Job responsibilities

As a Practice Nurse, you will play an important role in delivering high-quality nursing care as part of a supportive multidisciplinary team. You will provide safe, patient-centred care within your scope of practice, helping to meet the needs of the practice population.

You will be involved in a range of clinical activities, including health promotion and supporting patients to manage their wellbeing. Youll also work closely with the wider clinical team to help deliver, review, and maintain clinical policies and procedures, ensuring care remains effective and up to date.

The following are the core responsibilities of the Practice Nurse. There may be on occasion, a requirement to carry out other tasks; this will be dependent upon factors such as workload and staffing levels:

General Treatment room skills

Develop, implement and embed health promotion and well-being programmes

Provide routine nursing care to patients as required in accordance with clinical based evidence, NICE

Provide wound care both post operative and chronic to patients

Provide travel medicine services, within scope of knowledge

Request pathology services as necessary

Process pathology results as required

Maintain accurate clinical records in conjunction with extant legislation

Maintain accurate clinical documentation in accordance with NMC ad Practice Standards

Chaperone patients where necessary

Assist GPs with minor surgery when required

Prioritise health issues and intervene appropriately

Support the team in dealing with clinical emergencies

Implement vaccination programmes for adults and children Under Patient Group Directions.

Liaise with external services / agencies to ensure the patient is supported appropriately, vulnerable patients etc.

Delegate clinical responsibilities appropriately, ensuring safe practice and the task is within the scope of practice of the individual.

Support the clinical team with all safeguarding matters, in accordance with local and national policies

Deliver opportunistic health promotion where appropriate

Secondary Responsibilities

In addition to the primary responsibilities, the practice nurse may be requested to:

Monitor and ensure the safe storage, rotation of Medical equipment and dressings.

Participate in local initiatives to enhance service delivery and patient care

Support and participate in shared learning within the practice

Continually review clinical practices, responding to national policies and initiatives where appropriate

Participate in the review of significant and near-miss events applying a structured approach i.e. root cause analysis, RCA.

Qualifications

Essential

• Registered Nurse

Desirable

• Post graduate diploma or degree in Primary Care

Clinical knowledge and skills

Essential

• Wound Care / Removal of sutures & staples
• ECGs
• Venepuncture
• Chaperone procedure
• Requesting pathology tests
• Travel medicine
• Immunisations (routine Adult, childhood and travel)
• Understands the importance of evidence based practice
• Broad knowledge of clinical governance
• Ability to record accurate clinical notes
• Ability to work within own scope of practice and understanding when to refer to GPs
• Understands the requirement for PGDs and associated policy

Desirable

• Dopplers
• Diabetes
• Hypertension
• Asthma and COPD
• Spirometry
• CHD
• Womens health, Cervical cytology, contraception, etc.
• Knowledge of public health issues in the local area
• Awareness of issues within the wider health arena
• Knowledge of health promotion strategies

Skills

Essential

• Excellent communication skills (written and oral)
• Strong IT skills
• Clear, polite telephone manner
• Effective time management (planning & organising)
• Ability to work as a team member and autonomously
• Good interpersonal skills
• Problem solving & analytical skills
• Ability to follow clinical policy and procedure

Desirable

• EMIS Web user skills
• Experience with clinical risk management

Personnel Qualities

Essential

• Polite and confident
• Flexible and co-operative
• Motivated, forward thinker
• Problem solver with the ability to process information accurately and effectively, interpreting data as required
• High levels of integrity and loyalty
• Sensitive and empathetic in distressing situations
• Ability to work under pressure / in stressful situations
• Effectively able to communicate and understand the needs of the patient
• Commitment to ongoing professional development
• Effectively utilises resources
• Punctual and committed to supporting the team effort

other requirements

Essential

• Disclosure Barring Service (DBS) check
• NMC registration

Experience

Essential

• Experience of working in a primary/secondary care environment

Desirable

• Experience of working as a practice nurse or community nurse
• Experience of chronic disease management

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).