Job overview

We are seeking a compassionate, creative, and motivated Activities Coordinator to join our multidisciplinary team within a busy Surgical Trauma and Orthopaedic ward, caring primarily for elderly patients, many of whom are living with dementia or cognitive impairments. The role is vital in promoting emotional well-being, aiding recovery, and enhancing the overall patient experience through meaningful engagement and therapeutic activities.

Working closely with nursing staff, therapists, and families, the Activities Coordinator will design and deliver a person-centred activity programme that supports the physical, cognitive, and emotional needs of patients during their hospital stay. This includes individual and group activities that are adapted to suit a range of abilities, medical conditions, and post-surgical limitations.

The successful candidate will demonstrate empathy, excellent communication skills, and a strong understanding of the needs of older adults in an acute care setting. They will play a key role in fostering a dementia-friendly and recovery-focused environment.

Main duties of the job

• Plan and deliver appropriate therapeutic and recreational activities tailored to patients’ physical, cognitive, and emotional needs, including those with dementia.

• Promote patient engagement to reduce feelings of isolation, boredom, and confusion, and to enhance overall well-being.

• Coordinate group and one-to-one sessions (e.g., music, arts and crafts).

• Adapt activities based on patients’ mobility levels, post-surgical limitations, cognitive function, and medical status.

• Work collaboratively with multidisciplinary teams (nurses, physiotherapists, occupational therapists, etc.) to ensure a holistic approach to patient care.

• Monitor and document patient participation and responses to activities, feeding back to the wider team for care planning.

• Encourage social interaction between patients, families, and staff to support recovery and a sense of community.

• Support dementia-friendly care practices, including use of familiar objects, memory prompts, and calming environments.

• Ensure activities comply with infection control, safeguarding, and health & safety policies in a clinical ward environment.

• Assist with orientation and mental stimulation to help reduce confusion and distress, especially in patients with delirium or dementia.

• Liaise with families and carers to gather information about patients' preferences, interests, and life history.

• Promote dignity, respect, and independence in all interactions and planned activities.

Working for our organisation

London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust (LNWH) cares for the people of Brent, Ealing, Harrow and beyond.

Our team of more than 8,200 clinical and support staff serve a diverse population of almost one million people.

We run major acute services at:

• Northwick Park Hospital: home to one of the busiest emergency departments (A&E) in the country. The hospital provides a full range of services including the country’s top-rated hyper-acute stroke unit and one of only three hyper-acute rehabilitation units in the UK
• St Mark’s Hospital: an internationally renowned specialist centre for bowel disease
• Ealing Hospital: a busy district general hospital providing a range of clinical services, as well as 24/7 emergency department and urgent care centre, and specialist care at Meadow House Hospice
• Central Middlesex Hospital: our planned care site, hosting a range of surgical and outpatient services and collocated with an urgent care centre.  

We are a university teaching NHS trust, in recognition of the important role we play in training clinicians of the future and bringing the benefits of research to the public.