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The Children’s Hospital is one of the 10 largest children’s hospitals within the UK and located within University Hospital Southampton. We have a vast range of Paediatric specialities including intensive care, major trauma, neurorehabilitation, and neonates.
The paediatric therapy department is a 40 strong combined Occupational and Physiotherapy Therapy team with highly experienced staff in multiple subspecialty areas benefitting from support, knowledge and skills within the wider Therapy services department.

You will work as part of a combined therapy services department delivering patient care across a 7-day service, including weekends and bank holidays, on a roster basis.

We are looking for an enthusiastic, fun and diligent person with a desire to work with children, across the subspecialties of paediatrics, to help with therapeutic interventions and rehabilitation.

Main duties summary:
•    Supporting the qualified therapists with therapy treatment of a wide range of patients
•    Dealing with patients who are acutely unwell, helping with personal care, including toileting, walking and undertaking everyday tasks
•    Managing a simple caseload of your own

In more detail:
•    Involvement in treating, monitoring and making minor alterations to the treatment of paediatric patients. This includes considering their physical, emotional, developmental, cognitive and social needs. 
•    Joint sessions with the therapy staff, plus managing an independent caseload both on the wards and in outpatients, and leading group sessions. 
•    Building a good rapport with the children and families to encourage participation.
•    Working with children with a wide range of presenting conditions including orthopaedic, respiratory, neurological, and developmental needs.  
•    Working in different environments, including the hydrotherapy pool, high care, wards, therapy outpatients, gym, and in our offsite rehab centre: Bursledon House.
•    Admin tasks, which includes using IT systems for booking appointments, ordering equipment, and data recording 
•    Wider departmental roles such as pool testing, resus trolley checks, assisting with student education, peer supervision, participating in training programmes, and supporting B3 staff
•    Working with the other technician

Please ensure you fulfil all the essential criteria and have read the job description before applying.

For this specific role we need the following skills and/or experience:
•    Proven experience of working with children and young people who have a variety of physical and cognitive impairments. 
•    Good communication skills: to enable close working relationships and be able to adapt their communication to meet the child’s, family, and MDT needs.
•    Be physically fit and able to work with children with complex needs using different equipment and working in different positions and environments. This includes working on the floor, being water-confident in the hydrotherapy pool and therapeutically handling patients. 
•    Basic IT skills for completion of data bases, electronic patient records, electronic booking, and outcoming systems.
•    Able to work under pressure, problem solve and prioritise tasks in an ever-changing workload
•    Aware of professional boundaries and limitation of job role, identify changes in clinical presentation and be able to escalate concerns appropriately. 
•    Experience working in challenging and emotive situations with active coping strategies and resilience. 
•    Proven experience of working with children and young people who have a variety of physical and cognitive impairments. 
•    Able to manage working with bodily fluids and helping with personal care and chest clearance techniques
•    It is desirable if you have a Level 3 qualification in a Health and social care, or children’s and young people related subject, combined with experience working with children.

As we run a 7-day therapy service, flexibility is needed to work weekends and bank holidays on a rota basis.

As you will be part of both the Paediatric team and the wider Therapy services department, you will be supported to develop your skills through in-service training and UHS opportunities.

We actively encourage all potential applicants to contact us to ask any questions you may have.

PLEASE NOTE: 
•    Interviews will be held on 5th June 2025 
•    Interviews will be held face to face due to having a practical assessment, so please dress accordingly for your interview 
•    We do not accept CV applications

If this post is not for you and you are interested in finding out about other Therapy opportunities, please email [email protected]