Paediatric Dietitian

This is a fantastic opportunity for an enthusiastic and motivated Dietitian to join the Paediatric team within the Nutrition and Dietetics Team at Northumbria NHS Foundation Trust. Our service is part of one of the largest trusts in the UK and the dietetic team are well valued within the organisation so we are looking for a Dietitian with a passion to make a difference to specialist paediatric services.

The job will consist of a varied caseload providing a specialist dietetic service to children and their families. The post holder will have input into out-patient clinics, group sessions, schools and home visits and input into the Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital for short stay inpatients.

The post holder will work collaboratively with the dietetic staff and key stakeholders to further develop the role and provide a high-quality service for the population of North Tyneside and Northumberland.

You will join the friendly team of Dietitians, Dietetic Assistant Practitioners (DAPs) and Dietetic Assistants (DAs) at an outstanding Trust. The post holder will be required to work Trust wide to meet the needs of the service and travel throughout the counties of Northumberland and North Tyneside will be required.

We are a supportive department and organisation and will provide the successful candidate with all the training/support required.

The post requires the successful applicant:

• To act as a paediatric dietitian within a multi-agency team
• To provide a quality Nutrition and Dietetic Service in Northumbria Healthcare NHS Trust.
• To work as part of multidisciplinary teams which could include specialist public health nurses, ward staff and consultants and physical activity specialists.
• To link in with clinical paediatric and community teams.
• To be an active member of the team and play a vital role in patient service delivery, education and resource development.
• To role model compassionate and inclusive leadership in order to shape the creation of a collective leadership culture within the trust. This means demonstrating a consistent leadership style which: • engages, enables
• uses coaching to promote ownership of learning and quality improvement
• facilitates team working and collaboration within teams / departments and across organisational boundaries.

We take B and C placements from Leeds Beckett University and all level students from Newcastle University. All staff are encouraged to take part in student training – support will be provided for the successful applicant.

The Nutrition and Dietetic service is made up of 4 teams; acute, diabetes, paediatrics and community. We are a large department of nearly 50 staff, predominately based between the 3 main sites.

We manage three major locality hospitals at North Tyneside, Wansbeck and Hexham, plus a number of smaller community hospitals and clinics from Tynemouth to Berwick on Tweed, covering one of the largest geographical areas of any NHS trust in the country. Leading in innovation and quality – opening a state-of-the-art Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital, the first of its kind in England. Do you want to work in one of the best performing NHS organisations in England? Work in an organisation that supports its staff and focuses on staff experience as much as it does the experience of its patients? You can live and breathe in an area that has the cleanest air, cost effective living, great nightlife, some of the best schools with a wealth of history available on your doorstep. Sound too good to be true? Well it isn’t, this is what you get when you work for Northumbria Healthcare, this is the Northumbria Way! Please read ‘applicant guidance notes’ before submitting your application.

The post holder will provide a service as needed to premature infants, eating disorders, food allergies/intolerances, behavioural feeding problems and any other medical condition requiring nutritional intervention, e.g. Diabetes, as well as children with special needs.

The post holder will have a caseload of patients in North Tyneside and Northumberland in a variety of settings including face to face and telephone/virtual outpatient clinics, short stay in-patients at the Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital in Cramlington and travelling to patients own homes and schools.

You must be able to work both autonomously and as part of a team within the wider MDT. It is also expected you will contribute to student training and act as a support for the DAs. We encourage participation in regular CPD activities and we hold regular departmental and team meetings allowing the opportunity to learn from training, case discussions and peer support.

The post holder is expected to:

• Plan and organise education and training sessions for colleagues, student dietitians, other health professionals, and other outside agencies
• Work in a strategic manner
• Deliver specialised dietetic advice to children and their families/carers considering complex social and psychological factors
• Participate in the organisation, preparation and delivery of highly specialised programmes of dietetic care to families and other agencies as part of the multidisciplinary team
• Act as a specialist resource for patients and their families and other health professionals (consultants, GPs, health visitors, other AHPs), dealing with queries on childhood nutrition and/or obesity)
• Be able to implement change using advanced counselling and motivational interviewing techniques
• Have a positive attitude to all children referred to the service
• Contribute to, develop, monitor and comply with standards and policies for the dietetic department and the Trust
• Develop own specialty policies/ service development which will have an impact outside own area
• Advise and formulate policies relating to specialist area of work.

This post would be appropriate for those currently working at a band 5 position who are ready for a specialist Band 6 post and for current band 6 dietitians with an interest in developing their career specialising in paediatrics.