Teenage and Young Adult Cancer Nurse Specialist

The post holder will work as an integral part of the TYA team to provide young people with cancer (Haematology and Oncology) aged 16-24 years, with individualised and bespoke guidance, support and care. The post holder will provide emotional, psychosocial and clinical support (as appropriate) from the point of diagnosis, during and after treatment.

The post holder will be able to work independently and within a small team to contribute to the facilitation of the planning, coordination, delivery and evaluation of care pathways for TYA cancer patients and their families.

The post holder will be a strong advocate for TYA patients within the Principal Treatment Centre (PTC), they will be a resource for wider hospital colleagues and will contribute to training and education within TYA Cancer care.

Main duties of the job

• The candidate would ideally have experience of working with teenage and young adults with cancer.
• Act as the patient’s advocate, to help negotiate the treatment journey, ensuring optimum care is provided to each young person.
• Demonstrate excellent communication skills with young people and carers ensuring that information/advice is appropriate, timely, delivered sensitively and based on individual needs.
• Work closely and compassionately with young people and their families when communicating significant and difficult/bad news.
• Acknowledge and accommodate barriers to communication and understanding, including speech, hearing, language, emotion and Learning Disabilities.
• Provide psychosocial support to young people and their families respecting their diverse cultural and ethnic background.
• Maintain patient confidentiality.
• Ensure that every young person understands how to seek guidance and knows who to turn to, so that they do not feel alone.
• Work collaboratively with young people, to understand the impact of their cancer diagnosis and treatment, to identify their individual needs and how best to meet them.

Working for our organisation

University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust (UHBW) is one of the largest acute Trusts in the country, bringing together a combined workforce of over 13,000 staff and over 100 different clinical services across 10 different sites, serving a core population of more than 500,000 people across South West England. UHBW has been rated by the CQC as ‘Good’ overall and our staff are proud to deliver excellent care to the people of Bristol, Weston and beyond. As a forward- thinking multi-award winning Trust and a digital exemplar committed to improving patient care, our world-leading research and innovations are having a positive local and global impact. Our hospitals are spread across Bristol and Weston, join us and you can enjoy the very best of both worlds; city living within a stone’s throw of the countryside or beside the seaside, both with easy access to all that the South West has to offer. UHBW is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. As an equal opportunities employer actively working towards a diverse workforce we aim to recruit and retain a workforce which represents the rich diversity of the local population at all levels and are committed to designing our services around the needs of individual patients and those around them. Anonymous information will be used from your application in order to ensure we’re meeting our pledge.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Person specification

Qualifications and Training

Essential criteria

• Registered Nurse
• Current NMC Registration
• Diploma plus specialist qualifications/experience within cancer care; prepared to take degree level study
• Qualification in Teaching and Assessing

Desirable criteria

• Advanced communication skills training or prepared to work towards

Knowledge and Experience

Essential criteria

• Post registration experience within related specialist area of practice
• Evidence of on-going continuous professional development
• Experience as a preceptor/mentor
• Understanding/experience of adult/child safeguarding

Desirable criteria

• Evidence of undertaking research or audit projects

Apptitudes

Essential criteria

• Ability to work effectively under pressure
• Emotionally resilient, clear personal and professional boundaries and understanding of risks in this role
• Confident of own knowledge, aware of learning needs, seeks guidance as appropriate
• Self-motivated
• Ability to influence and motivate people

Skills and Abilities

Essential criteria

• Organisation and time management skills
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills
• Ability to problem solve
• Flexibility, adaptability to meet needs of changing service
• Ability to work alone or as part of a team
• Ability to cope with emotional issues present in the course of work, and to support others
• Knowledge of national and local speciality specific issues and of current national changes within nursing and NHS
• Commitment to the development and provision of high quality nursing care
• Good IT skills
• Act as a role model and as a mentor/assessor
• Innovative and participates with practice and policy change
• Awareness of professional responsibilities to self and others