Senior Health Care Assistant

Job overview
There is an exciting permanent opportunity for a highly motivated and enthusiastic Healthcare Worker (full-time) to join our experienced multi-disciplinary team on Cherrywood ward. Cherrywood Ward is a 17 bedded Female Acute Ward based in Littlebrook Hospital, Dartford.
Under the guidance and supervision of the team, you will deliver an effective and competent level of care to adults with Acute mental health needs. You will be involved in assisting patients in their day-to-day activities, supporting them to maintain and develop skills towards independence and continue their recovery.
This post will involve shift working to cover 24 hours, 7 days a week.
What is High Cost Area Allowance?
The High-Cost Area (HCA) allowance, also referred to as London Weighting is a payment made to employees who work in London and the surrounding areas.
As this post is based in Dartford, Gravesham or Swanley, the successful applicant will receive an additional payment each month.
5% of basic salary, subject to a minimum payment of £1,192 per year and a maximum payment of £2,011 per year (the agreed annual amount will be divided into 12 equal amounts and paid monthly).

Main duties of the job
Support the Multi-Disciplinary Team by:
Offering appropriate support and advice to the patients in our care, and accurately record all care given as required onto RiO and validating own entries.
Provide physical health care & physical health checks as required or instructed, documenting the physical health checks on the modified early warning scoring system (MEWS) chart and reporting changes to the nurse in charge of the shift.
Supporting and carrying out patient therapeutic observation checks as required and instructed.
Escorting Patients to attend hospital appointments and Section 17 leave if requested.
Taking the lead in a specific area of work for the ward, e.g. Wellbeing, Health & Safety or Patient Activity.
Undertaking all relevant training as directed and participating in regular management/clinical supervision and appraisal.
Working a full range of shifts covering a 24-hour period, including twilight and night shifts. You may also be required, at times, to work at other Trust sites.

Working for our organisation
Come and work with us in the Garden of England where we combine exceptional professional development opportunities with a tremendous quality of life.
We are Kent and Medway NHS and Social Care Partnership Trust (KMPT), providing mental health, learning disability and specialist services, serving 1.8 million people in Kent and Medway, as well as specialist services for adults in Sussex and Surrey. We are rated Good overall by the CQC.
Each year we care for over 2,000 people in our hospitals and 54,000 people in the community.
We are proud to employ over 3,800 people from 66 nationalities and to serve an increasingly diverse range of communities across rural and urban areas.
You will be joining friendly, passionate colleagues, rich in their diversity, who are committed to providing excellent care to our service users and their loved ones.
The nature of our work attracts kindness and compassion as standard and everyone from our cleaners and porters to the chief executive and chairman are recognised as playing a vital role in providing an exemplary service.
Our strategy
Our mission is what we set out to do every day
We deliver brilliant care through brilliant people
Our vision is where we want to be in the future
To provide outstanding care and to work in partnership to deliver this in the right place, for every service user, every time.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please refer to the attached job description for full details and main responsibilities of the role.

Person specification

Training and Qualifications

Essential criteria

• Good general education, competent in literacy and numeracy
• NVQ or equivalent in a relevant subject (e.g. Health and Social Care) or be prepared to work towards this

Desirable criteria

• Recovery Star Training

Experience

Essential criteria

• Experience of working with individuals with complex mental health problems

Desirable criteria

• Experience of working in a community mental health setting
• Experience of implementing rehabilitation plans
• Experience of individual and group work

Knowledge and Skills

Essential criteria

• An awareness of enduring mental health disorders
• A basic understanding of the Recovery Model
• An awareness of the impact of mental health needs on clients, families and carers
• An ability to form rapport with individuals and groups
• An ability to maintain a high degree of professionalism at all times, even in challenging/complex situations
• Ability to work autonomously and cooperatively as part of an interdisciplinary team, showing an awareness of team dynamics
• Ability to communicate information using a variety of mediums
• Basic awareness of clinical governance
• Effective organisational/planning and decision making skills
• Sound knowledge and practice of IT skills
• Willingness to work flexibly

Desirable criteria

• An awareness of social activities and amenities within the local community
• Knowledge of benefits and employment systems
• Awareness of tenancy issues
• Basic health and safety awareness
• A basic understanding of the Mental Health Act

KMPT Staff Benefits:
NHS pension scheme Your employer pays 20.6% towards your pension and life assurance benefits.
Please see Apply. Apply/Pensions.aspx for more details.
Annual leave for Agenda for Change On appointment to NHS
27 days for full time or pro rata if part time
After 5 years NHS service
29 days full time or pro rata if part time
After 10 years NHS service
33 days full time or pro rata if part time
Plus bank holidays, that's up to 41 days - more than 8 weeks paid time off!
Medical staffs have national Terms and Conditions.
Buying and selling of annual leave is also available as part of our flexible approach to staff benefits.
Recommend a friend campaign If you already work for us you could refer a friend from outside of the Trust to any of the roles below and you can receive £1000 if they are successfully recruited; Nursing staff - RMN RGN RNLD - Band 5 and 6, Medical Doctors, Clinical Psychologist and Allied Health Professionals,
Flexible working Covers job share, term time working, flexible shifts etc. Just ask and we will try to help.
Statutory and occupational maternity, paternity or adoption leave Dependant on length of NHS service
Other paid/unpaid leave This can be for Jury Service, Reserved Armed Forces, etc. This is paid outside of annual leave.
Non paid leave for career breaks
Staff Support KMPT offers a face to face counselling service for any issues not j