The Clinical Nurse Specialist (HART) is a key member of the Hospice Advice & Response Team, delivering specialist palliative care advice and rapid response support to patients, families and healthcare professionals across the community. The service operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, responding to urgent and unplanned palliative care needs. Working within an established multidisciplinary team, the post holder provides expert clinical assessment, triage and intervention via telephone and face-to-face visits. This role requires advanced communication skills, sound clinical judgement and the ability to manage complex symptom control, palliative emergencies and sensitive end-of-life situations.
Main duties of the job
The post holder provides specialist palliative care nursing support through the Hospice Advice & Response Team, offering timely triage, clinical advice and rapid response to patients with life-limiting illness. This includes holistic assessment, symptom management, advance care planning and emotional support for patients and families. The role involves working collaboratively with internal hospice services and external healthcare professionals to ensure coordinated, person-centred care. The Clinical Nurse Specialist contributes to service development, audit and education, while maintaining high standards of clinical governance, documentation and professional practice in line with organisational values.
This post may be considered as part of a development pathway for the right candidate, with appropriate support, supervision and training provided.
About us
Dougie Mac provides compassionate care and support for adults, young adults, and children with life-limiting conditions across Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire. As a values-driven organisation, we strive to deliver high-quality, person-led, and inclusive care across our inpatient, community, and supportive care services. Following our merger with Approach Dementia Support and expansion into children and young adult services, Dougie Mac now supports more people than ever before across all age groups and diagnoses. Our team is made up of dedicated, skilled professionals who are committed to delivering responsive and meaningful care in line with our hospice values. We offer a collaborative working environment with access to professional development, reflective practice, and staff wellbeing support. Dougie Mac is proud to be a financially independent local charity, offering a competitive salary and benefits package including generous annual leave, contributory pension scheme, funded study opportunities, hospice-paid healthcare cash plan, and free on-site parking. Dougie Macs Community Services team supports patients to remain at home, surrounded by loved ones, for as long as possible. Our team of nurses, support workers, and therapists deliver high-quality palliative care across Stoke-on-Trent and North Staffordshire offering symptom management, emotional support, and practical care, working closely with GPs and District Nurses.
Job responsibilities
1. To work alongside your team to ensure the continued co-ordination of the content and delivery of the community patients care plans and ensure the quality and provision of nursing care of patients and their families.
2. To assess the needs of patients and their carers and identify their respective physical, psychological, social, cultural and spiritual needs.
3. To work within a team framework, collaborating with colleagues and members of other disciplines across the hospice and externally.
4. To use a proactive and sensitive approach with patients and families during times of unplanned activity and respond timely to their needs.
5. To conduct a triage assessment aligning a time frame for responsiveness.
6. To assess peoples information needs and provide relevant information to meet those needs.
7. To ensure provision of appropriate interventions and utilise clinical information appropriately.
8. To follow the hospice and Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) or other registered body standards on Medicines Management.
9. To participate in Clinical Audit and research programme.
10. To foster positive working relations with other healthcare professionals and lead by example.
11. To support colleagues, volunteers and students in managing bereavements, and provide support for distressed patients, bereaved relatives and visitors.
12. You will be able to demonstrate leadership through clinical expertise. Aiming to deliver high standards of person-centred care using the underpinning philosophy of Specialist Palliative Care.
13. Have the skills and confidence to contribute to the delivery of specialist education and training to other professionals in a formal and informal setting.
14. Contribute to quantitative and qualitative data collection of the Service.
15. Understand and utilise relevant clinical guidelines.
16. Takes professional responsibility for ensuring effective communication between all service providers across the care pathway.
17. After an initial period will actively participate in multi-professional meetings, acting as patient advocate and representing the CNS view.
18. To recognise and manage the potentially distressing effects of working with terminal illness, maintaining personal resilience while accessing the support, guidance, and resources available through the hospice.
19. Work across professional boundaries and develop a robust rationale for decision making and problem-solving.
Person Specification
Qualifications
* Registered Nurse (A)
* Ability to travel independently throughout the locality with access to suitable vehicle for business purposes (A)
* Advanced Communication Skills qualification or willingness to undertake (A)
* Healthcare Assessment qualification (A)
Experience
* 3 years post registration experience (A)
* Proven experience and knowledge of palliative/terminal care (A/I)
* Experience in triage (A/I)
* Experience in Audit (A/I)
* Experience in formal teaching (A/I)
Additional Criteria
* IT skills including Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, Outlook and Powerpoint) (A)
* Must demonstrate excellent interpersonal and communication skills (A/I)
* Ability to work with a multi-disciplinary team (I)
* Awareness of palliative emergencies and know when to evolve these (I)
* Knowledge of evidencing the use of clinical guidelines (I)
* Knowledge of palliative medicine and symptom management (A/I)
* Ability to prioritise (A/I)
* The ability to adapt to change (I)
* Ability to motivate others (A/I)
* Use own initiative (I)
* To be able to meet the requirements of the post
* Flexible working to meet shift requirements
* Present a professional appearance appropriate to the role
* To understand the external influences that effect the delivery of palliative care in the community (A/I)
* Experience in advance planning (I)
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.
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