Lead Speech and Language Therapist

Job Specifics

The client provides speech and language services for clients’ complex disabilities under the care. This will include;

• The assessment and treatment of language, speech, swallowing and associated cognitive communication disorders, and
• The provision of training and advice to colleagues, families and carers for the holistic treatment and management of clients.
• Working as a member of their specialist multi-disciplinary team to ensure the effective provision of speech and language therapy services for clients with complex disability.

ROLE RESPONSIBILITIES

• Reporting to the Head of Clinical Services you will hold accountability and responsibility for the SLT provision to all clients within our rehabilitation centre.
• Leading and managing a specialist SLT team in a brand new state of the art rehabilitation centre. The team comprises band 6 and band 5 SLTs, an SLT assistant and we are proactive to have students.
• To contribute to the continued development of a high quality SLT therapeutic service
• To provide specialist dysphagia assessment and intervention to clients who require, utilising competencies and experience at a senior practitioner level.
• To provide highly skilled communication assessment and intervention to all our clients with acquired brain injury, such as stroke, ABI and other neurological conditions, utilising competencies and experience at a senior practitioner level.
• 'Delivering 1:1 and group SLT sessions to a range of clients and creating accessible communication and swallowing guidance for the wider MDT.
• Conducting skilled mental capacity assessments independently or jointly with other professionals, as appropriate.
• Having a ‘key-worker’ role – managing and overseeing a specific client’s whole journey, liaising with families, being a single point of contact for all queries, co-ordinating care and discharge packages.
• Advocating on clients’ behalf in a range of situations, eg. when writing reports, CHC forms and complex DST meetings where highly skilled reporting and ability to deal with questioning is necessary.
• Closely working with the wider multi-disciplinary team – PTs, OTs, Psychology team, dietitian, nursing, carers, kitchen staff, activity co-ordinators. Also working with outside agencies, such as social workers, safeguarding, expert witnesses, lawyers, neuro-navigators, DST assessors.
• Working with the Head of Clinical Services and senior management on service development, quality improvement projects and clinical audit
• Providing clinical supervision and expert advice to SLT staff as well as SLT students on placement.
• Responsible for the recruitment within the SLT department with opportunity to support in the recruitment process of the wider staffing remit
• Managing the Speech and Language Therapy team to include sickness absence, performance, appraisals, probationary periods in line with their policy
• Supporting and leading on the emphasis on learning and reflective practice – within the SLT as well as wider team, providing and participating in training and learning.
• Actively jointly working with our catering company, manager and dietitian to provide high standard of catering in line with IDDSI framework