Tissue Viability Nurse

Job overview

The post holder will be a specialist clinician within the field of tissue viability, facilitating the day-to-day delivery of a comprehensive Tissue Viability Service across both the community and acute settings.

Please note that this vacancy may close early if a sufficient number of applications are received. We encourage interested candidates to apply promptly to avoid disappointment.

Main duties of the job

• Provide specialist advice and education to all health care professionals/ carers throughout the borough to ensure high standards of clinical practice
• Act as an autonomous practitioner within the trust
• Assist the Tissue Viability Specialist Nurse in developing the service
• To participate and assist in research and audit as required
• To implement improving working lives initiatives as appropriate
• To contribute to the efficiency and effectiveness of the Tissue Viability Service
• To support the development of the wound care link practitioner network within the organisation and borough

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Key results from the job holder

• Provide specialist advice and education to all health care professionals/ carers throughout the borough to ensure high standards of clinical practice
• Act as an autonomous practitioner within the trust
• Assist the Tissue Viability Specialist Nurse in developing the service
• To participate and assist in research and audit as required
• To implement improving working lives initiatives as appropriate
• To contribute to the efficiency and effectiveness of the Tissue Viability Service
• To support the development of the wound care link practitioner network within the organisation and borough

Planning and Organisational Duties

• To maintain accurate, comprehensive assessment and treatment records in line with legal and departmental requirements.  This will include both electronic and paper records.
• Plan own workload to maximise effective use of resources
• Manage referrals into the service in a proficient manner, triaging and prioritising service provision based on individual needs and refer on as appropriate
• To effectively manage change within a range of care environments
• To work with medical and Allied Health Professional colleagues to ensure, where appropriate, that services are co-ordinated and combined, including joint assessments
• To take part in audit to ensure that standards of practice are monitored and maintained
• To record and submit professional and clinical activity
• To participate in the development of clinical standards, protocols and formularies
• Manage working hours flexibly within each day to ensure the needs of the service are met giving priority to patient care and able to respond to any changing needs
• Maintain membership at the appropriate forums and organisations both locally, regionally and nationally to keep abreast of new developments within tissue viability

Communications and Key Working Relationships

• To have highly developed communication skills e.g. empathy, reassurance, motivation, negotiation, persuasion
• To have highly developed interpersonal skills in order to deal with sensitive and potentially conflicting situations
• To address barriers to communication within the Service, utilising the expertise of other agencies e.g. translation service
• To develop strong links with the wound care link practitioners to support network development
• To promote patient involvement in Tissue Viability Service

Responsibility for Finance

• Assist the Tissue Viability Specialist Nurse in wound care product evaluations
• Effective prescribing of wound care products

Responsibility for Human Resources

• Assist the Tissue Viability Specialist Nurse in delivering formal training sessions to all levels of staff in relation to tissue viability
• Provide one to one education to all levels of staff in relation to tissue viability when conducting joint patient reviews
• Contribute to and promote a culture that values staff, recognising and acknowledging achievement whilst positively addressing poor practice
• Be involved in annual, individual performance reviews and personal development plans

Responsibility for Health & Safety

Compliance with the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974 – the post holder is required to fulfil a proactive role towards the management of risk in all of their actions. This entails the risk assessment of all situations, the taking of appropriate actions and reporting of all incidents, near misses and hazards, and a statutory duty of care for their own personal safety and that of others who may be affected by their acts or omissions.

Responsibility for Teaching

• Assist the Tissue Viability Specialist Nurse in delivering formal training sessions to all levels of staff in relation to tissue viability
• Provide one to one education to all levels of staff in relation to tissue viability when conducting joint patient reviews
• Assist the Tissue Viability Specialist Nurse in implementing evidence based policies, procedures and guidelines and support improvements in practice
• Maintain personal and professional knowledge and understanding of current issues through commitment to self -development through life-long learning
• Attend and complete mandatory training to comply with Trust objectives

Work Circumstances & on-call

Able to work flexibly