Staff Nurse - Stroke Ward

Job overview

King’s College Hospital’s Department of Community Special Care Dentistry is split into 3 geographical Lots and covers the boroughs of Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark, Merton Sutton and Croydon, Kingston and Richmond and Wandsworth. This role is for Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham ; The main roles of our service are:

· The monitoring of the dental health of all age groups in the population.

· The provision of dental health education and preventive programmes.

· The provision of facilities for a full range of treatment to patients who have experienced difficulty in obtaining treatment in the general dental service, or for whom there is evidence that they would not otherwise seek treatment from the general dental services. Including one or more of the following;

Ø physical disability

Ø complex medical condition

Ø learning disability

Ø severe mental health condition

Ø Severe anxiety/phobia.

Ø Children with complex dental needs

More info contact Claire Harris via email: [email protected]

Main duties of the job

Receiving and preparing patients for their visit; at any setting, and for any appointment type including treatment under conscious sedation.

Assisting clinicians in the full range of dental treatment and procedures, ensuring that relevant information about the patient, including any change in his/her condition, is reported to the dentist.

• Checking patients' fitness for discharge after extractions/sedation. Providing pre and post-operative care.
• Re-assuring and informing the patient about further treatment and arranging appointments.
• Preparation and participation in domiciliary care for elderly and patients who have difficulty in leaving their homes. Being aware of your surroundings and the property of the patient.
• Preparation and participation in the treatment of patients in the mobile dental unit in outreach settings and high security hospitals.
• Where appropriate, assisting with patients receiving treatment under general anaesthetic.
• Giving patients, parents or carers oral hygiene instruction and advice.

Working for our organisation

The Trust provides a full range of local and specialist services across its five sites. In June 2026, we launched our new strategy for 2026-31. Our vision is to transform healthcare, and we have agreed six strategic ambitions to help us improve care for patients, and the working lives of our staff.

Our six strategic ambitions are delivering high-quality patient care ; creating a great place to work ; leading pioneering research, innovation and education ; building strong and successful partnerships ; providing timely and efficient care ; and ensuring long-term financial sustainability .

We have also agreed four new organisational values – Caring, Collaborative, Inclusive, Innovative – and these underpin everything we do, and how our teams interact with the patients under our care.

We are at a pivotal point in our history and we require individuals who are ready to join a highly professional team and make a real, lasting difference to our patients and our people.

King’s is committed to delivering Sustainable Healthcare for All via our Green Plan. In line with national Greener NHS ambitions, we have set net zero carbon targets of 2040 for our NHS Carbon Footprint and 2045 for our NHS Carbon Footprint Plus. Everyone’s contribution is required in order to meet the goals set out in our Green Plan and we encourage all staff to work responsibly, minimising their contributions to the Trust’s carbon emissions, waste and pollution wherever possible.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

· Setting and closing down surgery, ensuring all quality control checks are carried out

· Fully competent in the mixing of all dental materials

· Processing and mounting of radiographs. To clean, maintain and test processor according to agreed procedures.

· Management of surgery clinical waste, dealing appropriately and safely with hazardous or toxic waste materials

· Disinfecting and packaging dental laboratory work and arranging collection

· Monitoring, maintaining, testing and reporting faults on equipment and medical devices including decontamination equipment

· Carrying out all decontamination processes and adhering to the department’s Infection Control and decontamination policy. Including hand hygiene, uniform and blood borne virus policy.

· Reporting any problems to line manager or service managers.

Person specification

Education and Qualification

Essential criteria

• Dental Nursing Qualification
• Registration with General Dental Council
• Commitment to Continuing Professional Development
• Knowledge of Health and Safety issues including medical emergencies

Desirable criteria

• Competence or qualification in Inhalation Sedation

Knweledge and Experience

Essential criteria

• Ability to maintain own health, safety and security
• Excellent understanding of infection contract and decontamination procedures
• Dental Nursing Experience

Desirable criteria

• Experience of working with neuro-divergent patients and/or patients with learning disabilities/difficulties
• Proficient in the use of Dentally software for patient record

Skills and Competencies

Essential criteria

• Excellent inter-personal and communication skills
• Ability to be sympathetic and sensitive to patient and staff needs
• Flexible and understanding attitude
• Work well in a multi-disciplinary team
• Excellent organisational skills with the ability to multitask

IMPORTANT

• Check your email account regularly as this is how we will communicate with you
• If you delete the job from any of your accounts, you may be prevented from accessing further communications
• To enquire about your application or inform us of any changes in your circumstances, please contact the named person on this advert
• Please provide email addresses for referees where possible
• Please review the documentation on our recruitment microsite, particularly the Trust’s criminal records checking policy
• All staff have a responsibility for safeguarding children and vulnerable adults and for ensuring they are aware of the specific duties relating to their role.
• Please note that the closing date is given as a guide. On occasion, we might close a vacancy early due to a high number of applications being received. You are advised to submit your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

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Relying too much on AI can negatively impact your chances of success because automatically generated answers:

• might not be specific or relevant enough to address the criteria in the recruitment profile
• often seem generic and not personalised enough – an AI response won’t show your unique voice and perspective
• could misrepresent information about you, such as your qualifications, skills and experience

We monitor applications for any behaviour that could create an unfair advantage, and we check all references carefully. You are likely to be tested on your experience at interview, so be honest and make sure all the information in your application is correct.

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King's College Hospital is part of King's Health Partners Academic Health Sciences Centre (AHSC), a pioneering collaboration between King's College London, and Guy's and St Thomas', King's College Hospital and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trusts.