Clinical Nurse Specialist - Bariatric Surgery

Clinical Nurse Specialist - Bariatric Surgery Blackrock Health Hermitage Clinic Location: On site / Lucan, Co. Dublin, Ireland
job type: Permanent / Part-time
Sector and subsector: Medical & Healthcare Nursing & Midwifery
Salary: Negotiable salary

Job Title: Clinical Nurse Specialist - Bariatric Surgery

Department: Nursing

Job Function: Nursing

Reporting to: Assistant Director of Nursing / Director of Nursing

Location: Hermitage Clinic

Role Type: Permanent, Part Time

Please note that this is a part time role

Job Purpose As a key member of the Nursing team, the post holder will demonstrate excellent clinical skills, quality patient care initiatives and facilitate effective interpersonal communication with colleagues in the unit(s) and hospital. The role will provide comprehensive nursing care to patients using evidence-based practice and adjusting resources to ensure continuity of care, will act as a role model for excellence in patient care. The CNS will communicate and collaborate with the medical/nursing staff teams in the delivery of quality continuing care for the patient, including liaison with Consultants, and GP's. The position requires a strategic approach to the development of services and structures, embracing continuous quality improvement and the management of changes necessary to achieve organisational objectives. The role demands a broad range of professional skills and knowledge as well as skills in communication, leadership, teaching, education, research and counselling all in keeping with the Framework for the Establishment of Clinical Nurse/Midwife Specialist Posts, 4th edition, National Council for the Professional Development of Nursing and Midwifery (NCNM) 2008.

Blackrock Health Hermitage Clinic is a state of the art 160 bed healthcare facility ideally located on at the junction of the N4 and M50 in Lucan, Co Dublin. The hospital provides a wide range of Emergency, Ambulatory, Interventional and Diagnostic care to for Adults and some services for Children. As a member of Irelands newest private health care group, Blackrock Health we are dedicated in ensuring our mission, vision and values are our guiding principles in ensuring our patients and staff have a world class experience. A career in Hermitage Clinic will ensure you are joining a diverse, dynamic and enthusiastic team of professionals, passionate about developing services to ensure we provide the best care in the most modern of facilities. We offer new recruits an array of supports to ensure you are enabled to develop your career. Please contact us directly to review our up to date opportunities and list of benefits.

Key Responsibilities The post holder's practice is based on the five core concepts of the Clinical Nurse Specialist role as defined by the NCNM 4th edition (2008) in order to fulfil the role. The concepts are: Clinical Focus, Patient/Client Advocate, Education & Training, Audit, Research & Quality, and Consultant.

Clinical Focus - Direct Care The CNS will have a strong patient focus whereby the speciality defines itself as nursing and subscribes to the overall purpose, functions and ethical standards of nursing. The clinical practice role may be divided into direct and indirect care. Direct care comprises the assessment, planning, delivery and evaluation of care to the patient, family and/or carer. Indirect care relates to activities that influence and support the provision of direct care.

• Provide a specialist nursing service for patients undergoing bariatric surgery who require support and treatment through the pre-operative, peri-operative and post-operative phases of care.
• Undertake comprehensive patient assessment to include physical, psychological, social and spiritual elements of care using best evidence based practice in bariatric surgical nursing.
• Accept appropriate referrals from MDT colleagues.
• Co-ordinate investigations, treatment therapies and patient follow-up, including pre-operative bloods and biochemistry, endoscopy and imaging as required.
• Communicate with patients, family and/or carer as appropriate, to assess the patient's needs and provide relevant support, information, education, advice and counselling as required.
• Provide pre-operative assessment, education and preparation for bariatric surgery, including the pre-operative diet, the liver reduction diet where indicated, expectations of the surgical pathway, length of stay and post-operative recovery.
• Educate patients on the specific dietary and behavioural requirements of their planned procedure, laparoscopic adjustable gastric banding, sleeve gastrectomy or gastric bypass, including portion sizes, eating pace, fluid intake and the importance of not missing meals.
• Provide expert post-operative nursing care including wound and drain management, analgesia optimisation, early mobilisation, assessment of oral intake and tolerance, monitoring for anastomotic leak or bleeding and prevention and early recognition of post-operative complications such as venous thromboembolism, respiratory compromise and wound infection.
• Provide guidance on band adjustments and fills where applicable, in line with agreed protocols and under the direction of the clinical lead.
• Recognise, assess and elevate post-operative complications to the surgical team without delay, including dysphagia, reflux, stricture, marginal ulceration, band slippage or erosion, dumping syndrome and hypoglycaemia.
• Where appropriate work collaboratively with MDT colleagues across Primary and Secondary Care to provide a seamless service delivery to the patient, family and/or carer as appropriate.
• Provide patients with appropriate self-management strategies and escalation pathways.
• Coordinate nurse led bariatric surgical pre-assessment, post-operative and follow-up clinics with MDT input.
• Identify health promotion priorities for the patient, family and/or carer and support patient self-care in line with best evidence. This will include the provision of educational and health promotion material, which is comprehensive, easy to understand and meets patients' needs.
• Provide a specialist nursing service for patients who have completed significant weight loss following gastric bypass, gastric banding, sleeve gastrectomy or SADI-S and who are proceeding to body contouring / body enhancement surgery as the final phase of their weight loss journey.
• Provide a specialist nursing service for patients who have completed significant weight loss following gastric bypass, gastric banding, sleeve gastrectomy or SADI-S and who are proceeding to body contouring / body enhancement surgery as the final phase of their weight loss journey.
• Support patients through the body contouring pathway
• Assess the patient's readiness for body contouring surgery, including confirmation that weight loss has stabilised, that the patient is at least 12 months post bariatric surgery where indicated, and that nutritional status is optimised prior to referral.
• Provide pre-operative education and preparation for body contouring procedures including abdominoplasty, panniculectomy, lower body lift, brachioplasty (arm lift), thigh lift, mastopexy (breast lift) and breast augmentation or reduction.
• Support the patient to understand the expected scars, drains, compression garments, swelling, activity restrictions and recovery time, and the need to avoid heavy lifting for several weeks after surgery.
• Provide expert post-operative nursing care following body contouring surgery, including wound and drain management, compression garment advice, pain and comfort management, monitoring for seroma, haematoma, wound dehiscence and infection, and early recognition of venous thromboembolism.
• Support skin integrity, wound healing and scar management in a patient group at increased risk of impaired healing and nutritional deficiency following major weight loss.

Clinical Focus - Indirect Care

• Participate in case review with MDT colleagues.
• Take a proactive role in the formulation and provision of evidence based PPPGs relating to pre-operative preparation and post-operative care for bariatric surgery patients.
• Take a lead role in ensuring the service for patients undergoing bariatric surgery is in line with best practice guidelines and the Safer Better Healthcare Standards (HIQA, 2012) or the relevant National Clinical Care Programme and JCI standards.
• Establish and maintain clear referral lines.
• Participate actively in the development and strategic planning of the bariatric surgical service, including pre-assessment, in-patient care and post-operative follow-up.
• Establish and maintain a register of patients within the CNS service and maintain a record of clinically relevant data aligned to National Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) as directed and advised by the ADON/DON/Lead Consultant.
• Develop a database that is live and contemporary in focus as well as a breakdown of activity - patients seen and treated, procedures performed and post-operative outcomes.
• Support the service in the collection and submission of data to the relevant national bariatric surgery and obesity registries and databases.
• Develop and support the concept of advocacy, particularly in relation to patient participation in decision making, thereby enabling informed choice of treatment options.
• Promote a non-judgemental, respectful and person centred approach to patients living with obesity, and challenge weight stigma and bias in the delivery of care.
• Respect and maintain the privacy . click apply for full job details