Clinical Specialist Occupational Therapist or Physiotherapist - EIT
The closing date is 29 March 2026
CLINICAL SPECIALIST OCCUPATIONAL THERAPIST or PHYSIOTHERAPIST - EARLY INTERVENTION THERAPY TEAM Permanent | Full Time
The Integrated Therapies Department at the James Paget University Hospital is seeking a dedicated and compassionate Occupational Therapist or Physiotherapist to join our Early Intervention Therapy Team and Frailty Team. The successful candidate will support in the delivery of high‑quality therapy interventions across the specialty, support in the teaching and development of junior staff and students and take an active role in quality improvement projects to guide service development. The post will primarily sit in the Early Intervention Therapy Team which covers Accident and Emergency, the Acute Medical Unit and the new Same Day Emergency Care Unit. There will be an additional requirement to support other clinical areas including the Frailty Assessment Unit and Older Persons Medicine covered by the Frailty branch of the team.
As a Band 7 Occupational Therapist or Physiotherapist, you are integral to the leadership of the team, working alongside the Therapy Team Leader to provide direction, development and support to the Therapy Team. You will be specialist in your area and will be responsible for your own complex caseload consisting of patients with a variety of different conditions whilst supporting junior members of the team. Good prioritisation, organisational and time management skills will be needed to balance clinical and non‑clinical duties.
Main duties of the job
The post‑holder will act as a Clinical Specialist Occupational Therapist or Physiotherapist in the Early Intervention Therapy Team and Frailty Team. You will be responsible for leading and supporting the advanced assessment and treatment of patients who may present with complex pathology and social issues to formulate an intervention plan based on expert analytical clinical reasoning skills. You will need advanced communication skills to ensure a successful multidisciplinary approach to patient care and will be in regular discussions with patients, carers, James Paget University Hospital colleagues and community partners etc., as well as providing training to Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy, and Therapy Assistant Practitioner colleagues and to other members of the multidisciplinary team.
The core hours for this post are 08:00‑16:00, however, flexible working is supported and encouraged; this will also include being rostered on a seven‑day service/shift pattern.
About us
The James Paget is a vibrant university hospital providing the best possible care to the people of east Norfolk and north Suffolk. Situated on the coast with beautiful beaches and the Broads National Park on the doorstep we are within commuting distance of Norwich City.
Service Improvement: The Integrated Therapies Department is positive and forward thinking, always striving to improve services. Our links with the Research Department is growing with joint projects being worked on. Our therapists represent the Trust at CSP, RCOT, BOA and BGS conferences.
Personal and professional development is key. We are developing our research and innovation strategy in line with the national AHP Strategy. We will support you in achieving your career goals through our well‑structured supervision and appraisal system, actively encouraging utilisation of training courses (clinical, non‑clinical and leadership skills) with use of CPD funding.
Development of others: You will be supported to provide education to your team but also to our wider workforce. We also support development of our future workforce through our close links with the University of East Anglia, Suffolk College and City College Norwich.
Job responsibilities
Please see the attached Job Description for more details of the main duties and responsibilities of the role which include:
- The post‑holder will act as a Clinical Specialist Occupational Therapist or Physiotherapist in the Early Intervention Therapy Team and Frailty Team at the James Paget University Hospital
- The post‑holder will be required to work autonomously and carry a clinical caseload, taking a lead role in the advanced assessment and treatment of patients who may have complex pathology and social issues, in order to determine a clinical diagnosis and formulate an intervention plan
- To provide highly specialist advice and teaching to Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy, and Therapy Assistant Practitioner colleagues and to other members of the multidisciplinary team
- To support the education of students in an educator role as required
- Ensure the teams workload is appropriately prioritised and work is effectively distributed and coordinated across the team on a day‑by‑day basis
- To work closely with the multidisciplinary teams in order to receive referrals and use patient information to help prioritise the workload
- To be proactive in‑service development and individual development within the teams, implementing changes as and when appropriate including policy changes
- To provide clinical leadership to Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy and non‑registered staff in the Therapy Team
- Clinical/professional supervision takes the form of direct observation of practice or formal training/clinical reasoning sessions (at least monthly). Advice and support are always available
- To work a rostered seven‑day service/shift pattern within the James Paget University Hospital. Flexible working is supported and encouraged
Please watch the following videos for an insight into our Integrated Therapies Department:
Education and Qualifications
- Diploma/Degree/MSc in Occupational Therapy or Physiotherapy
- Current Health and Care Professions Council registration
- CPD record should include evidence of up‑to‑date manual handling, in‑service training and reflections of learning
Knowledge and Experience
- Evidence of experience working as an autonomous practitioner at Band 6 level in an acute hospital, managing patients with conditions including respiratory, cardiac, surgical, frailty, falls, neurological, orthopaedic, general medicine, palliative and end‑of‑life care
- Experience of team working within integrated teams
- Demonstrates specialist clinical skills including complex caseload management
- Able to formulate complex discharge plans informed by strong problem‑solving skills
- Experience of planning and implementing service improvement projects and utilising research into practice
- Evidence of acting in a supervisory manner, providing specialist guidance, training and support to other staff or students
- Evidence of reflective learning, demonstrates self‑directed learning with a working knowledge of clinical governance and implications for own work
- Awareness of relevant professional practice, new research and guidelines and understanding of legal issues, safeguarding and mental capacity
- Experience working in a fast‑paced, high‑pressured environment including Accident and Emergency or Same Day Emergency Care Unit
Skills, Abilities and Competencies
- Leadership skills including team building and supporting others
- Ability to remain calm under pressure and prioritise accordingly
- Ability to prioritise and organise workload and support others with this whilst being able to work flexibly and proactively under pressure
- Ability to act as an autonomous practitioner with minimum supervision but recognise own limitations and know when to ask for support
- Communication skills including empathy, assertiveness and negotiation skills with the ability to build good rapport with a wide variety of people
- Evidence of forward thinking, using initiative, able to problem solve with positive approach and ability to promote change
- Competent IT skills and both verbal and written presentation skills
- Evidence of motivation for Band 7 role
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.
James Paget University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
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