Regional Spinal Cord Injury Practitioner

Job overview

The Spinal Cord Injury Practitioner is a new role within the East Midlands. The post holder will be part of a peripatetic team working across the East Midlands, based at University Hospitals of Leicester (UHL), and predominantly covering SCI patients within the UHL and University Hospitals of Northamptonshire.

The role of the Spinal Cord Injury Practitioner as a nurse or Allied Health Professional will provide high-quality clinical standards, patient-oriented care for patients diagnosed with spinal cord injury (SCI) and Cauda Equina Syndrome (CES). The post holder will be responsible for providing direct specialist intervention and clinical advice to patients with traumatic, non-traumatic SCI and CES. The postholder will need to liaise with patients, their families, other hospitals, and rehabilitation centres ensuring a seamless, co-ordinated, and timely approach to care and rehabilitation. This will be based upon a networked model of care led by Princess Royal Spinal Injuries Unit Sheffield as the regional SCIC.

The post holder will be required to use high level of clinical expertise in their specialism to provide leadership, support, education and training for medical, nursing and therapy teams involved in direct patient care of people with a spinal cord injury, in any setting in the catchment area, including cross-cover support where necessary and sharing resource and expertise to ensure equity of access and provision across the region.

Main duties of the job

To work, organise and facilitate communication with Multidisciplinary teams in all settings where patients with SCI are treated and planning for planning of care, good practice, transfers, or discharge.

To assess, monitor and provide specialist advice and support to a care plan to patients who have sustained a traumatic spinal cord injury or develop a condition impacting a normal functionality of the spinal cord across a variety of settings.

To demonstrate professional skills, standards, and experience consistent with a clinical specialist in SCI management and act as a source of expertise across the SCI East Midlands network.

To maintain a complex clinical caseload as an autonomous practitioner.

To promote the delivery of kind, compassionate and respectful care, developing relationships with patients that involve better listening and decision-making.

To use specialist knowledge and experience to constructively challenge others; escalating concerns that affect individuals’, families’, carers’, communities’ and colleagues’ safety and well-being when necessary.

To ensure that the workforce responsible in the care of SCI patients in any setting has regular updates and training aimed at improving the SCI patient pathway, including preventing avoidable complications.

Supporting referrals to the SCIC and helping to determine the most appropriate pathway for the patient.

Working with local community and specialist teams to enable the most appropriate ongoing care and rehabilitation.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

To work, organise and facilitate communication with Multidisciplinary teams in all settings where patients with SCI are treated (including Spinal Cord Injury centres, Major Trauma Centres, other referring services, rehabilitation centres and community/primary care settings) for planning of care, good practice, transfers, or discharge. To assess, monitor and provide specialist advice and support to a care plan to patients who have sustained a traumatic spinal cord injury or develop a condition impacting a normal functionality of the spinal cord (non-traumatic SCI) across a variety of settings. To demonstrate professional skills, standards, and experience consistent with a clinical specialist in SCI management and act as a source of expertise across the SCI East Midlands network. To maintain a complex clinical caseload as an autonomous practitioner. To promote the delivery of kind, compassionate and respectful care, developing relationships with patients that involve better listening and decision-making. To engage with, appraise and respond to individuals’ motivation, development stage and capacity, working collaboratively to support health literacy and empower individuals to participate in decisions about their care and to maximise their health and well-being. To use specialist knowledge and experience to constructively challenge others; escalating concerns that affect individuals’, families’, carers’, communities’ and colleagues’ safety and well-being when necessary. To ensure that the workforce responsible in the care of SCI patients in any setting has regular updates and training aimed at improving the SCI patient pathway, including preventing avoidable complications. Supporting referrals to the SCIC and helping to determine the most appropriate pathway for the patient. Working with local community and specialist teams to enable the most appropriate ongoing care and rehabilitation.

Being a point of contact for SCI care for staff, patients, and relatives in the short and long term and to refer onto additional specialised services as required. Oversee and monitor the quality of care for patients who have sustained SCI/Cauda Equina. Investigate areas of concern and promote good practice both within the organisation and the wider networks in conjunction with the Major Trauma Service Team, Therapy Lead and Clinical Leads. Assist in promoting SCI flow through the Trust by identifying patients who no longer require specialist acute care and can be moved for care closer to home. Escalating delays to the relevant teams. Work collaboratively with the SCICS, Trauma Network, the wider multidisciplinary team and specialities involved in SCI care, including charities and signposting/ support services and other organisations to develop relationships and pathways to ensure that the patient pathway is appropriate and smooth. Maintain links nationally with other SCI Coordinators in order to share best practice and develop links for out of area patients. Maintain oversight of SCI patients within the Trust using various methods to capture patients who are admitted either via ED or directly to the wards using the relevant databases and systems. Keep accurate patient specific records for all patients summarising injuries, interventions, ongoing actions, follow up and significant events. Ensure patients and families are being kept informed of relevant plans. To have a broad understanding of trauma care and work in conjunction with the major trauma coordinators to ensure that all patients’ needs are assessed and meet at the appropriate stage of their recovery and a rehabilitation prescription completed for SCI patients Identify and implement changes which promote a positive patient experience. Support the investigation and resolution of complaints or concerns related to the service. Maintain Professional registration and work within professional codes of conduct, National, Regional and Local guidelines, policies, and procedures