Job overview

Whilst working on the Mental Health Unit you will be required to:-

Work as an integrated member of the multi-disciplinary team (MDT), working within a rotational shift system to support patients according to their care needs, some of whom may present with problematic or challenging behaviour.

Contribute to, and participate in the on- going support of patients and their carers.  Contribute to the protection of patients, from abuse.  
Contribute to the health, safety and security of patients and their environment.  Obtain, transmit and store information relating to the delivery of a care service.

Main duties of the job

An exciting opportunity has arisen for the post of healthcare support worker (HCA) on Shakespeare ward, at band 3. 

This post is ideal for highly motivated and compassionate individuals who want to deliver high standards of care to individuals on a busy female acute ward. Interventions expected of successful applicants included spending 1:1 time with patients, using compassion and empathy to help in challenging situations, supporting the wider team in areas such as infection prevention and control and proactively spending time delivering patient centred activities on the ward, among other things.

The successful candidate will need to have excellent communication skills both verbal and non-verbal, and should be able to competently and confidently hand over information to other members of the team both verbally and by way of electronic communication and documentation on clinical systems.

Duties will be wide and varied, and included IPC and cleaning duties, supporting with meal service, escorting patients on periods of leave both on the grounds and into the wider community, supporting patients in times of crisis by way of excellent communication skills and when required utilising approved physical interventions such as PAS. You will be part of a large MDT on the ward, and further tasks may be delegated to you in line with patient care and staff safety.

Working for our organisation

LSCFT values diversity and inclusion, recognising that talent from varied backgrounds creates a flexible, creative, and effective workforce. We actively challenge discrimination and welcome applications from all, regardless of age, disability (including those with experience of accessing or caring for someone who has accessed mental health or learning disability services), ethnicity, gender, religion, belief, or sexual orientation.

Our aim is to reflect the communities we serve, so we particularly encourage applications from under-represented groups. If you’d like to discuss your application, please ask.

We also welcome individuals with lived experience relevant to the role or service area, as your insight brings authenticity to our services.

LSCFT support flexible working, we believe that a positive work/life balance benefits NHS employees through improved health and wellbeing. We would consider working patterns such as term time, part time, compressed hours and flexi-time.

The wellbeing of our people is at the heart of everything we do. We offer a wide range of resources, tools and support to help you thrive both in and out of work.

Explore our full wellbeing offer here: Keeping our workforce well