Adult ADHD Clinical Nurse Specialist

The post holder will be able to work autonomously as an independent professional in the specialist adult ADHD service as an experienced clinician who, acting within their own professional boundaries will undertake assessment using specialist diagnostic tools. They will also provide reviews for clients with an established diagnosis. They will act as a non-medical prescriber, being skilled in the diagnostic assessment and, if diagnosis given, will initiate treatment and titrate patients to optimum dose of medication. They will demonstrate safe clinical decision-making and expert care planning for our service users. The post holder will be able to demonstrate shared decision making whilst utilising critical thinking as part of the clinical decision-making process. They will work with the multi-professional team to meet the needs of the service users and take full responsibility for their own work. They will work closely with internal and external stakeholders to deliver an effective service to those referred to the 3 Boroughs Adult ADHD and Autism Service.

Clinical

Assess, diagnose, plan, implement and evaluate interventions/ treatments and care for service users.

To complete a thorough risk assessment of the service users to ensure that any risk is minimised as per Trust policy.

To administer and interpret diagnostic questionnaires e.g. DIVA.

To work as a non-medical prescriber and to titrate and initiate patients diagnosed with ADHD onto clinically appropriate medication.

To provide follow up appointments, face to face or via remote consultation.

To liaise with patients, referrers, Clinical Commissioning Groups and carers.

To provide Advice and Guidance to colleagues within the Trust and externally via various communication methods, e.g. Consultant Connect

To support the admin staff with clinical enquiries re ADHD referrals.

Maintain relevant clinical and pharmaceutical knowledge, critically appraise and apply information to practice.

To screen all referrals for clinical appropriateness within the agreed time scale.

Support service users to adopt recovery strategies that promote their wellbeing, healthy lifestyle, independence and self-care.

To support the facilitation of post diagnostic psychoeducation workshops when required.

Promote the involvement of families in care, reflecting their diversity, equality and rights to ensure their needs are met.

To be responsible for maintaining accurate and timely clinical records in accordance with Trust Policy, collating relevant data, quality assurance and timely submission of clinical update reports working closely with the Clinic Lead/Senior Clinical Nurse Specialists and MDT.

To respond to complaints and or compliments within the allocated timeframe.

To work with the Lead/Senior Clinical Nurse Specialists and MDT to ensure that systems and processes are in place to support marketing activities.

The post holder can also be an independent prescriber, where trained and registered with the NMC, and within the Adult ADHD Service the role would include writing prescriptions for off label controlled drugs and other medications where appropriate.

This will involve independently assessing suitability for pharmacological treatment, discussing treatment options, side-effects and risks, and providing treatment initiation and titration until such time as a maintenance dose is achieved and prescribing handed over to local services. The expectation will be that the post holder will be able to work autonomously through this process, although in certain highly complex cases there may be joint working with a Consultant Psychiatrist.

Offering advice and guidance to G.P.`s and internal colleagues who contact the service via Consultant Connect or Nominated Clinician.

COMMUNICATION

To communicate the patients health status using appropriate terminology, format, and technology.

To use expert communication skills to provide accurate information to service users and their families and carers in a sensitive and professional manner.

To use and demonstrate sensitive communication strategies to ensure that service users are fully informed and consent to care/ treatment.

To act as an advocate for service users.

To establish effective communication and actively promote health education that may include providing alternative materials to support service users and carers in making decisions regarding their care and treatment.

Come and join our small team of friendly practitioners, who strive to put our services users at the heart of all they do.

We have an active Service User and Carer Advisory Group who support us in making service improvements.

We are one of the first Trusts to work collaboratively with our commissioners and NHS partners in providing a single point of access for all adult ADHD assessment referrals. This service offers triage of all referrals into the adult ADHD services across South East London.

We also are currently piloting A.I. to support our clinicians on the diagnostic pathway, reducing impact of report writing and ensuring neuroaffirmative ways of gathering back ground information.

We also plan to be one of the host test sites for future multicentre NIHR project looking at ADHD treatment outcomes.

We also contribute to the ADHD Pan London Reference Group which seeks to share and learn best practice across all London NHS Trusts.

Essential

Experience