Specialist Speech & Language Therapist

We are seeking a dynamic Specialist Speech & Language Therapist (SPL) for this role within the West London Children's Healthcare Paediatric Respiratory Medicine and Asthma Service. The service provides multi-disciplinary care for babies, children and young people with complex respiratory conditions.

You will be part of the multi-disciplinary team delivering this service, contributing your expert assessment, intervention and advice to the diagnostic process and patient pathway.

This will include SLT (Speech and Language Therapy) outpatient clinics e.g. VFSS (Videofluoroscopic Swallow Study), and multi-disciplinary clinics for this cohort of patients.

Working with the Clinical Lead for Paediatric Respiratory Medicine and Asthma, Clinical Lead Paediatric SLT and the wider Multi Disciplinary Team, you will be responsible for developing the service, promoting a learning culture, supervising and developing staff, enabling delivery of a service that is informed by best evidence and expert knowledge.

You will have opportunities to lead on both discipline specific and inter-professional development projects, demonstrating your leadership and innovation.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide comprehensive and specialist therapy assessment and diagnosis for patients with a range of highly complex presentations, by utilising advanced clinical reasoning, evidence-based knowledge, investigative and analytical skills and specialist assessment techniques.
• Work both independently and within a team structure, demonstrating leadership to manage own and team caseload.
• Efficiently manage a caseload and organise this effectively with regard to clinical priorities and use of time.
• Formulate and deliver an individualised and specialist care plan / therapy management programme based on advanced knowledge of evidence based practice, advanced clinical reasoning skills and a wide range of specialist treatment options. As a specialist clinician to provide a second opinion where required.
• Provide clarity and communicate complex clinical findings to the patient/carers to gain valid informed consent, prior to any intervention. To work within a legal framework for those patients who lack the capacity to consent to treatment.
• Communicate with patients in a way that empowers them to make informed choices about the management of their condition and engages them in the planning and delivery of treatment.
• Take into account cultural, linguistic, medical, emotional, psychological and physical factors that may prevent this engagement and utilise resources available to facilitate communication.