Job overview
Do you have a background as a therapy or health care assistant and fancy a new challenge working within a major trauma service? Do you have the skills required to support our fantastic therapy team in providing excellent care? Then this is the job for you!
We need a person who is passionate and dedicated to make a real difference to our patients’ lives. You will be working alongside our therapists to promote safe and timely treatment plans and discharges for our patients, as well as assisting in the day to day running of the team including ordering of equipment and other administrative tasks.
Our team is renowned for a great team ethos, with extremely high levels of engagement, motivation and enthusiasm. We really value the personal skills, experience and qualities of every member of our diverse, knowledgeable and supportive team and we love to share knowledge with new colleagues. The only thing we are missing is you!
Main duties of the job
You will be working alongside the physiotherapists and occupational therapists to help rehabilitate patients who have been admitted to the trauma and major trauma wards. You will play a key part in their rehabilitation on the ward, in order to help your patients regain their mobility and independence, in order to give them the best chance of returning home. You will be involved in a variety of rehabilitation sessions with these patients, such as facilitating washing and dressing activities, mobility practice and general strengthening exercises.
This role is very hands on and we want you there with our patients, right by their side, helping them through their recovery with your empathetic and calm nature. Your previous experience will be what sets you apart from the rest and will have given you all the skills you need to build upon in this role to ensure our patients really do get the support they need.
Working for our organisation
We have 10,000 fantastic people working hard to deliver quality services to our patients. Whatever your role, you help look after 370,000 people in our local area & give specialist care to 1.5 million people across Lancashire & Cumbria.
Working with us gives you the knowledge and sense of pride that every activity you do genuinely does make a difference to support our patients & staff, ensuring we keep thriving & delivering outstanding healthcare right across our local towns.
You’ll have access to varied development opportunities, learn new skills, meet fab people & do things you’d never have done. You’ll learn about working in a hospital, interacting with people from all different roles to build skills & enhance your career path.
You’ll make an impact, be challenged to think differently, be bold & help innovate to keep improving things. Everything we do centres around patient care which means your role is pivotal and something really to be proud of.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
This is a fantastic opportunity to work in a supportive team and learn valuable new skills. You will need to have effective communication skills to liaise with other members of the MDT, patients, their relatives and outside agencies.
You will directly support the delivery of therapy to patients, manage your own caseload as identified during the morning handover, support the physiotherapist in the prioritisation and organisation of their patient caseload, feedback patient responses to treatment or any changes in their condition to their therapist and measure for/provide any equipment required for discharge.
Duties will include, but not be limited to:
1. To communicate and collaborate with all Core Therapies Service stakeholders
2. To support personal and people development
3. To help to ensure the health, safety and security of users of the Core Therapies, self and colleagues
4. To support service development and planning
5. To support the Clinical Governance and Quality agenda within Core Therapies
6. To support equality of opportunity and access within the Core Therapies for both staff and patients
7. To support financial and other resource management within the Core Therapies
8. To provide and use information to support admin processes and patient care
9. To directly support the delivery of therapy to patients
When you’re not treating patients you’ll have the opportunity to attend the therapy assistant forum where you will meet other therapy assistants working for the trust. The forum is a great place to discuss potential for development and provides an opportunity for training from guest speakers and staff in other areas of the Trust. You will have access to plenty of in service training with the trauma therapy team to help you develop your specialist rehabilitation skills.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
10. GCSE Maths & English grade C or above / Grade 4 - 9 OR Functional/Key skills level 2 numeracy and Functional/Key Skills level 2 literacy
11. Clinical skills/care certificate
Desirable criteria
12. NVQ level 3 or equivalent in relevant area
13. Degree in relevant area
Knowledge & Experience
Essential criteria
14. Previous experience of working in health care or related setting
15. Understanding of health and safety issues within healthcare
16. Understanding of concept and application of confidentiality
17. Understanding of the role of a band 3 senior therapy assistant
18. Experience of working effectively within a team
19. Experience of working with the public
20. Knowledge of Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy within the NHS
Desirable criteria
21. Experience of working within an NHS Occupational therapy or physiotherapy department