Rehabilitation Support Worker

Swydd-ddisgrifiad a phrif gyfrifoldebau manwl

Clinical

• To implement rehabilitation and / or care interventions to patients in their homes. Tasks may include (but are not limited to) teaching or supporting prescribed exercise programs, practicing transfers and mobility, assisting and promoting independence in personal care or domestic tasks, supporting cognitive and communication strategies and exercises and an occasional requirement to take basic observations and vital signs.
• To work as part of a flexible, multidisciplinary team and undertake delegated tasks from allocated therapists and qualified practitioners across all disciplines of allied health.
• To communicate effectively with patients, their carers and family members, particularly patients with impairments which may affect their ability to communicate their needs and/or give informed consent to treatment.
• To maintain close working relationships with multiple health and social care practitioners to enable effective and timely communication regarding patient care.
• To work as an autonomous Rehab Support Worker implementing and evaluating holistic pre-formulated rehab and exercise programmes to patients in the community.
• To be aware of limitations of own practice and seek advice and guidance from therapists/clinicians as needed.
• To assess and manage clinical, physical and/or environmental risk to ensure the safety and wellbeing of staff and clients at all times. To adhere to incident reporting procedures. 
• To support the running of and facilitate group therapy across various group types and settings.

Professional

• Actively participate in regular structured supervision including one-to-one, shadowing opportunities and group supervision.  Produce regular reflective logs as required and maintain a learning log of all CPD activities.
• Be responsible for identifying own training and development needs in line with service needs and Rehab Support Worker competencies with regular guidance from supervisors, by attending regular in-services in addition to ad-hoc training as appropriate.
• Participate in annual appraisal and performance development reviews (PDR) maintaining records to evidence development.
• Work within local and national Allied Health professional code of ethics, code of conduct and standards of practice for support staff.

Communication

• To be skilled in the use of verbal and non-verbal communication to develop a rapport and build trusting relationships with patients and those involved in the patients’ care i.e. family members, carers where a range of physical disabilities or other barriers to understanding i.e. cognition, mental health problems. 
• To demonstrate compassion, empathy and sensitivity in all interactions with the patient and their carers and family members. 
• To notify the appropriate senior clinician immediately of any changes in health of patients to ensure their safety and wellbeing at all times.
• To be able to respond calmly and patiently to patients, carers and family members who may be distressed and sometimes aggressive. To offer support, reassurance and advice as required in order to diffuse potentially difficult situations. 
• To report any changes in progress of clients to ensure that favourable outcomes are met.
• To attend weekly multi-disciplinary meetings when required and to present relevant information about client/caseloads in a clear and concise manner.
• To participate in weekly Rehab Support Worker peer group sessions which aims to review collective Rehab Support Worker caseload and communicate capacity to the wider MDT.
• To maintain comprehensive and accurate client records (electronic and paper) and complete all mandatory documentation in line with the trust legal standards.

Organisational

• To contribute to the clinical governance agenda and actively participate in service development activities e.g. development of systems and resources.
• Ensure risk is managed for self, patients, colleagues and the work environment in line with trust and local guidelines/policies including reporting any concerns using trust processes.
• To comply with all data requirements regarding all clinical and professional activities i.e. completing Carenotes (equivalent electronic health record system documentation, diary appointments and outcomes).
• Complete general department duties e.g. therapy equipment stock supply orders and administrative tasks (processing completed multi-disciplinary discharge letters).
• Undertake any other appropriate duties as required by the service leads. 

The following statement forms part of all job descriptions:-

The post holder is required to follow Trust policies and procedures which are regularly updated including:

Confidentiality / Data Protection / Freedom of Information

Post holders must maintain the confidentiality of information about patients, staff and other health service business in accordance with the Data Protection Act of 1998. Post holders must not, without prior permission, disclose any information regarding patients or staff.   If any member of staff has communicated any such information to an unauthorised person, those staff will be liable to disciplinary action up to and including dismissal. Moreover, the Data Protection Act 1998 also renders an individual liable for prosecution in the event of unauthorised disclosure of information. 

Following the Freedom of Information Act (FOI) 2005, post holders must apply the Trust’s FOI procedure if they receive a written request for information. 

Information Governance

All staff must comply with information governance requirements. These includes statutory responsibilities (such as compliance with the Data Protection Act), following national guidance (such as the NHS Confidentiality Code of Practice) and compliance with local policies and procedures (such as the Trust's Confidentiality policy). Staff are responsible for any personal information (belonging to staff or patients) that they access and must ensure it is stored, processed and forwarded in a secure and appropriate manner.

Equal Opportunities

Post holders must at all times fulfil their responsibilities with regard to the Trust’s Equal Opportunities Policy and equality laws.

Health and Safety

All post holders have a responsibility, under the Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) and subsequently published regulations, to ensure that the Trust’s health and safety policies and procedures are complied with to maintain a safe working environment for patients, visitors and employees.

Infection Control

All post holders have a personal obligation to act to reduce healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs). They must attend mandatory training in Infection Control and be compliant with all measures required by the Trust to reduce HCAIs.  All post holders must comply with Trust infection screening and immunisation policies as well as be familiar with the Trust’s Infection Control Policies, including those that apply to their duties, such as Hand Decontamination Policy, Personal Protective Equipment Policy, safe procedures for using aseptic techniques and safe disposal of sharps. 

Risk Management

All post holders have a responsibility to report risks such as clinical and non-clinical accidents or incidents promptly. They are expected to be familiar with the Trust’s use of risk assessments to predict and control risk, as well as the incident reporting system for learning from mistakes and near misses in order to improve services. Post holders must also attend training identified by their manager, or stated by the Trust to be mandatory. 

Flexible Working

As an organisation we are committed to developing our services in ways that best suit the needs of our patients. This means that some staff groups will increasingly be asked to work a more flexible shift pattern so that we can offer services in the evenings or at weekends*.

Safeguarding children and vulnerable adults

Post holders have a general responsibility for safeguarding children and vulnerable adults in the course of their daily duties and for ensuring that they are aware of the specific duties relating to their role.

Sustainability

It is the responsibility of all staff to minimise the Trust’s environmental impact by recycling wherever possible, switching off lights, computers monitors and equipment when not in use, minimising water usage and reporting faults promptly.

Smoking Policy

The Trust is committed to providing a healthy and safe environment for staff, patients and visitors. Staff are therefore not permitted to smoke on Trust property or in Trust vehicles

Review of this Job Description

This job description is intended as an outline of the general areas of activity and will be amended in the light of the changing needs of the organisation.   To be reviewed in conjunction with the post holder.