Job summary
- Main area
- Older Persons Services (DOPS)
- Grade
- Band 8a
- Contract
- Fixed term: 12 months (Maternity Cover)
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week (Day shifts only. No night shifts)
- Job ref
- 249-7360180
- Employer
- Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- The Great Western Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
- Town
- Swindon
- Salary
- £55,690 - £62,682 per annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 26/08/2025 23:59
Employer heading

Advanced Clinical Practitioner (DOPS)
Band 8a
Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is a unique organisation, serving as the sole integrated provider in the Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon, and Wiltshire system. Our scope extends beyond boundaries as we oversee adult community services in Swindon and provide acute care from the Great Western Hospital.
Our 5,500 staff have 1.2m patient contacts a year, with 13,000 operations carried out in our Theatres, around 4,000 babies born, and our emergency attendances are now well over 100,000 per year. Those numbers only tell part of our story about what an exciting time it is to join Great Western Hospitals.
We are cultivating a culture that fosters our ambitions, prioritising equality, diversion, inclusion, wellbeing, and leadership. We aim to create an environment where every member of our team can truly thrive.
The Trust is a Disability Confident Employer; all applicants who have a disability can opt to be considered under the guaranteed interview scheme, which means that, providing they meet the minimum essential criteria for the post, they will be offered an interview. We are also proudly accredited as a Veteran Aware organisation and have signed The Armed Forces Covenant.
If we receive a high volume of applications, we may close adverts prior to the published closing date. Therefore, we advise you to complete and submit your application as soon as possible.
Job overview
Are you looking for the next challenge in your career as an ACP?
An exciting opportunity has arisen within the Department of Older Persons Services at Great Western Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. We are looking for a qualified ACP who is dynamic and enthusiastic with a passion to provide high quality care to meet individual needs of the older patient.
This will be 12 months fixed term cover for maternity leave.
Older Person ACP representation is required to support the transformational development of the delivery of a comprehensive multi-disciplinary service that is holistic in it’s approach and evidence based.
The successful applicant will work closely with the Matron, Head of service and Clinical Lead to proactively manage older adults in the acute setting.
You will be instrumental in embedding an improved and consistent approach to assess and identify patients with frailty at the /front door’ ensuring they receive a comprehensive geriatric assessment. You will be responsible for ensuring that through triage and assessment, unnecessary base ward admissions will be avoided, and length of stay will be reduced.
Main duties of the job
As part of a multi – professional team the post holder will develop advanced clinical practice, aiming for autonomy and practicing collaboratively whilst demonstrating accountability and self-direction in line with the relevant code of professional conduct.
The post holder will become a clinical leader in their sphere of practice over a predefined period, enabling innovative solutions to the care and experience of practice. The post holder will ultimately demonstrate advanced levels of clinical judgement plus the use of specialised equipment and diagnostic reasoning in order to provide a differential diagnosis. The post holder will be able to work within a high-pressured environment with alacrity whilst providing safe care.
The post holder will develop knowledge and skills within a specified area enabling him/her to undertake advanced practice supported by a middle grade medical colleague. Additional skills and knowledge will be attained within their specialist area enabling the post holder to admit, discharge and review in- patients and also provide follow up care within outpatients where required.
Working for our organisation
Department of Older Persons Services (DOPS) is part of the Division of Medicine (DOM) and cover the Front Door assessment areas and Older Persons inpatient wards. We have the largest bed base in GWH and provide care and treatment to one of the most vulnerable patient groups. We run a Frailty Hot Clinic twice weekly and carry out Comprehensive Geriatric Assessments (CGA) to provide person centred care to our patient group.
As an ACP you will uphold the 4 pillars of advanced practice. You will be responsible for supporting and leading staff and ensuring high standards of care are delivered to all our patients. With proven physical assessment, diagnostic and prescribing skills you will be able to work both autonomously and as part of the wider team. As a strong clinical leader you will support the team in delivering safe and effective care on a daily basis. You will also support the senior management team in undertaking key projects and proactively identifying key areas for improvement of service delivery.
In return we are committed to supporting and developing you to get the most out of your role. We will offer you training opportunities, guidance and supervision to undertake the role effectively and support you in your career development.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
1. Take responsibility to autonomously manage a caseload of within specialist area. This will include follow up outpatient appointments and management of any investigative results to deliver a clear diagnosis to the patient and on-going management plan.
2. Use a diverse range of knowledge to become competent in evidence based therapeutic interventions, which will include prescribing medication where legally allowed and actively monitoring the effectiveness of therapeutic interventions.
3. Will develop skills and knowledge to be able to assess individuals and families using person-centred approaches and a range of assessment methods examples being history taking, physical examination, ordering and interpreting diagnostic tests or conducting health needs assessment. This will include independent examination of the patient and obtaining specimens.
4. To be conversant with the local and national policies relevant to advanced practice and the role of advanced clinical practitioner in specialist area.
5. Is expected to progress clinical expertise to support decision making, particularly where clinical presentations are not directly covered by standard protocol or where highly complex or unusual aspects require specialised outcomes.
6. The post holder will teach regularly on a range of subjects both locally and externally. This will be multi-disciplinary and will include the design, development and delivery of specialist training programmes.
7. Use a range of IT systems which require the inputting of data, maintain patient records, whilst requesting and interpreting of diagnostics
Please see attached JD and person specification
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Registered Practitioner (NMC, HCPC
- Masters degree in Advanced Clinical Practice
- Registered NMP (dependant on role requirement)
- Relevant clinical courses to enable history taking and clinical examination, diagnostic reasoning and differential diagnosis or willing to work towards.
- Teaching and assessing qualification
Desirable criteria
- Relevant NHS leadership qualification or working towards
Experience
Essential criteria
- Significant experience in specialty at band 6 or above
- Clear and demonstrable evidence of competent practice in the management of patients
- Evidence of multi-professional, cross boundary, working
- Evidence of innovative practice developments
- Evidence of audit and actioned outcomes
Desirable criteria
- Evidence of research, either individual or as part of the team
- Evidence of publication
Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Marie Mowbray
- Job title
- Matron
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 01793 607333
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