Clinical Nurse Specialist - Dermatology

The post holder will assess and treat patients with Dermatological conditions and undertake highly specialised technical and/or practical skills to ensure optimum patient management including; complex patient monitoring; nurse led clinics and defined expanded clinical roles. In partnership with the multi-disciplinary team (MDT) the post holder will develop, implement and evaluate a seamless specialist service. The role is vital in delivering the highest standards of clinical care and supporting efficiency to drive improvements in health outcomes. The post holder needs to have completed the nurse prescribing course. Using advanced nursing practice; takes personal responsibility for managing a caseload of patients referred for specialist intervention, care and support. The post holder will demonstrate highly developed and specialist knowledge and expertise and will be responsible for contributing to the ongoing development of innovative practice, research and standards of care., 1. Patient Assessment and Screening

• Evaluate skin health: They measure disease severity using scoring tools like the PASI or the DLQI.
• Pre-treatment checks: Screen patients before starting a new medication. This involves checking blood test results and ensuring the patient does not have infections like tuberculosis.
2. Medication Management and Prescribing
• Independent prescribing:Review blood results to ensure these are within parameter.
• Systemic therapies: To manage oral medications (like methotrexate or ciclosporin) that suppress the immune system.
• Biologics: To manage biologic therapies.
3. Patient Education and Support
• Safety advice: To educate patients on when to temporarily stop their medicine if they get sick or need surgery.
• Helpline support: To run patient helplines to answer safety questions and handle concerns about side effects.
4. Monitoring/Follow-Up
• Regular blood tests: To review routine blood and organ function tests to ensure the medications are safe to continue.
• Safety monitoring: To watch for adverse reactions or infections and report these issues to medical teams.
5. Research/Teamwork
• Database registration: To add patient data to research databases like BADBIR (The British Association of Dermatologists Biologics and Immunomodulators Register) to track long-term medicine safety
• Multidisciplinary work: They work closely with doctors, pharmacists, and mental health professionals to ensure the patient gets total care.
  
  Our People Charter outlines the behaviours we can expect from one another and what you can expect from Bradford Teaching Hospitals Foundation Trust:
• We value people
• We are one team
• We care
We're keen to meet people who share these values and are passionate about delivering the highest quality of care to our patients.