Dietetic Assistant

Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust

This is a fantastic opportunity for an enthusiastic and motivated person to join our team as a Dietetic Assistant.

You will join the friendly, established team of Dietitians, Dietetic Assistant Practitioners (DAPs) and Dietetic Assistants (DAs) at an outstanding Trust. You will be based at either North Tyneside or Wansbeck Hospital, but will be required to work Trust wide at times to meet the needs of the service.

We are a supportive department and organisation and will provide the successful candidate with all the training/support required.

Main duties of the job

The main duties of the post will include assisting the dietitians with the ongoing provision of nutrition support. You will be an active member of the team and play a vital role in patient service delivery, education and resource development.

You will have a caseload of patients in a variety of settings including face to face and telephone outpatient clinics, and travelling to patients' own homes and care homes. You will be required to liaise with dietetic colleagues, staff on the ward or in the community as well as patients, relatives and GP practices.

You will also be expected to support the dietitian in the provision of education/training sessions to patients or staff.

About us

We manage three major locality hospitals at North Tyneside, Wansbeck and Hexham, plus a number of smaller community hospitals and clinics from Tynemouth to Berwick on Tweed, covering one of the largest geographical areas of any NHS trust in the country. Leading in innovation and quality - opening a state-of-the-art Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital, the first of its kind in England. Do you want to work in one of the best performing NHS organisations in England? Work in an organisation that supports its staff and focuses on staff experience as much as it does the experience of its patients? You can live and breathe in an area that has the cleanest air, cost effective living, great nightlife, some of the best schools with a wealth of history available on your doorstep. Sound too good to be true? Well it isn't, this is what you get when you work for Northumbria Healthcare, this is the Northumbria Way!

Job responsibilities

The post holder will work alongside the current Dietitians, Dietetic Assistant Practitioners and Dietetic Assistants assisting the dietitians in providing nutrition related activities in all settings. This could include:

• Community nutrition support visiting patients in their homes and care homes
• Community weight management groups and diabetes clinics
• Education/training sessions or patient group activities. There may be an occasional requirement to work out of normal office hours to undertake some of the community groups.
• Administration activities, including updating databases, sending letters and making telephone calls

You must have excellent communication skills and be able to work as part of the dietetic team and as part of an MDT. We take B and C placements from Leeds Beckett University and all level students from Newcastle University. All staff are encouraged to take part in student training support will be provided for the successful applicant.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• GCSE Maths & English (to grade C or above) or equivalent
• Completed NVQ level 3 or equivalent
• Willingness to undertake relevant training
• Food Hygiene Certificate - achieved or working towards within 6 months of employment if required as part of role

Experience and knowledge

• Knowledge and experience of working within a clinical setting

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.