Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Clinical Practitioner, Virtual Ward - Band 7
The closing date is 22 April 2026
Are you an experienced health professional who enjoys working in a multi‑professional team looking to be part of something new and exciting in Gloucestershire? If so, we have a fantastic opportunity for you to be part of our fully integrated Virtual Ward Team.
As an Senior Clinical Practitioner (AHP/Nurse) you will work alongside the acute and community teams including the Hospital at Home service, to manage a caseload of patients with a range of medical conditions, and act as an escalation point for patients who are being managed at home on a virtual ward pathway. You will have close working relationships with specialist acute teams such as respiratory, frailty and cardiology as well as with community teams. You will have a high level of expertise in diagnosis and management of acute clinical presentations, and be flexible in your approach.
In Gloucestershire our Virtual Ward provides specialist‑led care for a variety of patients including those with respiratory conditions, frailty, acute kidney injury and heart failure, with anticipated expansion into other pathways. This care is delivered in the comfort of patients’ own homes using an advanced personal remote‑monitoring platform, enabling them to safely leave hospital sooner (or not come into hospital at all).
Main duties of the job
You will provide a high level of expert clinical care and ensure that evidence‑based practice is inherent in all aspects of care and treatment. You will work as an integral part of the multidisciplinary team, working closely with acute and community practitioners, taking referrals from Primary and Secondary Care across Gloucestershire localities, and reviewing patients who can be managed at home. The role offers an exciting opportunity to be part of a new and developing service model, working in the NHS@Home medical virtual ward hub providing acute level care within the community. This role will work flexibly and across key services including SDEC, FAS and community SPCA services, to ensure a robust service offer and to build expertise in these key areas. The post holder will work collaboratively with the virtual ward consultants, operational leads, GP with Specialist Interest and wider multi‑professional team, taking part in a rota that covers a seven‑day service during the current hours of 8 am to 6 pm.
About us
The Virtual Ward programme is a truly whole system initiative.
This role will be employed by the acute trust with an honorary contract with our community provider GHC – we believe that this role is crucial to the interface between community and secondary care, and will build on the great partnership already established between the two providers for the delivery of excellent care. Gloucestershire has a single acute trust and a single community provider, which provides excellent conditions for cross‑system roles such as this. Our digital partner Doccla has a wide range of Virtual Ward experience from other systems – and we are leading the way with two‑way integration into our electronic patient records.
With this being a new service model, there is an exciting opportunity for the successful candidate to help shape and develop the service and team to meet the needs of patients at home. The opportunity to work alongside and across providers is an exciting prospect for clinicians who truly believe in integrated models of care. You will be supported by clinical leads, operational leads and transformation leads within both organisations and working closely with the ICB to develop and evaluate the model.
Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust operates hospitals on our two main sites in Cheltenham and Gloucester, and we are one of the largest NHS Trusts in the country.
Job responsibilities
Practice in compliance with your code of professional conduct and within your agreed scope of practice, being responsible and accountable for your decisions, actions and omissions at this level of practice.
Use proficient clinical knowledge to independently assess, diagnose, plan, implement and evaluate treatments and interventions for patients presenting to the specialty with complex undifferentiated or undefined presentations.
Undertake physical examination as indicated by the patient’s condition, autonomously analysing complex clinical signs and investigation results to consider differential diagnoses, and initiating treatment as required.
Perform clinical procedures appropriate to the history and physical examination of the patient including further invasive testing and treatments requiring proficient skills and precision.
Request a range of investigations and laboratory tests in accordance with local policies.
Manage clinical events often requiring unpredictable and high levels of mental and/or physical initiation and leadership and exercise professional judgement to manage risk appropriately.
Prescribe and review medication (as an independent prescriber) for therapeutic effectiveness appropriate to patient need and in accordance with evidence‑based practice and national and local protocols, within the role’s scope of practice and legal framework.
Demonstrate a critical understanding of your broadened level of responsibility and autonomy and the limits of your own competence and professional scope of practice including working with complexity, risk and incomplete information.
Act on professional judgement about when to seek help, demonstrating critical reflection on your own practice, self‑awareness, emotional intelligence and openness to change.
Work in partnership with individuals, families and carers, using a range of assessment methods as appropriate (history taking, holistic assessment, identifying risk factors in mental health assessments, requesting, undertaking and interpreting diagnostic tests including radiology requests).
Demonstrate effective communication skills, supporting people in making decisions, planning care or seeking to make positive changes, using the HEE framework to promote person‑centred approaches in health and care, including the need for supporting challenging and sensitive conversations around end‑of‑life care and advanced planning.
Initiate, evaluate and modify a range of interventions including prescribing medicines, therapies, lifestyle advice and care.
Work collaboratively with an appropriate range of MDT and interprofessional resources, developing, maintaining and evaluating links to manage risk and issues across organisations and settings.
Evidence the underpinning core Advanced Practice competencies as well as specialty specific competencies, knowledge, skills and behaviours relevant to the role, scope and demonstrate application of the capabilities to these in an approach that is appropriate to the individual role, setting and scope.
Ensure clear and effective documentation using the Electronic Patient Records System in line with Trust policy.
Person Specification
Qualifications and Training
* Registered Nurse or AHP with relevant body (NMC/HCPC)
* Degree and postgraduate qualification in relevant clinical area
* Evidence of advanced assessment skills
* Evidence of portfolio of knowledge, skills and professional development
* Able to manage differentiated and undifferentiated presentations and complex situations to make evidence‑based judgements
* Evidence of persuasive and strong leadership skills, resilience, determination and ability to manage conflict
* Ability to organise and prioritise own workload effectively
* Excellent communication skills with MDT members, patients and their families both verbal and written
* Demonstrates ability to take overall responsibility and accountability
* Operational management experience including experience of managing and developing multi‑disciplinary or integrated pathway teams in a variety of locations
* Experience of developing practice guidelines and governance
* Experience of participation in care planning and best interest meetings
* Enhanced IT skills – working knowledge of software packages such as Word, Excel and Outlook alongside EPR
Clinical/Experience
* Act as a specialist clinical expert in direct contact care, able to make high level skill decisions, informed by proficient diagnostic, assessment and treatment skills
* Demonstrate a critical understanding of own level of responsibility, including when working with complexity, risk, uncertainty and incomplete information
* Non‑medical prescribing, Level 7, with evidence of updated knowledge appropriate to patient groups or willing to undertake training
Personal Attributes
* Demonstrates a critical understanding of own level of responsibility, including when working with complexity, risk, uncertainty and incomplete information
* Persuasive and strong leadership skills, resilience, determination and ability to manage conflict
* Team focused
* Reliable, adaptable and dependable
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.
£49,387 to £56,515 a year (pa pro rata if part‑time)
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