Main area Clinical Lead Therapist - Acute and Respiratory Medicine Grade NHS AfC: Band 8a Contract Permanent Hours Part time - 35 hours per week (7 day working required) Job ref 321-MRC-7452511-B8A
Employer Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site John Radcliffe Hospital Town Oxford Salary £55,690 - £62,682 per annum Salary period Yearly Closing 17/10/2025 23:59
Clinical Lead Therapist - Acute and Respiratory Medicine
NHS AfC: Band 8a
Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is one of the largest NHS teaching trusts in the country. It provides a wide range of general and specialist clinical services and is a base for medical education, training and research.
The Trust comprises of four hospitals - the John Radcliffe Hospital, Churchill Hospital and Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre in Headington and the Horton General Hospital in Banbury.
Our values, standards and behaviours define the quality of clinical care we offer and the professional relationships we make with our patients, colleagues and the wider community. We call thisDelivering Compassionate Excellenceand its focus is on our values of compassion, respect, learning, delivery, improvement and excellence.
Many of our recruitment programmes useValue Based Interviewingto identify those who have the skills we seek, who share our values and who are able to deliver compassionate excellence from the outset. We know that this makes a significant difference to your job satisfaction and above all the outcomes and experience of our patients and their families. For more information about our Values and Value Based Interviewing please visitwww.ouh.nhs.uk/about/vision-and-values
Job overview
Thank you for your interest in this exciting role, as Clinical Lead Therapist in Acute and Respiratory Medicine. We are seeking a high performing clinician and leader committed to improving the lives of patients attending our emergency department and/or needing admission to our acute medicine and respiratory wards. This important role will oversee and clinically direct the fantastic therapy teams working in these clinical areas at the John Radcliffe Hospital.
If you're passionate about elderly care and frailty medicine, eager to work in a dynamic team, and motivated to lead service innovation and research, this is an incredible opportunity to advance your career and make a lasting difference to patient care in Oxford.
This role offers a uniqueopportunity to lead and shape high-quality care for mostly older adults in an acute setting. The service is focused on delivering rapid assessment and personalised care to elderly patients, aiming to reduce unnecessary admissions and prevent prolonged hospital stays through timely intervention and multidisciplinary working.
We require an experienced and innovative person who can demonstrate strong leadership as well as excellent communication and team management skills. You will require specialist knowledge of geriatric and acute elderly conditions & pathologies, across a range of medical specialities.
Main duties of the job
· To provide clinical expertise, effective leadership and service management to occupational therapists, physiotherapists and assistant therapists working within Acute and Respiratory Medicine – acute medicine and gerontology wards, same day emergency care units, the emergency department, and also the respiratory ward and respiratory outpatient clinics.
· To be professionally and legally accountable for all aspects of clinical practice
· To deliver advanced knowledge, skills and clinical expertise in frailty, medicine and/or respiratory care.
· To nurture and maintain a culture of delivering high quality therapy and rehabilitation services underpinned by robust evidence and delivered within the means of the department.
· To lead the teams’ service and its staff ensuring that professional and organisational standards are upheld.
· To be responsible for clinical governance and performance of the service reporting directly to the Head of Therapies office.
· To be an integral part of the senior leadership and management structure within Therapies CSU and actively contribute to the department’s programme of work aiming to continuously improve the quality and efficacy of therapy services.
· To work as an integral part of Acute and Respiratory Medicine services working collaboratively with the clinical and managerial leaders and contributing to the strategic and operational objectives of the respective department.
Working for our organisation
Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is one of the largest NHS teaching trusts in the country. It provides a wide range of general and specialist clinical services and is a base for medical education, training and research. The Trust comprises four hospitals - the John Radcliffe Hospital, Churchill Hospital and Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre in Headington and the Horton General Hospital in Banbury.
Our values, standards and behaviours define the quality of clinical care we offer and the professional relationships we make with our patients, colleagues and the wider community.
We call this Delivering Compassionate Excellence, and its focus is on our values of compassion, respect, learning, delivery, improvement and excellence.
These values put patients at the heart of what we do and underpin the quality healthcare we would like for ourselves or a member of our family. Watch how we set out to deliver compassionate excellence via the OUH YouTube channel .
In 2023NHS England launched its first sexual safety charter, and our Trust proudly signed it. We pledge zero tolerance for inappropriate sexual behaviour and commit to the ten core principles
Oxford University Hospitals promotes a safe, respectful hiring environment.
If you want to make a difference with us, come and join our team. Together, we will uphold the highest standards of care and professionalism.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Main Tasks and Responsibilities
1. Communication and relationship skills
1.1 To establish and maintain effective working relationships with internal and external health and social care services forming effective partnerships to facilitate high quality patient care without delays or fragmentation.
1.2 To effectively communicate with patients and their carers/relatives using a range of verbal and non-verbal methods suited to the context of each situation. Be able to deploy these skills in the event of barriers to communication, as well as in highly contentious and complex matters whilst maintaining a high level of professionalism throughout.
1.3 To be approachable to all staff, communicate in a way that fosters good working relationships, and deliver feedback using a method that is constructive and conducive to improvement.
1.4 To adhere to Trust values and standards, the information governance framework and the Data Protection Act in clinical documentation and information management.
1.5 Be able to write complex reports accurately describing patients’ clinical status and ensuring that the information provided aids effective continuing care and clinical management.
2. Service management and development
2.1 To set and monitor clinical and operational performance standards to ensure that quality measures are in place to effectively evaluate and improve performance.
2.2 To prospectively plan and organise the workforce to ensure services are delivered with continuity and that demand is met with sufficient capacity.
2.3 To ensure effective mechanisms are in place to identify and ensure the highest priority clinical demand is met at times of insufficient capacity.
2.4 To effectively oversee the utilisation of e-rostering as the sole platform for workforce planning and management of staff leave.
2.5 To ensure sufficient service continuity plans are in place to mitigate for emergencies or unplanned events that affect the capacity and/or capability of the workforce to meet the demands placed upon it.
2.6 To be responsible for maintaining a full establishment of therapy staff within the service, and proactively recruit staff against forthcoming vacant posts.
2.7 To deputise for the Head and/or Deputy Head of Therapies and provide support for other therapy service leads in their absence to ensure departmental business continuity.
2.8 To effectively manage financial and physical resources, including the delegated budget, in a way that is efficient and maximises utilisation of the team’s and Therapy CSU budget
2.9 To effectively utilise policies and procedures to manage staff performance, sickness absence, and disciplinary matters
2.10 To represent therapy at Acute and Respiratory Medicine forums within and external to the Trust to advance the impact of the teams.
3. Clinical skills
3.1 To undertake clinical assessment, formation of problem lists and goal planning, and therapeutic intervention to consistently high standards in a range of clinical presentations, including highly complex presentations.
3.2 To conform to standards and legal requirements of clinical and service record keeping.
3.3 To lead by example by performing clinical duties that are delivered to the highest standard, derived from evidence-based practice, and centred on maximising the patient’s care quality and experience.
3.4 To serve as a point of escalation and problem resolution supporting team members in decision-making where there are high levels of complexity and/or dispute in clinical management and/or discharge plans.
3.5 To demonstrate the ability to understand, interpret and implement relevant operational changes based on policy at a departmental, organisational and national level.
3.6 To actively participate in seven-day working for therapy services.
4. Governance and performance
4.1 To be the clinical governance lead for the Acute and Respiratory Medicine therapy services, which encompasses chairing a regular governance meeting, maintaining an up-to-date risk register and action log, investigating complaints and incidents on behalf of the head of therapies, and overseeing clinical audit and quality improvement.
4.2 To evaluate information and data related to clinical governance and performance standards to demonstrate the quality and efficiency of the service and make sustainable changes where required.
4.3 To work with the Head of Therapies and other departmental leaders to devise and implement an annual clinical audit programme by which to measure compliance of therapy services against quality standards.
4.4 To engage with senior AHP, nursing and medical leads in order to actively participate in clinical governance at a specialty and directorate level.
4.5 To be able to implement pre-determined business continuity and emergency planning policies that require a therapy service response.
4.6 To actively contribute to development and implementation of policies commissioned by Therapies CSU, the clinical specialty areas and the Trust.
4.7 To represent Acute and Respiratory Medicine therapy services at the senior governance and business forums for the CSU (currently: Therapies Clinical Governance and Performance Meeting and Therapies CSU Management Board)
4.8 To monitor and ensure all service members are up to date with statutory and mandatory training requirements
4.9 To design and implement a training and education programme that supports all service members in delivering high quality and safe therapy services
Person specification
Qualifications, experience and skills
* Degree in Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy
* Registered with the HCPC as an Occupational Therapist or Physiotherapist
* Significant and extensive post qualification experience as a therapist working in Acute or Respiratory Medicine or Frailty.
* Experience of effectively leading a team, including through a process of change to improve performance
* Able to engage, motivate and empower all members of staff to deliver high quality and safe therapy services
* Advanced verbal and non-verbal communication skills, including the ability to resolve complex and highly contentious issues in a professional manner
COVID-19: The COVID-19 vaccination remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course our patients from the virus when working in our healthcare settings. Whilst COVID-19 vaccination is not a condition of employment, we do encourage our staff to get vaccinated. If you are unvaccinated there is helpful advice and information at Oxfordshire County Council Website where you can also find out more about how to access vaccination.
Vacancy Closures: Please note, this vacancy may close early if a high volume of applications are received.
Probation Period: This post is subject to a 6 month probationary period. If you currently hold a contract of employment with the Oxford University Hospitals, this will not apply. This statement does not apply to Medical staff or Executive Appointments.
Referencing: When providing employment reference details please provide correct work related email addresses so references can be sought promptly when we are looking to progress your application. Your first referee will need to be your line manager, supervisor or clinical lead from your current or most recent post or place of study. Please note that if you have previously worked for the Trust we will require a reference from your last Manager, this information is essential if your offer of employment is to be confirmed.
Next Steps: Please make sure that you read the job description and person specification, and that your supporting statement reflects this as your application will be judged against these criteria. Candidates selected for interview will be contacted after the short-listing process, usually within 2 weeks. (Please note that shortlisting times vary when applying for a Medical position within the Trust). The majority of correspondence will be via the e-recruitment system; therefore you should check your emails regularly including junk mail folders in web-based email products.
No unsolicited recruitment agency telephone calls or emails.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Application numbers
Please note that this job advertisement will close automatically once the application limit is reached, regardless of whether this occurs before the advertised closing date.
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