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North Bristol NHS Trust (NBT) and University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) are working towards merging as one organisation from July 2026.

This will create an exciting future that brings together the best of both organisations. As a single, strong and sustainable organisation, we will not only be able to deliver better outcomes for our patients and fairer care for our population, but it will also provide greater opportunities for our people.

Should you join NBT as an employee prior to our organisations merging, your employment will be automatically transferred across to UHBW. Should your employment begin after our two Trusts merge, you will be employed directly by UHBW and therefore UHBW terms and conditions of service will apply

Our job adverts may close as soon as sufficient applications have been received. Considering this, if you are interested in this role, please do apply as soon as you can.

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Job Overview

Are you an experienced support worker looking for a new challenge? An exciting opportunity has arisen to work on our Surgical Admissions Unit and Surgical SDEC (same day emergency care). 

The Senior Healthcare Support Worker is a member of the care team appointed to support qualified nurses in the delivery of patient care and to assist them to meet their daily needs. The post holder will be expected to undertake a broad range of clinical and non-clinical activities under the direction of a professionally qualified worker and take personal responsibility for ensuring that Trust and Local Policies and Procedures are known and followed.

Main duties of the job

Working As a Healthcare Support Worker, You Will Be Involved With Direct Patient Care Whilst Maintaining The Privacy And Dignity Of Patients. You Will Be Working Alongside a Registered Nurse To Provide Essential Nursing Care And Helping Your Patients With Daily Living Tasks Such As

helping patients feel comfortable and move around

monitoring patients and performing basic health checks

washing, dressing patients and helping them go to the toilet

serving meals and helping to feed patients

blood glucose monitoring

updating digital care plans

Duties

Senior Healthcare Support Workers would also be expected to carry out a range of clinical duties with minimal / no supervision, including:

physiological measurements
venepuncture and cannulation
collection and testing of urine, faecal and sputum samples
digital admission and risk assessments
ECG monitoring
basic wound and catheter care

Whilst completing these tasks, the underlining aim is to deliver high-quality patient care at all times.

Working for our organisation

North Bristol NHS Trust employs over 12,000 staff providing healthcare to the residents of Bristol, South Gloucestershire and North Somerset from our award-winning hospital building at Southmead. We are the regional Major Trauma Centre, and an internationally recognised Centre of excellence in a range of services and major specialties.

We commit to treating each patient as an individual with respect and dignity, aiming to deliver excellent clinical outcomes and a first-class experience for everyone who uses our services.

North Bristol NHS Trust values all people as individuals. We aim to be an anti-discriminatory organisation and are committed to building a team that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. We welcome applicants from all underrepresented groups.

Detailed Job Description And Main Responsibilities

Please refer to the job description attached for the full list of role responsibilities.

Obtain consent prior to giving care in accordance with Trust policies.
Duties are delegated to you in line with care plans
Not all duties are routine, and you will need to use your knowledge, experience and understanding to take decisions within your area of responsibility

To carry out a range of clinical duties with minimal / no supervision, including for example, blood pressure monitoring, oxygen saturation levels, body temperature, pulse rate and respiration rate, glucose monitoring, collection and testing of urine samples / faecal samples / sputum samples and wound swabs ensuring delivery of high-quality patient care at all times. NB: this list is not exhaustive and will vary depending on area of work.

Participate in patient assessment providing high quality holistic patient care and escalating concerns about patients to other clinical staff

Practice safe standards of care to patients following Trust guidelines and policies and policies and be able to concentrate for periods throughout the day with occasional interruptions.

Provide clinical care in accordance with the infection prevention and health and safety policies and procedures.

Maintain the work environment in line with Trust infection control and patient safety policies

Develop the skills to actively facilitate self-care and independence with patients.

Promote health education specific to the clinical area and in line with national and local policies.

Maintain accurate records relating to communication with patients, relatives, and members of the Multidisciplinary team regarding all aspects of care demonstrating a range of appropriate communication skills.

Ensuring equipment and stores are well maintained, taking appropriate action if the equipment is faulty

Work effectively as part of a team.

Person specification

Qualifications/Training

Essential criteria

One of the following:
Level 3 (SCQF – 6): - City and Guilds 3
NVQ 3
BTEC National Diploma
Experience equivalent to the above qualifications
GCSE grade A- C (grade 4 and above) or equivalent in English
GCSE grade A- C (grade 4 and above) or equivalent in Maths

Desirable criteria

Completion of Senior HCSW clinical skills

Work Experience

Essential criteria

At least 12 months experience of working in a health or social care setting
Prior experience as a support worker
Evidence of ability to work as a member of a team
Good time management skills and prioritising work
Understands and committed to a caring approach to patients & relatives

Desirable criteria

Experience of working in an acute hospital setting

Knowledge/ Skills/ Abilities

Essential criteria

Effective and appropriate communication skills both written and verbal
IT skills, basic word, Email, keyboard skills
Demonstrate an awareness of healthcare work and policies and procedures
Ability to work with minimum supervision to a high standard

Please note that if you apply for a position with North Bristol NHS Trust, you may be contacted via TRAC or via email. This includes invites for job interviews. We therefore recommend that you regularly check your TRAC Account and email accounts including junk and spam folders.

If you apply for this vacancy and have not received a communication from North Bristol NHS Trust within three weeks of the closing date, please assume that on this occasion your application has been unsuccessful.

Please note that North Bristol NHS Trust does not reimburse travel expenses relating to interview attendance.

If you feel you meet the requirements of the Disability Act / Two Ticks scheme and require further support/advice, please contact us on tel 0117 414 1151.

North Bristol NHS Trust are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

The successful applicant(s) will normally commence at the minimum of the scale unless they have previous NHS service at the same band. Progression through the scale is by annual increments.

At North Bristol Trust (NBT), we know diverse and inclusive environments lead to happier and healthier teams and improved patient care and outcomes. We are committed to equality of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where we all belong. We therefore particularly encourage applications from candidates who are currently underrepresented in NBT’s workforce at Band 8a and above. These include people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, disabled people and LGBTQIA+ people.

Please note that stringent pre-employment checks are undertaken on all successful applicants prior to commencement in post.

Senior Healthcare Support Worker

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