Urgent Community Response Nurse / Paramedic Practitioner

Job Overview

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a motivated and dynamic Band 6 UCR Practitioner to join the Home 1st Urgent Community Response (UCR) Team on a fixed-term basis for 10 months.

Working within an innovative multidisciplinary service, you will provide rapid assessment, treatment and clinical intervention for patients experiencing an acute health crisis in their own homes, helping to prevent unnecessary hospital admissions and supporting timely discharge from hospital.

You will work autonomously and collaboratively with a range of health and social care professionals, delivering high-quality, person-centred care while responding to referrals within a two-hour timeframe.

This role offers an excellent opportunity to develop advanced clinical skills, work across a variety of urgent community pathways, including Virtual Ward and intermediate care services, and contribute to the continued development of a forward-thinking community service.

Main duties of the job

Provide advanced clinical assessment, diagnosis and treatment for patients experiencing an acute health crisis in their own home or care home, helping to avoid unnecessary hospital admission and facilitate early discharge from hospital.

Triage and manage referrals received from a range of partners including GPs, Consultants, NHS 111, South Central Ambulance Service, care homes, district nursing teams and other community services.

Respond to urgent referrals within a two-hour timeframe, delivering safe, effective and person-centred care in line with national Urgent Community Response standards.

Work autonomously and collaboratively within a multidisciplinary team to determine appropriate care pathways and support patients with acute illness, frailty and exacerbations of long-term conditions.

Undertake comprehensive risk assessments, clinical decision-making and care planning, ensuring patient safety and high-quality outcomes.

Support patients on Virtual Ward, intermediate care and reablement pathways, providing ongoing assessment, monitoring and clinical intervention as required.

Deliver urgent assessment and intervention for patients who have fallen at home, working alongside multidisciplinary colleagues to prevent avoidable conveyance to hospital.

Maintain accurate clinical documentation and uphold professional, organisational and regulatory standards at all times.

Working for our organisation

At Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust (CNWL), we are committed to delivering high-quality, person-centred care while creating an environment where staff feel valued, supported and empowered to thrive. Our values of Compassion, Respect, Empowerment and Partnership underpin everything we do. We are proud to foster a culture built on our SCARF behaviours: being Safe, Compassionate, Accountable, Reflective and Fair, ensuring both staff and patients have the best possible experience.

We recognise that our colleagues are our greatest asset and are committed to supporting career development, leadership opportunities and lifelong learning. Staff benefit from regular supervision, access to professional development and training programmes, flexible working opportunities where service needs allow, a comprehensive health and wellbeing offer, occupational health support, employee assistance services and active staff networks that champion inclusion and diversity. We are dedicated to creating a workplace where everyone feels heard, respected and able to reach their full potential.

Joining Home 1st Urgent Community Response offers the opportunity to work within an innovative and supportive multidisciplinary team at the forefront of community healthcare transformation in Milton Keynes. You'll have the chance to develop advanced clinical skills, contribute to service improvement and make a genuine difference to patients.

Detailed Job Description And Main Responsibilities

The Band 6 UCR Practitioner will provide high-quality, responsive clinical care to patients experiencing an acute health crisis, supporting admission avoidance and facilitating early discharge from hospital. Working as part of the Home 1st Urgent Community Response team, the post holder will deliver rapid assessment, treatment and intervention to patients in their own homes, care homes and community settings, ensuring care is delivered within national UCR response standards. The role requires autonomous clinical decision-making, advanced assessment skills and close partnership working with health and social care colleagues to deliver safe, effective and person-centred care.

Main Responsibilities

• Undertake comprehensive clinical assessment, diagnosis and treatment planning for patients referred to the Urgent Community Response service.
• Triage referrals received from GPs, Consultants, NHS 111, South Central Ambulance Service, care homes, district nursing teams, specialist services and other stakeholders to ensure patients receive the most appropriate intervention.
• Respond to urgent referrals within a two-hour timeframe in accordance with national UCR standards.
• Deliver advanced clinical care and short-term interventions aimed at preventing unnecessary hospital admissions and supporting patients to remain safely at home.
• Assess and manage patients presenting with acute illness, frailty, falls, exacerbations of long-term conditions and end-of-life care needs.
• Support patients receiving care through Virtual Ward, intermediate care and reablement pathways, providing ongoing monitoring, assessment and intervention where required.
• Work collaboratively with the multidisciplinary team, including nursing, therapy, medical, social care and voluntary sector colleagues, to coordinate holistic care plans and achieve the best outcomes for patients.
• Complete clinical documentation accurately and maintain high standards of record keeping in line with professional and organisational requirements.
• Provide education, advice and support to patients, families, carers, care homes and healthcare professionals to promote self-management and improve patient outcomes.
• Participate in clinical supervision, quality improvement initiatives, service development and the support of students and junior staff members.
• Contribute to maintaining a safe working environment through risk assessment, safeguarding practice and adherence to Trust policies and procedures.

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria

• Registered Nurse with current NMC registration
• HCPC Registration
• Evidence of other professional training, CPD and PDP
• Advanced Assessment Skills or willingness to work towards

Desirable criteria

• Independent Nurse Prescribing or willingness to complete required training

Experience

Essential criteria

• Evidence of post qualification professional experience
• Involvement in practice development activities
• Understanding and experience of current community/hospital nursing issues

Desirable criteria

• Experience relevant to Intermediate Care
• Involvement in discharge planning processes

Knowledge

Essential criteria

• Knowledge of local and national agendas for transformational change affecting care of older people.
• Knowledge of current UCR agenda
• Broad Knowledge of primary care provision
• Sound clinical knowledge
• Working knowledge of Government initiatives regarding preventative care to promote patient’s health

Key Skills/Abilities

Essential criteria

• Awareness of NHS polices in respect to primary care and reducing hospital admissions
• Awareness of NHS polices in respect to primary care and reducing hospital admissions
• Clinical skills
• Ability to work autonomously as well as be part of a team
• Able to carry out regular home visits and deliver care in the community
• Ability to work under pressure
• Communication and negotiation skills
• Time management skills
• Ability to inspire and support quality improvement
• Ability to prioritise a changing workload
• Ability to implement policy and guidelines
• Ability to work a shift pattern
• Good IT skills