HCA/ Multi-Task Attendant

Principal Duties and Responsibilities 

Patient Care:

·        Nursing staff will delegate patient care duties in accordance with their professional judgement and within the competence of the Multi-Task attendant

·        Patients/clients may require assistance in some or all activities of daily living. It is the duty of the nurse to assess, plan, implement and evaluate the care required by the patient. The primary role of the Multi-Task attendant is to assist the nurse in the implementation of the care, as determined by the Registered Nurse.

·        The transporting of patients, either in beds, on trolleys, in wheelchairs or walking

·        When necessary to remain with patients in these areas and to assist patients.

·        Communicate any observations on the patients to the nursing staff.

·        Answer patient call bells when nursing staff are busy.

·        To assist nursing staff with moving and handling of patients.

·        To assist male/female patients with their personal care, toileting and bathing as requested by the patient or nursing staff.

·        To assist with the preparation of patients for surgery as instructed by the PIC.

·        Transfer of equipment as required.

·        To be aware of safety issues pertaining to patients and colleagues.

·        To adhere to Infection Control Guidelines

·        To adhere to all Oaklodge Guidelines

·        Participating in the social and activity programmes in the Care of the Elderly setting

·        Refer all queries to the nurse in charge

·        Report any incident or potential incident which may compromise the health and safety of patients, staff or visitors and take appropriate action.

·        Multi Task Attendants should conduct themselves in a manner that conveys respect of the individual and ensures safe patient care, including confidentiality, courtesy, accountability, communication, dignity, privacy, health and safety.

Catering Duties:

·        Assist with patient preparation for mealtimes i.e. patient’s are made comfortable and prepare bed table area for tray service.

·        Distribute jugs of water / ice and glasses to the patient’s morning and evening and as required.

·        Distribute, input details and collect menu cards from the patients daily.

·        Assist with increasing awareness of Protected Mealtimes and the National Visitors Guidelines

·        Record patients’ dietary requirements on summary sheet for main kitchen.

·        Ensure that bed tables are cleaned prior to and after food service.

·        Assist patients with feeding at mealtimes in consultation with CMN or Nurse in charge at mealtimes, and monitor food intake. Record/ report as required.

·        Assist with the preparation and presentation of food, make beverages, snacks, sandwiches etc as required and serve.

·        Liaise with CNM /Dietician on patient requirements.

·        Collect food trolleys and ensure trays/ trolleys are prepared for meal service in accordance with best practice for patients.

·        Ensure appropriate serving utensils are used at all meal times in line with best practice.

·        Carry out and record food temperature checks before serving to the patient at meal times and record on temperature charts.

·        Record fridge temperature morning and evening and document, report any variances and take action.

·        Order / Record food stock levels for patients from the main

·        Ensure pantry and equipment i.e. microwave, toaster etc are cleaned in line with cleaning manual and pantry cleaning checklist is signed off.

·        Ensure that after each food service, catering trolley is cleaned down in the main wash up area and set up for next meal service.

·        Ensure that segregation of food waste and paper is in line with food waste and waste segregation procedures.

·        Report and label equipment breakdowns, and fill in appropriate requisition form with CNM/Nurse in Charge.

·        Adhere to Oaklodge Catering and Hygiene policies.

·        Protective clothing to be worn while on duty.

·        Acquaint themselves with a knowledge of Health & Safety/Food Hygiene legislation

·        Ensure work practice is in line with all hygiene and Health and Safety procedures, including HACCP guidelines.

Waste & Laundry

·        Laundry bags not to be overfilled.

·        Appropriate procedure and guidelines to be followed for infected laundry.

·        Bags to be stored in the designated areas.

·        Clean laundry to be stored in the appropriate place.

·        Linen rooms to be kept clean and tidy at all times and linen trolleys prepared for bed making.

·        Collecting and tagging of household and clinical waste accumulated during the day and removal to designated areas.

·        Maintain safe work practices.

·        To handle domestic waste and clinical waste and ensure correct disposal to prevent cross infection.

·        Universal precautions to be taken with the handling and disposal of clinical waste

General Cleaning:

·        Responsible for the general cleaning of the Nursing Home and areas as identified by the PIC.

·        Ensure the agreed standard of cleanliness and Hygiene are maintained in all areas by using the approved cleaning materials.

·        Use and care of cleaning equipment as trained.

·        Be responsible for the segregation and safe disposable of waste to designated areas.

·        Perform daily or evening cleaning of, bathrooms, toilets, walls, floors, corridors, beds patient equipment and household and clinical waste bins.

·        Perform daily or evening Deep clean /isolation cleaning of assigned areas by manual cleaning and machine cleaning.

·        Complete Cleaning Checklists as cleaning is carried out.

·        Ensure all cleaning documentation is kept up to date and available for inspection e.g. cleaning checks, Bed cleaning programme, Ensure cleaning supplies are used economically and replenished

·        Ensure patient’s property is respected at all times.

·        Report any equipment faults to person in charge.

·        Check and clean specified equipment and ensure instructions are followed during operation and maintenance.

·        To use designated cleaning products with caution, following guidelines appropriate to their use and ensuring all cleaning materials are used economically. Products will be kept in a locked cupboard/ room when not in use. These supplies should be monitored to ensure appropriate stock levels are maintained.

·        Immediate attention to be given to all spillage’s including tea, coffee, water, urine, faeces, vomit etc in order to reduce the risk of accidents.

·        Use of floor scrubber and buffering of designated floor areas on the units.

·        Adherence to Health and Safety Guidelines and the use of Hazard signs.



Operational:

·        Be courteous and helpful to patients and their relatives and respect each other person’s privacy and dignity at all times.

·        Present to work wearing the agreed attire and identification, having regard to the highest standard of attire and personal hygiene

·        Allocation to various units on rotation and will be required to perform day and night duty.

·        Acquaint themselves with Health & Safety at Work guidelines and obligations including e-learning programmes on HSELand

·        Ensure an adequate knowledge of the emergency action and fire Plan

·        Co-operate with periodic medical checks as required

·        Conduct his / herself in a manner that conveys respect of the individual and ensures safe client / patient care

·        Report any incident or potential incident which may compromise the health and safety of clients / patients, staff or visitors to the person in charge and take appropriate action

·        To attend meetings as required by the Unit Managers and Management Team in the Nursing Home  with a view to maintaining high standards, open communication amongst staff and good levels of staff morale.

·        To attend and reach an acceptable standard of performance in courses internal and external and as designated appropriate by the employing authority.

·        Understand and adhere to all Oaklodge policies, guidelines and procedures

·        Not undertake any duty related to client / patient care for which he/she is not trained

·        Apply precautions at all times to minimise the risks of cross infection e.g. clean up any spillages of bodily fluids

·        Ensure that all equipment is stored and cleaned correctly, and storage areas are kept clean and tidy

·        Follow Oaklodge Policy with regard to confidentially in relation to patient care.

·        In accordance with Health and Safety at work policy, it is each staff members responsibility to observe all rules relating to Health and Safety and Conduct at Work and to use any equipment provided in a safe and responsible manner.

·        Participate in appropriate in-service training sessions including fire safety, moving techniques in patients care, hand hygiene and any other such sessions as organised by Oaklodge management.

·        Be able to work as part of a team.

·        Have knowledge of the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) standards as they apply to the role.

·        To be aware of fire precautions and procedures and attend fire drills once a year.

·        To be aware of infection control procedures

·        Complaints Procedures

·        Incident and Accident reporting

·        Nursing Home  Risk Management

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.

Requirements:

·        Fluent In English

·        FETAC/QQI Level 5 Certificate in Health Service Skills or Healthcare Support (preferred but not essential)

·        Leaving Certificate or equivalent

·        Previous experience in a caring role