Cancer Care Support Worker

Main purpose

This post is uniquely placed in a patient centred environment to support people affected by cancer to have meaningful conversations about their needs and support them with a plan of care. The Macmillan Cancer Support Worker will have increased access to quality information and support to empower patients and provide knowledge they need at the right time on their cancer pathway. Patients and carers would receive expert guidance in relation to treatments and outcomes. To offer additional holistic needs assessments to those who are diagnosed and living with cancer and to contribute to and support the Macmillan Centres services and developments.

Key working relationships

Macmillan Centre staff and volunteers Head of Cancer Nursing Lead Cancer Support Worker Cancer Clinical Nurse Specialists Cancer Support Workers Cancer Care Ward Staff Cancer Care Matrons MDT coordinators Macmillan Acute Oncology Team Patients and families Cancer care group Wessex Cancer Alliance Macmillan Cancer Support Other cancer support charities

General duties

The Macmillan

Cancer Support Worker (CSW) will

Patient Information & Support Enable people living with cancer to navigate supportive services through referrals and/or signposting that can meet each individual patients range of needs. Signpost individuals to relevant Macmillan information resources and to other organisations information resources to meet their information needs. Contribute to and support Oncology Health and Wellbeing events and support groups. Help to enhance patients experiences and support service-users to manage their cancer treatment by ensuring ongoing service improvement based on feedback from patients. Ensure patients are offered at least one Holistic Needs Assessment and Care Plan through their pathway, working closely with site specific clinical nurse specialists and CSW lead. Be accessible to patients, even if a Holistic Needs Assessment and Care Plan is declined. Work with the Macmillan Centre Volunteers to provide good quality information & support within the centre and throughout UHS. Provide outreach service provision within the wider UHS Support the provision of formal / informal specialist education and training for other staff and volunteers. Be involved in service audits and patient and family feedback exercises. Carry out some administration duties required for the role. You will be required to sign post to the clinical team as appropriate for complex decisions Provide telephone and face to face support and advice and signpost to other sources of support Monitor, audit and report contacts with visitors to the centre including staff, patients and carers Monitor and auditing as part of MQiSS (Macmillan quality Information and support services) and MQEM (Macmillan quality environment mark) Communication Communicate directly with patients and carers demonstrating empathy, understanding, diplomacy, honesty and integrity. Demonstrate an awareness of limits of practice and seek appropriate support and guidance. Digital Technology and Data Management To ensure that the data bases used for documentation of patient interventions are updated at the time of the intervention. Maintain and record HNAs on the Somerset Cancer Registry. Access and maintain other relevant data bases. Support and contribute to audit processes, governance, research, and service development. Development of self Be provided with training and a competency framework to ensure that they can fulfil their role with the necessary skills and knowledge to work with confidence. Ensure CSW portfolio and competencies are completed and signed off by manager.

Facilitate personal development by

• Identifying learning and development needs Accessing Macmillans offer for learning and development