Physiotherapy Associate Practitioner

An exciting opportunity has arisen to join our accredited pulmonary rehabilitation team on a temporary basis as an Associate Practitioner. This post will support the physiotherapy led team to deliver pulmonary rehabilitation to patients across the city of Newcastle upon Tyne both in the community (Kenton Park Sports Centre) and on the various hospital sites (mainly Freeman Hospital). We are a team of physiotherapists and associate practitioners who are passionate about delivering high quality care to our patients. Pulmonary rehabilitation is an evidenced based treatment that is proven to improve quality of life using exercise and education. This is an ideal opportunity if you are an experienced rehabilitation or therapy assistant looking to further develop your knowledge and skills. Basic knowledge of this client group and experience of carrying out exercise programmes in a group setting is essential. Experience of delivering basic education to a group of patients will also be beneficial. Part of your role will be to carry out one to one assessments of these patients both over the telephone and face to face. The post holder will be expected to spend time on the telephone building rapport with patients and delivering treatment so strong communication skills will be required. There is a clinical administration component to this role. Those with confident IT skills in word and excel would be encouraged to apply. A valid UK Driving License is essential to this role as you will be expected to cross sites from a hospital setting to the community venue. Full training is available, and competencies will be carried out by the pulmonary rehabilitation team.

• Main duties of the role include, but are not limited to: ensuring correct use of confidential information in line with Caldicott and Information Governance.
• Carrying out telephone calls with patients.
• Ordering of equipment.
• Following the standard operating procedures written by the team.
• Independently able to carry out assessments of patients face to face and over the telephone.
• Delivering exercise to a group of patients and independently evaluating progress and adapting where required.
• Delivering education to a group of patients.
• Independently carrying out discharge assessments.
• Carrying out aspects of administration, including Word, Excel and the NUTH electronic records for note writing and letters.
• Inputting data into national databases and our own in-house databases.
• Attending and delivering teaching and training to the team.
• Attending team meetings where applicable to the team.
• Taking on own QI projects and working with the team on larger projects to ensure ongoing development of the service.
• Being responsible for own training needs and learning.
• Working alongside students who come to work within the team.
• To undertake specific skilled support work to aid the Physiotherapy team in the efficient and effective delivery of Physical Rehabilitation to patients within the speciality area within the framework of clinical governance.
• To accept a patient caseload referred by a physiotherapist according to specific criteria, treat patients according to set protocols, monitor progress, modify and progress treatment programmes as required, with referral back to physiotherapists as/when appropriate.
• To carry out basic assessment and treatment of non-complex patients as delegated by the physiotherapist (including basic chest physiotherapy and mobility protocols).
• To provide and deliver individualised exercise programmes.
• To accurately record rehabilitation progress as per Trust documentation/database including physiotherapeutic outcome measures.
• To undertake a clinical caseload within the speciality area, without supervision for at least 50% of the time within protocols and guidelines set by the designated physiotherapist.
• To coordinate, supervise and teach junior therapy assistants.

As a flexible working friendly organisation, we aim to accommodate flexible working arrangements where possible for the service and for staff and patients. Our staff oversee over 6,500 patient contacts every day, delivering high standards of healthcare from multiple sites including Freeman Hospital, Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI), Health Innovation Neighbourhood, Newcastle Dental Hospital, Newcastle Fertility Centre, Northern Centre for Cancer Care, Northern Genetics Service, Cramlington Manor Walks, and others. We also have offices at Regent Point in Gosforth and community sites. We offer staff benefits (documentation available under ‘Documents to download’ or ‘Supporting documents’).

For further information on The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust please visit the Careers pages of Newcastle Hospitals.

All references from current and previous employers will be sought and must cover a minimum of 3 years. Provide the address, telephone number and work email address of current/previous line managers covering 3 years. A DBS check may be required; if so, payment is via deduction from the first month’s pay. Shortlisted candidates will be contacted by email; check inbox and spam. If you have not heard within 4 weeks of the closing date, assume unsuccessful.

Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion and values the diversity of its workforce. We welcome applications from all sections of the community and aim to recruit a workforce that reflects the communities we serve. We are committed to sustainability and aim to be Net Zero by 2030 (direct) and Net Zero by 2040 (indirect).