Job overview

The post holder will work within the Community Services Division using advanced skills to identify, assess, diagnose, treat and manage patients with palliative care needs. You will be expected to work within the patient’s own home, care home settings and hospital 7 days a week. The post holder will work as part of a multi-disciplinary team and will be highly accessible within the division. The post holder will be responsible for rapidly assessing patients already known to the community specialist palliative care team, who deteriorate unexpectedly at home or in a care home setting, to help make decisions in line with the patient’s wishes and negotiate a management plan based on appropriate ceilings of care. This may then lead to Hospital or Hospice admission, or enhanced interventions and treatment at home under a virtual ward environment, with support from advanced clinical practitioners in the admissions avoidance and other community teams. In hospital, the post holder will be responsible for proactively screening patients presenting to the admitting areas for unmet palliative care needs, This may then lead to ongoing hospital admission and support from the hospital specialist palliative care team, rapid discharge home, hospice admission, or admission home with enhanced interventions in the virtual ward environment. 

Main duties of the job

The post holder will ensure high quality patient care is delivered and to take appropriate steps if this is not the case, by monitoring and challenging the practice of others, and taking a proactive approach in order to identify patients who are sick enough to die and improve their experience by advocating for care in line with their wishes.

The post holder will lead and participate in the delivery and organisation of formal and informal teaching, working with colleagues both across the community, neighbourhoods and within the hospital to improve palliative care knowledge and enhance support for generalist staff. They will also have a key role in providing and supporting advance care planning and education. The post holder will work closely with the Matron for Specialist Palliative care, advanced clinical practitioners in the hospital and community, Consultants in palliative medicine and other medical staff, nursing staff, Allied Healthcare Professionals and all applicable support staff, with the aim of supporting enhanced care at home. The aim of this role to prevent unnecessary admissions to hospital for patients in the last 90 days of life, meet the patient’s wishes and preferences and reduce length of stay in those needing hospital admission.

Working for our organisation

Bolton NHS Trust is an integrated provider of acute, intermediate and community health care, serving the population of Bolton. This provides us with an opportunity for our services to work closely with our partners in primary care and the local authority to ensure a seamless service for our patients. If you want to work in an organisation that has strong ambitions and a passion to do the very best for Bolton people and their families, this could be the role for you.

Bolton NHS Foundation Trust is a major provider of hospital and community health services in the North West Sector of Greater Manchester, delivering services from the Royal Bolton Hospital and also providing a wide range of community services from locations across Bolton.