UGI Clinical Nurse Specialist

Job overview

This is an exciting opportunity to work within the UGI Clinical Nurse Specialist team.  Under direction from the Lead UGI Cancer Nurse Specialist you will assess, plan, implement and evaluate expert nursing care and provide support to UGI and GIST cancer patients and their carers. The post holder will have continuing responsibility for the co-ordination and organisation of individual treatment programmes throughout the illness trajectory and work to develop communication across divisional and organisational boundaries.

• Ø  Provide specialist nursing advice and psychological support to patients, carers and healthcare professionals. Ø  Acts as a resource and contributes to the education and training of other healthcare professionals as required. Ø  Contribute to service development, audit and research projects and help develop educational packages as needed.

Main duties of the job

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Work as an integral part of the UGI cancer multidisciplinary team within both Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust and across the tertiary centres. May be asked to support other cancer nursing specialist teams when necessary.

• Act as liaison with tertiary centres and UGI Cancer CNS’s to ensure smooth transition of care between centres.
• Assess, plan and implement and evaluate expert nursing care and provide support to patients and their carers. The post holder will have continuing responsibility for the co-ordination and organisation of individual treatment programmes throughout the illness trajectory and work to develop communication across divisional and organisational boundaries.
• Provide specialist nursing advice and psychological support to patients, carers, and health care professionals.
• Acts as a resource and contributes to the education and training of other health care professionals as required.
• Contributes to service development, audit and research projects and helps develops educational packages according to need of care.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• Act as keyworker to patients and relatives whilst undergoing cancer treatment at Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust.

• Communicates highly sensitive and emotive condition related information to patients and relatives. E.g. terminal illness, bereavement
• Assess new patients in the clinical area, identifying their psychological, physiological, emotional spiritual and cultural needs in relation to their disease and proposed treatment, providing a pathway of nursing care for the patient.
• Act as patient advocate when relevant and be able to educate on all the treatment options to enable a patient to make an informed choice, negotiating with the medical team to agree a pathway of care.
• Provide continuity of care throughout the patient’s journey and liaising across specialized areas ensuring that care is seamless between tertiary centres.
• Contribute to the development of specialized programs of care and provide specialized advice, written and oral information to patients, relatives.
• Provide clinical advice and support to health care professionals within and across organizational boundaries.
• To formulate individualized patient treatment care programs in conjunction with the medical/nursing team considering Each patient is placed on the correct treatment protocol. Investigations and treatments are organized as needed.
• Each patient is placed on the correct treatment protocol.
• Investigations and treatments are organized as needed.
• Act as a role model.
• To provide support for distressed patients / carers and bereaved relatives and identifying patients at risk and referring to appropriate agencies

• Participate in case conferences in relation to future management or discharge arrangements.
• Maintain accurate patient records and ensure all relevant information is documented in medical and nursing notes.
• In collaboration with multidisciplinary team members assess the needs of patients, families and carer’s and provide specialist advice.
• Assist with the development of a specialized nursing service provision.

• Manages his/her own caseload of patients referred from MDT and Cancer Nurse Specialists in tertiary centers. Works closely with other members of the Multidisciplinary team.
• Provide expert advice to patients undergoing treatment for UGI cancer.
• Will work as part of the UGI Cancer Nurse Specialist Team, providing cross cover for other members of the Team as required to ensure continuity of cancer care is provided to all patients across the pathway.
• Initiates change in management of care.

***Preference will be given to internal Trust staff, as well as ‘Priority’ and 'At Risk' status including NHS At Risk staff throughout Devon who are able to display recent relevant experience as dictated by the Person Specification.***