation for innovative developments in healthcare, particularly in 'patient-focused' care, day surgery and maternity services.
The South West London Collaborative Bank
Kingston Hospital is a part of the local South West London Collaborative and offer competitive bank rates to work across the three NHS trusts: St Georges, Kingston Hospital and Epsom & St Helier. Our Smart App booking system makes life easier for flexible working!
Health and Wellbeing & Staff Benefits
The Trust understands that benefits go beyond just financial rewards and invests heavily in the wellbeing of its staff. Alongside opportunities for career development, there is a dedicated team of Staff Pastoral Wellbeing Practitioners who work with the Clinical and Corporate divisions, to provide pastoral support to all staff. These Practitioners are part of the wider Health & Wellbeing provision which includes a specialist Staff Physiotherapist, Occupational Health and access to counselling and an Employee Assistance Programme. The team works together to enhance staff wellbeing and to promote a healthy work-life balance.
Recent awards:
- Our Health Heroes Awards 2018 – Staff Retention and Wellbeing Employer of the Year
- HPMA Vivup Award for Well Being 2019
- NHSE National Healthcare Support Worker Award for Innovation and Excellence in Pastoral Support – 2023
- NHSE London Healthcare Support Worker Award for Sustainable Retention Initiative – 2023
Trust Values
Kingston Hospital NHS Trust has five key values and we want to employ and work with people who share these values and demonstrate behaviours that support them. They are:
- Caring – Design and deliver care around each individual patient’s needs and wants.
- Safe – Make the safety of patients and staff our prime concern as safety comes first
- Responsible – All staff take responsibility for the hospital, its services and reputation
- Value Each Other – Value each other's contribution
- Inspiring - We always strive to empower each other to develop and deliver improvements to benefit our patients
Job overview
The Speech and Language Therapy Department at Kingston Hospital are pleased to offer this exciting position to lead and develop the Speech and language Therapy service on the Acute Stroke Unit.
The unit consists of 20 acute stroke beds and has a dynamic and innovative multi-disciplinary team with its own rehabilitation room. The Stroke Unit offers its own training programme and has regular MDT and service development meetings. The Unit has well established links with other Acute and Hyper-Acute Stroke services and other agencies. The role will also include providing senior input to the medical wards.
The successful candidate will be a strong team player, be highly motivated and flexible, with a commitment to new ways of working and have an innovative approach to patient care and service delivery.
Experience in acute care is essential, as is a background in neurology and rehabilitation. The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate highly developed skills in the management of dysphagia and acquired communication disorders.
Main duties of the job
1. To provide an effective and evidenced-based Speech & Language service to adult in-patients with communication and / or swallowing difficulties within the Stroke Unit.
2. This role will also include specialist input for patients with other neurological conditions within the hospital.
3. The post-holder will be expected to coordinate seamlessly with other SLT teams within the Trust to provide prompt and timely management of acute patients, according to the demand of services.
4. The post holder will work as a highly specialist, autonomous practitioner, independently prioritising and managing an in-patient caseload.
5. The role will also have responsibility for overseeing the management of caseloads of more junior members of staff within the SLT department.
6. Participation in the development and monitoring of the SLT service to the Stroke Unit and medicine. Supervision / management of other SLT teams during periods of sickness / annual leave will also be required.
Working for our organisation
Trust Values
Kingston Hospital NHS Trust has five key values and we want to employ and work with people who share these values and demonstrate behaviours that support them. They are:
- Caring – Design and deliver care around each individual patient’s needs and wants.
- Safe – Make the safety of patients and staff our prime concern as safety comes first
- Responsible – All staff take responsibility for the hospital, its services and reputation
- Value Each Other – Value each other's contribution
- Inspiring - We always strive to empower each other to develop and deliver improvements to benefit our patients
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
**Please see the attached supporting job description and person specification document, which contains more information about the role and requirements. Please ensure your application refers to the job description and person specification**
Person specification
Education
Essential criteria
7. Recognised degree or equivalent in Speech & Language Therapy
8. Registered with and member of the Royal College of Speech & Language Therapists (RCSLT) and the Health Professions Council (HCPC); HCPC licence to practice and eligible for full RCSLT register
9. Successful completion of highly specialist / expert short courses in the interpretation of Videofluoroscopy and / or FEES
10. Post graduate training in Supervision
11.. Post graduate qualification in Ionising Radiation (Medical Exposure) Regulations (IRMER)
Desirable criteria
12. Member of Neurological or other relevant CEN
Education
Essential criteria
13. Completion of post graduate study / qualification in swallowing (accredited course) and communication disorders e.g. cervical auscultation, FOTT, LSVT, etc.
14. Evidence of completion of RCSLT competencies in videofluorsocopy to level KSF 4 and / or FEES (scoping competencies)
Experience
Essential criteria
15. Extensive experience of SLT practice postgraduation with adults with acquired communication and swallowing disorders
16. Relevant SLT practice within an acute hospital environment
17. Proven experience of working at specialist level in the areas of swallowing and communication impairment
18. Experience of leading a Videofluoroscopy clinic, including interpretation of results and report writing
19. Experience in training and teaching other SLTs and the MDT in areas of clinical specialism
20. Experience of drafting clinical protocols and clinical pathways
21. Experience of developing and running quality improvement projects
22. Experience in supervising less experienced SLTs / students
Desirable criteria
23.. Experience with FEES
Skills
Essential criteria
24. Specialist SLT skills in the assessment and management of swallowing difficulties
25. Specialist SLT skills in Stroke and Neurology
26. Demonstrates skills in dealing with complex issues
27. Ability to formulate independent clinical decisions underpinned by evidence-based practice.
28. Excellent interpersonal and communication skills
29. Ability to communicate with patients/ carers in an appropriate and professional manner
30. Good organisational skills
31. Demonstrates ability to be a team player
Other
Essential criteria
32. Excellent team worker
33. Strong IT skills
Skills
Essential criteria
34. Demonstrates a high level of reflective practice
35. Demonstrates high levels of empathy and compassion
Knowledge
Essential criteria
36. Principles and practice of Audit, Clinical Governance, standards and care pathways
37. The role of AHPs and SLTs in the NHS
38. Relevant NSFs and NICE guidelines
39. Current best practice in Dysphagia
40. Current best practice in Videofluoroscopy / FEES
41. Current best practice in outcome measurement in Dysphagia and communication disorders
Other
Essential criteria
42. Ability to work under pressure
43. Self-motivated
44. Flexible
Your application : Please ensure that you have read the job description and person specification and that your supporting statement reflects these, as your application will be assessed and scored against these criteria.
References : You will be required to provide 3 years of employment/educational history. We do not accept references from personal email addresses such as Hotmail, Gmail etc. therefore please ensure you are providing professional working email addresses within your application form. If you are unable to provide professional email addresses and are invited to an interview, please ensure you advise the interviewers of this - otherwise, this may delay your pre-employment checks.
Closing date : In order to streamline recruitment within our Trust, we reserve the right to expire vacancies prior to the advertised closing date once we have received a sufficient number of applications.
Shortlisting : You will only be contacted via e-mail/SMS by the SWL Recruitment Hub if you are successfully shortlisted for this post. Please ensure that you check your Trac registered e-mail regularly.
DBS : Kingston Hospital NHS Trust is committed to safeguarding children and adults who are at risk of abuse. As such, if this post will have access to children or vulnerable adults, you will be required to undertake an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check. However, all employees have a responsibility for safeguarding children and vulnerable adults in the course of their duties and for ensuring that they are aware of the specific duties relating to their role.
Salary :
For applicants without prior NHS experience at the same pay band or higher, the salary will start at the lower value within the advertised range.
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.