Acute Speech and Language Therapist

Job overview

An exciting opportunity has arisen to provide Specialist Speech and Language Therapy assessment, diagnosis and treatment to adults in Gloucestershire. This could include patients with acquired communication, voice and swallowing disorders, within an acute medical setting.

This is a 6 month maternity cover on the Acute general medicine wards at Gloucester Royal Hospital and Cheltenham General Hospital.

Job description

o To provide specialist differential diagnosis, clinical advice, and care plans/therapy to clients with communication / swallowing difficulties; this includes analysis of facts and a comparison of a range of options for appropriate intervention, implementing specialist programmes where appropriate.

o To provide advice and second opinions to SLT colleagues when necessary to support the clinical management of clients with acquired communication, voice and swallowing disorders.

o To assess and analyse type, severity and impact of complex conditions of speech, language, communication and swallowing impairments in a wide range of adult patients, through specific formal and informal assessments.

o To provide advice and second opinions when necessary to support the clinical management of clients especially when multi-disciplinary decisions around care are required.

o To demonstrate clear communication skills when presenting specialist clinical information in both verbal and written formats when dealing with sensitive situations such as end of life.

Job responsibilities

To maintain up to date and accurate electronic case notes, in line with RCSLT Professional Standards, GHC Trust Policy and departmental guidelines.

To adhere to and maintain the standards and guidelines as recommended by the RCSLT and the Health Care Professions Council (HCPC) codes of conduct and practice.

To attend relevant training and development in order to maintain and develop skills and knowledge required of a specialist therapist working with a variety of patients and maintain up to date HCPC and RCSLT registration.

To prescribe augmentative and alternative methods of communication (e.g. communication aids) and provide support, advice and training to clients, carers and professionals.

To refer clients on to other services and agencies and to liaise with members of voluntary organisations concerned with the client group

To negotiate with carers/clients/others around individual case management, ensuring client involvement in their clinical outcomes.

The Trust is required to work in line with the Governments UK Visa and Immigration Rules and Regulations. For more information about sponsorship for certain roles, please visit - https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration/work-visas

To support compliance with UK immigration requirements, all applicants who require a visa to work in the UK must disclose their visa history in full. This includes current and previous sponsors, dates of sponsorship, visa category, and any changes of employment. If you are on a Graduate or Dependant Visa, please disclose the expiry date on your application. Incomplete information may mean we are unable to consider your application.

About the organisation

We have a skilled and dedicated workforce of over 5000 colleagues working in a diverse range of services over 55 sites and within people's homes. We strive to enable a welcoming workplace culture that builds and celebrates civility, inclusivity and diversity, while providing a sense of belonging and trust.

Annual staff surveys, regular Pulse surveys and other engagement opportunities provide our people with lots of opportunity to tell us about their experiences of working with us. In the latest staff survey, 61% of colleagues gave us their views. It was great to hear that:

• 72% of colleagues would recommend the Trust as a place to work, ranking us 1st for Provider Trusts in the South West region on this question.
• 76% would recommend the standard of care provided in our services if a friend or relative needed treatment, also ranking us 1st in the South West region.
• 81% said that care of patients and service users is the Trust's priority, compared with an average in comparable NHS Trusts in England of 64%.

This high-level overview shows we are in a healthy position, with higher scores than average for comparable organisations, alongside a great response rate, indicating good staff engagement. However, we also know we have plenty of room for improvement in many areas. To that end, we continue to prioritise and invest in our commitment to genuinely becoming a Great Place to Work with consistent top-quartile performance in the annual staff survey and Pulse surveys.

Person specification

Experience

Essential

• Degree in Speech and Language Therapy
• Post grad dysphagia training completed

Professional Experience

Essential

• Experience working in an acute setting
• Experience of managing a complex caseload
• Evidence of working in an MDT

Desirable

• Holds a UK driving licence

Post graduate training

Desirable

• Trache trained
• FEES trained

Supporting documents

• PS.pdf (PDF, 201 KB)
• JD.pdf (PDF, 201 KB)