Job description

Job title Band 8a First Contact Practitioner (FCP) Team Lead

Location Circle Integrated Care, North Hampshire

Who are we? Circle Health is a company that runs hospitals and health services in the UK. We
were founded in 2004, and we are different to most healthcare organisations
for three reasons.

 We have an open and honest culture, which allows our employees to

feel empowered and a Circle credo which all our employees are aligned
to.

 We run healthcare in a new way: we put front-line clinicians, doctors

and nurses in charge. By giving them responsibility and freedom, we
believe they will run more effective, safe and caring services.

 And finally, we run some completely new types of service. We built

independent hospitals which pioneered five-star hospitality in the UK,
and we’re the only organisation running some innovative types of work
in the NHS, like our Bedfordshire musculoskeletal contract.

Role summary This role is a key role within Circle. Circle’s unique differences are its clinical
leadership approach, and the principle of putting the “power to make a
difference at the front line”. This means that everyone in Circle has a role to
play in making a difference for patients, partners, and the economic
performance of the business.

This First Contact Practitioner role is intended to support the development of

the North Hampshire MSK service and the GPs management of MSK conditions
countywide.

The role will support the clinical team in ensuring appropriate triage and
frontline management for patients in the primary care (GP) part of the system,
with a particular focus on providing frontline triage, together with
 collaborating with GPs and educating them about the system, capturing
feedback and supporting GP engagement.

Provide clinical expertise, acting as first-contact physiotherapist and making

decisions
about the best course of action for patients' care (including in relation to
undifferentiated
Conditions). This will involve seeing patients, without prior contact with their
GP, in order
to establish a rapid and accurate diagnosis and management plan.

Deliver programmes of supported patient self-management, in ways that

facilitate
behavioural change, optimise individuals' physical activity, mobility, fulfilment
of
personal goals and independence, and that minimise the need for
pharmacological
interventions

The role will also include involvement in our shared decision making service,
which supports patients in making decisions about their healthcare and
treatment options.

You may also be required to carry out some Traditional MSK physiotherapy
clinical work as part of your weekly caseload.

You will participate in our clinician CPD programme, where you will receive one
on one mentorship from an experienced clinician to help develop your skills and
clinical reasoning as well as attend more structured CDP events

It is expected that this role is platform for career development into and
Advanced Physiotherapy Practitioner (APP) role.

Main duties and Key responsibilities:

responsibilities
 Undertake frontline triage of MSK patients instead of and on behalf of a GP

 To assess MSK patients in GP surgeries utilising high level of clinical

reasoning and MSK experience, in order to appropriately provide self-
management and referral into the hub.

 To attend GP forums and practice meetings to update them on the service

and support them with utilising the service

 To communicate with and feedback to the clinical, triage and admin teams
at the hub with regard to patient referrals and to gain information about
service development to feedback to them

 To build relationships with a wide number of GP surgeries utilising an open,

professional and collaborative leadership style

 To work closely with Advanced Physiotherapy Practitioners (APPs) to

develop the service, the role and patient pathways with information
gathered, and analysed

 To carry a small caseload of MSK Physiotherapy patients

 To support the design of GP education events from observations of high

volume MSK conditions in primary care
 Additional responsibilities

 Time to be split 0.8 clinical and 0.2 managerial/admin

 Overall responsibility for the CIC Physiotherapy team based on local site

 Direct line management of the Senior Physiotherapists within team

 Organisation of Physiotherapy team meetings

 Day to day oversight of services such as physiotherapy clinics, Physioline,

Nordic, and Escape pain groups

 Monitoring diary utilisation, wait times, staff rota organisaiton, and dealing
with queries relating to the Circle Physiotherapy service

 Report into the clinical lead and work with them to plan local service
development, staffing and recruitment relating to the Physiotherapy team

 Assisting the Clinical Lead in ensuring KPI’s are met for the service

 Monitoring diary utilisation, wait times, staff rota organisation and dealing
with queries relating to the Circle Physiotherapy service

 Report into the clinical lead and work with them to plan local service
development, staffing and recruitment relating to the Physiotherapy team

 Assisting the Clinical Lead in ensuring KPI’s are met for the service

Safeguarding 1. All employees and volunteers working within Circle have a responsibility
children and for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable
adults. Initial and refresher training is available to enable you to
vulnerable understand and carry out your duties in relation to safeguarding.
adults

Health and safety  To take reasonable care to prevent injury to themselves or others who may
be affected by their acts or omissions.
 To co-operate fully in discharging the Circle policies and procedures with
regard to health and safety matters.
 To immediately report to their manager any shortcomings in health and
safety procedures and practice.
 To report any accidents or dangerous incidents to their line manager and
safety representative as early as possible.
 To use protective clothing and equipment where provided.

Compliance Circle provides NHS care under Standard Acute contract and is currently
responsibilities registered and monitored by CCG through their contracts. Its activity is
and regulated and monitored by the Care Quality Commission; consequently the
confidentiality post holder is expected to work in compliance with the Health and Social Care
Act 2012 (Regulated Activities), the Care Quality Commission (Registration)
Regulations 2014 and other relevant and subsequent legislation.

The post holder must maintain confidentiality of information about staff,

patients and Circle business activities and are expected to respect the
requirements under the General Data Protection Regulation 2018 and Access to
Health Records Act (1990) and any new appropriate legislation that affects safe
patient care within their sphere of working.

Comply with Circle’s Information Security Management Policies, a copy of

 which is available online in Insight, to ensure that information systems such as
the internet, intranet access, e-mail, desktop systems, and mobiles are used in
a professional manner for business purposes only. Information held on such
systems must be treated as confidential, especially where that information
relates to patients.

The post holder will comply with all Infection Prevention and Control policies
and take the appropriate action fitting their role to actively prevent or reduce
the incidence of healthcare associated infections.

Staff have a responsibility to reduce and recycle waste and save energy and
water.

Undertake initial and refresher mandatory training to ensure compliance at all

times

This job description is not an exhaustive list of duties but is intended to give a general indication
of the current range of work undertaken and will vary in detail in the light of changing demands
and priorities within Circle.
Person specification
Person Essential Desirable
specification

Qualifications  Experienced MSK Physiotherapist (at least 3  Physio Direct or similar

and previous years MSK outpatient experience)
 Master’s degree / MACP
experience
 HCPC registered
 Leadership qualifications
 Physiotherapy diploma / degree
 Evidence of previous research
 Evidence of continuing professional
development in relevant clinical and  Knowledge of any clinical
management areas systems, e.g. EMIS

 Clinical leadership  Experience in managing a

budget
 Clinical supervision / mentoring
 Working with GPs
 Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Chronic
pain

 Clinical triage of referrals (paper based)

Skills,  Advanced clinical reasoning skills  A detailed understanding of the

abilities Health Systems and
 Clinical governance Management
and
behaviours  Presentation skills and project planning  A full understanding of patient
confidentiality regulations
 Excellent time management, conflict
resolution and negotiation

 Project and change management

 Reflective practice

 Formal teaching skills

 Interpersonal and communication skills

 Able to work under pressure and to

deadlines

 Able to prioritise

 Able to respond to the demands of the

service

 Enthusiastic, motivated and innovative

I confirm that I have read all the information detailed in this Job Description / Person
Specification and understand what is expected of me:

Signed

Postholder…………………………………………………………. Date…………………………………

Signed
Manager……………………………………………………………… Date………………………………..