Guys and St Thomas is among the UKs busiest and most successful NHS foundation trusts. We provide a full range of hospital and community services for people in south London and as well as specialist care for patients from further afield including cancer, renal, orthopaedic, respiratory and cardiovascular services.

Guys is home to the largest dental school in Europe and a £160 million Cancer Centre opened in 2016. As part of our commitment to provide care closer to home, in 2017 we also opened a cancer centre and a kidney treatment centre at Queen Marys Hospital in Sidcup. St Thomas has one of the largest critical care units in the UK and one of the busiest emergency departments in London. It is also home to Evelina London Childrens Hospital.

Evelina London cares for local children in Lambeth and Southwark and provides specialist services across south east England including cardiac, renal and critical care services. We lead a number of specialist service networks aiming to ensure children are treated locally where possible, but have access to specialist expertise when they need it. Our community services include health visiting, school nursing and support for families of children with long-term conditions. 

Our adult community services teams deliver care at the heart of the local communities we serve, working in partnership with GPs, local authorities and other healthcare and voluntary sector organisations. Working with our partners in Lambeth and Southwark, we are focusing on new ways of working to improve care for local patients.

In February 2021 the Royal Brompton and Harefield joined Guys and St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust, bringing together world-leading expertise in the care and research of heart and lung disease. Our merger provides a once in a generation opportunity to build a lasting, world-renowned heart and lung centre, providing the highest quality care for patients and conducting world-leading research.

We have a reputation for clinical excellence and high quality teaching and research. We are part of Kings Health Partners, one of eight accredited UK academic health sciences centres. In partnership with Kings College London we have dedicated clinical research facilities and a National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Centre.

Patients are at the heart of everything we do and we pride ourselves on ensuring the best possible patient experience as well as safe, high quality care. We are proud to have one of the lowest mortality rates in the NHS. Following a comprehensive Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection in 2019 we maintained our overall rating of good. Our adult community services achieved a rating of outstanding.

The commitment of our 23,500 staff is key to our success. We are one of the largest local employers and we aim to develop and support all our staff so they are able to deliver high quality, safe and efficient care. The 2019 NHS staff survey results show that we have one of the most engaged and motivated workforces in the NHS. We know this has a positive impact on the care provided to our patients.

We have one of the most ambitious capital investment programmes anywhere in the NHS.

Job overview

The Homeless Health Team works across the Kings Health Partners Inpatients and Accident and Emergency Services to provide advocacy, support and quality discharge interventions for homeless clients attending or admitted to any of the Kings Health Partner Hospitals. The Homeless Health Team works in close collaboration with the wider hospital discharge teams as well as partners in the patients care plan e.g. Health Inclusion Team, voluntary sector and statutory organisations.

The team currently operates within the Guys, St Thomas and Kings and South London and Maudsley Trusts. 

An amazing opportunity has arisen for an individual to join the KHP Homeless Team at the King’s College Hospital site. The KHP Homeless Health team works to ensure that patients experiencing homelessness have discharges from hospital that are as safe as possible and effective in a way that prevents re-admissions and improves long term health outcomes. The team connects patients with primary care services, mental health services and addictions support, medication concordance support, screening and vaccination services.

Alongside direct patient care and support, the KHP Homeless Health team works to encourage wider changes to hospital systems and practice to improve care and outcomes for people experiencing homelessness. This is mainly through teaching and training staff.

Closing Date: 20 September 2022

Interview Date: 26 September 2022

Main duties of the job

The post holder will be responsible for the effective and efficient operational management of the Kings College Hospital Homeless Health team. The team work across the Trust to improve health and housing outcomes for patients experiencing homelessness or at risk of homelessness.

This post is open to individuals with nursing backgrounds who have specialist knowledge in homeless health issues. They will be able to provide expert health advice to other members of the team and wider hospital colleagues. The post holder will have expert knowledge of the homeless health services that can be referred to on discharge. The post holder will work on the hospital wards, in A&E, and may need to outreach into the community to support patients post discharge.

The post holder will be engaged in significant partnership working aimed at improving hospital discharge for individuals, and also for groups of patients where patterns emerge. This partnership working will be with NHS services, GPs, Housing departments, Social Care and Voluntary Sector organisations.

The post holder will be responsible for ensuring that there are processes in place for the holistic assessment, planning and provision of interventions.

The post holder will be responsible for budget control, clinical governance, staff development and training.

Working for our organisation

Guys and St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust comprises five of the UKs best known hospitals Guys, St Thomas, Evelina London Childrens Hospital, Royal Brompton and Harefield as well as community services in Lambeth and Southwark, all with a long history of high quality care, clinical excellence, research and innovation.

We are among the UKs busiest, most successful foundation trusts. We provide specialist care for patients including heart and lung, cancer and renal services as well as a full range of local hospital and community services for people in Lambeth and Southwark.

We have a long tradition of clinical and scientific achievement and as part of Kings Health Partners we are one of Englands eight academic health sciences centres, bringing together world-class clinical services, teaching and research. We have one of the National Institute for Health Researchs biomedical research centres, established with Kings College London in 2007, as well as dedicated clinical research facilities.

We have around 22,700 staff, making us one of the largest NHS Trusts in the country and one of the biggest employers locally. We aim to reflect the diversity of the communities we serve and continue to develop new and existing partnerships with local people, patients, neighbouring NHS organisations, local authorities and charitable bodies and GPs.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

  • Lead the KCH Homeless Health Team and build successful relationships between key professionals and outside agencies to support and promote effective multi-disciplinary and multi-service team working.
  • Working autonomously within the parameters of the role; directing, leading and supporting junior staff to implement the delivery of quality holistic assessment, planning and interventions in order to contribute to the physical, psychological and social wellbeing of patients.
  • Be responsible for assessing and recognising emergencies in the specialty. To interpret information and take appropriate action and to lead others to do the same.
  • Provide tailored, specialist advice for both patients and hospital colleagues around issues associated with homelessness, ensuring that all interventions and advice are delivered on the basis of up to date evidence based practice.
  • Please find attached Job description for full details.

    Person specification

    Knowledge/Qualifications

    Essential criteria

  • BSC/1st degree Adult/Mental health Nursing or equivalent qualification/training and experience
  • Mentorship course
  • Post registration qualification in appropriate area of speciality or equivalent post qualification experience.
  • Desirable criteria

  • To have or working towards a masters degree
  • Attended leadership course
  • Experience

    Essential criteria

  • Extensive experience of working autonomously at an advanced level within the specialist area delivering effective patient focused care.
  • Experience of delivering patient advocacy, working with highly vulnerable patient groups
  • Proven evidence of management / leadership skills and autonomous practice
  • Desirable criteria

  • Experience of working with patients with tri morbidity issues
  • Skills

    Essential criteria

  • Able to use skills of history taking and holistic assessment to direct patient care
  • Up to date knowledge of current clinical and professional issues within homeless health field
  • Ability to clinically lead & influence staff
  • Desirable criteria

  • Ability to interpret and analyse complex data and findings
  • Undertaken clinical research
  • Values & Behaviours

    Essential criteria

  • Values & Behaviours
  • Guys and St Thomas celebrates, respects and values the diversity of its staff and patients. We review our policies, procedures and practices to ensure that all employees, patients and carers are treated equitable according to their needs. We are actively committed to ensuring that no one who applies for a job, works or studys at the Trust, or accesses our services is discriminated against on the grounds of race, ethnicity, nationality, disability, religion or belief, age, gender identity , gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity/paternity, or marital/civil partnership.