Senior Occupational Therapist

Senior Occupational Therapist

The post holder will deliver an integrated expert service consisting of a mixture of physical, sensory and cognitive interventions to meet the Occupational Therapy needs of residents within the service.

They will work in collaboration with other allied health and social care professionals and deliver supervision to basic grade occupational therapist.

The Occupational Therapist should abide by the Code of Ethics of the Association of Occupational Therapists of Ireland.

This role is a full-time permanent, Monday-Friday role.

Professional / Clinical

• Represent the Occupational Therapy profession and promote the profile of occupational therapy within ACC services throughout the organisation.
• Demonstrate sound clinical reasoning based on experience and clinical expertise in the care of the elderly (COTE) and dementia service areas.
• Respect the values, beliefs and needs of residents and staff and include residents and family in decision-making processes as appropriate.
• Support and delegate appropriately to Occupational Therapy staff working within the ACC areas.
• Interpret standards of practice, as well as professional codes of conduct, professional and organisational policies ensuring they are incorporated into Occupational Therapy practice within COTE and dementia service areas.
• Recognise when it is appropriate to refer decisions to a higher level of authority and include colleagues in the decision-making process
• Promote initiatives in the COTE and dementia service areas that will ensure a high standard of professional practice development in line with improved resident care
• Demonstrate understanding and respect for the roles of all members of the MDT
• Keep up to date with developments within the COTE and dementia service areas in own organisation, professional body, nationally and internationally and apply to practice as appropriate
• Manage own work-life balance and support others (e.g. Occupational Therapists, Occupational Therapy assistants) with same
• Contribute professional expertise to wider organisational initiatives/ committees/steering groups at local, national and international level
• Provide specialist support to the COTE and dementia service areas staff

Managing a Caseload

• Demonstrate advanced clinical reasoning and problem-solving skills in completing Occupational Therapy assessments and interventions with residents.
• Use advanced prioritisation and planning skills to ensure residents are placed on the appropriate pathway and the timely completion of onward referrals to other services
• Demonstrate an advanced proficiency in ability to screen and prioritise referrals according to clinical needs using clinical reasoning skills and providing support to all Occupational Therapy staff.
• Prioritise and maximise effectiveness of intervention using available resources to ensure service areas demands are optimally met.
• Ensure collaboration with other relevant MDT colleagues for complex patient presentation to ensure holistic approach to patient care
• Balance clinical demands with other responsibilities (e.g. research, administration, service development, teaching, CPD, staff supervision) through effective time management and organisational skills

Managing a Caseload

• Demonstrate advanced clinical reasoning and problem-solving skills in completing Occupational Therapy assessments and interventions with residents.
• Use advanced prioritisation and planning skills to ensure residents are placed on the appropriate pathway and the timely completion of onward referrals to other services
• Demonstrate an advanced proficiency in ability to screen and prioritise referrals according to clinical needs using clinical reasoning skills and providing support to all Occupational Therapy staff.
• Prioritise and maximise effectiveness of intervention using available resources to ensure service areas demands are optimally met.
• Ensure collaboration with other relevant MDT colleagues for complex patient presentation to ensure holistic approach to patient care
• Balance clinical demands with other responsibilities (e.g. research, administration, service development, teaching, CPD, staff supervision) through effective time management and organisational skills

Planning, Maintaining and Evaluating a Quality Service

• Demonstrate an advanced level of clinical knowledge and skills of clinical presentations and risk factors and provide senior support in decision-making for other Occupational Therapy staff.
• Specialist knowledge and expertise in Dementia care and ability to conduct a range of standardised and non-standardised assessments and interventions in line with evidence-based practice, including functional assessment, falls assessment and prevention measures, objective activities of daily living assessment, manual handling advice, cognitive screen, hand assessment and splint recommendation, seating and wheelchair assessment and provision, feeding aid assessment and recommendation, sensory profile, environment assessment and recommendations.
• Monitor and report on the use of best practice clinical standards and guidelines in the occupational therapy ACC areas and apply this specialist knowledge within the service.
• Delivery of training to staff on appropriate areas of practice highlighted in best practice clinical standards and guidelines.
• Working with MDT colleagues, demonstrate advanced clinical skills in the ACC service, assisting with advanced diagnostic, prognostic and patient management within the service
• Demonstrate advanced knowledge of care pathways appropriate to with the ACC service.
• Recognise appropriate services and supports (OT, MDT and other) to optimise resident outcomes and identify the need for appropriate onward consultation or referral
• Design and implement processes and procedures to ensure the highest standards of practice are met.
• Report emerging risk issues to the therapeutic services co-ordinator, director of nursing and clinical nurse managers within the service.
• Work collaboratively with the MDT to identify, plan and implement interdisciplinary practices
• Foster and lead a culture and practice of evaluating service outcomes and other data collection and implementing quality improvement initiatives as appropriate
• Develop and implement strategic service and business plans, quality initiatives, audits etc. based on up to date evidence-based practice and report on outcomes.
• Oversee, evaluate and advise the therapeutic service co-ordinator on optimal resource utilisation for effective service delivery and optimal resident and service outcomes
• Identify own personal and professional learning needs and seek support from occupational therapy manager as indicated
• Facilitate staff in identifying their own development needs and addressing these needs through planned learning, clinical supervision and professional support as required
• Deliver appropriate and effective feedback and be receptive to feedback

Communication

• Communicate oral and written information in a clear, concise and well-structured manner appropriate to the content and the target audience
• Build and maintain effective relationships with colleagues at clinical and management levels within the ACC site.
• Facilitate and maintain open communication within own service and department
• Promote and foster effective cross discipline communications and evaluation processes with MDT colleagues, advocating shared discharge planning for optimal resident intervention.
• Deal constructively with obstacles and conflict to ensure person centred decision-making within the MDT
• Build relations and links with community colleagues, working together to promote and enhance appropriate patient pathways for a seamless service
• Ensure that communication with residents and families /carers is appropriate and timely and develop written resource packs for residents/carers as indicated
• Present lectures, service evaluation, audit and research projects
• Negotiate clearly and effectively with relevant stakeholders

Leadership and Service Development

• Understand the principles of the operational management of the ACC and be responsible for the day-to-day management of these clinical speciality areas.
• Act as an expert Occupational Therapy clinical resource for the ACC MDT, occupational therapy service and students
• Promote the role of occupational therapy ACC service in the organisation and at national and international level
• Lead senior clinical decision-making processes within the ACC.
• Identify and prioritise the requirements of the ACC area within a constantly changing environment
• Develop guidelines for safe and effective practice in ACC.
• Refine and advance occupational therapy practice within the ACC and develop formal links with appropriate national and international networks
• Represent the ACC Occupational Therapy service, nationally and internationally as required
• Deputise for the therapeutic services co-ordinator in his/ her absence as required
• Explore and champion new initiatives, practices and models of care, in line with best practice, to improve the resident experience and outcome
• Seek to identify and avail of opportunities to assist with and contribute to strategic planning e.g. development of business cases.
• Develop and implement new service initiatives in collaboration with appropriate stakeholders such as therapeutic services co-ordinator, MDT members etc.
• Assist the therapeutic services co-ordinator in the recruitment of staff
• Ensure that an efficient system of stock control is maintained including audit of equipment and stock sourcing as required.
• Act as a role model for Occupational Therapy staff and staff of other professions, in the areas of clinical competence, attitude and enthusiasm of Occupational Therapy, being available as a resource for staff
• Collate and analyse workload statistics required for departmental purposes and for service reviews
• Lead and facilitate research projects relevant to the ACC areas at local or national level
• Collaborate with all relevant stakeholders in respect of relevant research projects
• Co-ordinate and promote departmental research in conjunction with the occupational therapy department and the departmental strategic plan
• Publish research, case studies and critical reviews in peer-reviewed publications
• Lead the dissemination of research findings locally and nationally within Occupational Therapy and the wider healthcare arena

Qualifications and Experience

• Possess a Bachelor of Science Degree in Occupational Therapy or an equivalent World Federation of Occupational Therapists (WFOT) recognised qualification.
• Be fully registered with CORU.
• Be a member of AOTI.
• Previous experience operating at a Senior Occupational Therapist level is desirable.
• Excellent skills in assessment of posture and seating.
• Experience in care of the elderly.
• Bike to work scheme
• Company pension
• On-site parking

Schedule:

• 8 hour shift
• Day shift
• Monday to Friday

Highfield Healthcare is committed to providing the highest standard of care and support to all our residents. Our patients are cared for in an environment appropriate to their needs, where the priority is to preserve their dignity and promote their independence.
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