Practice Nurse

This practice nurse post sits within Health Partners at Violet Melchett, an 11,000-patient GP practice based at the Violet Melchett Health and Wellbeing Hub, with a satellite site at Earls Court. The nurse delivers core services such as cervical screening, immunisations, blood taking and wound care, alongside long-term condition reviews and minor ailments work. The practice works within an integrated model with community nursing, mental health and social prescribing, so the workload is varied.

Two years of primary care experience is essential.

• Deliver core practice nursing services including health promotion, sexual health and contraception, cervical cytology, childhood immunisations, travel health and blood taking
• Assess and care for patients with wounds, and remove skin closure materials
• See patients for urgent and opportunistic nursing care, and carry out new patient checks
• Carry out NHS health checks (vascular risk) and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring
• Administer drugs and vaccines by any route in line with NMC, practice and NHS England guidelines
• Manage long-term conditions, including annual reviews for cardio-renal, metabolic, asthma, COPD, hypertension and heart disease
• Provide minor ailments care, ECGs, and ear syringing
• Run clinical searches on Systm One to keep smear and long-term condition recall up to date
• Oversee stock control, sharps and clinical waste, health campaigns and waiting room displays, and CQC compliance
• Manage clinical risk, including safe storage of vaccines and drugs, fridge temperatures, emergency drugs, controlled drugs and infection control
• Delegate clearly, assess competence of staff taking on delegated duties, and mentor the nursing team
• Keep accurate clinical records, audit work, and attend practice and borough-level meetings

• Registered General Nurse (RGN)

• 2 years' experience working in primary care

• Knowledge of long-term conditions such as diabetes, asthma, COPD, hypertension, heart disease and anti-coagulation therapy
• Knowledge of health promotion strategies
• Knowledge of patient group directions and related policy
• Prescribing in line with NMC guidelines
• Clinical skills in cervical cytology, immunisation and vaccination, and ear care
• Change-management skills and ability to support patients to change lifestyle

• Written and verbal communication skills
• Delivering difficult messages to patients and families
• Negotiation and conflict management skills
• Teamwork
• Positive role model

• Practice nurse qualification
• Additional training in long-term conditions
• Membership of a professional body
• Knowledge of local determinants of health and public health issues
• Awareness of accountability in a nurse-led service and of local and national health policy
• Awareness of clinical governance issues in primary care
• IT skills
• Awareness of issues within the wider health economy