Team Lead Occupational therapist in Medicine

Job overview

Join a supportive, forward-thinking team and help shape the future of therapy services across our General and Specialist Medicine wards.

We’re looking for a dynamic, motivated Team Lead Occupational Therapist who’s ready to make an impact. You’ll work in close partnership with the Physiotherapy Team Lead to manage a large interdisciplinary team and oversee day-to-day operations across Geriatrics, Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and General Medicine.

Clinical Skills

• Leadership for a dedicated OT team, providing supervision, guidance, and professional development.

• Advanced autonomous practice with complex patients — delivering high level assessments, interventions, and discharge planning within a multidisciplinary environment.

• Performance oversight across both short stay and long stay wards, requiring clinical judgement and organisational skills to ensure timely assessment and effective support.

• Expert input to inpatient teams, acting as a clinical resource and champion for best practice.

What you’ll drive

• Staff development

• Service development and innovation

• Quality improvement initiatives

• Research and audit activity

Main duties of the job

To be jointly responsible for the day-to-day operational management of physiotherapy and occupational therapy over 7 medical wards.

To provide skilled team leadership in planning and delivering the high standards of occupational therapy assessment, management, treatment, and advice to patients on the medical wards on a daily basis.

To take a major role in the advanced assessment and management of patients within this specialty who may have a complex presentation and / or a multi-pathology presentation, determining best delivery of care, in conjunction with the multi-disciplinary team (MDT).

Be involved in developing the service in line with national and local strategic plans.

To line manage the Medical Therapy team occupational therapists consisting of band 6 x3, band 5 x1, band 4 x 3/4 staff. (Please note that as of June 2026 the team will be undergoing further restructuring secondary to gaining additional medical wards), as supervisor, appraiser and role model.

The Trust is moving towards 7 day working and this post will be expected to participate in providing the OT service across 7 days, including extended hours and weekend working.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see attached Job description for full details

Clinical or technical

To take a leading role in the advanced assessment, clinical diagnosis and treatment of patients with acute medical illnesses. These patients often have complex and or chronic presentation.

To act as a lead specialist occupational therapy resource using highly developed clinical skills in theoretical knowledge and relevant practical experience.

To be responsible as an autonomous practitioner to undertake a significant specialist clinical caseload and use excellent clinical reasoning skills to utilise a wide range of treatment skills and options to formulate a specialised programme of care using a range of interventions.

To use investigative and analytical skills, manual assessment techniques and diagnostic procedures to assess complex patients, to support other more junior staff with their patients as required and to make referrals to other disciplines and agencies as appropriate.

To formulate accurate prognoses and recommend best course of intervention, developing comprehensive discharge plans.

To support less experienced staff with their patient caseload.

To set and maintain a high standard of clinical care using evidence-based practice, keeping up to date with clinical developments, analysing current research, critiquing and implementing changes in clinical practice and encouraging this throughout the team.

To use ongoing investigative and analytical skills, assessment techniques and diagnostic procedures to assess complex patients.

To demonstrate sound clinical reasoning skills and select appropriate treatments.

To be able to adapt treatments dependent on clinical outcome and formulate an appropriate plan.

To attend relevant board rounds and meetings as required, to ensure appropriate management and effective and timely discharge of patients.

Leadership or managerial

Work in close conjunction with Clinical Lead for PT and OT for Medicine and other Band 7 Team Leads

To be jointly responsible for the day-to-day operational management of the occupational therapy and physiotherapy service to the medical wards as the Trust reconfigures its bed base.

Act as a role model and resource, providing information and promoting high standards of patient care, whilst working closely with other professionals

Supervise junior and senior staff within team.

Effectively plan the daily management of a caseload of patients by prioritising clinical work, responding to urgent referrals and frequently unpredictable work patterns

Maintain the high standards of the service by contributing to the individual team and service objectives.

Ensure team working within Ashford and St Peter’s Hospitals, assisting other members to effectively prioritise, plan and manage their caseloads.

Demonstrate ability to prioritise clinical and managerial work and balance other patient related and professional activities as the department requires.

Participate in the appraisal scheme as an appraiser and appraisee

To work with the Therapy Managers in developing strategic and operational management of the Occupational Therapy Service.

Demonstrate a high level of understanding of clinical governance and clinical risk

Initiate and lead projects to develop services in line with recent NHS initiatives and guidance and in response to local demand.

Work as part of the Occupational therapy Team to provide an efficient and effective service.

Communication

Demonstrate ability to communicate complex and sensitive information to patients, carers and other staff including imparting unwelcome news relating to their rehabilitation potential and gaining consent for treatment.

Assess patients’ understanding of treatment proposals, gain valid consent and have the capacity to work within a legal framework with patients who lack capacity to consent to treatment..

Take responsibility for leading/supporting local team meetings to ensure accurate and timely information giving and receiving.

Initiate and maintain good contact with local service both internally and externally.

Provide advice to other disciplines both internally and externally to ensure a multidisciplinary approach to care.

Initiate and maintain contacts with local and national clinical interest groups appropriate to the clinical field and to share and disseminate knowledge with colleagues working within the directorate.

Education

Supervise and lead on the professional development and training of Occupational Therapists and other members of the team in the specialist field.

Undertake regular supervision with individuals to support clinical reasoning and to undertake joint problem patient sessions as facilitator and participant.

Take responsibility for the training of junior staff, students or assistants/technicians within own clinical area.

Participate in any training sessions as a recipient and facilitator within the department and MDT.

Disseminate any training received to other staff and healthcare professionals.

Be actively involved in special interest groups to share and disseminate knowledge to colleagues.

Information and reporting

Collect & record data accurately in accordance with professional guidelines and ASPH Values.

Research and Development

To take responsibility for the writing of evidence based clinical guidelines and protocols as appropriate to the speciality and for regularly reviewing and updating those guidelines.

Demonstrate the use of relevant information and research findings to support and promote evidence-based practice within the clinical area.

Promote clinical excellence through initiating & participating in setting, maintaining and monitoring standards of care within a clinical governance framework.

Participate in both clinical and organisational audit to continually evaluate the effectiveness of the service.

Service improvement

Monitor and maintain acceptable standards of care in conjunction with the multi-disciplinary team

To develop services in line with recent NHS and other initiatives and guidance.

General responsibilities

To support the department and organisation by carrying out any other duties as qualified and able,