Support Worker

The Support Worker is a dual-role position that supports high-quality, efficient patient care across the surgical continuum. This role is well-suited for a detail-oriented, organised professional who is passionate about patient outcomes and thrives in a fast-paced clinical environment.

In the ERAS Clinical Assistant capacity, the individual supports the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery program by assisting with patient education, coordinating with surgeons, nursing, and allied health teams, and ensuring adherence to ERAS protocols. This role helps optimise patient recovery by supporting evidence-based practices before, during, and after surgery.

As a Discharge Coordinator, the individual plays a key role in facilitating safe, timely, and well-coordinated patient discharges. Responsibilities include collaborating with multidisciplinary team (MDT), arranging follow-up appointments, and ensuring discharge documentation is complete. In addition, the role entails ensuring Healthcare Assistants are well supported in the provision of essential bedside care, in line with the principles of ERAS.

Someone would want to work in this role because it offers the opportunity to directly impact patient recovery, reduce length of stay and complications, and be an integral part of both perioperative care and discharge planning. It's an excellent role for someone who enjoys coordination, teamwork, and contributing to a culture of continuous improvement in patient care.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will undertake a clinical role, providing holistic support to patients on the ERAS pathway across the perioperative journey, including both prehabilitation and rehabilitation. They will carry out health and wellbeing assessments, identify individual patient needs, and signpost patients to the most appropriate services to support recovery. They will deliver planned, safe, effective, and evidence-based care to patients on the wards.

In addition to clinical responsibilities, the post holder will have an administrative function, including the collection, analysis, and reporting of clinical data to support audit, service evaluation, and quality improvement initiatives. They will contribute to the education of staff and patients and participate in formal teaching and training sessions related to ERAS principles and best practice.

As discharge coordinator the post holder will work as part of the clinical team and alongside the wider MDT to facilitate safe and timely patient discharges. This includes supporting the assessment process and contributing to the development of appropriate discharge plans, ensuring all relevant assessments and information are accurate, current, and clearly documented.

The Christie is one of Europe's leading cancer centres, treating over 60,000 patients a year. We are based in Manchester and serve a population of 3.2 million across Greater Manchester & Cheshire, but as a national specialist around 15% patients are referred to us from other parts of the country. We provide radiotherapy through one of the largest radiotherapy departments in the world; chemotherapy on site and through 14 other hospitals; highly specialist surgery for complex and rare cancer; and a wide range of support and diagnostic services. We are also an international leader in research, with world first breakthroughs for over 100 years. We run one of the largest early clinical trial units in Europe with over 300 trials every year. Cancer research in Manchester, most of which is undertaken on the Christie site, has been officially ranked the best in the UK.