The Perinatal Pelvic Health service provides a range of outpatient services for women and birthing people across 2 acute sites.
Outpatient services are provided for women and birthing people referred with health conditions relating to any of the following: pregnancy, childbirth, bladder and bowel dysfunction, pelvic organ prolapse, pelvic pain and/or sexual dysfunction.
There is an aim to develop inpatient pelvic health services, with a focus on provision of education and support to midwives and patients in the maternity setting.
This is a static post with the Perinatal Pelvic Health Physiotherapy service, working over two sites at Lewisham University Hospital and Queen Elizabeth Hospital.
This post provides the opportunity to gain and consolidate knowledge and skills in the physiotherapeutic assessment and management of pelvic health conditions during the perinatal period.
Mainly based at University Hospital Lewisham but will be required to work at Queen Elizabeth Hospital
Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust is a community focused provider of local and acute care, providing high quality services to over one million people living across the London boroughs of Lewisham, Greenwich and Bexley. With a turnover of around £700 million, we provide services at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich, University Hospital Lewisham and a range of community settings in Lewisham. We also provide some services at Queen Mary’s Hospital in Sidcup.
Our people are our greatest asset. When we feel supported and happy at work, this positivity reaches those very people we are here for, the patients. Engaged employees perform at their best and our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI) initiatives contribute to cultivate a culture of engagement. We have four staff networks, a corporate EDI Team and a suite of programmes and events which aim to insert the 5 aspirations:
Improving representation at senior levels of staff with disabilities, from black, Asian, and ethnic minorities background, identify as LGBTQ+ and women, through improved recruitment and leadership development
Widening access (anchor institution) and employability
Improving the experience of staff with disability
Improving the EDI literacy and confidence of trust staff through training and development
Making equalities mainstream
Professional / Clinical responsibilities
To work within Trust, Health Professions Council and Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) Standards of Practice. To always adhere to personal and professional standards, which reflect credit on the profession and encourage others to do likewise.
To be responsible for maintaining accurate and comprehensive patient treatment records in line with the legal requirements, Trust guidelines and CSP Standards of Practice.
To be responsible and accountable for management and implementation of patient care programmes in Pelvic Health physiotherapy services to patients in the identified areas of work and to input into trust wide care programmes.
To carry out assessment of patients as an autonomous practitioner, including those with complex presentations and to use clinical reasoning skills, knowledge of evidence-based practice and rehabilitation expertise to determine appropriate care plan utilising specialist treatment skills and options.
To formulate accurate prognoses and recommend best course of intervention, developing comprehensive discharge plans.
To be responsible for own and department patient care plans and to be consulted frequently for expert advice and guidance by junior and senior team members and other health care professionals both within and outside the Trust.
To demonstrate physical ability to carry out physiotherapy assessment and interventions including manual therapy techniques and therapeutic handling.
To work in an environment where the work pattern may be disrupted by frequent demands from patients, clinical staff, students and administrative support staff.
To sensitively deal with distressing or emotional circumstances regarding patient care e.g. imparting news of poor prognoses or lifelong disability.
To deal with patients suffering from pain states that may lead to anxiety and aggressive behaviour.
Able to interpret and analyse clinical and non-clinical facts, which may be conflicting, to form accurate diagnoses in the most highly complex types of conditions for patients in the designated area.
To communicate with and educate patients in a way that it empowers them to make informed choices about the management of their condition and engages them in the planning and delivery of treatment.
To take into account cultural, linguistic, medical, emotional, psychological and physical factors and utilise resources that are available to facilitate patient compliance.
To deal sensitively with patients and carers who have high levels of anxiety, frustration and aggression caused by a variety of issues, such as pain or limited mobility.
Management and Leadership
To be involved in policy and service development and implementation for the Pelvic Health physiotherapy service and to ensure that quality standards and effectiveness of patient care are continually monitored and improved.
To be familiar with and comply with local fire procedures.
To be responsible for organising, prioritising and planning your own caseload to meet service needs and patient priorities, adjusting plans as situations arise.
To identify and manage clinical risk within your own patient caseload and clinical area.
To make appropriate referrals to other health professionals following assessment / identification of need.
To ensure as a specialist physiotherapist that designated staff implement policy and service developmental changes.
To be responsible for protection, maintenance and repair of all equipment within Pelvic Health Physiotherapy service and to ensure that designated staff attain competency prior to use.
To provide clinical teaching and staff development of peers and other health professionals within this clinical area, across the trust and outside the organisation.
To maintain service links with external NHS, voluntary and speciality related organisations to ensure seamless inpatient, outpatient and community-based care.
To support Band 4 and 5 staff when indicated in the management of challenging patients
To support Clinical Specialist Pelvic Health and Clinical Lead Physiotherapist when indicated in the management of staff disciplinary matters.
To deputise for the Band 7 Pelvic Health Physiotherapist and Band 7 Pelvic Health Midwife in their absence
To undertake additional duties as may be deemed necessary, as requested by the team leader in the specific rotation.
To participate in the managerial matters of the department as required, and to attend staff meetings.
Planning and organisation
To plan and organise time efficiently and effectively with regard to patient management, appropriate use of time and scheduling of other tasks.
To decide priorities for own work, balancing other patient related and professional demands, and ensure that these remain in accordance with those of the team as a whole.
To deputise for the Highly Specialised Pelvic Health Physiotherapist (Band 7) and to be responsible for efficient running of the perinatal pelvic health service.
To assist the senior staff in the planning and delivery of the service.
To take the lead in planning and organising own appraisal reviews and arranging regular formal and informal meetings with the highly specialised physiotherapist, liaising with other senior staff as appropriate.
Communication
To use advanced communication, implementing a range of verbal and non-verbal skills, with patients and carers to motivate, maximise rehabilitation potential and to ensure an understanding of their condition.
To communicate the condition-related clinical findings gained from assessment to carers, families and members of the multi-disciplinary team and other professions.
To utilise a range of personal, external and technical resources for patients and carers that have communication difficulties. These may include non-English speakers, including those that require or decline interpreters and dysphasic or confused patients.
To communicate with patients in a way that empowers them to make informed choices about the management of their condition and engages them in the planning and delivery of treatment. To take into account the factors that may prevent this engagement and utilise resources available that may facilitate communication.
To clearly convey knowledge of assessment and treatment techniques, anatomy and physiology to patients and staff, both individually and in groups.
To articulate the physiotherapy perspective on a patient’s condition to the MDT.
To use advanced communication skills to frequently manage and resolve difficult situations, at times involving aggressive or challenging behaviour from patient or carers.
To participate in staff meetings, ward rounds, seminars/case conferences, multi-disciplinary team meetings and other meetings of the specific unit and Therapy department as required, providing a clinical opinion about specific patients.
To maintain close links with the Therapy Manager and Band 7 Physiotherapist in the specific rotation, as well as maintaining close working relationships with other disciplines within the hospital to ensure optimal patient care and management.
To ensure close links of communication / liaison with the Therapy Manager, senior staff, schools of physiotherapy and all other disciplines involved in patient care, both in the hospital and in the community, and to promote good working relationships.
To provide comprehensive discharge summaries and patient reports.
To participate in IT training and be able to use therapy computer software.
To encourage health promotion within the Hospital and Community by example and advice to individual patients.
To deal with any verbal and telephone complaints from patients, relatives or carers, ensuring necessary documentation. To report on any such complaints to the immediate senior as soon as possible.
All employees must hold an 'nhs.net' email account which will be the Trust's formal route for email communication.
To observe and maintain strict confidentiality of personal information relating to patients and staff.
Information management
To be responsible for maintenance of accurate records including appropriate electronic systems and supervision of departmental record keeping; to include comprehensive progress and discharge reports to medical referrers and legal and disability reports.
To identify appropriate outcome measures and service impact measures which accurately evaluate patient response and service development needs.
Education & Professional Development
To be responsible for the clinical education of student physiotherapists, teaching
them to graduate level on physiotherapeutic skills and knowledge within the core
clinical areas, reporting performance issues to a relevant person.
To be responsible for the allocation of undergraduate student physiotherapists and to regularly liaise with the academic institutions.
To keep abreast in understanding and knowledge of all new developments which are applicable to specific physiotherapy treatments and to attend and actively participate in the department’s in-service training program and other outside courses/ lectures as appropriate.
To be pro-active with regard to learning from other physiotherapy staff within the department, and other MDT staff in the Trust.
To attend Trust in-house training sessions / programmes and external courses as appropriate.
To participate in and contribute to the in-service education programmes of the specific rotation and of the department.
To be responsible for and actively record own personal professional development and maintain a CPD portfolio which reflects same.
