Sister/Charge Nurse

Job summary
If you're a highly experienced emergency care nurse with significant post-registration experience, join Southmead Hospital's Emergency Department!

As one of only two Major Trauma Centres in the region, you will gain highly acute experience across the full urgent and emergency care pathway, working with specialist regional services including neurosurgery, stroke, vascular surgery, renal medicine and transplantation.

With opportunities to combine advanced clinical practice, leadership and professional autonomy, while influencing how emergency care is delivered, you will be responsible for delivering high-quality patient care, supporting patient flow and making timely clinical decisions within a fast-paced, challenging environment.

You will provide operational management to designated areas, demonstrating strong clinical judgement, excellent communication skills and visible leadership. You will work autonomously while supporting and developing junior colleagues, fostering a positive team culture and ensuring safe and efficient delivery of care.

With ongoing departmental reconfiguration and expansion of our workforce, help shape the future of emergency services at Southmead. We are proud to offer a CQC-commended education programme and a wide range of development opportunities, including an Advanced Clinical Practitioner training pathway, making this an ideal role for nurses looking to strengthen their leadership and progress their career in emergency care.

Main duties of the job
As a Band 6 Emergency Nurse,you'llbe a senior clinical leader on the shop floor, helping to ensure patients receive safe,effectiveandtimelycare from the moment they arrive.

Working across the Emergency Department and Minor Injury Unit,you'llutilise your advanced assessment skills to deliver high-quality care, support patient flow and maketimelyclinical decisions in a fast-paced environment.

A key part of the role is taking responsibility for the operational management of designated areas within the department. Whether coordinating Majors, Minors, Resus, the waiting room, the frontdooror ambulance offload,you'llmaintainoversight of patient flow, staffing, clinical priorities andemergingrisks, ensuring safe, effective care is delivered throughout your shift.

You'llwork autonomously within your scope of practice while supporting and developing junior colleagues, leading byexampleand contributing to the continued improvement of the department.

About us
Bristol NHS Foundation Trust brings together more than 28,000 staff to deliver over 160 clinical services across thirteen hospital locations,operatingfrom three main sites at Southmead, Bristol citycentreand Weston.

With an annual turnover of £2.3 billion, we are now one of the largest NHS trusts in the United Kingdom. Our hospitals are spread across Bristol and Weston, join us and you can enjoy the very best of both worlds; city living within a stone's throw of the countryside or beside the seaside, both with easy access to all that theSouth Westhas to offer.

Bristol NHS Foundation Trust values all people as individuals. As an equal opportunities employer actively working towards a diverse workforce we aim to recruit and retaina workforce whichrepresentsthe rich diversity of the local population at all levels and are committed to designing our services around the needs of individual patients and those around them. Anonymous information will be used from your applicationin order toensurewe'remeeting our pledge.

Job responsibilities
Essential requirements include:

• A minimum of3years' post-registration experienceworking within a busy Emergency Department.
• Competence in the full range of extended Emergency Department nursing skills, including:
• Independent requesting of X-rays.
• Wound assessment and suturing.
• Front door streaming and Emergency Department triage.
• Significant experiencein ambulance offload assessment, making rapid,safeand effective decisions to prioritise patients andmaintainpatient flow.
• Experience coordinating clinical areas within the Emergency Department,demonstratingthe ability to prioritise workload, manage patient flow,allocateresourcesand respond effectively to changing operational pressures.
• A sound understanding of Emergency Department performance indicators and operational metrics, including patient flow, ambulance handover performance, time-critical pathways and the 4-hour standard, with the ability to use these to support safe, high-quality patient care while reducing delays andmaintainingpatient safety.
• The ability to assess complex clinical presentations quickly, recognising deterioration,initiatingappropriate interventionsand escalating concerns promptly.
• Excellent communication skills, with the confidence to work effectively alongside consultants, specialty doctors, ACPs, nurses, paramedics, therapists, healthcare supportworkersand operational teams across all grades.
• Proven ability to remain calm, organised and clinically focused while managing multiple patients, competing priorities and frequent interruptions within an exceptionally busy department.
• Strong leadership skills with the confidence to coordinate clinical areas, support colleagues, maketimelydecisions and foster a positive, collaborative team culture.
• A commitment to delivering compassionate, patient-centred care, even under pressure, while acting as a role model for professional standards and clinical excellence.

Person Specification
Education
Essential

• Registered nurse
• Relevant speciality post registration qualification

Experience
Essential

• 3 years post graduate experience
• A minimum of 3 years post reg experience in ED

Knowledge
Essential

• Emergency department nursing competencies includingIndependent requesting of X-rays, Wound assessment and suturing, Front door streaming and Emergency Department triage.
• A sound understanding of Emergency Department performance indicators and operational metrics.
• A sound understanding or research and clinical governance

Personal qualities
Essential

• Excellent communication skills
• Able to demonstrate leadership skills
• Able to work and lead others within a diverse community of patients & health care professionals

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).