JOB DESCRIPTION

Job Title:Single Homeless Hospital Discharge Pathway Coordinator

Salary:£21,066 p/a (This is a 15 month Fixed Term Contract)

Responsible to: Team Leader, St Paul's Support Services

Responsible for:No direct reports.

The purpose and scope of the job

  1. The role of the Single Homeless Hospital Discharge Pathway Coordinator is to work within the NHS services, identifying patients who are in hospital who are either homeless or vulnerably housed and prevent them from becoming street homeless upon discharge.
  1. The role embeds and develops the homeless patient pathway across Worcestershire.
  1. The role provides holistic support to patients during their hospital admission to improve their in-patient experience and to advocate for their best interests when required.
  1. The role will support patients to source appropriate accommodation and refer to Voluntary and Community Services, statutory or non-statutory services to make sure the patient is discharged from hospital with sustainable and appropriate accommodation.
  1. They will adopt a multi-agency approach, working alongside clinical staff, to empower patients to address their housing and health needs so that re-admissions and repeated homelessness are reduced.
  1. The role will help inform the hospital staff on homelessness and its impact on health and social well being.

Main duties

  1. Identify. Alongside administrative and front line clinical staff, identify those who are at risk of rough sleeping prior to their discharge.
  1. Navigate. Make sure the patient is supported to get the right service at the right time for their needs to ensure long term independence.
  1. Coordinate. Coordinate housing provision in the hospital discharge plan so that all partners are working towards the same outcomes for the benefit of the patient.
  1. Communicate. Ensure excellent communication of the homeless patient pathway across all stakeholders and ensure the outcomes of the project are recorded and reported on appropriately
  1. Administrate. Keep meticulous records throughout the lifetime of support to ensure outcomes can be monitored and reported on inline with KPI’s and funder requirements.

General duties

  1. Build robust and professional relationships withadministrative and frontline clinicalNHS staff.Take part in meetings and training, alleviate NHS staff anxieties, and explainhomeless issue so that the post is seen as indispensable.
  1. Undertake meetings with St Paul's Support Services and take part in compulsory training (eg first aid, health and safety) and identify other training relevant to own personal development plan.
  1. Be an advocate for the single homeless. Challenge stigma, professional intolerance and service exclusion. Act as ambassador for St Paul's, maintaining a scrupulously professional approach. Be prepared to make presentations about single homelessness or the role in order to educate, influence and demonstrate success.
  1. Take responsibility for the outcomes, work safely, demonstrate sensible risk management, comply with safeguarding policy and confidentiality and balance the case load.
  1. Be willing and able to work flexibly in response to changing organisationalrequirements and to undertake other duties which may be required from time to time.
  1. Undertake any other duties under the direction of St Paul's Support Services Team Leader that may reasonably fall within the scope of the post.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Single Homeless HospitalDischarge Pathway Coordinator

All jobholders are expected to be able to demonstrate a high level of ability in the core competencies detailed below and to use each and every one in the course of their daily duties.

ESSENTIAL CRITERIA / Assessed by
EDUCATION & QUALIFICATIONS / Good standard of general education and a good standard of written and spoken English / AF
C
I
SKILLS & ABILITIES / A desire to make a lasting difference to the lives of people who are in difficulty.
An understanding of how to help someone, without creating dependencethen the personal drive to deliver what is needed to make that difference.
Exceptional interpersonal skills, a highly personable and engaging approach.
Strong listening skills and the ability to adapt complex messages according to the audience
Ability to assimilate information quickly, compile and produce statistics and write concise reports that make well-founded conclusions and recommendations
Excellent IT skills on MS applications (including Word, Excel, PowerPoint and e-mail) and basic keyboard skills / AF
T
I
EXPERIENCE / Experience of working in a professional organizationand within team that collaborates to deliver high quality services.
Experience in signposting and navigating vulnerable people through complex organisational systems, dealing with bureaucracy and challenging officialdom.
A clear recognition of professional boundaries, showing discretion, understanding and confidentiality. / AF
P
I
KNOWLEDGE / A sound understanding of the causes of poverty, homelessness and the needs of vulnerable people
Very strong knowledge of English housing legislation and working knowledge of the differences in Wales, Scotland and NI.
Very strong knowledge of social welfare, benefits and how the Prison Services, Acute and community hospitals, Community Mental Health, Drugs and Alcohol treatment services are configured and accessed in the County. / AF
P
I
CORE QUALITIES / Not afraid to take the initiative. Determined and self-motivated, creative and resourceful problem solver.
The personalityand credibility to have a peer to peer relationship with middle management of HM Prison, the NHS, District Housing Teams, Police, Drugs and Alcohol services and Social Workers.
A commitment to Diversity and Equality recognising the need for processes and approach to be flexible and inclusive
A commitment to personal and professional development
A sense of humour. Ability to keep calm under pressure. Be modest and the ability to see challenging situations in perspective / AF
I
LEADERSHIP QUALITIES / There are no direct reports. The person needs to have leadership qualities that enable them to unblock problems, take the lead when others are unwilling or unable. / AF
I
OTHER / Willingness to go the extra mile to make a difference to the lives of vulnerable people.
40 hours a week, worked flexibly to include some weekends, late and early mornings. / AF
I
DESIRABLE CRITERIA
(Desirable criteria always judged objectively) / Assessed by
OTHER / Full clean driving licence / C
Compiled by: / Jonathan Sutton, CEO St Paul’s Hostel
Date: / 09 September 2015
KEY
AF / Application Form
C / Certificate
P / Presentation
T / Test
I / Interview

Version 1.1 dated 08 September 2015