Rehabilitation Assistant – Care Home Support Team

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Rehabilitation and Functional Support

Continence Assessment and Support

Care Coordination and MDT Working

Equipment, Mobility and Falls Prevention

Education and Enabling Care

Caseload and Autonomous Working

Documentation, Quality and Service Improvement

Key Working Relationships

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Rehabilitation and Functional Support

Work closely with Occupational Therapists and Physiotherapists to deliver comprehensive delegated rehabilitation programmes within care homes.

Support residents with mobility, transfers, strength, balance, exercise, functional activities and activities of daily living.

Progress agreed rehabilitation programmes within defined parameters and report deterioration, lack of progress or other concerns promptly to the supervising clinician.

Undertake delegated functional assessments and observations, including mobility, transfers, falls risk, functional ability, equipment use and environmental factors.

Promote an enabling approach, supporting residents to maintain or regain independence and helping care home staff embed rehabilitation into everyday care.

Continence Assessment and Support

Undertake delegated continence assessments and gather relevant information regarding normal continence, toileting patterns, mobility, cognition, environment and current continence products or support.

Support agreed toileting and continence plans, promoting independence with toileting wherever appropriate.

Recognise changes, red flags or concerns and escalate these to the appropriate registered clinician or specialist service.

Work with residents and care home staff to ensure continence support is dignified, person-centred and consistent with the wider rehabilitation plan.

Care Coordination and MDT Working

Work collaboratively with Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy, nursing, pharmacy, GPs and wider health and social care professionals.

Attend relevant multidisciplinary discussions where appropriate and contribute information about residents' function, rehabilitation progress and changes from baseline.

Support residents following hospital discharge by implementing delegated rehabilitation plans and identifying early signs that recovery is not progressing as expected.

Communicate effectively with residents, families, carers and care home staff to support coordinated, person-centred care.

Equipment, Mobility and Falls Prevention

Support assessment, provision and safe use of mobility and functional equipment within agreed competencies.

Train and support residents and care home staff in the safe use of agreed equipment and mobility aids.

Identify equipment defects, risks or changing needs and report these promptly to the relevant clinician.

Contribute to falls prevention and risk reduction through delegated assessment, rehabilitation and education.

Education and Enabling Care

Coach and support care home staff to promote mobility, independence and rehabilitation as part of residents' everyday care.

Demonstrate agreed exercises, mobility techniques, positioning, transfers and functional activities.

Work with families and carers, where appropriate, to reinforce agreed rehabilitation approaches.

Promote a culture that focuses on what residents can do and supports them to maintain function and independence.

Caseload and Autonomous Working

Manage a delegated caseload and workload, prioritising visits according to agreed service processes and clinical direction.

Work independently within agreed treatment plans, competencies and scope of practice.

St George's, Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals and Health Group cares for a population of four million people in South West London and North East Surrey.Our sites include St George's Hospital, one of 11 major trauma centres in the UK and the largest healthcare provider and major teaching hospital in the area; St Helier Hospital, home to the South West Thames Renal and Transplantation Unit and Queen Mary's Hospital for Children; and Epsom Hospital, home to the South West London Elective Orthopaedic Centre (SWLEOC).

After years of collaboration, our two Trusts became a hospitals group in 2021. While remaining as two separate Trusts, being a hospitals group will help us to collaborate more closely on research, and the development, education, and training of our 17,000-strong workforce.

At gesh we are committed to supporting flexible working arrangements. Applicants are encouraged to discuss any flexibility they may need during the recruitment process.

Essential: - Good standard of education, literacy and numeracy sufficient to maintain accurate clinical records; - Evidence of relevant learning/development appropriate to a health, care or rehabilitation role

Desirable: - Relevant healthcare/therapy qualification, e.g. NVQ Level 3 or equivalent; - Evidence of learning in rehabilitation, frailty, older people's care or similar

Essential: - Experience of working with older people and/or people with health, care or rehabilitation needs; - Experience of working within a care home, community or similar health/care environment; - Experience of working effectively as part of a multidisciplinary/team-based service

Desirable: - Previous experience as a Rehabilitation, Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy or Healthcare Assistant

Essential: - Ability to support assessment of mobility, transfers, functional ability, activities of daily living and rehabilitation needs within agreed competencies; - Ability to manage a delegated caseload, work independently within agreed parameters and recognise when advice or escalation is required

Essential: - Full clean UK driving licence and access to a car for business use, with the ability to travel between care homes and other service locations.; - Able to recognise own limitations, seek advice and escalate concerns appropriately