Bank Children’s Continuing Care Assistant Band 3

Bank Children's Continuing Care Assistant - Band 3

We are looking for experienced continuing care assistants to support children and young people with complex needs, in their homes, at night. You will be expected to provide excellent clinical care and intervention to enable parents/carers to get some respite. You will be working alone, offering 1-1 support to the most complex children and young people for a 10-hour period. You will need to build rapport with the child or young person and their family to ensure they get the personalised care they need.

You need to have experience of completing tasks such as tracheostomy management, ventilation management, enteral feeding, seizure management, patient handling, personal cares, and medicines management. At Oxleas, we will offer you training to develop on these skills and be able to perform them with confidence as a lone worker. You will have the support of the clinical skills trainers and senior nurses within the team to ensure you feel well supported and competent in the tasks we are asking you to complete. This is an exciting opportunity to work with the most complex children and young people and make a difference to their lives.

Main Roles and Responsibilities

As a band 3 children's continuing care assistant, your main roles and responsibilities will include:

1. Ensuring the child or young person is safe and well overnight.
2. Ensuring parents and carers get the respite they need to care for their children/young people during the day.
3. Observations using PEWS format and recognising the deteriorating child/young person.
4. Following specialist care plans to ensure the needs of the child/young person are met.
5. Completing initial equipment checks and cleaning to maintain a safe environment.
6. Taking and giving thorough handovers at the start and end of the shift.
7. Completing clinical interventions which may include tracheostomy management, ventilation management, respiratory intervention such as suction, medicines management, enteral feeding, seizure management, personal care, patient handling, and comforting interaction with children and young people when they are distressed.
8. Maintaining a high standard of clinical work when carrying out interventions.

Key Tasks and Responsibilities

1. Working as a member of the children's community nursing team providing packages of care for named individual children with complex health care needs in their home.
2. Ensuring that children receive planned play and stimulation related to their emotional developmental needs in the home and community setting.
3. Encouraging and maintaining high standards of personal care, including hygiene for all babies, children, and young people.
4. Carrying out duties, within good practice guidelines, involving the Assistant Practitioner and Lead Continuing Care nurse when required.
5. Working as part of a team offering support and advice to families within own scope of practice.
6. Being competent in working with equipment in the home, such as feeding pumps, administration of emergency medication, and use of hoists.
7. Maintaining clear, professional boundaries with children and their family when working in a home setting.
8. Discussing sensitive health issues with children and their family members, using negotiation and reassurance skills where required.
9. Working with other health care professionals and staff in community services to deliver a high standard of care.
10. Identifying and reporting any changes in the child's health and wellbeing to the family and Assistant Practitioner.
11. Maintaining confidentiality in relation to children and their families at all times.
12. Considering the child's needs as paramount and adhering to all safeguarding procedures.
13. Prioritising work and ensuring effective timekeeping.

Clinical Responsibilities

1. Carrying out care plans developed by the Lead Continuing Care nurse and supervised by the Assistant Practitioner.
2. Undertaking skilled clinical tasks following competency-based training for named children for whom they provide care; for example, tracheostomy care, enteral feeding (naso-gastric/Gastrostomy/jejunostomy), suctioning, changing oxygen probes, and basic life support.
3. Being familiar with all equipment required to support the child and reporting any deficiency immediately.
4. Carrying out and recording defined safety checks of technical equipment during each shift, reporting any issues to the family and Assistant Practitioner.
5. Implementing agreed individual programmes of care and acting as key worker if required.

Communication

1. Communicating effectively with colleagues and other members of the team and identifying and reporting concerns to senior staff.
2. Communicating effectively with families, carers, and other members of the multidisciplinary team.
3. Making verbal and written reports as required, ensuring these are kept up-to-date.
4. Keeping accurate and clear records.
5. Maintaining timely and up-to-date reports on RIO system according to Trust policy and in the family-held record.

To be suited to this role, you will be a kind and caring person who is keen to work with vulnerable children and young people, and their families. You will take measures to ensure communication is adapted to meet the needs of those who are non-verbal, and you will interpret their basic wants and needs. You will be patient and take time to get to know each child/young person as an individual and work to build rapport with them.