Uhwnu Candidate Clinical Nurse Specialist

*******PLEASE COMPLETE THE APPLICATION FORM FULLY, CV'S ARE NOT ACCEPTED*********

Principal Duties and Responsibilities

Clinical Focus

The cCNS will be supported to:

Develop a strong service user focus whereby the specialty defines itself as nursing/midwifery and subscribes to the overall purpose, functions and ethical standards of nursing/midwifery.

The clinical practice role may be divided into direct and indirect care. Direct care comprises the assessment, planning, delivery and evaluation of care to the service user, family and/or carer. Indirect care relates to activities that influence and support the provision of direct care.

Direct Care

Throughout the agreed pathway, the cCNS will be enabled to develop the specific knowledge, skills and competencies to:

• Provide a specialist nursing/midwifery service for service users with a diagnosis ofhaematological condition who require support and treatment through the continuum of care
• Undertake comprehensive service user assessment to include physical, psychological, social and spiritual elements of care using best evidence based practice in haematologycare
• Use the outcomes ofnursing/midwifery assessment to develop and implement plans of care/service user group management to contribute to the plans of service users, their families/carers and the MDT
• Monitor and evaluate the service user’s response to treatment and amend the plan of care accordingly in collaboration with the MDT and service user, family and/or carer as appropriate.
• Make alterations in the management of service user condition in collaboration with the MDT and the service user in line with the nursing/midwifery aspect of agreed pathways and policies, procedures, protocols and guidelines (PPPG’s).
• Accept appropriate referrals from MDT colleagues
• Co-ordinate investigations, treatment therapies and service user follow-up
• Communicate with service users, family and/or carer as appropriate, to assess service user needs and provide relevant support, information, education, advice and counselling as required
• Where appropriate, work collaboratively with MDT colleagues across Primary and Secondary Care to provide a seamless service delivery to the service user, family and/or carer as appropriate
• Participate in medication reconciliation taking cognisance of poly-pharmacy and support medical and pharmacy staff with medication reviews and medication management
• Identify and promote specific symptom management strategies as well as the identification of triggers which may cause exacerbation of symptoms. Provide service user with appropriate self-management strategies and escalation pathways
• Manage nurse led haematology clinics in collaboration with the MDT
• Identify health promotion priorities for the service user, family and/or carer and support service user self-care in line with best evidence. This will include the provision of educational and health promotion material which is comprehensive, easy to understand and meets service user’ needs.

Indirect Care

Throughout the agreed pathway, the cCNS will be enabled to develop the specific knowledge, skills and competencies to:

• Identify and agree appropriate referral pathways for service user with haematological conditions
• Participate in service user case reviews with MDT colleagues
• Use a case management approach to service user complex needs in collaboration with MDT in both Primary and Secondary Care as appropriate
• Take a proactive role in the formulation and provision of evidence based PPPGs relating to haematology care
• Take a lead role in ensuring the nursing/midwifery service for service user with haematological condition is in line with best practice guidelines and the Safer Better Healthcare Standards (HIQA, 2012)

Service user/Client Advocate

Throughout the agreed pathway, the cCNS will be enabled to develop the specific knowledge, skills and competencies to:

• Communicate, negotiate and represent service user, family and/or carer values and decisions in relation to their condition to MDT colleagues in both Primary and Secondary Care as appropriate
• Develop and support the concept of advocacy, particularly in relation to service user participation in decision making, thereby enabling informed choice of treatment options
• Respect and maintain the privacy, dignity and confidentiality of the service user, family and/or carers
• Establish, maintain and improve procedures for nursing/midwifery collaboration and cooperation between Acute Services, Primary Care and Voluntary Organisations as appropriate
• Proactively challenge any interaction, nursing/midwifery or otherwise, which fails to deliver a good quality service to service user.

Education and Training

Throughout the agreed pathway, the cCNS will be enabled to develop the specific knowledge, skills and competencies to:

• Develop clinical competence in service user management within hematology nursing, keeping up-to-date with relevant research to ensure the implementation of evidence based practice.
• Provide the service user, family and/or carer with appropriate information, education and other supportive interventions to increase their knowledge, skill and confidence and autonomy in managing their hematological condition.
• Contribute to the design, development and implementation of education programmes and resources for the service user, family and/or carer in relation to their conditionto enable them to manage their own condition.
• Participate in training programmes for nursing/midwifery, MDT colleagues and key stakeholders as appropriate
• Create exchange of learning opportunities within the MDT in relation to evidence based hematologynursing/midwiferydelivery through journal clubs, conferences etc.
• Develop and maintain links with Regional Centres for Nursing and Midwifery Education (RCNMEs), the Nursing and Midwifery Planning and Development Units (NMPDUs) and relevant third level Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) in the design, development and delivery of nursing/midwifery educational programmes in hematologycare
• In tandem with the line management structure, be responsible for addressing own continuing professional development (CPD) needs to achieve competencies required for the role
• Use agreed protected time for research, education and professional development
• With the line manager, use the Professional Development Planning Framework for Nurses and Midwives to plan and self-assess competency achievement and additional CPD needs

Audit and Research

Throughout the agreed pathway, the cCNS will be enabled to develop the specific knowledge, skills and competencies to:

• Establish and maintain a register of service user with hematology within the cCNS Caseload.
• Maintain a record of clinically relevant data aligned to National Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) as directed and advised by the DON.
• Identify, initiate and conduct nursing/midwifery audit and research relevant to the area of practice and take part in MDT audit and research.
• Identify, critically analyse, disseminate and integrate into practice, best evidence relating to care in hematology
• Contribute to nursing research on hematologycare.
• Use the outcomes of audit to improve nursing/midwifery service provision and advocate, when appropriate, for improvement of non-nursing services
• Contribute to service planning and budgetary processes through use of audit data and specialist knowledge
• Monitor, access, utilise and disseminate current relevant research to advise and ensure the provision of informed evidence based nursing/midwifery practice

Audit expected outcomes including

• Collate relevant data which will provide a baseline audit of expected outcomes and demonstrate evidence of the effectiveness of the cCNS interventions undertaken and refer to the National KPIs associated with the specialty. They should have a clinical nursing/midwifery focus as well as a breakdown of activity - service user seen and treated.
• Evaluate nursing/midwifery audit results and research findings to identify areas for quality improvement in collaboration with nursing/midwifery management and MDT colleagues (Primary and Secondary Care).

Consultant (including leadership in clinical practice)

Throughout the agreed pathway, the cCNS will be enabled to develop the specific knowledge, skills and competencies to:

• Understand leadership in clinical practice with the aim of acting as a resource and role model for nursing hematologypractice.
• Contribute the expanding nursing/midwifery knowledge/expertise to the development of clinical standards and guidelines and support implementation
• Use growing specialist knowledge to support and enhanceown nursing/midwifery practice and practice of colleagues
• Develop collaborative working relationships with local CNS Registered Advanced Nurse/MDT colleagues as appropriate, contributing to person centred care pathways to promote the integrated model of care delivery.
• With the support of the DoN//line manager, attend integrated care planning meetings as required
• Where appropriate, develop and maintain relationships with specialist services in voluntary organisations which support service users in the community.
• Understand the requirement to liaise with other health service providers in the development and on-going delivery of the National Clinical and Integrated Programme model of care.
• Understand the requirement to network with other cCNS’s and CNS’s in related clinical and professional areas of practice.

The above Job Description is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all duties involved and consequently, the post holder may be required to perform other duties as appropriate to the post which may be assigned to him/her from time to time and to contribute to the development of the post while in office.

Management / Administration

Throughout the agreed pathway, the cCNS (Haematology) will be enabled to develop the specific knowledge, skills and competencies to:

• Provide an efficient, effective and high quality nursing/midwifery service, respecting the needs of each service user, family and/or carer
• Effectively manage time and caseloadin order to meet changing and developing service need
• Continually monitor the nursing service to ensure it reflects current needs
• Implement and manage identified changes
• Ensure that confidentiality in relation to service user records is maintained
• Understand the need to represent the specialist nursing/midwifery service at local, national and international fora as required
• Maintain accurate and contemporaneous records and data on all matters pertaining to the planning, management, delivery and evaluation of nursing/midwifery and ensure that this service is in line with HSE requirements.
• Contribute to the service planning process as appropriate and as directed by the Director of Nursing/Line Manager
• To support, promote and actively participate in sustainable energy, water and waste initiatives to create a more sustainable, low carbon and efficient health service.

The above Job Description is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all duties involved and consequently, the post holder may be required to perform other duties as appropriate to the post which may be assigned to them from time to time and to contribute to the development of the post while in office