Pier Health Group | 168 Locking Road | Weston-super-Mare | BS23 3HQ

Physician Associate Job opportunity

Salary: £c45,000

Hours: 37.5 hours per week (on rota basis Monday to Sunday)

Location: Weston-super-Mare

Closing Date: 21st March 2023

Job Description: Physician Associate Job offer.docx

Physician Associate

We are recruiting to exciting opportunities for Physician Associates to join the clinical teams at Pier Health to grow our clinical services. We are passionate about multi-disciplinary working to provide high quality and care to the people we serve and therefore are looking to diversify professional voices in the organisation to welcome the contribution of new roles of Physician Associates.

There are several roles available across our organisation. Our reach spans across a diverse population of approximately c100,000 patients within our geography.

This challenging and dynamic role will work closely with the multidisciplinary team of GPs, nurses, paramedics, pharmacists and others.

The successful applicant will want to actively participate in a broad range of daily core general practice, teaching and education activities, management and leadership opportunities, research programmes and also enjoy being part of a vibrant team advancing primary care at local and national levels if appropriate.

Pier Health Group | 168 Locking Road | Weston-super-Mare | BS23 3HQ

Check out the Physician Associate Podcast on overcoming barriers to becoming a Physicians associate Apple Podcasts.

https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/overcoming-barriers-to-

become-a-physician-associate/id1557378084?i=1000598197413

Closing Date: 21st March 2023

Pier Health Group | 168 Locking Road | Weston-super-Mare | BS23 3HQ

Physician Associate Job Description and Person Specification

Job title Physician Associate

Job summary

Physician associates work under the direct supervision of a doctor and carry out many similar tasks, including the examination, diagnosis, management and care of patients. You will be supervised throughout your career and will have a named clinical supervisor. This a relatively new role in the UK, which is growing and developing over time. It should not be confused with the role of physician assistant.

Main Responsibilities

Responsibilities
Physician associates are dependent practitioners but can work autonomously with appropriate support. However, you will need to stay within the limits of your scope of practice and know when to refer to doctors and other healthcare professionals.

As a physician associate, you'll need to:

• Take patient medical histories during face-to-face and/or telephone consultations.
• Carry out physical examinations.
• Order diagnostic tests and analyse results.
• Make diagnoses and clinical assessments.
• Carry out a range of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures within the scope of your role.
• Develop and deliver appropriate treatment and care management plans in consultation with patients, their relatives and carers.
• Organise further investigations, treatment and referral to a doctor/other healthcare professional where appropriate.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of care management plans.
• Make home visits to patients who are unable to visit the surgery/hospital due to their condition.
• Provide patients with advice and counselling on health promotion and disease prevention.
• Maintain accurate clinical records ·
• Complete paperwork and other administration duties, including writing reports, letters and other correspondence.

Physician associates must not provide care or treatment without supervision. In addition, they are not currently allowed to prescribe or request ionising radiation, such as CT scans or x-rays. We would look to develop the roles further as individuals get established so further responsibilities may be applied with additional training and guidance.

Pier Health Group | 168 Locking Road | Weston-super-Mare | BS23 3HQ

This document may be amended following consultation with the post holder, to facilitate the development of the role, the practice and the individual. All personnel should be prepared to accept additional, or surrender existing duties, to enable the efficient running of the practice.

The person specification for this role is detailed below.

Values and Behaviours (some of these standard core How Identified
values may be demonstrated in meeting other criteria cited E/D
o n this person specification)

Generic responsibilities

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion
A good attitude and positive action towards ED&I creates an environment where all individuals are able to achieve their full potential. Creating such an environment is important for three reasons: it improves operational effectiveness, it is morally the right thing to do, and it is required by law.

Patients and their families have the right to be treated fairly and be routinely involved in decisions about their treatment and care. They can expect to be treated with dignity and respect and will not be discriminated against on any grounds including age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation. Patients have a responsibility to treat other patients and our staff with dignity and respect.

Staff have the right to be treated fairly in recruitment and career progression. Staff can expect to work in an environment where diversity is valued and equality of opportunity is promoted. Staff will not be discriminated against on any grounds including age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation. Staff have a responsibility to ensure that you treat our patients and their colleagues with dignity and respect.

Safety, Health, Environment and Fire (SHEF)
Pier Health Group is committed to supporting and promoting opportunities to staff to maintain their health, well-being and safety. You have a duty to take reasonable care of health and safety at work for you, your team and others, and to cooperate with employers to ensure compliance with health and safety requirements. All personnel are to comply with the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, Environmental Protection Act 1990,
Environment Act 1995, Fire Precautions (workplace) Regulations 1999 and other statutory legislation.

Confidentiality
Pier Health Group is committed to maintaining an outstanding confidential service. Patients entrust and permit us to collect and retain sensitive information.

Pier Health Group | 168 Locking Road | Weston-super-Mare | BS23 3HQ health and other matters, pertaining to their care. They do so in confidence and have a right to expect all staff will respect their privacy and maintain confidentiality at all times. It is essential that if, the legal requirements are to be met and the trust of our patients is to be retained that all staff protect patient information and provide a confidential service.

Quality & Continuous Improvement (CI)
To preserve and improve the quality of our output, all personnel are required to think not only of what they do, but how they achieve it. By continually re-examining our processes, we will be able to develop and improve the overall effectiveness of the way we work. The responsibility for this rests with everyone working within the practice to look for opportunities to improve quality and share good practice.

Pier Health Group continually strives to improve work processes which deliver health care with improved results across all areas of our service provision. We promote a culture of continuous improvement, where everyone counts and staff are permitted to make suggestions and contributions to improve our service delivery and enhance patient care.

Induction Training
On arrival at Pier Health Group all personnel are to complete a practice induction programme; this is managed by the appropriate Line Manager.

Learning and Development
The effective use of training and development is fundamental in ensuring that all staff are equipped with the appropriate skills, knowledge, attitude and competences to perform their role. All staff will be required to partake and complete mandatory training as directed by the training coordinator, as well as participating in the practice training programme.
Staff will also be permitted (subject to approval) to undertake external training courses which will enhance their knowledge and skills, progress their career and ultimately, enable them to improve processes and service delivery.

Collaborative Working
All staff are to recognise the significance of collaborative working. Teamwork is essential in multidisciplinary environments. Effective communication is essential and all staff must ensure they communicate in a manner which enables the sharing of information in an appropriate manner. Service Delivery Staff at 168 Medical Group must adhere to the information contained with practice policies and regional directives, ensuring protocols are adhered to at all times. Staff will be given detailed information during the induction process regarding policy and procedure.

Security
The security of the practice is the responsibility of all personnel. Staff must ensure they remain vigilant at all times and report any suspicious activity immediately to their line manager. Under no circumstances are staff to share the codes for the door locks to anyone and are to ensure that restricted areas remain effectively secured.

Professional Conduct
At Pier Health Group, staff are required to dress appropriately for their role.

Pier Health Group | 168 Locking Road | Weston-super-Mare | BS23 3HQ

Administrative staff will be provided with a uniform whilst clinical staff must dress in accordance with their role.

Leave
All personnel are entitled to take leave. Line managers are to ensure all of their staff are afforded the opportunity to take their leave and should be encouraged to take all of their leave entitlement.

Experience How Identified E/D

Qualifications
There are currently two integrated undergraduate master’s in Physician Associate Studies
(MPAS) programmes available at the University of Central Lancashire and the University of
Reading. You'll need three A-levels (or equivalent), typically at ABB or above, including chemistry and a further science to get a place on a course. Both courses are full time and last four years.

Most training to become a physician associate, however, is at postgraduate diploma
(PGDip)/Masters level. In order to get a place on a postgraduate course you'll usually need a first degree or equivalent in life or health sciences.

Typical degree subjects include:

• Allied health degree (e.g. occupational therapy, diagnostic/therapeutic radiography,

Physiotherapy or paramedic science)

• Anatomy
• Biochemistry/medical biochemistry
• Biology/human biology
• Biomedical science
• Chemistry
• Genetics
• Medical science
• Microbiology
• Nursing
• Pharmacology
• Pharmacy
• Physiology.

Course providers often require a minimum 2:1 first degree, although some universities will accept a 2:2 in a relevant subject. Alternative qualifications and relevant healthcare experience may be accepted at some institutions. Entry requirements and course content varies between courses, so contact providers directly for information.

Pier Health Group | 168 Locking Road | Weston-super-Mare | BS23 3HQ

Training is full time, intensive and takes two years. Courses combine both theory and clinical practice in a range of community and acute care settings.

An apprenticeship standard for physician associates has been approved for delivery at Level
7. Apprenticeships combine paid work with part-time study and you'll need to apply for an apprentice position with a healthcare provider.

All courses will have requirements in terms of criminal checks, health checks and language requirements. Contact providers directly for further information.

Once you've successfully completed your training course, you must pass the Physician
Associate National Examination (PANE), which is run by the FPA. You can then become a member of the FPA and join the Physician Associate Managed Voluntary Register (PAMVR).

Skills
You'll need to have:

• Interpersonal and verbal communication skills for dealing with both patients and colleagues.
• Written communication skills for writing letters and reports.
• A caring attitude towards patients and the ability to show empathy and tact.
• Effective time management, planning and organisation skills.
• The ability to work as part of a multidisciplinary healthcare team as well as on your own.
• Problem solving and analytical skills with the ability to process and interpret information accurately.
• A flexible approach to work to handle a varied and busy caseload.
• The ability to work well under pressure and to understand the pressures that face doctors.
• General IT skills
• Self-motivation, resilience and patience
• A commitment to ongoing professional development

Job Type: Full-time

Salary: £45,000.00 per year

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday

Ability to commute/relocate:

• Weston-super-Mare: reliably commute or plan to relocate before starting work (required)

Work Location: One location

Application deadline: 21/03/2023
Expected start date: 03/04/2023

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