Community Podiatrist

Job overview

Are you passionate about improving foot health and enhancing quality of life? Join our podiatry team and make a real difference to the lives of patients every day!

As a Community Podiatrist, you will assess and provide clearly planned podiatric care packages to patients with a variety of care needs, with the aim of maintaining independence and mobility. You will work alongside a multi-disciplinary team, collaborating with other healthcare professionals to deliver high quality, patient centred care.

Whether you're a newly registered Podiatrist or experienced practitioner, this is a fantastic opportunity to develop your skills in a supportive and forward thinking environment.

Our offer to you:

• Rotation into the acute sector as an observer in departments such as vascular and orthopaedics.
• Encouragement and support with your career progression into advanced clinical roles and leadership roles.

Our values are at the heart of everything we do, they are:

• Continuous improvement
• Accountability
• Respect
• Enthusiasm
• Support

If you share our values and want to be part of a team that makes a real difference, we want to hear from you.

Main duties of the job

You will work as part of a highly motivated team providing a high standard of clinical care in a variety of community settings, ensuring the provision of seamless care between primary and secondary care.

You will provide treatment for patients to maintain tissue viability and relieve pain; especially patients who require specialist care packages because they are at special risk due to diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis and peripheral vascular disease.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Clinical:

• Delivery of podiatry in clinical, domiciliary and residential home settings, usually working in isolation, always as an autonomous practitioner.
• Assessment and treatment of existing patients in line with departmental protocols using judgements involving complex facts about the patient’s medical conditions, current medication and podiatric needs.
• Develop treatment plans with expected outcomes and agree with patient how these outcomes may be best achieved. Provide advice to patients on foot health matters.
• Employ stringent control of cross infection and decontamination measures during daily exposure to infectious material i.e., wound/ulcer dressings, blood, pus or body fluid, unkempt dirty feet, and body and when working in less than hygienic conditions in domiciliary situations.
• Follow standard operating procedures for podiatry instrument use
• Assess for nail surgery and undertake nail surgery, supervised by a senior podiatrist. Be responsible for the administration of local analgesia, observation of the patient for adverse reaction and the administration of adrenalin in the event of the patient suffering anaphylactic shock.
• Assess for orthotics, make and provide chair-side devices, prescribe bespoke orthotics and liaise with appropriate specialist.
• Have the capability to move and handle patients who may be immobile, wheelchair or bed bound.
• Work in patient’s homes/residential homes in confined spaces, with poor lighting, inadequate seating, sitting in a restricted position/ over patient's bed working from a domiciliary bag. Treatment position may be restricted by non-compliance from the patients due to physical, mental or emotional debility.
• Provide health education advice including one to one advice and education to groups of peers, professionals and patients.
• Delegate appropriate patients to the care of podiatry assistants.

Leadership:

• Assist in the supervision of students, podiatry assistants and new members of staff.
• Delegate suitable patients to podiatry assistants.