Job summary
An exciting new opportunity has arisen within the Children’s Therapy Team at St George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust for the position of Clinical Lead Dietitian in Neonates, based at St George’s Hospital. We are a friendly and welcoming team who encourage and celebrate diversity within our team.
Due to recent national funding across neonatal therapies, the Children’s Dietetic Team at St George’s is expanding. This post will be integral to the design and development of this growing team and delivery of a new embedded model of inpatient neonatal physiotherapy services.
Main duties of the job
The post-holder will be responsible for a varied clinical caseloadandwill be expected to have a high level of clinical skill and be able to work in the following specialty areas:
- Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU): 12 beds
- Neonatal High Dependency Unit (HDU): 13 beds
- Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU): 18 beds
- Post-natal wards
As the lead Neonatal Network Dietitian and an expert in your field across the SW Thames network, it would be expected that you would provide support for the other neonatal network dietitians, including development of pathways and guidelines across the network.
You will also work closely with the London Neonatal Operational Delivery Network.
The successful candidate will have skills and experience in the nutritional assessment, management, and discharge planning of this varied and specialist caseload, including Neonatal PN. They will work closely with the wider Children’s Therapy Team including colleagues across four allied health professions in Children’s Services, Consultants, Specialist Medical Teams, Nurse Specialists, Nursing Staff, other members of the multidisciplinary team (MDT), to provide a collaborative, family centred approach.
**Please see the attached supporting job description and person specification document, which contains more information about the role and requirements. Please ensure your application refers to the job description and person specification**
About us
St George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is a major acute hospital and major trauma centre that offers highly specialist care for complex injuries and illnesses, including trauma, neurology, cardiac care, renal transplantation, cancer care and stroke. The work of its emergency department was seen on Channel 4’s ’24 Hours in A&E’ programme. The hospital also provides all the usual care you would expect from a local NHS district general hospital. The Trust and its strategic partners deliver high quality research and education, both of which contribute to the healthcare provision of tomorrow.
Children’s Therapies sit in the Children’s Directorate and services for Children and Young People were rated Outstanding in the most recent CQC inspection and staff reported feeling ‘respected, supported and valued’.
We expect all our staff to share the values that are important to the trust – being excellent, kind, responsible and respectful – and behave in a way that reflects these. More information on the vision and values of St George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust can be found on the trust website.
Job description
Job responsibilities
CLINICAL PRACTICE
- Practice autonomously, using advanced levels of history taking and examination skills within multidisciplinary team to provide high quality innovative clinical practice in specialist area.
- Be proactive in clinical decision making underpinned by an advanced level of theoretical and practical knowledge and be able to demonstrate improved service user outcomes.
- Seeks to extend and advance their practice to the benefit of service users and colleagues.
- Demonstrate a high level of knowledge in relation to pattern of disease or disorder, marker of condition progression and range of treatment available at each stage of disorder or condition.
- Undertake comprehensive specialist holistic nutritional assessments including the calculation of nutritional requirements on the interpretation of biochemistry, anthropometry, clinical condition, and other physical parameters in those with highly complex needs.
- To take the lead in providing expert dietetic advice to the multidisciplinary team, through attendance and participation in multidisciplinary team meetings and ward rounds.
- Plan, implement and evaluate care delivery in specialist area and adapt to changing healthcare needs by understanding the big-picture to ensure a holistic and evidence-based approach to dietetic practice in specialist area.
- To be experienced in the use of anthropometric equipment for assessment of nutritional status, such as bioelectrical impedance, callipers and hand grip dynamometer and interpretation of results and application to improved patient care.
- To provide nutrition counselling using strategies such as cognitive behavioural therapy and motivational skills to engage, educate and reassure patients, helping overcome barriers to change, particularly where there is non-compliance.
- To develop a dietetic treatment plan based on evidence-based practice and provide advanced nutritional advice to service users, in collaboration with their carers where needs are highly complex. This involves the interpretation and communication of complex and sensitive information in an understandable form.
- Establish, maintain, and effectively manage barriers to advanced, highly skilled, and effective communication with service users, carers, and other professionals in order to develop a therapeutic relationship within which highly sensitive, distressing health conditions and highly complex issues are often addressed. This includes imparting information regarding diagnosis prognosis and treatment and referring to other teams as appropriate to promote integrated working and to improve service user outcomes.
- Applies communication skills in challenging situations including grief, distress, ambivalence, or conflict, agreeing goals, and working with multiple participants to advance best practice ideas and influence policy.
- Be able to modify plans for highly complex situations and works closely with colleagues to pro-actively manage risks.
- Identifies patterns and risks within the system and actively escalates concerns and leads on seeking solutions.
- Use advanced clinical skills in assessment, diagnosis, treatment, and discharge of service users in specialist area.
- Involves service users in the design and evaluation of services and supports others to develop their service user focus.
- Where appropriate to role, act as an independent non-medical supplementary prescriber, able to take a history, assess, examine, diagnose, prescribe, and develop a management plan including medication and monitor response to medication.
- To recommend and advise on the prescription of suitable cost effective ACBS products including oral nutritional supplements, enteral feeding products and gluten free products to service users within speciality, in line with SW London Alliance prescribing guidelines.
- To be responsible for ensuring written and electronic patient records are completed for all patient contacts including statistical activity data records in accordance with professional, departmental and trust standards.
- The ability to manage distressing situations, involving the treatment of terminally ill and very unwell patients. This results in exposures to complex situations and distressed clients and their relatives / carers.
- To ensure flexible service delivery and provide clinical cover for colleagues during periods of absence.
LEADERSHIP
- Inspire and demonstrate leadership qualities through the delivery of specialist advice, working with others, and demonstration of personal qualities, continuous service improvement and setting direction.
- Manage change through strategic thinking, use of negotiating skills, self-awareness, and effective communication.
- Actively contribute to the development of national and regional strategies and leads on local strategy and policy development.
- Helps others to understand the importance of their contribution to the development of local strategy and generates their team members commitment to the strategy.
- Seeks out new opportunities requiring dietetic input and embeds them locally.
- Act as a role model, provide professional leadership to the dietetic team and promote the trust / organisation behaviours of being proactive, positive, respectful, supportive, reliable, and trustworthy.
- Accepts leadership roles in local, regional, and national organisations and committees which seek to improve outcomes for service users.
- Accepts leadership roles to promote dietetics, nutrition, and the profession.
- Undertake clinical supervision and systematic peer review of colleagues on an individual and group basis.
- Demonstrates to decision makers the positive impact of a dietitian working in their area.
- Recognises, leads, and manages change taking into account cultural and political considerations.
- Understands the concerns of their team, addresses them, and engages their team in the change process.
- Can function effectively in a rapidly changing environment.
- Leads on advocacy strategies, actively engaging stakeholders to bring about change within local and regional spheres of influence.
- To lead the recruitment and selection of junior members of staff, according to trust policy.
- To be responsible for the performance management and/or clinical supervision of band 5 / 6 / 7 dietitians within specialist dietetic team, including annual appraisal.
- Contribute to investigation of incidents and complaints when required; participate in identifying lessons learnt and the sharing of learning across the organisation.
- To ensure safe practice through development of a caseload management plan and to monitor workload of the team, including waiting lists, referrals, and discharges, providing activity reports as requested.
- To escalate caseload safety concerns in line with the departments internal and external escalation policies.
- To monitor Key Performance Indicators and provide reports for specialist service where applicable.
FACILITATED LEARNING
- Develop resources and share knowledge to improve knowledge and skills of others
- Designs and delivers programmes to develop individuals and services that support the delivery of best practice and meet the strategic aims of the organisation.
- Educate others and actively support multidisciplinary learning and education where possible to promote their speciality and advance practice.
- Evaluates delivery of education and uses this evaluation to improve learning.
- Provides information and resources to improve knowledge.
- Actively develops a learning culture in the team.
Information and resource development to support service delivery
- Leads the identification of need for resources and ensures their development.
- Understands the research and evidence-base relating to information sources ensuring the different needs of service users are met.
- Understands what information is needed in an organisation to meet the needs of service users and staff.
Mentoring and supervision to assure and develop own and other skills
- Leading and coordinating mentoring and supervision for their team, including pre-registration learners.
- Empowers individuals to solve problems and improve processes and practice.
- Educate and supervise dietetic colleagues on the competencies needed for specialist area
- Provides supervision or mentoring for colleagues.
- Builds a well-functioning, multi-skilled team using mentoring and coaching.
- To participate in the training, supervision, and assessment of pre-registration student dietitians.
- Advocate and contribute to continuous learning and development, evidence-based practice and succession planning.
Self-development to maintain fitness to practice
- Develop and maintain high level advanced skills and knowledge relevant to role and specialist area by engaging in a range of relevant learning and development activities.
- Has a strategic view of own development needs, aligning personal goals with organisational strategy.
- Take advantage of education and training opportunities in line with their personal development plan.
- Undertake self-reflection in line with the CPD principles and to participate in the trust annual appraisal process.
- To be an active member of the appropriate BDA specialist interest group(s), including participation in planning and lecturing for BDA meetings/courses.
- Where appropriate to deliver education sessions to patients and their carers and to evaluate their effectiveness.
Job description
Job responsibilities
CLINICAL PRACTICE
- Practice autonomously, using advanced levels of history taking and examination skills within multidisciplinary team to provide high quality innovative clinical practice in specialist area.
- Be proactive in clinical decision making underpinned by an advanced level of theoretical and practical knowledge and be able to demonstrate improved service user outcomes.
- Seeks to extend and advance their practice to the benefit of service users and colleagues.
- Demonstrate a high level of knowledge in relation to pattern of disease or disorder, marker of condition progression and range of treatment available at each stage of disorder or condition.
- Undertake comprehensive specialist holistic nutritional assessments including the calculation of nutritional requirements on the interpretation of biochemistry, anthropometry, clinical condition, and other physical parameters in those with highly complex needs.
- To take the lead in providing expert dietetic advice to the multidisciplinary team, through attendance and participation in multidisciplinary team meetings and ward rounds.
- Plan, implement and evaluate care delivery in specialist area and adapt to changing healthcare needs by understanding the big-picture to ensure a holistic and evidence-based approach to dietetic practice in specialist area.
- To be experienced in the use of anthropometric equipment for assessment of nutritional status, such as bioelectrical impedance, callipers and hand grip dynamometer and interpretation of results and application to improved patient care.
- To provide nutrition counselling using strategies such as cognitive behavioural therapy and motivational skills to engage, educate and reassure patients, helping overcome barriers to change, particularly where there is non-compliance.
- To develop a dietetic treatment plan based on evidence-based practice and provide advanced nutritional advice to service users, in collaboration with their carers where needs are highly complex. This involves the interpretation and communication of complex and sensitive information in an understandable form.
- Establish, maintain, and effectively manage barriers to advanced, highly skilled, and effective communication with service users, carers, and other professionals in order to develop a therapeutic relationship within which highly sensitive, distressing health conditions and highly complex issues are often addressed. This includes imparting information regarding diagnosis prognosis and treatment and referring to other teams as appropriate to promote integrated working and to improve service user outcomes.
- Applies communication skills in challenging situations including grief, distress, ambivalence, or conflict, agreeing goals, and working with multiple participants to advance best practice ideas and influence policy.
- Be able to modify plans for highly complex situations and works closely with colleagues to pro-actively manage risks.
- Identifies patterns and risks within the system and actively escalates concerns and leads on seeking solutions.
- Use advanced clinical skills in assessment, diagnosis, treatment, and discharge of service users in specialist area.
- Involves service users in the design and evaluation of services and supports others to develop their service user focus.
- Where appropriate to role, act as an independent non-medical supplementary prescriber, able to take a history, assess, examine, diagnose, prescribe, and develop a management plan including medication and monitor response to medication.
- To recommend and advise on the prescription of suitable cost effective ACBS products including oral nutritional supplements, enteral feeding products and gluten free products to service users within speciality, in line with SW London Alliance prescribing guidelines.
- To be responsible for ensuring written and electronic patient records are completed for all patient contacts including statistical activity data records in accordance with professional, departmental and trust standards.
- The ability to manage distressing situations, involving the treatment of terminally ill and very unwell patients. This results in exposures to complex situations and distressed clients and their relatives / carers.
- To ensure flexible service delivery and provide clinical cover for colleagues during periods of absence.
LEADERSHIP
- Inspire and demonstrate leadership qualities through the delivery of specialist advice, working with others, and demonstration of personal qualities, continuous service improvement and setting direction.
- Manage change through strategic thinking, use of negotiating skills, self-awareness, and effective communication.
- Actively contribute to the development of national and regional strategies and leads on local strategy and policy development.
- Helps others to understand the importance of their contribution to the development of local strategy and generates their team members commitment to the strategy.
- Seeks out new opportunities requiring dietetic input and embeds them locally.
- Act as a role model, provide professional leadership to the dietetic team and promote the trust / organisation behaviours of being proactive, positive, respectful, supportive, reliable, and trustworthy.
- Accepts leadership roles in local, regional, and national organisations and committees which seek to improve outcomes for service users.
- Accepts leadership roles to promote dietetics, nutrition, and the profession.
- Undertake clinical supervision and systematic peer review of colleagues on an individual and group basis.
- Demonstrates to decision makers the positive impact of a dietitian working in their area.
- Recognises, leads, and manages change taking into account cultural and political considerations.
- Understands the concerns of their team, addresses them, and engages their team in the change process.
- Can function effectively in a rapidly changing environment.
- Leads on advocacy strategies, actively engaging stakeholders to bring about change within local and regional spheres of influence.
- To lead the recruitment and selection of junior members of staff, according to trust policy.
- To be responsible for the performance management and/or clinical supervision of band 5 / 6 / 7 dietitians within specialist dietetic team, including annual appraisal.
- Contribute to investigation of incidents and complaints when required; participate in identifying lessons learnt and the sharing of learning across the organisation.
- To ensure safe practice through development of a caseload management plan and to monitor workload of the team, including waiting lists, referrals, and discharges, providing activity reports as requested.
- To escalate caseload safety concerns in line with the departments internal and external escalation policies.
- To monitor Key Performance Indicators and provide reports for specialist service where applicable.
FACILITATED LEARNING
- Develop resources and share knowledge to improve knowledge and skills of others
- Designs and delivers programmes to develop individuals and services that support the delivery of best practice and meet the strategic aims of the organisation.
- Educate others and actively support multidisciplinary learning and education where possible to promote their speciality and advance practice.
- Evaluates delivery of education and uses this evaluation to improve learning.
- Provides information and resources to improve knowledge.
- Actively develops a learning culture in the team.
Information and resource development to support service delivery
- Leads the identification of need for resources and ensures their development.
- Understands the research and evidence-base relating to information sources ensuring the different needs of service users are met.
- Understands what information is needed in an organisation to meet the needs of service users and staff.
Mentoring and supervision to assure and develop own and other skills
- Leading and coordinating mentoring and supervision for their team, including pre-registration learners.
- Empowers individuals to solve problems and improve processes and practice.
- Educate and supervise dietetic colleagues on the competencies needed for specialist area
- Provides supervision or mentoring for colleagues.
- Builds a well-functioning, multi-skilled team using mentoring and coaching.
- To participate in the training, supervision, and assessment of pre-registration student dietitians.
- Advocate and contribute to continuous learning and development, evidence-based practice and succession planning.
Self-development to maintain fitness to practice
- Develop and maintain high level advanced skills and knowledge relevant to role and specialist area by engaging in a range of relevant learning and development activities.
- Has a strategic view of own development needs, aligning personal goals with organisational strategy.
- Take advantage of education and training opportunities in line with their personal development plan.
- Undertake self-reflection in line with the CPD principles and to participate in the trust annual appraisal process.
- To be an active member of the appropriate BDA specialist interest group(s), including participation in planning and lecturing for BDA meetings/courses.
- Where appropriate to deliver education sessions to patients and their carers and to evaluate their effectiveness.
Person Specification
Knowledge and Experience
Essential
- Experience of working in a level 3 neonatal setting at senior level
- Post Graduate education in Neonates
Desirable
Skills
Essential
- Service development skills
- Advanced clinical skills
Desirable
Person Specification
Knowledge and Experience
Essential
- Experience of working in a level 3 neonatal setting at senior level
- Post Graduate education in Neonates
Desirable
Skills
Essential
- Service development skills
- Advanced clinical skills
Desirable
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
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) .
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Additional information
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) .
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
