Overview
Advanced Physiotherapy Practitioner (Spines) Band 8A – Chippenham Community Hospital and Malmsbury care Centre
The post holder will work as a highly specialised practitioner within the field of musculo-skeletal physiotherapy medicine, and particularly Spines, for 31.5 hours per week for a 9 month period from 4th May 2026. You will be responsible for triaging, assessing and managing patients within a defined range of, sometimes complex, presentations. This role carries a significant level of responsibility and the post-holder will have highly specialised knowledge of orthopaedics and related disciplines and assumes responsibility for the patient journey. This position also requires the clinician to assist with the provision, improvement and development of the service; to ensure objectives are met and to help the service meet the requirements of the Care Quality Commission. This post is designed to be a Band 8a role.
Main Responsibilities
This post is responsible for
- Triage orthopaedic referrals from GP’s and other healthcare professionals, screen referral promptly via NHS E-referrals, assess the appropriateness and urgency of care required and make clinical decisions based upon the information available.
- Allocate referrals to the OIS or pass them to other providers’ e.g. secondary care, community pain service, podiatry, rheumatology, physiotherapy and others.
- Assess in clinic new referrals from GP’s, consultants, physiotherapists and podiatrists.
- Order appropriate investigations such as x-rays, ultrasound scans, nerve conduction tests and MRI scans.
- Give patients a clear explanation of their condition, discuss management options, including surgery, supported as required by colleagues and the Clinical lead.
- Explain the indications for surgery, operative procedures, risks and recovery in order for patients to make informed choices.
- Resolve varied and complex problems, sometimes where information may be missing. Use conceptual thinking to understand issues and implications. Solutions may need to be based on limited information and may take a while to be effective.
- If your role involves injection therapy this must be carried out follow our local Patient Group Directions.
Managerial Responsibilities
- Working closely with the Head of the OIS, to help oversee the effective introduction of service change within the teams with the assistance of the service manager.
- Carry out data gathering, analysis and reporting, recording interpreting and recommending further courses of action for the team.
- To ensure integration of evidence-based practice in its’ broadest sense, and to evaluate the effectiveness of clinical interventions and models of service delivery through the use of audit, outcome measures, research, and stakeholder feedback.
- Mentorship: Provide mentorship and clinical supervision to junior physiotherapists and other healthcare professionals within the team.
- Leadership: Lead clinical meetings and contribute to the development and implementation of clinical guidelines and protocols.
Training Responsibilities
- To maintain and develop a high standard of specialist clinical practice and professionalism through CPD and to provide of evidence of this within a CPD portfolio.
- To participate in peer supervision APPs, observing practice and being observed, offering constructive clinical support and recording outcomes and objectives. To keep up-to-date with practice in secondary care in related areas by attending, for example, orthopaedic, radiology or rheumatology clinics.
- To lead in physiotherapy department in-service training sessions, delivering presentations and utilising reflective practice to inform own clinical practice development.
- To support staff in the management of musculo-skeletal conditions.
- To ensure all mandatory training is completed and updated as required by the trust.
- Advanced Clinical Skills: Perform advanced clinical procedures such as joint and soft tissue injections, ensuring adherence to local and national guidelines.
- Independent Prescribing: Work towards or maintain independent prescribing qualifications to enhance patient care.
Ideal Candidate
Essential
- Qualifications and Registration:
- Degree in Physiotherapy.
- Registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).
- Postgraduate (or working towards) qualification in musculoskeletal physiotherapy or related field.
- Experience:
- Significant post-registration experience in musculoskeletal physiotherapy.
- Experience in triaging, assessing, and managing complex musculoskeletal conditions.
- Experience in working within multidisciplinary teams.
- Clinical Skills:
- Advanced clinical skills in musculoskeletal assessment and treatment.
- Proficiency in ordering and interpreting diagnostic tests (e.g., x-rays, MRI scans).
- Competence in performing injection therapy.
- Leadership and Management:
- Experience in mentoring and supervising junior staff.
- Ability to lead clinical meetings and contribute to service development.
- Experience in managing service change and quality improvement initiatives.
- Communication:
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
- Ability to convey complex information effectively to patients and colleagues.
- Experience in dealing with complaints and providing patient education.
- Professional Development:
- Commitment to continuing professional development (CPD).
- Evidence of maintaining a CPD portfolio.
- Participation in clinical audits and research.
Desirable Criteria
- Additional Qualifications:
- Independent prescribing qualification.
- Advanced training in specific musculoskeletal techniques
- Specialist Knowledge:
- Expertise in specific areas of musculoskeletal physiotherapy (e.g., orthopaedics, rheumatology).
- Knowledge of current best practices and guidelines in musculoskeletal care.
- Research and Audit:
- Experience in conducting research and publishing findings.
- Involvement in clinical audits and quality improvement projects.
- Service Development:
- Experience in developing patient pathways and service protocols.
- Ability to innovate and implement new service delivery models.
- Teaching and Education:
- Experience in delivering training sessions and workshops.
- Ability to develop educational materials for patients and staff.
Other requirements: Needs access to transport to travel to multiple sites.
About the Company
We change lives by transforming health and care.
Established in 2006, we are one of the UK’s leading independent providers of community health and care services, working with health and care commissioners and communities to transform services with a focus on experience, efficiency and improved outcomes. We deliver and transform adult and children community health services, primary care services including urgent care, sexual health, dermatology and MSK services as well as adult social care and wellbeing services. Across England, we support communities of many millions and directly help more than half a million people each year – guided by our simple values: we care, we think, we do.
We’re committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from a broad, diverse range of people who want to join our team. We’re a Disability Confident Committed company, so we work to provide facilities, work environment adjustments and technical solutions to be as inclusive of everyone.
While it doesn’t happen often, sometimes a role is very popular, and we’ll need to close it earlier than the date we’ve shown here. If you’re keen to join our team, we’d love to hear from you so please apply as soon as you can.
As you’d expect, safeguarding and protecting the children, young people and vulnerable adults that we work with is of the utmost importance so we have policies and procedures in place to promote safeguarding and safer working practices and everyone who joins the team is subject to a safer recruitment process, including the disclosure of criminal records and vetting checks.
Finally, we need to let you know that the company you’ll work for is part of HCRG Care Group Holdings Limited and by applying for this job we’ll need to process and hold information about you. If you would like to know a little more about how we use your information, please see our website’s privacy policy.
IMPORTANT: Before applying for this role, please make sure you have the right to work in the country where the role is based. Unless it clearly stipulates within in the job advert above that the hiring company is looking to or able to sponsor applicants it is deemed that the hiring employer will only consider applications from those able to comply with and work in the country where the role is based.
