Clinical Nurse Specialist Outpatient Parenteral Antibiotic Therapy; OPAT service

About NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC)

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) is one of the largest healthcare systems in the UK employing around 40,000 staff in a wide range of clinical and non‑clinical professions and job roles. We deliver acute hospital, primary, community and mental health care services to a population of over 1.15 million and a wider population of 2.2 million when our regional and national services are included.

This post will cover the service across seven days and involves city‑wide working. The shift pattern is Monday – Sunday, 8 am – 4 pm. The service operates Monday to Sunday as required.

This is an exciting opportunity to join the OPAT service as an independent practitioner in the role of Clinical Nurse Specialist. The Outpatient Parenteral Antibiotic Therapy (OPAT) service provides appropriate admission avoidance and early and supported discharge to patients who require intravenous antibiotics. Target areas are:
Accident and Emergency, General Practitioners, various wards and outpatient clinics.

You will be based in South/South‑West Glasgow with the post spanning across Greater Glasgow & Clyde. You will be working across GG & C as service requires.

A Clinical Nurse Specialist is a registered nurse who has acquired additional specialist knowledge and experience. Not only have you completed, or demonstrated the ability to complete, a primary degree, you will have the skills and competencies required to manage a caseload within agreed boundaries and protocols in line with clinical governance. Entwined around this clinical core are ties of consultancy, teaching, management and research and its application.

As a member of the OPAT Team you will be working as an autonomous practitioner and as part of a team, responsible for ensuring a high standard of care to patients with complex infections is delivered.

The nurse provides clinical care within a specialised, designated clinical service with a complex caseload incorporating patient assessment, treatment and discharge from care. The nurse carries continuing responsibility for the assessment or care needs, the development, implementation and evaluation of programmes of care and the setting of standards.

You are able to competently perform the necessary technical/physical aspects of care for this defined patient group to include complex IV administration therapies, venipuncture, cannulation and phlebotomy skills. As a nurse specialist, you will provide patient/family education in both hospital and outpatient settings to maintain the condition and prevent the need for hospital admission.

You must have the ability to work independently and possess a high level of interpersonal and confident communication skills to support this specific client group whilst managing telephone consultations, patient referrals, liaising with hospital clinicians and general practitioners to maintain excellent clinical links between the services, whilst upholding confidentiality at all times. You will independently assess and treat patients in the OPAT clinics and as inpatients prior to their discharge.

You will be responsible for consultancy, teaching, audit, research, participate in service development in conjunction with the team lead and maintain service objectives to meet the changing demands of delivering specialised care to patients with complex infection. You will be expected to contribute professionally within groups which may cross‑traditional or service boundaries and possess a high level of ITC skills including e‑forms, Trakcare and portal.

All Statutory / Mandatory Learnpro training modules must be compliant and include educational modules relevant to this specialty.

The successful candidate may be based across any of the OPAT departments within Greater Glasgow & Clyde and will be expected to travel and consult patients across GG & C to support the service where required. A car driver with a driving licence is essential. It is essential that you are currently an NMC Registered Adult…