Independent Living Officer | Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust

Be a key member of a multi-disciplinary, multi-agency team providing support to adults of all ages who do not require specialist acute hospital admission but require support to maintain their independence within their home setting. Placing emphasis on promoting and maintaining individuals' independence, dignity, and choice, undertaking medical, nursing or therapy related treatment programs or social care intervention to support and enable people.

Working across the whole of Calderdale, this role involves assessing a wide variety of situations, providing solutions (equipment, adaptations, and assistive technology), alongside caring and supporting individuals. Participate in new initiatives and future changes in care delivery including the Rapid Reablement Service as part of the Urgent Community Response Team. Support hospital discharges and prevent unnecessary admissions to hospitals.

The UCR team delivers a seven-day service with staff working on a rota basis for different shift patterns covering the whole of Calderdale. The service focuses on the delivery of rapid assessment and intervention for adults of all ages who do not require specialist acute hospital admission but who require crisis intervention within a community setting. This may be due to an alteration in their physical or psychological well-being, or a temporary change in their social circumstances which makes it difficult for them to be maintained in their own home without a short period of rehabilitation or intervention from UCR.

1. Establish positive relationships with the people we provide care for within professional boundaries, promoting dignity, choice, and respect.

1. Working with people to encourage them to be able and independent by providing support and personal care to a range of service users in vastly different circumstances.

1. Providing personal care, including washing, dressing, toileting, shaving, mouth care, catheter care, feeding, and meal preparation, with the objective of encouraging people to do these tasks independently. Support and enable service users to improve or maintain their mobility through exercise and the use of mobility appliances or fitting equipment ifappropriate.

1. Recording/Documentation - accurately. Read, respond, and act upon support plans, risk assessments, manual handling assessments, medication profiles, and other written information within the person's home. IT skills by completing mileage, booking A/L, toil, and applying for internal training on the system.

1. Assist people, where appropriate, manage and take their prescribed medication according to their individualised medication profile and medication policy, be competent in dispensing medication from boxes and bottles, applying pain patches, contact chemist re medication, collection, and delivery prescriptions. Be competent in assisting a service user with stoma care and catheter care to recognise risks and report concerns to the appropriate person.

1. Assess for equipment, assistive technology, and minor / major adaptations. To consider any preventative measures necessary to maintain independence, provide equipment, demonstrate, and instruct individuals, carers, and other professionals in the safe use of and provide ongoing training when required. Work will be carried out in patients own homes and the activities will include: a) Implementing treatment to protocols and based on competencies. b) Monitoring progress and feeding back to the registered practitioner or assistant practitioner c) Making minor adjustments to treatment programmes within predetermined limits d) Assisting registered practitioners with complex treatment. e) Community participation: support the individual and their families to identify community activities that will support the individual to maintain their connections with themselves, the people, and the environment surrounding them. f) Ability to use technology and interpret data to inform
Reablement plans

1. Attend training as identified through appraisal, in line with national minimum care standards, Skills Training and Council policy, and be proactive in any development opportunities as they arise. To assist in the induction of new colleagues and to maintain positive relationships within the team and beyond.

1. Support and participate in treatment/exercise regimes and rehabilitation plans identified by other team members undertaking basic nursing, occupational therapy and physiotherapy roles following appropriate training, i.e., putting a splint on foot and following the exercise regime laid out, use of walking aids, deliver, and fit equipment.

1. The initiative, to have a responsible attitude and a creative approach, to be open, you try new ways of working with service users and their carers. The ability to work alone and use your own initiative, however, also raise any issues that you feel need supervisory support and may have to deal with any emergency.
2. Will be required to work in the homes of our service users. The types homes include houses, flats, sheltered housing, caravans, etc. some of which may be unpleasant or disagreeable, referring the difficult situations to the Locality Manager or Community Service Manager. This is not a complete statement of all duties and responsibilities of this post. The post holder may be required to carry out any other duties as directed; the responsibility level of any other duties should not exceed those outlined above.

Disability Confident
About Disability Confident
A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that declares they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer. It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. For more details please go to Disability Confident.