Trauma and Falls Occupational Therapist
| Posting date: | 04 February 2026 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | £38,682.00 to £46,580.00 per year |
| Additional salary information: | £38682.00 - £46580.00 a year |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 18 February 2026 |
| Location: | Taunton, TA1 5DA |
| Company: | NHS Jobs |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | C9184-26-0153 |
Summary
The post holder will assess patients to ensure they understand the Occupational Therapy treatment process and their participation within this process and gain valid, informed consent. The post holder will have the ability to work within a legal framework with patients who lack the capacity to consent to treatment. e.g. patients confused due to brain injury and will be expected to participate in the assessment of capacity, where relevant. The post holder will be in a static role in Surgical and Orthopaedic team. They may be required to offer advice and clinical support to these client groups on outlying wards. The postholder will set clear learning objectives and development opportunities. The post holder will undertake comprehensive Occupational Therapy assessments of patients by using both standardised and non standardised assessments to identify deficits and assess the patients occupational performance. The timing of the assessment will be driven by clinical need and with an awareness of targets. The post holder will be expected to use this assessment information to formulate treatment plans/early intervention for patients and allocate treatment sessions as appropriate for both themselves and support staff. These decisions will take into account National standards for Treatment, Trust priorities and Occupational Therapy Department priorities. They will use highly developed and specialist skills to treat patients on their caseload/Individualised treatment programmes could include a range of different modalities and clinical approaches e.g. functional activities such as kitchen and washing and dressing tasks, remedial activities to treat cognitive and perceptual problems and trials of postural seating to meet the positioning and seating needs of patients with changing muscle tone. The patients will usually present with diverse, complex or multiple pathologies. Treatment plans will consider patients own goals and those of the multidisciplinary team to predict achievable outcomes and recommend the best course of intervention. It will frequently require advanced communication and problem-solving skills. The post holder will be expected to evaluate treatment plans and make adaptation to the individual treatment programme as indicated. The post holder will be expected to advocate for the needs of the patients under their care. The post holder will also be responsible for advising and training patients, relatives and carers how to manage their long term conditions. The post holder will have to have high level communication and interpersonal skills to deal with these issues sensitively and may be subject to patients who challenge their decision making or who need specialist intervention to enable them to understand concepts. The post holder may have to deal with these issues autonomously or with the team. These issues often cause significant distress to patients and their families and can also affect the post holder. The post requires highly developed physical skills, mental effort and concentration to therapeutically handle patients for example with poor sitting balance or decreased tone. The post holder must be skilled in the use of specialist equipment used for manual handling and therapeutic activities including use of plinths, wheelchairs, specialised seating, hoists, standing aids and adaptive equipment. The post holder will have exposure to bodily fluids and human waste on a daily basis whilst treating incontinent patients on the ward. They may come into contact with vomit when carrying out various Occupational Therapy assessment and treatment activities. The post holder will adhere to Trust standards and protocols in the course of dealing with bodily fluids to minimise the risk of infection. The post holder will be expected to carry out home and community assessments as required. They will plan and implement the assessment of a patient within the home environment in accordance with departmental and trust policies. During the assessment the post holder will have sole responsibility for the patients. The post holder is involved with the clinical evaluation of the patients performance, including treatment goals and discharge planning. This may include advising patients and carers of the inability to return home or supporting a person home with managed risks, which can be distressing for all concerned. The post holder may be alone during home assessments in unpredictable environments where there may be an element of risk. This may include working in unclean surroundings and coming into contact with dirt, fleas and lice. The post holder may undertake daily therapeutic moving and handling with patients. This can include long term immobile and bariatric patients. The post holder will take patients on home visits when appropriate.