Renal Nurse Specialist

Job overview

You will be responsible for a cohort of patients alongside the Nephrologists to deliver CKD management, education and preparation for Renal Replacement Therapies as well as Conservative management. Part of your responsibility will be to deliver education and assessments of acute patients requiring urgent dialysis interventions. Your work will involve face to face assessments; clinics telephone consultations, delivery of education as well as leading on audit and research for CKD Management. You will be required to work across multiple hospital sites throughout Coventry & Warwickshire.

A full UK driving license is essential for this post. Please note that an international driving license is not accepted.

Closing Date: Please be advised that this job advert will close as soon as sufficient applications have been received. Please apply for this job as soon as you can, if interested.

Successful applicants will be required to provide an immunisation and vaccination report, from either their current UK occupational health provider or their UK GP.

Main duties of the job

A clinical expert, working autonomously as a member of the multi-professional team, providing and developing specialist services and advice to Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) patients, families, carers and other health professionals. Able to make informed decisions within their own speciality and scope of professional practice to ensure agreed standards and objectives are met.

The post holder will be expected to provide clinical expertise and knowledge, demonstrating a sound understanding of the issues related to identification, assessment, treatment, and management of the client group, i.e pre-dialysis patient programme. S/he will monitor and improve standards of care through clinical audit, evidence base practice, teaching and supporting professional colleagues and the provision of skilled professional leadership.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• Co-ordinate the care of the CKD patients along the CKD care pathway with the multidisciplinary team and clinical services to ensure the effective management of this group of patients.
• Accountable for own actions in accordance with the Code of Professional Conduct. Will contribute to corporate objectives, acting within local, Trust and statutory guidelines and policies at all times.
• Highly developed communication skills enabling maintenance of high-quality service within a complex and challenging environment across primary and secondary care
• Regularly manage expected and unexpected clinical events requiring high but unpredictable levels of physical effort according to patient dependency/clinical need
• Teach, advise and assess patients and carers with regard to the renal condition, on a one to one and group basis enabling them to make an informed treatment choice
• Work autonomously in the delivery of CKD Clinics
• Support patients, carers and staff during difficult situations arising in the clinical area, e.g. breaking bad news or following an unexpected event
• Initiate relevant investigations such as blood tests or vein mapping to enable timely diagnosis and facilitate early decision making and planning for RRT.
• Prescribe and review medication, appropriate to patient needs in the context of CKD, considering any treatment given previously for pre-existing medical conditions, providing information and advice to patients on prescribed medication regimens, side-effects and interactions
• Act as a resource of specialised knowledge and clinical expertise to ensure care delivery to renal patients is appropriate, optimum and evidence based. Demonstrates clinical expertise by role modelling patient centred practice to others.

For further details of the role please see the attached job description.