Speech and Language Therapist

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Clinical Responsibilities

To exercise responsibility for a designated caseload of children.

To use highly developed interpersonal skills to:

Facilitate communication so that the needs of the child and family are central to the clinical process.

Play a pivotal role in ensuring effective joint working for children with communication difficulties and their families.

To prioritise own caseload and manage own workload effectively and efficiently.

To assess and analyse children’s speech, language and communication using specialist knowledge to select appropriate formal and informal assessments including standardised psychometric tests.

To formulate a diagnosis based upon assessment and case history information and  information from family and other professionals.

To evaluate and make decisions about therapy options taking into account the child’s educational attainments, learning style and curriculum requirements.

To formulate a detailed individual management plan based upon relevant research and best practice.

To agree options in collaboration with all those involved in order to implement the individual management plan, which may include any combination of the following:

Therapeutic intervention with children individually or in groups (in school or clinic).

Programmes jointly planned and implemented with teaching staff.

Supporting others to implement programmes according to individual needs.

Providing advice on curriculum differentiation.

Providing advice on specific strategies to employ in the classroom and / or at home.

Advising referral to other professionals where indicated.

To provide demonstration / training on how to maximise communication opportunities for the individual.

To manage children’s behaviour and motivate them to achieve positive therapy outcomes including those who have severe/complex difficulties or who may be challenging.

To recognise potential conflict or breakdown in the above process and use negotiation and problem solving skills to reach agreement.

To communicate complex and specialist information to others by way of written reports and face-to-face discussions, adapting own communication style and content to the needs of the situation.

To form productive relationships with families, recognising the need for and ensuring sensitivity and care where:

There may be emotional stress.

Difficult or potentially distressing news to be given.

There are potential barriers to communication.

To contribute Assessment advice for and reviews of a child’s Education, Health & Care Plan under the provisions of the Children & Families Act and SEN Code of Practice (2014).

To attend Annual Reviews and termly reviews as required.

To liaise with other professionals and teams in a consultative capacity in relation to management of individual children and attend and contribute to meetings involving parents and other professionals (e.g. case conferences, Annual Review of Statement, etc.

To undertake workshop sessions for parents (including evening sessions) as required.

When sufficiently developed within the Band 5 post, to supervise and support SLTAs in undertaking programmes for individual children on caseload.

To work with other members of the team and members of other teams to achieve seamless, co-ordinated service provision.

To support the lead SLT in the development and provision of training / teaching packages for LA staff.

To work collaboratively with a range of multi-disciplinary and multi-agency professionals to provide high quality SLT services for children with speech, language and communication difficulties.

To act as named therapist for designated schools, providing an information and advisory service both in relation to individual children and more generally in relation to communication issues related to children with special needs.

To liaise with SLT colleagues holding specialist caseloads.

To request advice / support and second opinions from more experienced / specialist colleagues when required.

To contribute to the team’s development and provision of training packages for parents, teachers and teaching assistants.

To collaborate with LA support service teachers in the provision of training / teaching packages, as required.

To promote the role of SLTs to visitors, students and volunteers.

After 2 years in post, post qualification, to assist in the support of students from other professional groups as appropriate by providing discussion and observation experience.

To provide observation sessions for prospective SLT students.

To contribute to the development evaluation and monitoring of the team’s operational policies including caseload prioritising decisions.

To utilise theory, evidence based literature and research to support evidence based practice.

To provide statistical information on own caseload, including activity and clinical effectiveness measures.

To participate in audit activities in the team and participate in audit in the wider speech and language therapy service, and within multi-disciplinary teams.

To participate in research in SLT team, SLT department or multidisciplinary teams, if required.

Professional

To maintain clinical and non-clinical standards and work within the policy frameworks laid down (e.g. N.H.S., Trust, Royal College of Speech and Language Therapist’s, Health Professionals Council) through active participation in internal and external CPD training and development programmes.

To demonstrate ability to reflect on own practice, identify strengths and development needs and achieve goals set for personal and professional development.

To participate in the development of innovative clinical practice through member ship of “working teams”.

To keep abreast of national and local Education policies in order to contribute to team service development planning.

To disseminate newly acquired information to other team members.

To undertake specialised relevant training and extend postgraduate experience and knowledge in order to maintain and develop the skills and knowledge required of SLT working with school age children.

To be accountable for own professional action and recognise own professional boundaries, seeking advice as appropriate.

To participate in clinical supervision in line with Department and Trust policy.

To deal with initial complaints sensitively, avoiding escalation where possible.

To be flexible to the demands of environments including unpredictable work patterns, deadlines and frequent interruptions.

To be aware of and adhere to multi-disciplinary / multi-agency strategic planning and policy.

To contribute to SLT Department strategic planning and implement department policies, strategy and guidelines.

To advise managers on any aspects of service organisation that needs addressing.

To maintain highest standards of clinical records including up to date and accurate case notes, electronic data entry, recording and report writing in line with professional and Trust guidelines.

To monitor stock levels in own service area and request new equipment as appropriate.

To be responsible for the security, care and transporting of equipment ensuring standards of infection control and safety are maintained – including equipment loaned to clients.

To organise suitable accommodation in clinics / schools.

To organise and transport the assessment and treatment equipment required to work in locations.  These may be unwieldy / heavy / bulky.

To work within a wide range of locations requiring careful calculation of driving time according to traffic and weather conditions in planning efficient work schedules.

To work within a wide range of environments with differing demands and expectation requiring the ability to modify personal and social approaches as required by environment.

To maintain the intense concentration required despite distractions.