Highly Specialist Paediatric Physiotherapist MSK/Orthopaedics

To deliver clinical care within the Childrens Orthopaedic / MSK team at Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre as required. This might include CTEV, DDH, pre- and post- op casting and physiotherapy for a range of MSK & orthopaedic conditions, including normal variants and serial casting. To maintain a structured referral and treatment pathway to ensure the efficient and effective running of the service. To be responsible for timely referrals to the OUH Consultant Paediatric Orthopaedic Surgeons for babies with CTEV who require tenotomies for correction of their deformity. To co-ordinate the resources required and those involved in minor surgical procedures, i.e. tenotomies, patients in an efficient and timely fashion within the regime timeframe. To be responsible for the assessment and referral of children with structural CTEV, or other structural abnormalities, to the DDH Screening service. To ensure parents of newly diagnosed babies with structural CTEV are offered antenatal support, so that information, management and treatment can be explained. To assist in the triage of referrals to the DDH Screening service in the absence of the Advanced Practitioner Paediatric Orthopaedics and to take responsibility for co-ordinating teams from physiotherapy, nursing and radiography when needed. To be professionally and legally responsible, and accountable for all aspects of own professional activities. To be responsible and accountable for the management and implementation of patient care programmes in the childrens physiotherapy setting. To carry out assessment of patients as an autonomous practitioner, including those with highly complex presentations and to use clinical reasoning skills, advanced paediatric Orthopaedic and MSK expertise to determine appropriate care plans. To be responsible for patient care plans and to be consulted frequently for expert advice and guidance by junior and senior team members, and other health care professionals both within and outside the Trusts. To continually re-assess patients to progress treatments effectively and advise patients, carers, medical, and other colleagues as required. To assess patients capacity to understand and gain valid, informed consent for treatment. To work within a legal framework with patients who lack the capacity to consent or refuse treatment. To always manage clinical risk within own caseload and assist in ensuring clinical risk is effectively managed across the paediatric MSK & Orthopaedic service. To attend meetings, seminars, and case conferences as appropriate, and liaise with, and advise other disciplines, as appropriate, to achieve comprehensive, effective, and confidential patient care. To be responsible for maintenance of accurate written records using POMR system, to include comprehensive progress and discharge reports to referrers, and assist with ensuring that senior, junior and student physiotherapists are maintaining the professional standards. To demonstrate highly developed dexterity, co-ordination and palpatory sensory skills for assessment and manual treatment of patients. To be highly competent in assessing the full needs of a wide range of childrens orthopaedic conditions based on advanced theoretical knowledge of anatomy, physiology, and pathology, often in situations where conflicting evidence may be present. To use advanced theoretical and practical knowledge to refer to other health disciplines as appropriate, for further treatment or specialist consultant opinions, ensuring appropriate referral systems are used by departmental staff. To demonstrate the ability to communicate complex and sensitive information to patients, carers and other staff, where there may be barriers to communication e.g., non-English speaking patients or those with communication impairment, and ensure all members of the team do likewise. To impart complex information to small groups of people, for example in class and training sessions, using a variety of methods of communication To clearly convey advanced knowledge of techniques, biomechanics, anatomy and physiology to patients and staff. To sensitively deal with distressing or emotional circumstances regarding patient care e.g., imparting news of poor prognoses, such as long-term disability or chronic pain. To be able to diffuse potentially hostile and antagonistic situations with staff, patients, and relatives, using highly developed negotiation and interpersonal skills. To establish and maintain positive interpersonal relationships with other team members characterised by open communication, trust, and respect.

Communication

To establish and maintain a good working relationship with the multidisciplinary team. To ensure effective communication and reporting always takes place. To assist in acting as a resource centre for other Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire physiotherapists involved in the management of orthopaedic paediatric patients.