Job overview
We welcome this exciting opportunity to identify a suitable candidate to join the Anticoagulation Team at East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust as a Band 6 Anticoagulant Nurse.
This role offers the opportunity for career development into a specialist role within a nurse-led service, managing complex patients on anticoagulation therapies, making treatment recommendations and specialist prescribing decisions to ensure patients remain safely and therapeutically anticoagulated.
The post holder will be required to undertake a combination of lone and team working, working across hospital sites, community based clinics and undertaking domiciliary visits. It is desirable to be a non-medical prescriber in this role given it is a nurse-led service, however, for candidates who do not currently hold prescribing qualifications, there will be the opportunity to undertake this once fully established in the role.
Main duties of the job
The role of the Anticoagulant Nurse is highly specialised in the field of anticoagulation and requires the post holder to provide expert care and advice to patients on the management of their anticoagulation, in addition to utilising professional judgement in line with local and national guidelines.
Working for our organisation
At East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust our vision is to be widely recognised for providing safe, personal and effective care. We currently provide high quality services and treat over 600,000 people across East Lancashire and the surrounding area. We employ over 9,500 staff, many of whom are internationally renowned and have won awards for their work.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
* Provide a specialist clinical service to patients with conditions requiring long and short-term anticoagulation with vitamin-k antagonists, either in a clinic setting or in the patient’s place of residence.
* Have an in-depth knowledge of adjunctive therapies that are appropriate to incorporate into individual anticoagulation treatment plans.
* Work within agreed local Trust and national policies, procedures, and guidelines, including those relating to patient consent and confidentiality.
* Act as an expert resource for members of the multidisciplinary team providing specialist advice as appropriate on anticoagulation.
* Acknowledge limitations in knowledge, referring to senior medical staff for further advice and clinical input when scope of practice is exceeded.
* Empower patients to enable them to become actively involved in the decision-making process regarding the management of their conditions requiring anticoagulation and ensure method of ongoing monitoring of anticoagulation is the most efficient for the patient as well as the service.
* Respond to cultural and/or social issues involved in chronic disease management and tailor patient plans around these.
* Understand of how interventions from other members of the multi-disciplinary team impact on the overall management of chronic disease relating anticoagulation.
* Ensure there is a follow-up process for patients who require changes in management of their anticoagulation in respect to acute interventions or treatments.
* Provide a high standard of care for patients with acute changes in disease activity and, if necessitated, arrange emergency treatment where appropriate.
* Respond in a timely and appropriately to anticoagulant referrals.
* Work autonomously while managing own caseload in nurse-led clinics, applying expert knowledge to make changes to a patients care plan.
* To work with line manager and anticoagulant team to develop and deliver a standardised service across both Blackburn and Burnley at a level of service that meets patient’s needs.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
* Registered Nurse with active registration with the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC)
Desirable criteria
* Prescribing qualification
Experience
Essential criteria
* Previous considerable experience of nursing within primary or secondary care
* Extensive experience of working within a multi-disciplinary team
Desirable criteria
* Previous experience within a domiciliary setting
* Considerable experience of using an electronic prescribing or patient record system
Knowledge
Essential criteria
* Basic understanding of anticoagulant medicines
* Knowledge of relevant legal and statutory requirements within nursing and medicines management
* Excellent communication skills and professionalism exhibited in all formats
* Ability to understand, absorb and comply with detailed policies and procedures
Desirable criteria
* Specialist anticoagulant knowledge or previous training
Personal Attributes
Essential criteria
* Ability to work autonomously and within a team
* Prioritise and manage workload accordingly
* Demonstrable ability to go above and beyond for patients and colleagues when needed
* Ability to manage and deal with stressful situations