Specialist Nurse Clinical lead

We are looking for a dynamic, enthusiastic, resilient and dedicated nurse and AHP Operational Manager to join our integrated nursing and therapy Urgent Community Response team team in Islington, North London, to lead the daily clinical and operational staff management. This is a fast-paced but rewarding role that would suit an experienced nurse or AHP who has a background in acute, community or significant experience in other urgent and emergency response teams.

This role will provide an opportunity for new challenged and on-going development in a multi-disciplinary innovative, supportive and friendly team who work closely with community and NHS services to prevent admission to hospital and support hospital discharge.

The post holder will be operationally and financially accountable to the Urgent Response Service Manager for the development and delivery of the Islington Urgent Community Response Team

To deputise for the Urgent Response Service Manager as necessary.

To lead on the continuing development of Urgent Response areas in the light of current health strategies and improve integrated working with other agencies e.g. Discharge to Assess

To be accountable for the delivery of Urgent Response services. This will include ensuring clinical standards of practice, advising or leading on recruitment and retention of staff in these teams, and giving professional advice to other service managers.

To be an effective change agent, bringing about service development by proactively seeking out new methods of working, initiating changes in policy or procedures, and reviewing the skill mix within the teams.

To coordinate and ensure the delivery of ongoing training for all staff members under your management and or supervision and to ensure equity and opportunity of access to training.

To foster cross-professional working with professionals across the Trust in order to improve patient delivery and care, including developing training, liaison and joint working.

Whittington Health serves a richly diverse population and works hard to ensure that all our services are fair and equally accessible to everyone. Nowhere is this more obvious than in the way we look after our staff. We aim to employ a workforce which is as representative as possible of this population, so we are open to the value of differences in age, disability, gender, marital status, pregnancy and maternity, race, sexual orientation, and religion or belief.

The Trust believes that as a public sector organisation we have an obligation to have recruitment, training, promotion and other formal employment policies and procedures that are sensitive to these differences. We think that by doing so, we are better able to treat our patients as well as being a better place to work.

Please refer to JD for duties, responsibilities and key relationships of the post-

MAIN DUTIES

1. Patient Care and Neighbourhood Clinical Leadership

• Provide senior clinical leadership within the ICAT Frailty Team, acting as the Lead Nurse for neighbourhood-based frailty care.
• Practise with a high level of autonomy, within agreed competence, taking responsibility for complex clinical decision-making and escalation to senior ICAT clinicians as required.
• Lead the identification, assessment, and proactive management of rising clinical risk within the neighbourhood, ensuring timely intervention and clear escalation where risk thresholds are met avoiding unnecessary admissions.
• Lead the triage and prioritisation of referrals, ensuring patients are directed to the most appropriate pathway within the neighbourhood model.
• Undertake Comprehensive Geriatric Assessment (CGA), including detailed history-taking from patients and carers, physical examination, functional assessment, and interpretation of clinical findings.
• Demonstrate expert knowledge of frailty syndromes, dementia, delirium, falls, pressure damage, incontinence, malnutrition, self-neglect, and polypharmacy, and their impact on quality of life.
• Assess, diagnose, and contribute to the management of older people with complex acute and chronic conditions in community, neighbourhood, and acute settings, supporting care closer to home wherever possible.
• Lead and contribute to case conferences, family meetings, and multidisciplinary decision-making, ensuring coordinated, person‑centred care.
• Undertake mental state and cognitive assessments, applying the Mental Capacity Act, best interest decision-making, and behaviour support strategies confidently.
• Lead clinical risk assessment and management planning, supporting safe discharge and admission avoidance.
• Maintain high-quality clinical documentation and provide leadership to ensure consistent standards across the team.
• Work collaboratively with consultants, GPs, neighbourhood teams, and system partners to agree and deliver integrated care plans.
• Organise and chair regular governance meetings for the team

Education, Leadership, and Workforce Development

Act as a visible…