Nursing Associate - Physical Health Practitioner | South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
| Posting date: | 03 March 2026 |
|---|---|
| Salary: | Not specified |
| Additional salary information: | £32,199 - £34,876 per annum Incl. HCAs |
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 02 April 2026 |
| Location: | Beckenham, BR3 3BX |
| Company: | South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | 7761951/334-NUR-7761951-FR |
Summary
South London & Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLaM) is recruiting two enthusiastic and motivated Nurse Associates to join the Forensic Directorate Physical Health Team on a full‑time basis, working Monday to Friday, 09:00–17:00.
In these key roles, you will help deliver high‑quality, safe and person‑centred physical healthcare to individuals within secure inpatient forensic settings as well as community forensic teams. Core responsibilities include providing clinical assessments, supporting health‑promotion initiatives, running delegated physical‑health clinics, contributing to risk assessment and relational security, partnering with primary care and community services, and maintaining excellent EPR documentation in line with Trust and NMC standards.
You will work closely with service users, carers, multidisciplinary teams, primary care colleagues, community partners, AHPs, psychology and medical teams, and security staff, ensuring coordinated, holistic, and safe physical‑health care across the forensic care pathway.
This is an exciting opportunity to be part of a specialist team committed to improving physical‑health outcomes, addressing health inequalities, strengthening pathways with primary care, and contributing to SMI physical‑health KPI performance.
This role is central to delivering high‑quality, safe and person‑centred physical healthcare within both secure inpatient forensic environments and community forensic teams. You will play a key part in improving physical‑health outcomes and reducing inequalities for people with complex needs.
As a Physical Health Practitioner, you will provide:
• Clinical assessments and delegated physical‑health clinics
• Health‑promotion interventions
• Contributions to risk assessment and relational security
• Liaison with primary care and wider system partners
• High‑quality and accurate EPR documentation in line with Trust and NMC standards.
Your work will support:
• • Safer, more effective physical‑health pathways
• Strengthened links with primary care
• Delivery of SMI physical‑health KPI compliance
We are committed to ensuring our staff get the most out of their benefits package and understand the importance of a healthy work life balance. There is an extensive range of excellent benefits for you and your family. We want you to feel like you are part of a close-knit team at SLaM. It’s important to us that you valued and appreciated and that are why we have a comprehensive benefits package on offer Some of our benefits are highlighted here:
• Generous pay, pensions and leave, we offer a comprehensive pay, pensions and leave package which is dependent on the role and length of service.
• Work life balance, flexible working and support a range of flexible options, such as part-time working and job sharing.
• Career development, there are plenty of opportunities to progress your career and we support your development through a number of programmes such as mentoring, coaching, positive people management, collective leadership and other talent programmes
• Car lease, our staff benefits from competitive deals to lease cars
• Accommodation, our staff benefits from keyworker housing available which is available on selected sites
• NHS discounts, with discounts up to 10% from a variety of well-known retail brands though Health Service Discounts website.
Other benefits include:
• Counselling services
• Wellbeing events
• Long service awards
• Cycle to work scheme
• Season ticket loan
• Staff restaurants
1) Clinical Assessment & Interventions
§ Run delegated physical‑health clinics (inpatient and community) including routine monitoring, long‑term condition reviews, antipsychotic/mood‑stabiliser monitoring, and annual SMI health checks; deliver within agreed protocols and document in EPR.
§ Undertake core observations and tests: vital signs, NEWS2 scoring and escalation, venepuncture, ECGs, urinalysis, POCT (e.g., capillary glucose), oxygen saturation, peak flow, and weight/BMI—ensuring device QC/calibration and safe phlebotomy practice.
§ Complete the 6 core elements of the annual SMI physical‑health check and arrange/support follow‑up interventions.
§ Provide lifestyle risk assessment and brief interventions: smoking (Very Brief Advice, NRT/other pharmacotherapy support and referral), physical activity, diet/weight management, alcohol and substance use, and sleep hygiene.
§ Deliver basic wound assessment/dressings and infection prevention & control measures under direction or supervision; escalate complex wounds to RN/TVN as per local policy.
§ Support vaccination programmes (after training/competency) in secure settings; ensure cold‑chain, consent documentation and data quality to national standards.
§ Undertake medicines tasks within NA scope (post‑competency sign‑off): administer delegated medicines, observe for side‑effects (e.g., metabolic/EPS), and escalate abnormalities; practise under local medicines governance and NMC standards.
§ Provide assertive outreach to engage hard‑to‑reach patients, coordinate practical access to clinics/bloods/ECGs, and follow up DNAs/WNBs with targeted solutions.
What good looks like
· NEWS2 documented for indicated observations with trigger‑appropriate escalation and time‑stamped responses.
· SMI checks include all 6 core elements with documented follow‑up interventions (e.g., lipid management referral, smoking support).
2) Risk, Legal Frameworks & Safeguarding
§ Operate within secure‑care procedures and relational security (See, Think, Act): maintain therapeutic boundaries, dynamic risk awareness and proactive de‑escalation across ward and community settings.
§ Recognize and act on deterioration using NEWS2 and soft‑signs; initiate escalation pathways and use structured communication (e.g., SBAR).
§ Apply MHA/MCA/DoLS principles: capacity assessments (decision/time‑specific), best‑interest actions, consent, information‑sharing and advocacy; document rationales and involve carers where appropriate.
§ Safeguarding: identify risks to adults/children, follow local referral pathways, and ensure accurate, timely EPR documentation and appropriate information‑sharing.
What good looks like
· Capacity recorded for significant decisions with clear best‑interest rationale when required; MHA/MCA references cited in notes.
· Relational security actions (observation quality, activity engagement, boundary clarity) explicitly documented in risk plans.
3) Person‑Centered Care, Communication & EPR
§ Build therapeutic relationships; co‑produce care plans and health goals that reflect preferences and legal status; provide accessible education resources.
§ Coordinate with GPs/practice nurses/dentists for annual health checks, LTC reviews, screening and immunisations; ensure safe transfer of results and actions.
§ Deliver documentation excellence: contemporaneous, legible and coded EPR entries; results tracking; action plans; safety‑netting advice; and data required for SMI KPI reporting.
What good looks like
· For every clinic contact: reason for contact, assessment, interventions, outcomes, safety‑netting and next steps captured; shared with GP when appropriate.
4) Teamworking, Leadership & Supervision
§ Work autonomously within NA scope under RN/clinician oversight; escalate atypical findings and clinical concerns promptly.
§ Contribute to MDTs: present physical‑health updates in ward rounds/CPA/MAPPA/transition meetings; ensure actions translate into care plans.
§ Support others’ learning induction and day‑to‑day supervision of HCAs/trainees/students; model safe practice in clinics and on the ward.
5) Quality Improvement (QI), Service Development & Governance
§ Contribute to and support PH Lead and Matrons in leading QI projects, pathway redesign and clinical governance (audits, incident reviews, AARs), embedding continuous improvement.
§ Compile, update and disseminate protocols for the medical suites and physical health clinics; ensure risk assessments are current and acted upon.
§ Work with the Physical Health Lead in ensuring contracts with external stakeholders relating to Physical Health delivery ree.g. Mobile Dentist, GP, Chiropodist etc.; manage resources and equipment.
What good looks like
• Clear escalation logs and learning notes captured in supervision records and QI huddles.
6)Professional Standards, Quality & Development
§ Practice to NMC Standards & The Code; maintain a CPD/revalidation portfolio.
§ Participate in audit and QI (e.g., SMI check completion, cardiometabolic monitoring timeliness, vaccination uptake), incident reviews, and implement PDSA cycles.
§ Engage in reflective practice and clinical supervision; use structured reflective frameworks to consolidate learning from incidents/near‑misses.
What good looks like
· Personal CPD plan linked to role competencies (e.g., venipuncture, ECG, vaccination, wound care) with evidence in portfolio.
7) Service‑Specific Emphasis: Forensic Physical Health
§ Support the Smoking‑cessation lead in secure settings: deliver Very Brief Advice, arrange NRT/other pharmacotherapy as per local policy, monitor interactions (e.g., clozapine changes when stopping smoking), and link with tobacco‑dependence advisors through admission → discharge.
§ Vaccination drives (e.g., influenza/COVID‑19/hepatitis B): support consent, contraindication screening, post‑vaccine observation, data capture and recall systems; ensure training and cold‑chain integrity.
§ Apply See, Think, Act to everyday nursing interactions, balancing therapeutic engagement with safety; contribute to environmental and procedural security by timely reporting and accurate observation entries.
§ Support safe discharge planning and ongoing monitoring for forensic patients (e.g., liaison with FOLS/community forensic teams), ensuring continuity of physical‑health interventions in the community.
What good looks like
· End‑to‑end pathway evidence: admission SMI baseline → in‑stay interventions → discharge plan with GP actions and time‑bound follow‑ups booked.
8) General Requirements & Governance
• Uphold Trust values, EDI and confidentiality; comply with safeguarding and IPC policies; work flexibly across sites/rotas as required.
• Ensure data quality and accurate coding of clinics, tests, vaccinations and SMI elements to support ICS/Trust reporting.
• Ability to travel across multiple sites; meets occupational health requirements; satisfactory DBS.
This advert closes on Monday 16 Mar 2026