Job Description

We are pleased to be able to offer the opportunity for a band 4 Dietetic Therapy Assistant Practitioner to join our dynamic team at Harefield Hospital, Middlesex.



The successful candidate will be confident, professional and enthusiastic, joining the dietetic and multidisciplinary team in working with patients with a variety of cardio-thoracic conditions including the transplant unit.



You will need to be highly motivated and able to work flexibly in a busy environment. You will need good spoken and written English and excellent communication skills. You will liaise with multidisciplinary teams across the Hospital, Catering Department and suppliers. An awareness of the our role and a caring and empathetic approach are essential.



We will offer a supportive working environment with in-house training and supervision to help you develop the relevant skills and knowledge for the post.



The post holder will work as an integral and active part of the Cardiothoracic and Transplant Therapy Team (CT+Tx Therapy team). They will be responsible for supporting the Therapy team in the provision of a patient-centred service, in an efficient and cost-effective way.



The post holder will carry out clinical tasks to support the therapy team dietitians, such as dietary assessments, delegated by qualified staff, requiring a wide range of technical ability, as well as an excellent level of interpersonal skills.



They will provide a key role in the management of stable adult in-patients on oral nutritional support and inpatients with food allergy. This will include initial assessment and screening, with regular reassessment and monitoring during the hospital stay. This will also include organising discharge follow-up with local GP and community services.



They will also act as lead for management of dietetic feed stock and their distribution, this will include ordering, regular stock checks and manual handling of boxes and liaison with the catering department and various nutritional product companies. In addition to these regular roles, undertake teaching on health promotion and audit work across the therapy services.



To gain the required knowledge and skills in the relevant technical, clinical and organisational procedures, and to maintain those skills working under the Assistant Practitioner Competency programme under the supervision of Specialist therapy teams.



Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust comprises five of the UK's best-known hospitals - Guy's, St Thomas', Evelina London Children's Hospital, Royal Brompton and Harefield - as well as community services in Lambeth and Southwark, all with a long history of high-quality care, clinical excellence, research and innovation.



Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals joined Guy's and St Thomas' in February 2021 and is the largest specialist heart and lung centre in the UK and among the largest in Europe. We provide treatment for people with heart and lung disease, including rare and complex conditions, offering some of the most sophisticated treatment that is available anywhere in the world.



1. The post holder will work as an integral and active part of the Cardiothoracic and Transplant Therapy Team (CT+Tx Therapy team). They will be responsible for supporting the Therapy team in the provision of a patient-centred service, in an efficient and cost-effective way.



2. The post holder will assist in the provision of care to patients, supported and supervised by senior therapists.



3. The post holder will carry out clinical tasks to support the therapy team dietitians, such as dietary reviews, delegated by qualified staff, requiring a wide range of technical ability, as well as an excellent level of interpersonal skills.



4. The post holder will carry out clinical assessments independently, within their Assistant Practitioner competency framework.



5. They will provide a key role in the management of stable adult in-patients on oral nutritional support and inpatients with food allergy. This will include initial assessment and screening, with regular reassessment and monitoring during the hospital stay. This will also include organising discharge follow-up with local GP and community services.



6. They will also act as lead for the distribution of dietary products, this will include stock check, manual handling of boxes and liaison with the catering department and various nutritional product companies. In addition to these regular roles, undertake teaching on health promotion and audit work across the therapy services.



7. To gain the required knowledge and skills in the relevant technical, clinical and organisational procedures, and to maintain those skills working under the Assistant Practitioner Competency programme under the supervision of Specialist therapy teams.