Spirometry Specialist Nurse
Are you a Specialist Nurse looking for a change? We do things differently
The Federation will be delivering a new Community Spirometry Service across Suffolk, from July 2022 onwards supporting GP practices.
How will the service work?
Practices will complete referrals via the NHS E-Referral Service (ERS) to refer patients to this community-based spirometry service for diagnostic purposes.
The spirometric tests will be carried out by a Healthcare Assistant across several community locations across East and West Suffolk during daytimes, evenings, and weekends. This will include signposting or referrals for smoking cessation, when appropriate.
The spirometric test will be interpreted by a spirometry specialist nurse informing a clinical assessment of airflow obstruction and physiological investigation of airflow obstruction. The specialist nurse will advise whether the assessment results are normal, could be consistent with possible COPD or possible asthma, or whether the results are inconclusive and what further steps would be recommended.
The service will be run by Suffolk GP Federation CIC, a not-for-profit community interest company.
Who’s in the team?
- Healthcare Assistants – a pool of HCAs working in community clinics undertaking the spirometric test, including signposting/referrals where appropriate
- Band 6 Specialist Nurses – working remotely, applying specialist knowledge to interpret the spirometry test. Our specialist nurses will also provide supervision to our HCA team
- Clinical Lead – provide supervision, guidance and leadership to our clinical team
- Administrator – responsible for the smooth day-to-day running of the service, supporting the team from an operational and administrative perspective
What’s the Spirometry Specialist Nurse role?
Specifically, as a Spirometry Specialist Nurse:
- You’ll work in an agile way, outside of a clinic. This means that you’ll have a mixture of working remotely at home, as well as coming together as a team at one of our bases.
- You’ll apply your specialist knowledge to inform the referring clinician of the most appropriate care for the patient.
- You’ll have protected time to supervise the HCAs
Is it for me?
We will make sure you are fully inducted and trained; there will be regular constructive supervision in place. It’s important to us that you feel safe and supported in your clinical decision making.
- You’d be suited to this role if you’re self-motivated & enthusiastic and consider yourself an innovative team player who is able to work as an autonomous practitioner.
- You’ll need to be trained and accredited to ARTP standards and have at least two years of experience as working as a practice nurse within primary care
- Having a special interest in respiratory disease within primary care is important
- Supervisory experience would be beneficial
What we can offer you:
- An opportunity to shape a new service, in an organisation that values and encourages new ideas
- A strong ethos of flexible working, to help us maintain (or reclaim) that work/life balance
- Agile working, enabling us to work from a variety of bases, interacting with your teams at the most appropriate location
- Innovative teams who strive in forward thinking, with a voice that is heard
- A visible and supportive management team, with operational support that ‘get it’
- Excellent IT teams & support giving us first class equipment and ‘no wait’ responses
- A commitment to personal development, training and leadership opportunities, with service-managed training budgets
- Cycle to work scheme
- Death in service cover
- Competitive salaries with annual benchmarking
- 27 days holiday (plus bank holidays) on starting, rising to 29 days (plus bank holidays) after 5 years’ service
- Blue light card employer – Access to the discount service with thousands of discounts online and on the high street
Interested? Have questions? Just wondering? Get in touch with our Community Services Operations Lead vinni.mallen@nhs.net - we’d love to hear from you.