Special School Nurse

The Special School Nurse SSN is responsible for the ongoing assessment of care needs and the development implementation and evaluation of programmes of specialised care for children who attend specific special schools

The SSN will provide and manage specific skilled nursing care to children with a variety of nursing needs including long term conditions and complex and multiple needs life limiting conditions learning disabilities and those with challenging behaviour and or autism related diagnoses

The care will be provided in the special schools with potential for meetings and learning to be carried out off site in other community settings

The role requires a nurse with paediatric and or learning disabilities expertise to work in collaboration with the special schools to ensure the children attending are able to access health promotion public health programme and specialist nursing programmes alongside their multidisciplinary team The nurse will be providing specialist advice to other professionals promoting evidence based practice

The SSN will have a good understanding and or experience of children with Profound and Multiple Learning disabilities PMLD and Severe Learning Disabilities SLD

Provide essential training and updates to staff for all delegated tasks and health promotion activities carried out in school including staff competencies

Support with Education Health Care Plans Annual reviews in school for children with health needs on the caseload

Provide guidance advice and support to schools regarding management of pupils with complex health needs See person specification

Ensure school staff are trained and advise on best practice guidance regarding medicines management medicines waste disposal and medicines administration techniques

Create referrals to other professionals where required which includes continence service CCN service CPMS Respite centres and wider allied health professionals AHPs

Provide advice support and referrals for children who are aged 14 plus to help with transition planning processes to adult services

Provide advice support and liaison for children transitioning into school from early years settings home and provide the necessary care planning training and referrals as required

Provide advice support and liaison for children transitioning between schools eg primary to secondary or to new locations where necessary

Provide routine monitoring of children on the caseload as necessary including height weight and clinical observations as dictated by the Childs health needs

Support with advise on desensitisation programmes and or use of social stories for children and young people to access wider health care interventions

Support and contribute to CPMS and other community review clinics

Signpost families to other services and resources as required supporting their childs needs

Ensure school staff are aware of infection prevention and control measures and any changes in practice

Raise any safeguarding concerns in line with trust and national policies and guidelines

Work collaboratively with our social care education and AHPs to provide holistic care for the children and families on the caseload

Signpost and refer families to necessary charities agencies in relation to their childs health needs eg DLA CHC CCC applications make a wish dream flight holiday havens etc

Assess patients clients plan develop implement evaluate programmes of care and carry out nursing procedures

Provides direct nursing care for patients clients to achieve best health outcomes

Ensures use of nursing knowledge and skills to assess plan implement and evaluate patients clients family health needs as well as actively promote health and wellbeing

Evaluate clinical outcomes and reports variance to clinical pathway protocols or best practice guidelines

Contributes to effective discharge planning and or referral processes to health care providers and support agencies to meet identified health needs

Applies diagnostic reasoning and professional judgement to nursing practice issues decisions

Manage care of patients clients on a day to day basis and when required manage care of all patients clients in the absence of senior colleagues

Fosters inquiry and critical thinking amongst colleagues to advance nursing practice and patient client care to ensure the provision of positive patient client outcomes and person centred care

Accurately documents assessments of patients clients health status diagnosis and response to nursing and other interventions and treatments on the Trust Clinical Records System

Effectively manage the clinical care and clinical area through the implementation of clearly defined policies and procedures

Educate and provides information to patients clients family to improve knowledge of disease illness self management prevention of complications and promotion of recovery

Identifies when a child may be at risk and knows how to refer to the local multi agency safeguarding hub MASH when appropriate

Identifies when a vulnerable adult may be at risk and knows how to refer to the local authority adult safeguarding service

Role models culturally safe nursing practice and able to report poor practice when observed

Practices in accordance with legal ethical culturally safe and professional standards including the Code of practice

Provides and receives complex sensitive information to patients relatives and colleagues and with empathy persuasion and reassurance and ensure information is clearly understood where there maybe barriers to understanding

Ensures effective collaboration and communication with multidisciplinary team patients carers family and significant others always seeking consent of the client in doing so and in coordinating care and fostering effective working relationships to achieve best health outcomes

Actively listens drawing out information and checks understanding

Empathises with others and considers their needs and feelings

Expresses information effectively and accurately both orally and in writing adjusting language and style to recipients and considers their frame of reference

Accurately records patient information progress and status ensuring changes in patients clients condition are shared with the multidisciplinary team in a timely manner

Ensures patient confidentiality is always maintained

• Promotes Solent NHS as a centre of excellence for nursing practice through effective communication both internally and externally
• Pro actively participates in own performance development and review to identify learning needs and take necessary steps in order to reach personal professional objectives
• Attends educational opportunities relevant to nursing role and scope of practice
• Provide day to day clinical supervision of junior colleagues and students including safeguarding supervision when appropriate
• Participates in peer review feedback and actively contributes to the provision of an effective learning environment
• Actively participate in the induction of new staff in accordance with Trust policy and when required act as a buddy assessor supervisor and resource person within your team
• Be personally accountable for actions and omissions in your practice and have the ability to justify decisions taken
• Provide opportunities for junior colleagues to assess their work and to provide them with clear sensitive and appropriate feedback that will help them improve and develop
• Actively participates in student placements and staff training within the organisation
• Maintains and develops own clinical expertise and knowledge in speciality evidence based nursing practice and personal portfolio to demonstrate fitness to practice in line with expectations for revalidation

Actively participate in clinical and management supervision

Further information about the Trust and this role can be found on the Job Description and Person Specification document attached. It is important to us that we ensure our recruitment processes are accessible and inclusive to everyone - if as a potential candidate you are concerned a person specification may prevent or restrict your application for employment as a result of unintentional barriers on the grounds of your sex, race, age, sexual orientation, religion/belief or disability please initially contact the Trust's Recruitment team - detailed in the advert. The Trust will seek to resolve this issue wherever possible.

We are happy to talk Flexible Working - all requests for flexible working options can be discussed as part of the interview process.