Specialist Paediatric Physiotherapist - Rotational

Job overview

Looking for the next step in your paediatric physiotherapy career? Join our friendly, diverse and enthusiastic Paediatric Physiotherapy Department in this exciting Band 6 rotational role.

You will gain specialist experience through six-month rotations across a range of services, including acute respiratory, chronic respiratory, MSK/rheumatology/chronic pain, acute neurology, neonates, orthopaedics and community paediatrics. Working within a supportive multidisciplinary team, you will develop advanced clinical skills while delivering high-quality, family-centred care to children and young people.

This is a fantastic opportunity to broaden your expertise, build confidence across specialist areas, and shape your future career in paediatric physiotherapy.

Main duties of the job

To provide a high standard physiotherapy service to patients, both inpatients and outpatients, within the Paediatric Team at Guy’s and St Thomas’ Hospital trust. The post will be working with inpatients to provide assessment, treatment & advice in paediatric neurology, orthopaedics, neonates, 7 day working respiratory service including PICU, cardiology and general paediatrics as well as assessment and treatment in the outpatient setting, which will include musculoskeletal, rheumatology, long-term ventilation, neuro-disability and the community.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

PRINCIPLE DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Patient Care

• To be professionally and legally responsible for all aspects of the post-holders own work
• To carry out assessment of patients as an autonomous practitioner, including those with complex presentations, and using clinical reasoning skills and knowledge of evidence based practice, determines appropriate care plan utilising wide range of treatment skills and options
• To interpret and analyse clinical and non-clinical facts to form accurate diagnoses in a wide range of conditions including those with a complex presentation, with occasional guidance from specialist physiotherapists
• To formulate accurate prognoses and recommend best course of intervention, developing comprehensive discharge plans
• To continually reassess patients in order to progress treatments effectively
• To co-ordinate intervention which may include other disciplines; advises and educates patient/carers/relatives/other health professionals
• Responsible for maintenance of accurate written records using POMR system and use of computerised data collection and records and comprehensive progress and discharge reports to medical referrers as required by rotation
• To manage clinical risk within own caseload at all times
• To participate in on-call and emergency duties as lone practitioner within the Trust
• To demonstrate physical ability to carry out physiotherapy assessment and interventions including manual handling techniques and therapeutic handling
• To demonstrate highly developed dexterity, co-ordination and palpatory sensory skills for assessment and manual treatment of patients
• To be able to manage potentially stressful, upsetting or emotional situations in an empathetic manner, including but not limited to those in PICU, vascular and neurology.

Service Development

• To propose and implement policy changes that may impact on all service users, and advise team leader of any service development changes made, to ensure quality standards and effectiveness of patient care.
• To ensure that junior staff / students and assistants implement policy and service developmental changes.

Management

• To be responsible for competent use and maintenance reporting of all equipment used on each rotation including but not limited to gym equipment, hoists, non-invasive ventilation, cough assist, oxygen saturation monitors and patient appliances, and to ensure that junior staff/students and assistants attain competency prior to use.

Human resources

• To be responsible for supervision and co-ordination of junior staff/students and assistants on a daily basis
• To be responsible for supervision, teaching and appraisal of junior staff, students, assistants and other health professionals
• To be responsible for undergraduate student physiotherapists as allocated by the team leader and to regularly liaise with the academic institutions
• To be responsible for the operational management of the designated team in the absence of the team leader or as required

Information resources

• To maintain an accurate and evaluative record keeping system (POMR) for own clinical caseload
• To supervise junior and student physiotherapists record keeping system according to departmental standards

Planning and Organisation

• To flexibly plan and organise own time, patient caseload, meetings, training and adjusting plans as required according to staff
• To carry an identified bleep as required by rotation and be able to respond to unpredictable work patterns and frequent interruptions.
• To assist in the planning of juniors, students and assistants timetables and deputise for the team leader in organisational duties
• To ensure smooth organisation of patient group work including lower limb rehabilitation and other gym classes

Communication

• To be able to motivate and persuade others through effective communication skills, with the benefit of verbal and non-verbal skills, using written and electronic information where needed
• To demonstrate the ability to communicate complex and sensitive information to patient, carers and other staff, where there may be barriers to communication i.e. non-English speaking patients; use of interpreters; excess noise or lack of privacy.
• To maintain close links, communication and liaison between all staff and people involved in patient care, student education, research or policy development as appropriate

Education

• To contribute to the education of multidisciplinary groups, patients, families and carers as appropriate.
• To be pro-active with regard to learning from other physiotherapy staff within the department, and other MDT staff in the Trust.
• To be responsible for and actively record own personal professional development and maintain a CPD portfolio which reflects same
• To assist in organising and actively participate in the in-service and post-registration education programme within the specialist clinical area and attend other outside courses/ lectures as appropriate
• To keep abreast in understanding and knowledge of all new developments which are applicable to specific physiotherapy treatments.
• To undertake an evidence based project in each rotation with professional presentation of the project to the department

Research and audit

• To participate in the department’s ongoing audit and appropriate work related research/ evaluation projects
• To undertake an evidence based project in each rotation with professional presentation of the project to the physiotherapy department
• To keep abreast of evidenced based practice in the clinical area by use of relevant reading, attendance at in-service training, external courses and database searches
• To ensure good working knowledge of national and local standards and monitor quality as appropriate

Effort

• To carry out assessments and treatments, with moderate to intense physical effort on a daily basis.
• To comply with the Trusts Manual Handling Policy and local therapeutic handling guidelines
• To work in an environment where the work patterns may be disrupted by frequent demands from patients, clinical staff, students and administrative support staff
• To sensitively deal with distressing or emotional circumstances regarding patient care such as realistic expectations of rehabilitation outcome
• To support junior when indicated in the management of challenging patients
• To deal with patients suffering from pain states that may lead to anxiety and aggressive behaviour

As part of the physiotherapy department’s commitment to meeting patient needs and delivering excellence we provide a 24hours, 7day service. It is therefore essential the post holder be able to work their hours flexibly and contribute fully to both existing and new rota’s.