Surgical Dietitian

Job overview

Are you a dietitian who wishes to further consolidate their practice in surgical dietetics? UHNM is a specialist centre for many surgical procedures, you will have the opportunity to work with many different surgical patients. The Department of Nutrition and Dietetics at University Hospitals of North Midlands is looking to recruit a dietitian to work in the acute hospital, supporting services across its sites of Royal Stoke and County Hospital, the post holder will primarily be based at the Royal Stoke site, working within the surgical dietetic team.

We welcome applicants who have surgical clinical experience or those who wish to develop their skills within this clinical area.  The post holder will work with a team of dietitians in both the inpatient and outpatient settings, they will link with the adult acute team on both hospital sites and may be required to work at County Hospital at the request of Acute team lead or UHNM Chief dietitian to support periods of leave.

The post is ideal for a dietitian wishing to develop their clinical expertise, we have a good track record in introducing and advancing our dietitians into specialities and supporting career aspirations.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will provide cover to inpatient wards  at UHNM, particularly surgical wards,  Surgical specialties include Upper and Lower GI surgery, Vascular, Cardiovascular, Trauma and Orthopaedics, Neurosurgery, Urology and Gynaecology surgery.

The caseload will include patients requiring Total Parenteral Nutrition, Enteral Nutrition , oral Nutrition support and surgical prehabilitation.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• To provide a hospital-based clinical nutrition and dietetic service for surgical patients on Specialised Surgical Care Unit (SSCU) and male and female surgical wards who require specialist dietetic treatment, this will include planning and prioritisation of patient care.
• To undertake complex nutritional assessment and calculation of nutritional requirements for patients on SSCU/surgical wards.  This includes anthropometric measurements, interpretation of biochemistry and their underlying medical condition.
• Provide a consistent and qualitative approach to assessing nutritional requirements in surgery specialities, so providing adequate nutrition without over/under feeding.
• To provide cover for the surgical dietetic team during periods of annual leave, sick leave etc, this will include outpatient clinic cover.
• To assess and advise on appropriate parenteral nutrition regimes for patients on this type of nutrition support.
• Ensure continuity of the patient’s nutritional care by liaising with the relevant dietitian when they are transferred from SSCU.

To use negotiating and persuasive skills to facilitate effective service delivery within the specialty team and directorate.

To support and liaise with the chief dietitians and team leads.

To actively participate in ward meetings, ward rounds, case conferences as appropriate.

To liaise with and work as an integral member of the multi-disciplinary team, building and maintaining effective working relationships within the Trust and the health economy.