Outreach Practitioner

Job responsibilities

Communication and Working Relationship Skills

• Work closely with key internal and external personnel and stakeholders including midwifery, acute medical staffing, Social Services provision, Housing, Voluntary and non-statutory agencies and a wider Health and Social Care Community.
• Co-ordinate and investigate complaints, ensuring that any clinical lessons learned are identified and disseminated to the relevant teams.
• Ensure that any learning from SUIs and RCAs is identified, disseminated and where necessary put into practice.
• Ensure close liaison with primary health care staff and commissioning officers regarding referral criteria into the services and quality standards and ensure targets from the National Framework are met.
• Liaise with professional stakeholder groups and interface service providers and agencies to develop mutually helpful working relationships.
• Act as a point of contact for agencies outside Devon Partnership Trust seeking information about the team, or wanting to refer to it.
• Present information, some of which may be contentious, to staff groups, service user groups, carers groups and other stakeholders using a range of techniques and media.
• Demonstrates communications which are professional, and act as role model for peers and wider staff group.
• Ability to persuade, use data and make forceful argument.

Analytical and Judgemental Skills

• Role model clinical leadership.
• Practice in a way that actively minimises dependency and promotes recovery.
• Communicate information in a way that makes it relevant and understandable for users of services.
• Promote a duty of care to users of services; encompassing safe and competent care.
• Take personal accountability for own practice; answerable for actions and omissions, regardless of advice or directions from another professional.
• Remain professionally competent by participating in own and others clinical supervision.
• Demonstrate specialist knowledge and skills, not only relating to the care of users of services, but also in depth knowledge of the roles and functions of other professionals across services.
• Produce evaluation data and reports in a timely manner where required.
• Identify, gather and produce information that improves understanding.

Planning and Organisational Skills

• Assess, plan & deliver complex care packages to admission vulnerable & discharged women from the Mother & Baby Unit, ensuring high quality liaison with other professionals, families & carers at every stage of care.
• Actively participate in multi-agency forums to ensure the identification of need and the development and delivery of integrated local services in line with local need.
• Ensure that activity is delivered in accordance with agreed quality standards and to service level agreements and in line with relevant national guidance.
• Work within Service Business Continuity Plan (BCP) & ensure a safe service at all times, escalating risks to the Service Manager when indicated.
• Work within the service Clinical Governance framework, which includes with care pathways/clinical practice; provide expert professional advice with regards to clinical care, incidents and complaints.
• Provide and facilitate education and learning from experience.
• Monitor and improve quality in line with NICE guidance.
• Contribute to the ongoing operation and development of the service..
• Promote the service locally and nationally as appropriate.

Responsibility for Patient/Client Care, Treatment and Therapy

• Promote, develop and role model high standards of clinical care.
• Develop and implement care plans, ensuring active involvement of service users and their carers.
• Ensure robust systems are in place to monitor the clinical practice of team members in line with CQC standards.
• Ensure effective care pathways are in place for transition between mental health and other services eg Acute Medical, CAMHS, Child Protection and Learning Disability..
• Ensure the availability of choice that meets the needs of the local population.
• Provide expert advice pertaining to complex cases.
• Have enhanced clinical skills.
• Work closely with other teams with the Trust and the Voluntary, Statutory and independent sectors to ensure effective discharge planning which incorporates implementation of key success criteria for NICE guidance eg NICE 192 Antenatal Postnatal Mental Health, CPA, Information Sharing etc.
• Implement a formal and active system of caseload review, caseload management and pro-active care management that will enable achievement of local and national targets.
• Participate in Safeguarding Adults and Children to Level 3 Enhanced as set out in Safeguarding Children and Young People: Roles and Competencies for Health Care Staff.

Responsibility for Policy and Service Development Implementation

• Ensure the development of local expertise, ongoing service improvement and professional monitoring of standards.
• Identify and implement best practice in the delivery of the MBU Outreach Service.
• Undertake programmes of audit and research within the team and implement the findings.
• Participate in the maintenance of current services and future developments within the locality in conjunction with the Service Manager and other managers e.g Care Pathway development.
• Participate in the service governance and research agenda within the locality e.g Clinical Audits, NICE and Standards and Evaluation Research.
• Promote the NHS programme; right person has the ...