Deputy Department Manager Surgical Pre-assessment

Lewisham Surgical Centre - Pre-operative Assessment Nurse

To view full details of the forthcoming Lewisham Surgical Centre, please click the link below: Work with us at Lewisham Surgical Centre - 1

We are looking to recruit a dynamic nurse with excellent clinical nursing skills, to deliver a high-quality service to patients attending the pre-operative assessment unit. We are looking for a nurse who has vision and passion to work within our nursing team to provide the best possible care for our patients.

About the Role

The successful applicant will be a motivated and enthusiastic individual with significant post-registration clinical experience within the area of pre-operative assessment or equivalent general adult surgical experience. Applicants will need to have a clear understanding of nursing quality and be able to assure excellence in clinical care. Applicants must have the relevant experience and knowledge of care delivery appropriate to this patient group, be creative, enthusiastic, motivated, and have excellent communication skills.

Key Responsibilities

• Act as a role model and contribute to the development and training needs of staff within the department.
• Work collaboratively with all members of the multi-disciplinary team.
• Assess patients' suitability and fitness for surgery and anaesthesia using agreed protocols.
• Take a targeted history of the patient, including airway assessment.
• Conduct assessment of both the medical and psychological status of elective surgical patients.
• Order and perform diagnostic tests within set protocols and working to agreed actions where abnormalities are discovered.
• Ensure all test results are available for the day of surgery.
• Recognize the significance of any observation made and use them to highlight situations which may be detrimental to the health and wellbeing of the patient.
• Refer patients who fall outside the agreed criteria to an anaesthetist, who may then make further referrals.
• Refer patients back to primary care or another healthcare professional to optimize the patients' medical condition, according to local guidelines.
• Provide information about the pre-operative, intra-operative, and post-operative process, ensuring the patient has an understanding of the proposed procedure and any specific pre-operative instructions.
• Identify any special requirements needed to facilitate prompt discharge.
• Communicate effectively and liaise with all members of the multidisciplinary team and primary care team as appropriate.
• Comply at all times with the NMC code of conduct.