Neonatal Education and Development Lead

Job overview

An exciting job opportunity has become available on the Neonatal Unit at Leighton Hospital.  We are looking for an enthusiastic, driven and experienced Neonatal Nurse with a passion for education to join us as the lead for Neonatal Education and Development.

We are a 15 bedded Level 2 Neonatal Unit with 3 Intensive Care cots, 4 High Dependency Cots and 8 Special Care Cots.  We strive to provide excellent care for our babies and families, and the training and education of staff is fundamental to the safe running and development of the ward.

As a team we uphold the Trust's values and behaviours in all we do.

The education post is  33.75 hours per week at Band 7

If you feel that you would be an excellent addition to the senior nurse team, and have what it takes to lead the education and development of the Neonatal Unit, we would welcome your application.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will be Qualified in Speciality, and act as a specialist in education and practice development issues within Neonatal education.  They will support other members of the senior team including the Ward Manager, Matron and senior leadership team, in the development and delivery of patient focused, evidence based care.

They will need to be a highly visible role model, with up to date clinical knowledge and skills in order to demonstrate high standards of practice and work alongside staff to support development and contribute towards the review and update of Neonatal policies and procedures.  They will have experience of supervising staff, and be confident to address any areas of concern with staff performance.

They will be an autonomous practitioner with excellent organisational skills, who is responsible for planning and organising their own workload.

They will have experience of change management, and participate in the identification and development of quality improvement initiatives through continuous improvement methods,  whilst also identifying staff training and education requirements in order to improve and develop practice on the Neonatal Unit.

They will have excellent computer skills in order to be able to maintain training records and compile reports, for example.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The post holder will act as a specialist in education and practice development issues within Neonatal education, supporting other members of the team including, Team Leaders/Managers, Matrons and the Head of Nursing in the development and delivery of high standards of patient focused, evidenced-based care. They will act as a resource for clinical expertise and maintain clinical skills by undertaking regular 1:1 clinical practice supporting members of the team.

The post holder will have a leading educational role in the Neonatal setting to support, develop and deliver a co-ordinated and systematic approach to practice development and establish evidence into practice, whilst also working closely with maternity counterparts.  Actively promote practice and educational development at departmental level, making effective use of resources and ensuring the highest standards of patient care are achieved.

You will be a key member of the Neonatal services senior team and ensure that the national, regional, corporate and local agenda is implemented within Neonatal Services and ensure that all staff work within the professional boundaries set by the NMC. In order to provide clinical and educational leadership and senior, clinical and professional, advice across the service, you will work alongside other clinical managers and the Northwest Neonatal Operational Delivery Network to ensure the quality of Neonatal care is maximised by developing a critical thinking workforce with problem solving abilities.

You will be able to demonstrate excellent communication skills and show a high level of clinical expertise and be able to demonstrate an ability to work in partnership with other key agencies – providing a point of contact for educational support by acting as a link between Higher Educational Institutes. One of the key responsibilities will be to co-ordinate the learning experience of pre-registration student nurses and support practice assessors and supervisors in their role of coaching and assessing ensuring they are regularly updated.

See job description for more details.