StElizabeth Hospice is an independent charity and hospice, which improves lifefor people in the East Suffolk, Great Yarmouth and Waveney areas living with aprogressive or life-limiting illness. Ourmost recent Care Quality Commission report rated the hospice as Outstanding.
Establishedin 1989, the hospice has built a reputation for delivering high-level care topatients and the community it serves. Through medicine and therapy, they easepain; give life purpose and make life liveable. Last year the charity supportedover 4,000 patients and their families.
As St Elizabeth Hospice embarks on itstransformative journey, we are seeking a Virtual Ward Clinical Lead to beaccountable for the provision of qualified clinician oversight and input topatients under the care of the Virtual Ward at St Elizabeth Hospice, ensuringthe delivery of safe high quality care services. This is a chance to make a real difference topeoples lives.
Reporting to the Associate Director of CareOperations, the role will provide line management to the Virtual Ward TeamLeader, to support their development and the delivery of outstanding patientcare within patient homes underpinned by robust clinical governancearrangements.
Main duties of the job
Thehospices work is centred on the individual's needs and they provide specialistsupport wherever it is needed; whether that is in the home, another setting inthe community, in hospital or in the hospice itself. Support is provided topatients and their families via the In-Patient Unit, the Community Care Unitincluding outpatients clinics, home visits from the Community Nursing, Medicaland Therapy Teams, the OneCall 24/7 telephone helpline and bereavement support.
We are seeking avisionary leader to join our team as the Virtual Ward Clinical Lead. You willhave a passion for improving the lives of patients and their families.
Are you an enthusiastic Registered Nurse withcurrent NMC registration, demonstrable knowledge of palliative care andmanagement experience?
To thrive in this role,you will need to demonstrate the ability to plan, deliver and evaluateappropriate care for palliative care patients and their families.
If you are a dynamicand innovative leader who is passionate about making a difference, we inviteyou to apply for this exciting opportunity.
Interview Date: 27th August 2025
Hours: 37.5 hours / 5 days per week. Monday toFriday 8am to 4pm or 9am to 5pm
About us
If you would like an opportunity to find out moreabout working at the hospice and how it can fit your own career aspirations, werecommend an informal visit/discussion prior to you completing yourapplication.
Thehospice offers a generous benefit package, including:
27days annual leave entitlement
LifeCover
Cycleto Work Scheme
CarLeasing Scheme
HealthService Discounts
OccupationalSick Pay
BlueLight Card
EmployeeAssistance Programme
St Elizabeth Hospice is committed to safeguarding and protecting the adults and young people that we work with and has a zero-tolerance approach to abuse, neglect and discrimination of any person. As such, all posts are subject to a rigorous safer recruitment process, including the disclosure of criminal records and vetting checks. We have a range of robust safeguarding policies in place which promote safeguarding across the hospice and staff are expected to undertake regular, mandatory safeguarding training to equip them with the knowledge and skills to identify and respond to potential risks.
Job responsibilities
JOBSUMMARY
To beaccountable for the provision of qualified clinician oversight and input topatients under the care of the Virtual Ward at St Elizabeth Hospice, ensuringthe delivery of safe high quality care services. To provide line management tothe Virtual Ward Team Leader, to support their development and the delivery ofoutstanding patient care within patient homes underpinned by robust clinicalgovernance arrangements.
KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES
To have clinical oversight of theVirtual Ward Caseload. To take overall responsibility for ensuring thatpatients on the Virtual Ward have regular reviews including face-to-face andtelephone access to qualified clinicians to support safe care. To ensure thatall patients admitted to the Virtual Ward have a care plan in place, includingmanual handling advice and risk assessments which have been produced by aclinician. To ensure that there is appropriate regular oversight, monitoringand updating of care plans as the patient condition changes.
To provide line management to theVirtual Ward Team Leader, ensuring regular one-to-one meetings, annualappraisal and performance management.
To work with the Virtual Ward TeamLeader to ensure the virtual ward is staffed consistently and safely bysuitably qualified care staff to meet the needs of the patient population,leading on recruitment, and supporting the Virtual Ward Team Leader with inductionof team members as needed.
Ensure there is adequate linemanagement support to all Community Healthcare Assistant (CHCA) and CareSupport Worker (CSW) team members, ensuring all team members have access toregular one-to-one meetings, ad hoc support, de-briefs as appropriate, and anannual appraisal.
To provide expert professional clinicaladvice and support to multi-disciplinary team members to support them in thedelivery of outstanding care to patients and families under the care of theVirtual Ward.
To work with the Virtual Ward TeamLeader to ensure appropriate development the CHCA workforce through theidentification of their learning needs to support their career development andensure the CHCA team are suitably skilled in aspects of care delivery for palliativeand end-of-life patients.
Ensure there are systems in placethat support the efficient and effective delivery of care to support patientflow through the virtual ward as evidenced by the length of stay and volume ofpatients supported.
Ensure there are systems in placeto support the efficient delivery of a domiciliary care service, working withthe Care Co-Ordinator team to ensure appropriate day-to-day route planning andpatient allocation for the Virtual Ward CHCA staff, taking into considerationappropriate use of INT bases and car sharing.
Lead on allocated incident andcomplaint investigations, ensuring these are robustly investigated withcomprehensive action plans are drawn up to address any deficiencies in care. Towork with the Community Team Leads to ensure appropriate information sharingoccurs between the virtual ward and clinical community staff to ensure safe andeffective patient care.
To attend relevant clinicalgovernance and operational meetings.
Lead on the production andupdating of allocated policies and procedures utilizing relevant research.
In collaboration with the VirtualWard Team Leader, ensure there are mechanisms such as regular team meetings andwritten communications that support care delivery, including the feedback frompatients and learning from incidents and complaints.
Responsible for the InfectionPrevention and Control (IPC) arrangements for the Virtual Ward, ensuringadherence with relevant IPC policies and procedures, raising any risks to theIPC group and that IPC related audits are carried out according to the agreedaudit programme.
In conjunction with the AssociateDirector of Care Operations to ensure the CHCA team are supported to carry outtheir role by the provision of a range of support mechanisms such as ensuringappropriate access to clinical staff for advice on patient care.
Work with the Virtual Ward TeamLeader to monitor the standard of care delivery on the Virtual Ward, utilizingclinical audit and patient feedback to identify and co-produce areas fordevelopment, leading on relevant quality improvement projects.
To work with the Virtual Ward TeamLeader to ensure the care staff have all the necessary equipment and suppliesrequired to support the delivery of patient care.
To promote a safeguarding iseveryones business culture, and where necessary act as a safeguarding deputy.
GENERAL
Where you are a memberof a professional body you are required to conform to the professionalstandards set by that body. You are required to ensure your registration iscurrent and practice continuous professional development.
Because of the special nature of theHospice and its work, the post holder may on occasion be asked to undertakeother duties to help maintain our high standard of care.
Person Specification
Qualifications
* Registered General Nurse with current NMC registration.
* Palliative care qualification or equivalent at degree level.
Specific Skills
* Ability to plan, deliver and evaluate appropriate care for palliative care patients and their families.
* Ability to assess patient needs that may be complex and subject to change.
* Excellent communication and organisational skills, with the ability to deal with complex matters.
* Ability to supervise the work of others including registered and unregistered staff as well as volunteers.
Experience
* Related post qualification experience at Band 6 or above with management experience.
* Palliative care or long-term condition experience.
* Experience of working within a multi-disciplinary team.
* Experience of supervising staff.
* Experience of delivering quality improvement initiatives.
* Experience of the management of a community caseload of patients and supervising staff.
* Good understanding of the key components of clinical governance.
* Experience of budget management.
Personal Qualities
* Demonstrable experience of team working and leadership/management and potential to develop.
* Be willing and able to develop own knowledge and skills and to contribute to the development of others.
* Ability to withstand sensitive and potentially stressful situations.
* Be adaptable, flexible, responsive & positive to change and service 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.
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