Quality & Safety Lead- Clinical Guidelines (Project & Integration)

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Main tasks & responsibilities:

 Patient/customer care (both direct and indirect)

 Be responsible for driving the integration projects required for leading improvements that impact on patient care.

 Promote and develop an open, just and fair culture where staff report adverse incidents, and patients make complaints in a timely manner.

 Work in conjunction with the Quality & Safety team and Central GSTT team to support patient safety incident investigations when required. Participate in communicating with affected patients and staff as appropriate.

 To monitor and keep accurate records of any action plans that may impact on patient care.

 Play a key role in the assessment and information cascade of patient resolution (complaints) learning relevant to the directorates and develop action plans with relevant staff and ensuring timely submission of responses and information for governance purposes and the resolution co-ordinator.

 Support development of patient engagement in quality projects and involving patients in developing improvements wherever possible.  

Educational Responsibilities

 Deliver and participate in a programme of quality and safety education and training at request and based on training needs analysis, including induction, clinical governance half days and appropriate Trust-wide initiatives as required.

 Remain professionally updated in all aspects of quality and safety management.

 Provide training and education within the clinical group regarding quality and safety improvements, including basic quality improvement methodology.

 Promote and facilitate good practice in clinical audit in-line with the clinical audit strategy and national best practice.

 Advise and support clinical staff in audit methodology and ensure accurate data collection, recording and analysis.

Policy development

 Ensure that all risk management and safety related policies and procedures across HLCC are aligned, robust and current and reflect national risk, governance and patient safety initiatives, legislation and healthcare priorities.

 Be responsible for ensuring new national guidance and policy relating to quality and safety is effectively built into local polices in a timely way. Support and when required lead the implementation of changes in policy across the clinical group. Audit when required.

 Contribute to the risk register of the HLCC clinical group regarding ongoing projects.

 To assist in the development of a guideline and audit programme and track and develop the yearly audit plans in conjunction with the service leads and wider safety and quality teams to meet the safety and quality agenda

Service development

 Act as a key change agent, work in the team to bring together the governance, safety and quality agenda across the HLCC clinical group.

 In line with the national guidance, drive and facilitate quality improvement activity across the clinical group

 Identify and monitor those action plans relating to the safety and quality workstreams relevant to the clinical group.

 Produce data for the Head of Patient Safety and Quality and the central quality teams as needed.

 Participate in safety walk rounds and record issues identified. Facilitate reporting within the directorate and to HLCC.

 Develop and maintain a database of actions from ongoing projects clinical audit, complaints etc and provide regular updates on stage of implementation etc within the clinical group and to the Trust.

 Facilitate and development of the group annual audit plan.

 Actively support audit data collection processes, finding and delivering solutions to blockages.

 Work with the wider Quality and Safety team to deliver effective actions in response to outcomes monitoring on the specific projects

 Represent the Trust at external events, conferences

 Ensure all services implement sound safety practices, where possible reducing risk and improving services

People management

 Manage and take responsibility for the professional development of the patient resolution team.

 Undertake appraisals

Communication

 Be able to discuss sensitive and contentious information with staff from all levels of seniority within the Trust using negotiating and empathetic skills when required.

 Ensure all team members have a real voice in the development of quality and safety for patients and staff.

 Attend and play a major role as a representative of the clinical group and team.

 To participate in relevant directorate and trust meetings and ensure the 2-way communication and dissemination of relevant information and feedback to and from staff within the directorate regarding the ongoing projects. Present data/information in written format and verbally as required. Facilitate action as a result of meetings.  

Resource management

 Responsible for budget as allocated

 Abide by the NHS code of conduct for managers, the Trust’s core behaviours for staff and managers and all other Trust policies including standing financial instructions, research governance, clinical governance, patient and public involvement, codes and practices and health and safety policies.

Information management

 Take an analytical approach on information received and act on findings

 Develop local reports, e.g.

 Quarterly clinical group safety projects reports – clinical guidelines, complaints, KPIs, local QI initiatives, walk rounds, integration projects, audits completed with actions.

 Clinical group audit reports

 Others as required

 Follow up actions from reports

 Lead on engaging clinicians with the directorate quality and safety leads to discuss issues arising from reports

 Bring clinical group issues/feedback to the attention of the Head of Patient Quality and Safety

 Prepare monthly reports for complaints and support the patient resolution coordinator in monthly directorate meetings and monitoring of complaints action plan.

 Ensure relevant information from Trust wide audits are reported within the clinical group and relevant action plans developed and delivered e.g. clinical records audit, consent audit, neurological injury audit, cardiac arrest audit.

 Seek out relevant NICE guidance and other relevant guidance e.g. Royal Colleges, professional societies and work actively with clinical groups within the directorate in the review, implementation and audit of compliance with NICE guidance. Attend and support clinical group meetings and reporting to CESOC.

Further sections

 To ensure all team members have a real voice in the development of the quality and safety service to patients/customers

 To maximise the potential of all team members

 To ensure that all team members have a meaningful appraisal/personal development plan that includes feedback to the individual from a selection of internal customers and team members

 To provide a safe and attractive working environment for team members within available resources

 To attend and play a major role in corporate groups as a representative of the directorate and team

 To represent the Trust at regional and national conferences and on working groups as appropriate

 To abide by the NHS code of conduct for managers, the Trust’s core behaviours for staff and managers and all other Trust policies including standing financial instructions, research governance, clinical governance, patient and public involvement, codes and practices and health and safety policies.