An exciting opportunity has arisen for an enthusiastic, motivated and experienced Social Prescribing Link Worker to join our team.
Main duties of the job
We are looking for an experienced Social Prescriber to join our team performing the duties described in the job description. We are looking for a candidate able to work one day a week.
We want friendly and personable candidates who have thecommunication skills, enthusiasm and aptitude to work alongside our existingmultidisciplinary team. We pride ourselves on our collaborative andsupportive working environment in which all staff are valued.
About us
We are proud to offer a friendly and welcoming environmentproviding excellent local healthcare to the residents of Garstang and thesurrounding area. We have a large clinical team who are well supported by ourreception and admin team. We are based within Garstang Medical Centre - amodern, purpose built premises, with easy access for disabled patients. We alsohave our own onsite dispensary/pharmacy providing a range of additional NHSservices.
Job responsibilities
Keyresponsibilities
* Takereferrals from the Practice and from a wide range of agencies, includingpharmacies, health and care multi-disciplinary teams (MDTs), the emergencyservices, legal and welfare advice services, VCSE organisations, and throughself-referrals (list not exhaustive).
* Providepersonalised support to individuals, their families and carers to accesscommunity-based activities and support that can help them to take control oftheir health and wellbeing through co-producing a simple personalised care andsupport plan and introducing people to appropriate activities, groups andservices as described above.
* Workwith appropriate supervision as part of the Practice to manage and prioritiseyour own caseload, in accordance with needs, priorities and support required byindividuals. Refer people back to other health professionals/agencies, asappropriate or necessary.
* Buildongoing relationships with local infrastructure organisations, communityactivities and support services to increase knowledge of the community supportoffer, and work collaboratively to develop effective partnership working tosupport the community offer to be sustainable, identifying gaps in provision,nurturing community assets and sharing intelligence on gaps or problems withcommissioners and local authorities
* Increasethe strength and capacity of the community, enabling local VCSE organisationsand community groups to both receive social prescribing referrals and to make referrals to social prescribing linkworkers.
* Educatenon-clinical and clinical staff within Practice MDTs on the community supportoffer, how and when patients can access it, and the value of non-medicalcommunity-based interventions. This may include verbal or written advice and guidance.
* Promotesocial prescribing as an approach across the Practice and wider agencies,including its role in supported self-management, in addressing healthinequalities and the widerdeterminants of health, reducingpressure on statutory services, improving access to healthcare and improvinghealth outcomes, and in taking a holistic approach to care.
Key Tasks
* Referrals.
* Promotesocial prescribing as an approach across the Practice by attending relevant MDTmeetings to build relationships and developing links with local agencies.
* Proactivelydevelop strong links with local agencies to encourage appropriate referrals.
* Providereferral agencies with regular updates about social prescribing, includingtraining for their staff and how toaccess information to encourage appropriatereferrals.
* Seekregular feedback about the quality of service and impact of social prescribingon referral agencies.
* Proactivelyencourage equitable participation in social prescribing through takingself-referrals and connecting with diverse local communities through a range ofmethods, particularly communities that statutory agencies may find hard toreach and where health inequalities are most prevalent.
* Meetpeople on a one-to-one basis, making home visits and visits to communityorganisation where appropriate and within organisations policies and procedures.
* Use appropriate judgement to ascertain the number andlength of sessions required, responding to the needs of the individual andtheir circumstances, for approximately 6-12 contacts over 3 months.
* Give peopletime to tell their storiesand focus on the question, what matters to me?
* Buildtrust and respect with the person, providing non-judgemental andnon-discriminatory support, taking a strength-based approach that focuses on apersons assets.
* Workwith the person, their families and carers and consider how they can all be supported through social prescribing.
* Helppeople identify the wider issues that impact on their health and wellbeing,such as debt, poor housing, beingunemployed, loneliness and caring responsibilities.
* Workwith individuals to co-produce a simple personalised support plan to addressthe persons health and wellbeing needs based on the persons priorities,interests, values, cultural and religious/faith needs and motivations
* Provideinformation on what people can from the groups, activities and services theyare being connected to.
* Provideinformation on what the person can do for themselves to improve their healthand wellbeing.
* Physicallyintroduce people to appropriate community groups and activities, peer supportgroups, or statutory services, ensuring they are comfortable, feel valued andrespected.
* Providefollow up support to the person to ensure they are happy, able to engage, feelincluded and that they are receiving good support.
* Helppeople maintain or regain independence through living skills, adaptations, enablement approaches and simple safeguards
* Wherepeople may be eligible for a personal health budget, help them to explore thisoption as a way of providing funded, personalised support to be independent,including helping people to gainskills for meaningful employment, where appropriate.
* Seekadvice and support from the Clinical Supervisor and/or identified individual(s)to discuss safeguarding concernsand follow Practice safeguarding policies around reporting and/or escalatingconcerns.
* Seekadvice and support from the Clinical Supervisor and/or identified individual(s)to discuss concerns outside the scope of the social prescribing link workerspractice and make appropriate onward referrals.
* Supporting the community offer.
* Developsupportive relationships with local VCSE organisations, community groups andstatutory services, to understand their offer and make timely, appropriate andsupported referrals.
* Createstrong links with local agencies to utilise existing networks and build onexisting provision.
* Workcollectively with all local partners to ensure community groups are accessibleand sustainable.
* Workwith commissioners and local partners to identify and share information onunmet diverse needs within thecommunity and gaps in community provision.
* Supportdevelopment of community groups and assets who promote diversity and inclusion.
* Encouragepeople who have been connected to community support through social prescribingto volunteer or to start their own activities and groups.
* Supportexisting local volunteering schemes to strengthen community resilience and explore potential todevelop a team of volunteers to provide buddying support, peer support or tostart new community-based groups or activities.
Datacapture
* Supportreferral agencies to provide appropriate information about the person they arereferring, including demographic data and data on wider determinants, forexample, caring status.
* Provideappropriate and timely feedback to referral agencies about the people they referred.
* Worksensitively with people, their families and carers to capture key informationto measure impact of social prescribing on their health and wellbeing, using validated toolsdetermined locally such as the ONS4 wellbeing scale to assess need and measureoutcomes.
* Encouragepeople, their families and carers to provide feedback on their experience, forexample, through patient satisfaction surveys, and to share their stories aboutthe impact of social prescribing on their lives.
* Ensurethat social prescribing referral SNOMED codes are coded appropriately intoclinical systems.
* Adhereto Practice policies around data protection legislation and data sharingagreements, ensuring people give appropriate consent.
* Workwith your line manager to undertake continual personal and professionaldevelopment in line with the social prescribing Workforce Development FrameworkCompetency Framework
* Workwith your Clinical Supervisor and/or line manager to access regularclinical/non-managerial supervision.
* Takean active role in reflecting, reviewing and developing professional knowledge, skills and behaviours.
* Attendappropriate mandatory training before working with people and be aware of owncompetence, maintaining boundaries around scope of practice and referringonwards for people whose needs fall outside of these boundaries.
* Adhereto organisational policies and procedures, including confidentiality,safeguarding, lone working,information governance, equality, diversity and inclusion training and healthand safety.
* Workas part of the MDT to seek feedback, continually improve the service, and contribute to service planning.
* Contributeto the development of policies and plans relating to equality, diversity andinclusion, accessibility, and healthinequalities.
* Undertakeany tasks consistent with the level of the post and the scope of the role, ensuring that work is delivered in atimely and effective manner.
* Dutiesmay vary from time to time, without changing the general character of the postor the level of responsibility
Person Specification
Experience
* Experience working as a Social Prescribing Link Worker for at least one year.
* Ability to actively listen, empathise with people and provide person-centred support in a non-judgemental way
* Able to provide a culturally sensitive service, by supporting people from all backgrounds and communities, respecting lifestyles and diversity
* Commitment to reducing health inequalities and proactively working to reach people from diverse communities
* Able to support people in a way that inspires trust and confidence, motivating others to reach their potential, adapting to individual levels of activation and health literacy
* Ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing, with people, their families, carers, community groups, partner agencies and stakeholders, adapting communication styles accordingly
* Commitment to collaborative working with all local agencies (including VCSE organisations and community groups).
* Can demonstrate personal accountability, emotional resilience and ability to work well under pressure
* Experience of data collection and using tools to measure the impact of services
* Ability to maintain effective working relationships and to promote collaborative practice with all colleagues
* Ability to work flexibly and enthusiastically within a team or on own initiative
* Knowledge of, and ability to work to, policies and procedures, including confidentiality, safeguarding, lone working, information governance, and health and safety
* Have awareness and understanding of when it is appropriate or necessary to refer people back to other health professionals/agencies, when the persons needs are beyond the scope of the role for example, when there is a mental health need requiring a qualified practitioner
* Knowledge of IT systems, including ability to use word processing skills, emails and the internet to create simple plans and reports
* Meets DBS reference standards and criminal record checks
* Willingness to work flexible hours when required to meet work demands
* Access to transport and ability to travel across the locality on a regular basis, including to visit people in their own homes and support people to attend activities as appropriate.
* Local knowledge of VCSE and community services
Qualifications
* NVQ Level 3, Advanced level or equivalent qualifications or working towards
* Demonstrable commitment to professional and personal development
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Depending on experienceBetween £14.06 and £15.43ph
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