Occupational Therapy Assistant Medicine

Job overview

King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust has 300+ therapy staff from occupational therapy, physiotherapy and speech and language therapy. Each service has a head of profession accountable to the chief of therapies who represents therapies across the trust. We focus on equitable provision and shared decision making with our patients.

We value continuing professional development and promote access to internal and external learning opportunities, including the on-site training facilities and medical school library. This ensures all staff develop skills and knowledge to reach their full potential. We have very supportive teams across all of our services who will help you to learn and develop in this role.

Working as a band 3 Occupational Therapy Assistant at King’s College Hospital, Denmark Hill site, in the Medical Team offers excellent opportunities to develop yourself and learn clinical hospital skills. The successful candidate will support therapists providing acute rehabilitation and supporting complex discharge planning for patients by undertaking delegated interventions with patients and administrative duties to support the functioning of the department

Main duties of the job

You will assist the occupational therapists with various tasks to support rehabilitation and discharge planning. You will also complete administrative and clerical tasks to assist with the smooth running of the service, meet legal requirements and support timely discharges.

You need to have good communication skills, both verbally to work with colleagues and patients but also good written communication to write up sessions. You also need to have good computer literacy.

You will need to manage your own time and be flexible. You will also need to engage in training for this post and application including the ability to assist in manual handling of patients.

The successful candidate should be able to demonstrate evidence of previously supporting people with healthcare needs and some knowledge of occupational therapy.

The post holder requires a flexible approach to working and must be able to undertake weekend commitments as part of a 7-day working rota.

Working for our organisation

The Trust provides a full range of local and specialist services across its five sites. The trust-wide strategy of Strong Roots, Global Reach is our Vision to be BOLD, Brilliant people, Outstanding care, Leaders in Research, Innovation and Education, Diversity, Equality and Inclusion at the heart of everything we do. By being person-centred, digitally-enabled, and focused on sustainability, we aim to take Team King’s to another level.

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

CLINICAL

1. To identify risks, complete basic risk assessments prior to sessions and raise concerns to other members of staff.

2. Once inducted, to work with patients with minimal or no direct supervision of an occupational therapist and deliver the recommended occupational therapy rehabilitation programme.

3. To carry own caseload of patients, with straightforward occupational therapy problems, as delegated by the occupational therapist.

4. To assist with the care and wellbeing of patients including receiving them, transporting to treatment area, preparing drinks, supervising or assisting with drinking, toileting, dressing and undressing as part of their treatment programme.

5. To provide treatment to patients following a pre-prescribed treatment plan utilising a variety of basic occupational therapy techniques such as assisting a patient to carryout activities of daily living.

6. To recognise any change in the condition of the patient and alter treatment accordingly or escalate to medical teams as required.

7. To monitor patients’ physical and cognitive function whilst undertaking a range of activities and report changes to the occupational therapist.

8. To assist with removal and application of functional/supportive aids e.g. prostheses, splints and assist in the manufacture of splints and ensuring comfort of new splints by accurate final finishing.

9. To assist the occupational therapist with individual/ group treatments progressing to independent routine treatment sessions and supervision of groups where maintenance of function is the objective.

10. To measure, adjust and supply equipment to patients in their homes before discharge. To teach the patient and carers safe usage of equipment. Develop clinical judgement skills regarding routine supply of equipment for independence using a protocol or instruction from the occupational therapist.

11. To assess the safety of patients whilst carrying out activities of daily living in line with agreed protocol, documenting safety in patients’ clinical notes.

12. To collect data from patients for recognised outcome measures and document for the occupational therapist to interpret.

13. To organise delegated work tasks and activities being flexible to the needs of the service as indicated by the occupational therapist.

COMMUNICATION

1. To take and relay messages accurately on the telephone and face to face with patients, relatives, health care professionals and others e.g. company representatives.

2. To provide and receive information from patients, carers and other professionals regarding a patient’s condition and treatment progress.

3. To develop skills in participating in meetings and handovers, taking and receiving occupational therapy information about known patient group.

4. To be able to motivate and persuade patients through effective communication skills, utilising verbal and non-verbal skills. Communication will be tailored to the patients’/carers’ level of comprehension or cognition e.g. using interpreters.

5. To liaise with health care professionals and occupational therapists on a day-to-day basis in clinical area of work, with regard to patient care.

6. To book transport for access visits and home visits.

7. To liaise with managers, other administrative and support staff as necessary to ensure the smooth running of the department, both clinically and administratively.

8. To maintain confidentiality of patient information at all times in line with trust and departmental policies.

MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION

1. To maintain accurate and timely patient notes and activity records in accordance with departmental policy and to ensure the safekeeping and confidentiality of these records.

2. To use departmental/ trust software e.g. EPR, PIMS or occupational therapy tools.

3. To undertake non-clinical induction of assistants and students as required.

4. To be an active team member by supporting other members, offering assistance, being flexible and approachable particularly during changing service demands and staffing levels.

5. To be responsible for competent use, maintenance and cleaning of all equipment used, to report defects in equipment in a timely manner to the clinical lead in the area and locate missing items.

6. To understand the function and use of departmental equipment and be able to use safely jointly with occupational therapy staff or independently with own patients.

7. To undertake routine light cleaning/tidying tasks of clinical equipment e.g. wheelchairs, electrical equipment.

8. To administer any equipment loan monitoring system and liaise with maintenance engineers where appropriate.

9. To undertake administrative tasks particularly related to photocopying, record keeping, filing, errands and making appointments.

10. To be responsible for stock control within clinical areas ensuring consistent supply and request new orders from the departmental secretary, including using catalogues for new equipment.

11. Collect, unpack and store new supplies.

12. To administer appropriate systems for the managing the petty cash and stock control in relevant place of work.

13. To monitor levels, condition and date of contents in resuscitation trolley or first aid box, in relevant areas, on a regular basis and ensure new supplies are requested as required.

14. To comment on changes to departmental policies, procedures and service development as required.

TRAINING, EDUCATION AND RESEARCH

1. To demonstrate capability in occupational therapy assistant skills, by completing the tasks listed in the assistant induction and competency checklist, within the first 3 months of employment.

2. To participate in the supervision and appraisal process and be proactive in own learning and objective setting.

3. To undertake in-service training to improve patient care and for personal development and organise programme on a rotational basis.

4. To participate in the department’s ongoing audit programme as required.

General

The post holder has a general duty of care for their own health, safety and wellbeing and that of work colleagues, visitors and patients within the hospital, in addition to any specific risk management or clinical governance accountabilities associated with this post.

To observe the rules, policies, procedures and standards of King's College Hospital NHS Trust together with all relevant statutory and professional obligations.

To live and role model the King’s Trust Values and Vision.

To observe and maintain strict confidentiality of personal information relating to patients and staff.

To be responsible, with management support, for their own personal development and to actively contribute to the development of colleagues.

This job description is intended as a guide to the general scope of duties and is not intended to be definitive or restrictive. It is expected that some of the duties will change over time and this description will be subject to review in consultation with the post holder. An individual performance review and the setting of objectives will occur within each rotation.

All employees must hold an 'nhs.net' email account which will be the Trust's formal route for email communication.

Safe Guarding

The Trust takes the issues of Safeguarding Children, Adults and addressing Domestic Abuse very seriously. All employees have a responsibility to support the organisation in our duties by;

• attending mandatory training on safeguarding children and adults
• familiarising themselves with the Trust's processes for reporting concerns
• reporting any safeguarding child or adult concerns appropriately

Infection Control Statement

The post holder has an important responsibility for and contribution to infection control and must be familiar with the infection control and hygiene procedures and requirements when in clinical areas.

The post holder has an important responsibility for and contribution to make to infection control and must be familiar with the infection control and hygiene requirements of this role.

These requirements are set out in the National Code of Practice on Infection Control and in local policies and procedures which will be made clear during your induction and subsequent refresher training. These standards must be strictly complied with at all times.

Person specification

Qualifications

Desirable criteria

• GCSE or equivalent in Maths or English
• NVQ Level 3

Knowledge

Essential criteria

• Experience of working with the public
• Experience of working in a health and social care setting
• Basic knowledge of occupational therapy
• Aware of the impact of illness on patient’s and staff wellbeing
• Able to relate to others individually and in a group setting
• Aware of need to comply with trust policies and procedures
• Awareness of confidentiality in a health care setting
• Understanding of the concepts of basic risk assessment
• Awareness of the Importance of equality and inclusion
• Able to recognise own boundaries of practice and responsibility

Desirable criteria

• Experience of working in a caring role with adults with physical disabilities
• Knowledge and experience of NHS structure

Skills

Essential criteria

• Ability to learn new skills and follow instructions
• Willing to participate in personal development opportunities
• Basic numerical skills
• Good standard of written and verbal English communication
• Basic problem solving skills and decision making skills
• Ability to learn basic tasks and logical sequencing
• Able to prioritise and manage stress
• Ability to work collaboratively
• Time management skills
• Able to work in a stressful working environment with interruptions during the day
• Good observational skills
• Ability to prioritise
• Able to demonstrate manual dexterity and sustain moderate physical effort throughout the day, including manual handling.
• Good communication skills, adapting to barriers to communication
• Basic IT and record keeping skills
• Ability to work flexibly across sites and with weekend working

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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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.