Clinical Nurse Manager 2
Job Specification
Job Title and Grade
Complex Discharge Co-ordinator
Clinical Nurse Manager 2, (Grade Code 2119)
Campaign Reference
NRS1168
Closing Date
Tuesday 1st July 2014 @ 12 noon
Taking up Appointment
A start date will be indicated at job offer stage.
Organisational Area
Health Service Executive (HSE), Dublin North East
Location of Post
Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Louth Meath Hospital Group
Details of Service
Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, Drogheda is a 352 bed acute hospital catering for
the population of counties Louth, Meath, and areas of Cavan Monaghan and North
Dublin.
Reporting Relationship
The Complex Discharge Co-ordinator will report to the Director of Transformation
Department and General Manager. He/ She will be clinically governed by the
Director of Nursing.
Purpose of the Post
To ensure;
 Effective discharge and transfer of patients from Our Lady of Lourdes and
Louth County Hospital to their place of residence / community or other
appropriate setting utilising a multi-disciplinary approach.
 Nursing and other professional staffs are empowered to establish effective
and appropriate discharge arrangements for in-patients.
 An integrated person centred approach is adopted in discharge patients
which considers and responds to the holistic needs of individuals admitted to
and discharged from Louth Hospitals.
 Processes are in place to support the smooth and timely transition of
individuals from hospital to alternative settings appropriate to their needs and
preferences that support the continuity of care, as appropriate.
Principal Duties &
Responsibilities
The Complex Discharge Co-ordinator must:

Promote a culture of person centered integrated working in relation to
discharge planning that promotes a “home first” ethos, i.e. focuses on the
delivery of supports/services in the home and from the community.

Ensure that an action plan for discharge is agreed for all complex discharge
patients as soon as possible after admission which clearly defines a predicted
discharge date.

Ensure that all staff are clear and accountable in relation to their
responsibilities to facilitate and ensure effective discharge across the
hospitals.
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Ensure that patients and families/carers are fully involved and have a clear
understanding with regard to the patients discharge plans at all stages of the
patient’s journey.
Facilitating patient choice as appropriate in accordance with patient needs.
Empowering and working with all staff to facilitate the realisation of their
responsibilities in relation to discharge planning.
Attend and lead Multidisciplinary meetings. Ensure processes are in place for
local staff and broader multidisciplinary team (including Primary, Community
and Continuing Care (PCCC) service representatives as appropriate) to
participate in multidisciplinary ward meetings/discharge planning
processes/ward rounds/case conferences as required.
Promote a culture of multidisciplinary team working to support discharge
planning and continuity of care within the hospitals with all PCCC Services,
Transitional Care Coordinators, Liaison Public Health Nurses and others in
relation to complex patient discharge planning.
Ensure that services provided before patient admission are reactivated to
support discharge as appropriate.
Coordinate the provision of assisted discharge packages to facilitate timely
and safe discharge of patients.
Ensure unplanned and complex discharges are notified to PCCC and other
appropriate personnel.
Provide education and training of all staff in relation to discharge planning
and participating in joint acute/PCCC training initiatives.
Monitor and audit Predicted Date of Discharge (PDD) for complex discharges
on an ongoing basis.
Monitoring lengths of stay in context of PDD and readmission rates of
complex discharges.
Support the processes of developing and implementing discharge planning
procedures taking cognisance of the Integrated Care Guidelines – A Practical
Guild to Discharge and Transfer from Hospital 2014.
Participate in the setting and monitoring of standards and contribute to
auditing as required. This applies in particular to the auditing of delayed
discharges and re-admissions including liaising with multi-disciplinary teams
to examine reasons for same.
Participate in patient flow meetings and management of patient status boards
/ escalation where appropriate.
Maintain an up-to-date database of bed availability in LCH / Transitional Care
services and other settings. Co-ordinate the referral of patients to these
services.
Assist with implementation of the national clinical programmes as they pertain
to Elderly care. Initiate and contribute to research and apply research to
practice in link.
Adhere to agreed hospital policy and procedures.
Accept responsibility for own continuing professional development.
Keep abreast of changes in discharge planning best practice and up to date
regarding available PCCC Supports and Services.
Attend and participate in any in-service training identified as appropriate by
Line Manager.
Hygiene, Infection Prevention and Control (all staff)

Implement best practice in relation to hygiene, infection prevention and
control, adhere to all relevant policies, protocols, procedures and guidelines,
carry out and comply with audits/evaluations of the service and act as a role
model in the promotion of good hygiene, infection prevention and control
standards and practices.
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Health & Safety (all staff)
 Comply with health and safety responsibilities as set out in the hospital's
policies and procedures, principally the Hospital and Departmental Safety
Statements.
Discharge Planning (all staff)

Implement and support work practices in accordance with the HSE Code of
Practice for Integrated Discharge Planning (2008) and local policies,
procedures and guidelines. He / she is also responsible to implement, as
appropriate, the specific key tasks for the Standard Admission and Discharge
Process as per the Code of Practice.
The above Job Description is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all
duties involved and consequently, the post holder may be required to
perform other duties as appropriate to the post which may be assigned
to him/her from time to time and to contribute to the development of the
post while in office.
Eligibility Criteria
Qualifications and/ or
experience
Candidates at the closing date and time must:
be registered in the General Division of the Register of Nurses kept by the Nursing
& Midwifery Board of Ireland or be entitled to be so registered*
and
Have at least 5 years post registration experience of which 2 must be in the
speciality or related area i.e. Discharge Planning and Management of beds.
and
Have the clinical, managerial and administrative capacity to properly discharge the
functions of the role
and
Demonstrate evidence of continuing professional development at the appropriate
level.
*Note: Post holders must maintain annual registration with Bord Altranais agus
Cnáimhseachais na hÉireann (Nursing Midwifery Board Ireland)
Health
A candidate for and any person holding the office must be fully competent and
capable of undertaking the duties attached to the office and be in a state of health
such as would indicate a reasonable prospect of ability to render regular and
efficient service.
Character
Each candidate for and any person holding the office must be of good character
Age
Age restrictions shall only apply to a candidate where he/she is not classified as a
new entrant (within the meaning of the Public Service Superannuation Act, 2004).
A candidate who is not classified as a new entrant must be under 65 years of age.
Post Specific
Requirements
Demonstrate depth and breadth of experience in discharge co-ordinating, as
relevant to this post.
Skills, competencies
and/or knowledge
Candidates must demonstrate:
 Knowledge of the FAIR Deal application process and the range of
available primary, community and continuing care supports and services.
 Knowledge and experience of person centred approach to service
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delivery.
the ability to lead on clinical practice and service quality
promotion of evidence-based decision making
practitioner competence and professionalism
the ability to plan organise effectively
the ability to build, lead and manage a team
strong interpersonal skills including the ability to build and maintain
relationships within the multi-disciplinary team.
strong communication and influencing skills
initiative and innovation in the delivery of service
resilience and composure
openness to change including change management experience in
facilitating and introducing improved systems of operating and proving the
benefits of changes to services
integrity and ethical stance
a commitment to continuing professional development
the ability to relate nursing research to practice including the ability to
critically appraise relevant literature pertaining to service area
knowledge of quality assurance practices and their application to nursing
procedures
an awareness of Human Resource policies and procedures including
disciplinary procedures, managing attendance etc.
an awareness of relevant legislation and policy e.g. legislation relevant to
the service area, health and safety, infection control etc.
an awareness of current and emerging nursing strategies and policies in
relation to the clinical / designated area
Information Technology skills relevant to the role including; proficiency of
computer skills inclusive of Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, email, the
Internet as a research tool and the ability to present data in print and graph
format.
ability to use relevant databases.
Campaign Specific
Selection Process
Short listing may be carried out on the basis of information supplied in your
application form. The criteria for short listing are based on the requirements of the
post as outlined in the “eligibility criteria” and “skills, competencies and/ or
knowledge” section of this job specification. Therefore it is very important that you
think about your experience in light of those requirements. Failure to include
information regarding these requirements may result in you not being called
forward to the next stage of the selection process.
Code of Practice
The Health Service Executive will run this campaign in compliance with the Code
of Practice prepared by the new Commissioners for Public Service Appointments
(CPSA).
Codes of practice are published by the CPSA and are available on
www.careersinhealthcare.ie in the document posted with each vacancy entitled
“Code of Practice, information for candidates or on www.cpsa-online.ie
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Terms and Conditions of Employment
Complex Discharge Co-ordinator
Tenure
The appointment is whole-time, permanent and pensionable.
A panel will be formed from which permanent and specified purpose vacancies of
whole or part time duration will be filled.
Appointment as an employee of the Health Service Executive is governed by the
Health Act 2004 and the Public Service Management (Recruitment and
Appointment) Act 2004.
Remuneration
The Salary scale for the post (1/10/10) is: Euro 47,089 – 47,886, - 48,559 –
49,659 – 50,874 – 52,067 – 53,260 – 54,604 – 55,852
Working Week
The standard working week applying to the post is: 39 hours per week
Annual Leave
The annual leave associated with the post is to be confirmed at job offer stage.
Superannuation
All pensionable staff become members of the pension scheme.
Probation
Every permanent appointment of a person who is not already a permanent officer
of the Health Service Executive or of a Local Authority shall be subject to a
probationary period of 12 months as stipulated in the Department of Health
Circular No.10/71.
Probation
Every appointment of a person who is not already a permanent officer of the
Health Service Executive or of a Local Authority shall be subject to a
probationary period of 12 months as stipulated in the Department of Health
Circular No.10/71.
Protection of Persons
Reporting Child Abuse
Act 19981
As this post is one of those designated under the Protection of Persons Reporting
Child Abuse Act 1998, appointment to this post appoints one as a designated
officer in accordance with Section 2 of the Act. You will remain a designated
officer for the duration of your appointment to your current post or for the duration
of your appointment to such other post as is included in the categories specified in
the Ministerial Direction. You will receive full information on your responsibilities
under the Act on appointment.
Infection Control
Have a working knowledge of Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA)
Standards as they apply to the role for example, Standards for Healthcare,
National Standards for the Prevention and Control of Healthcare Associated
Infections, Hygiene Standards etc.
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