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There’s a place for you at CNWL. We’re passionate about delivering first-class patient‑centred, safe and effective care, whether it is in a hospital setting, in a community clinic or in the patient’s own home. Patients are at the heart of everything we do. Providing top quality care depends on our ability to employ the best people. We’re always looking to recruit outstanding people who will go the extra mile to support our patients, colleagues, teams and the Trust. With every new employee we’re hoping to find our future leaders and we’ll support our staff by providing opportunities to develop your career. With a diverse culture and equally diverse range of opportunities across mental health, community services, addictions, eating disorders, learning disabilities and more – whatever stage of your career you're at, there's always a place for you at CNWL.
Site ARCH, Old Bank House Town Hillingdon Salary £44,485 - £52,521 per annum inc. Outer HCAS (pro rata if P/T) Salary period Yearly Closing 24/12/2025 23:59 Interview date 05/01/2026
CNWL (Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust) has almost 8,000 staff providing integrated healthcare to a third of London's population, Milton Keynes and areas beyond. We involve service users, carers, the public, staff and partner organisations in the way that we are run.
Our catchment area spans diverse communities, with over 100 first languages spoken. It contains areas of great affluence as well as areas of much deprivation. We are committed to providing services that meet the needs of the people who use them, and we actively encourage involvement from local people who can help make a difference. We’re proud of our diversity and we continue to undertake new initiatives to advance equality for LGBT+, BME and people with disabilities to promote good relations and understanding between our staff.
We are recognised locally, nationally and internationally for providing high quality, innovative healthcare. We aim to employ only the best people, and our experts are frequently called upon to contribute to national health strategy and policy, and many models of our care have been adapted for use in other countries.
We offer a generous relocation package (subject to eligibility assessment) and flexible working options, including bank assignments for most roles. For more information on these and other benefits of working for us, see our Benefits, Reward and Wellbeing page.
Become part of our team. We care for you as much as you care for others.
CNWL NHS Foundation Trust are committed to safeguarding all children and vulnerable adults and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We follow safe recruitment practices to protect children and vulnerable adults.
Job overview
Addition Recovery Community Hillingdon (ARCH) - Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust
The Addiction Recovery Community (ARCH) helps people in Hillingdon who want to break a cycle of addiction to substances such as heroin, club drugs, other types of stimulants or long term alcohol addiction. It represents the bringing together of a variety of services under one roof to provide a better service to service users.
Main duties of the job
Clinical Nurse Specialist
An exciting opportunity has become available at ARCH to work within the Addictions Team as an experienced Band 6 Clinical Nurse Specialist.
The aim of the role is to provide specialist addiction nursing support in the form of assessment, engagement and intervention for patients with substance use needs, supporting integration into the community, preventing reoffending and facilitating engagement to the local community substance misuse team ARCH.
The role involves working with a wide range of services. Successful candidates will need to have excellent communication skills as well as the flexibility to work alongside these different groups.
Candidates will need to be able to work effectively as part of a team as well as having the skills and confidence to work as individuals in a range of environments. Supervision and consultation is available to the team to support practice.
We are looking for an experienced registered nurse, with knowledge of mental health, substance misuse disorders demonstrable experience in specialist assessment and decision making.
Working for our organisation
We are a forward facing trust who believes in training and development of nurses skills and can prioritise supporting prospective applicants to learn new skills in working with providing service users addictions support.
We have ample opportunities to gain a greater understanding of essential skills underpinning clinical practice such as motivational interviewing techniques, relapse management and clinical specialist skills such venepuncture, ECG, dry blood spot testing and fibro scan training.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
* To work as a member of the multidisciplinary team in the management and treatment provision of the specialist service to people with problematic use of novel psychoactive substances with associated problem drink and drug use attending the service/unit, including harm minimisation approaches, motivational interviewing, relapse prevention, care planning, individual intervention, health assessments and education and detoxification programmes, pre and post test BBV’s counselling and vaccination and group work.
* To assess continuously the psychological, emotional, social and rehabilitative needs of own clients/patients, taking into account the needs of family, local community and developing systematic plans for care and evaluation of treatment plans.
* To be able to assess and case manage clients who inject drugs, in particular assessing injection sites and be conversant with the precepts of harm minimisation.
* To use agreed and established Treatment Outcome Monitoring Tools (TOP) and any other relevant quality measures.
* To contribute to the development, provision and review of care plans.
* To manage the transfer of individuals between agencies and services.
* To counsel individuals about their substance use and related behaviours, using motivational interviewing, relapse management and other evidence-based interventions,
* To provide clinical advice and support to other colleagues within the health care setting and to other agencies concerned with substance misuse.
* To be responsible for the safe and effective storage and administration of drugs, exercising responsibility for the custody and maintenance of statutory records of such drugs in accordance with the Trust Policies/Procedures on the supply and carriage of drugs in the community.
* To ensure full risk assessments and risk management is delivered effectively.
* To undertake dry blood spot testing for BBV and urinalysis when required.
* To screen clients at risk of, or affected by, blood borne diseases and to plan and agree service responses according to needs.
* To provide education and to assertively promote Hepatitis B vaccination for clients who are at risk of contracting the virus.
* To administer Hepatitis B vaccination in accordance with CNWL Medicine Policies and Protocols.
* To provide pre and post test discussion to clients screened for blood borne viruses in accordance with CNWL guidelines.
* To ensure the CNWL Hepatitis care plan is used for all clients.
* To actively promote attendance at the hepatology clinic for clients affected by liver disease.
* To collaborate with the individual Statutory, Non-Statutory teams, GPs, Primary Care Services, Virology, Chemical Pathology and Liver/ Gastroenterology Departments, and provide expert care without direct medical supervision, using clinical guidance documents and patient group directions as agreed by the Trust.
* To assist in the transfer of individuals between the service and Hepatology/Gastroenterology and other relevant agencies.
* To be familiar with the Trust and local Resuscitation, Infection Control and Needle Stick Injury Policies and Procedures.
* To attend mandatory yearly updates on CPR and Anaphylaxis training.
Person specification
Education and Qualifications
Experience
* Experience managing a caseload in the community
* Experience of working with addictions
* Experience of working with dual diagnosis clients and those experiencing mental health issues
* Experience in Risk Management and care planning
* Experience of working with people who use club drugs and engage in ‘chemsex’
* Experience of working in and delivering services to injecting drug users
* Experience of providing counselling interventions
Skills and knowledge
* Knowledge of different treatment models and pathways in substance misuse
* Able to build constructive relationships with warmth and empathy, using good communication skills
* An understanding of safeguarding issues in relation to adults and children
* Good interpersonal skills
* Ability to work independently and to prioritise effectively
* Experience of working within a multi-disciplinary team.
* Ability to work within a harm minimisation model
* Motivational Interviewing skills / Relapse Management skills
* Ability to treat service users with respect and dignity at all times, adopting a culturally sensitive approach, which considers the needs of the whole person
* IT literate
* Knowledge of prescribing issues in a drug service
* Non-judgemental
* Able to engage in frank discussions with clients about intimate and sexual topics
* Committed to multidisciplinary team work
* Committed to Service User involvement
* Flexible & responsive to a must have the ability to understand and implement the Equal and Diversity policy at a level appropriate to the job developing service.
The successful applicant may have contact with patients or service users. As an NHS Trust we strongly encourage and support vaccination as this remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course patients and service users when working on our healthcare settings.
* Due to the high response levels we receive for some vacancies, we may expire any of them prior to the advertised closing date and advise you to submit your application as soon as possible.
* Applications from job seekers who require sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. Before submitting your application and to avoid disappointment please check that you are eligible under the UKVI points based system
* Our Agenda for Change employment contracts are subject to a contractual 13 week probationary period.
* If you are offered a job, information will be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
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.
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