Junior Sister/Charge Nurse - Dulwich Satellite Unit

Job overview

· To work as a clinical nurse specialist and effectively deliver an expert nursing service within the multi-professional palliative care team on the Princess Royal Hospital site

· To manage a caseload of patients with specialist palliative care needs

· Participate in providing a face to face service including weekend working.

· To assist in the development of evidence based clinical nursing practice in line with current research and guidelines

· To establish clear lines of communication within palliative care to ensure cohesive multidisciplinary management of patients

· To link with other palliative care providers and primary care in order to facilitate the care of this group of people in the community

· To act as a role model to other nurses and support the delivery of palliative care education within the Trust

· To engage in the team’s governance program.

Main duties of the job

• To provide specialist nursing services for people with specialist palliative care needs, including their families.  

• To accept responsibility for patients referred to the caseload, ensuring all patients have an accurate plan of care

• To accept responsibility as the named palliative care key worker, ensuring clear documentation in patient records

• To attend and ensure that appropriate palliative care patients on the caseload are discussed at the weekly MDT

• To liaise with local community, social services, paramedics and voluntary organisations in order to develop existing services 

• Ensure all patients receive appropriate follow-up and relevant information is available to enable patients to make an informed choice about their treatment and future care

• To work with the Palliative Care Team to support the ongoing implementation of the 5 priorities for care of the dying person

• To be responsible for identifying and developing clinical protocols and strategies to enhance both the continuity and standard of specialist care whilst ensuring equity of access to the service

• To actively involve service users in providing feedback of their experience of the current service and suggestions for improvements

• To liaise with discharge coordinators and ward staff to ensure appropriate and timely discharge/follow-up arrangement in place for patients

Working for our organisation

The Trust provides a full range of local and specialist services across its five sites. Transforming Healthcare is the vision at the heart of the King’s Strategy – 2026 to 2031. Together, we are pursuing six strategic ambitions: delivering high-quality patient care; being a great place to work; leading pioneering research, innovation and education; building strong and successful partnerships; providing timely and efficient care; and ensuring long-term financial sustainability.  Achieving these ambitions will require all of us to work as one Team King’s, united by a shared commitment to our values of being caring, collaborative, inclusive and innovative. By living these values every day, we will transform healthcare for our patients, our communities and each other

We are at a pivotal point in our history and we require individuals who are ready to join a highly professional team and make a real, lasting difference to our patients and our people.

King’s is committed to delivering Sustainable Healthcare for All via our Green Plan. In line with national Greener NHS ambitions, we have set net zero carbon targets of 2040 for our NHS Carbon Footprint and 2045 for our NHS Carbon Footprint Plus. Everyone’s contribution is required in order to meet the goals set out in our Green Plan and we encourage all staff to work responsibly, minimising their contributions to the Trust’s carbon emissions, waste and pollution wherever possible.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• To provide specialist nursing services for people with specialist palliative care needs, including their families and significant others.  

• To accept responsibility for patients referred to the caseload, ensuring all patients have an accurate plan of care, which reflects the assessment undertaken and incorporates the issues and recommendations made

• To accept responsibility as the named palliative care key worker, ensuring clear documentation in the patients’ records

• To co-ordinate a seamless service through the development of enhanced Multidisciplinary team (MDT) processes and communication

• To attend and ensure that appropriate palliative care patients on the caseload are discussed at the weekly MDT

• To liaise with local community, social services, paramedics and voluntary organisations in order to develop existing services for clients, carers and health professional

• Ensure all patients receive appropriate follow-up and relevant information is available to enable patients to make an informed choice about their treatment and future care

• To work with the MDT to develop, implement and evaluate integrated care pathways and systems of MDT documentation, including the care of the dying person

• To work with the Palliative Care Team to support the ongoing implementation of the 5 priorities for care of the dying person

• To be responsible for identifying and developing clinical protocols and strategies to enhance both the continuity and standard of specialist care whilst ensuring equity of access to the service

• To actively involve service users in providing feedback of their experience of the current service and suggestions for improvements

• To liaise with discharge coordinators and ward staff to ensure appropriate and timely discharge/follow-up arrangement in place for patients

• To participate in relevant forums at Care Group, Trust, CCG, Cancer Network or National/International Level to represent the service perspective

• To ensure all care is given in accordance with agreed protocols and guidelines 

• To produce and provide all patients and relatives / carers with relevant and accessible written information regarding palliative care in accordance with Trust standard

• To forge and maintain effective links within primary, secondary and tertiary care to ensure effective communication

Person specification

Essential & Desirable

Essential criteria

• NMC Registered Nurse with BSc in a health-related/ relevant subject or equivalent
• Significant post-registration experience working autonomously in a palliative care environment
• Ability to make complex assessments of palliative care patients and their families, providing appropriate advice for symptom management and suitable holistic support resulting in a comprehensive management plan
• Previous active involvement in quality initiatives and / or innovation

Desirable criteria

• Post registration qualification in Palliative care or relevant subject
• Higher degree (MSc) in a health related subject, or working towards
• Relevant post-registration qualification

IMPORTANT

• Check your email account regularly as this is how we will communicate with you
• If you delete the job from any of your accounts, you may be prevented from accessing further communications
• To enquire about your application or inform us of any changes in your circumstances, please contact the named person on this advert
• Please provide email addresses for referees where possible
• Please review the documentation on our recruitment microsite, particularly the Trust’s criminal records checking policy
• All staff have a responsibility for safeguarding children and vulnerable adults and for ensuring they are aware of the specific duties relating to their role.
• Please note that the closing date is given as a guide. On occasion, we might close a vacancy early due to a high number of applications being received. You are advised to submit your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

AI tools like chatbots and virtual assistants can support you as you complete your application. For example, they can check for spelling or grammar errors, or help you to decide what to include. They shouldn’t however replace your own responses or be used to write the application for you.

Relying too much on AI can negatively impact your chances of success because automatically generated answers:

• might not be specific or relevant enough to address the criteria in the recruitment profile
• often seem generic and not personalised enough – an AI response won’t show your unique voice and perspective
• could misrepresent information about you, such as your qualifications, skills and experience 

We monitor applications for any behaviour that could create an unfair advantage, and we check all references carefully. You are likely to be tested on your experience at interview, so be honest and make sure all the information in your application is correct.

King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Annual Reports and Other Corporate Publications

King's Health Partners Academic Health Science Centre Website

King's College Hospital is part of King's Health Partners Academic Health Sciences Centre (AHSC), a pioneering collaboration between King's College London, and Guy's and St Thomas', King's College Hospital and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trusts.