Substance Misuse Nurse

Job Summary

Change Grow Live is one of the UK’s leading health and social care charities and the Substance Misuse Nurse role is a varied one. You will be supporting people with multi-faceted issues related to the impact of substance use on their physical and mental health.

At Change Grow Live we want to support you to recognise and achieve your goals. We hold regular national nurse and HCA forums, provide regular 1:1s and appraisals, support revalidation with protected continuing professional development time (up to 6 days per year), offer free access to the RCNi learning platform and pay for your NMC fee. We also use the government-backed Apprenticeship Levy fund to develop nursing practice in line with your specific role.

All staff are encouraged to take a wellbeing hour every week and access personal well-being resources.

• Undertake physical and mental health assessments for people who access our services when indicated by clinical need and ensure appropriate sign‑posting/referral to primary care or appropriate secondary health services for identified health issues.
• Undertake alcohol assessments, using the outcome to determine safe detoxification, and manage community alcohol detoxification either at the service or at the service user’s home.
• Assist in the titration process for opioid individuals, ensuring the service user achieves an optimum dose of opioid substitution therapy (OST) and liaising with community pharmacists.
• Support opioid detoxification in the community.
• Provide education, health promotion and screening for blood borne viruses (BBV); provide Hepatitis A and B vaccinations when indicated.
• Work within and consolidate integrated care and treatment pathways for individuals identified as being infected with BBVs (Hepatitis B, C and/or HIV).
• Undertake phlebotomy as required, adhering to identified pathways for blood sample labelling, collection, obtaining results and signposting.
• Use blood results to support the assessment of the current health status of individuals, the need for specialist medical referral and the suitability for community detoxification.
• Where indicated, refer for specialist inpatient services (including detoxification) and liaise with hospital and inpatient unit staff.
• Contribute to Change Grow Live’s Naloxone Strategy by training staff and individuals who use our services in the use of naloxone and ensuring naloxone is distributed to individuals at every opportunity.
• Offer wound care assessment and basic wound dressing to individuals who use our services, organising signposting to other services as required.
• Demonstrate ability to manage emergency situations by being proficient in basic life support, defibrillation and managing a medical emergency (e.g., anaphylaxis and overdose) until the ambulance arrives.
• Understand and adhere to the legislation surrounding the use of patient group directions (PGDs).
• Utilise psychosocial intervention in one-to-one and group settings to promote engagement in treatment services and ownership of recovery planning.
• Develop therapeutic alliances with individuals who use our services and develop effective partnerships to support their individual recovery journeys, offering health promotion and harm reduction advice.
• Ensure effective communication of treatments offered, treatment progress and outcomes of investigations to other healthcare agencies, including GPs.
• Maintain current knowledge of appropriate interventions and ensure that all revalidation requirements are met and communicated to the line manager.
• Provide health education regarding problematic alcohol and drug use and detoxification.
• Attend meetings appropriate to the development and maintenance of the role in agreement with and under the direction of the Lead/Cluster Lead Nurse.
• Contribute to the service to ensure that people who use substances consistently receive high‑quality services that adhere to best practice guidelines and the highest professional standards.
• Review procedures to promote best practice and evidence‑based practice in accordance with UK clinical guidelines (e.g., NICE) and Change Grow Live clinical protocols and procedures.
• Provide clinical…