Trainee Advanced Paramedic Practitioners Urgent and Primary Care (TAPPUPC)

The Scottish Ambulance Service is at the frontline of the NHS in Scotland, responding to over 600,000 emergency calls a year, we provide an emergency Ambulance Service to a population of over 5 million people, across the mainland and island communities.

We are committed to developing a workforce capable of delivering the highest levels of quality service and clinical, person-centred care, in line with Scottish Ambulance service and NHS Quality Strategy.

The role of Advanced Practitioner is an exciting development within the Scottish Ambulance Service and will provide an excellent opportunity for career development within a clinical role.

We are currently accepting applications for Paramedics to undertake the role of Trainee Advanced Practitioner (Urgent & Primary Care).

This is an opportunity to join our growing team of Advanced Practitioners within SAS and continue to build upon the success of the Advanced Practice programme.

Advanced Practitioners (AP) in Urgent & Primary Care undertake a dynamic role providing high-level, independent decision-making, including assessment, diagnosis, management and treatment including prescribing, of patients with complex multidimensional needs. The AP in Urgent & Primary Care work within a rotational model, the role includes working as part of the multidisciplinary team in primary care and/or Out of Hours services. Providing virtual patient consultation, professional support for other clinicians, and providing response on behalf of the Scottish Ambulance Service.

Operating at this level, the AP will possess a wide-ranging breadth of knowledge and understanding in addition to evidence of critical thinking, patient assessment and clinical care. Delivery of this advanced level of care will be supported by a scope of practice beyond what is currently required for registration with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC) as a Paramedic. The AP will also be expected to work across the four domains of advanced practice, including contributing to service wide audit, research, training and education.

Applicants will be a HCPC registered Paramedic and be eligible to be accepted on the PGDip Advanced Practice programme as per the criteria below. In addition, you will have a significant and demonstrable level of clinical practice within primary/urgent/emergency care.

Successful applicants, not already in possession of the required education and competencies, will undertake a fully funded Post Graduate Diploma in Advanced Practice which will commence on the 18th September 2023 and which will include non-medical prescribing. In addition, APs complete a Competency Framework. The full AP training programme is anticipated to take around 30 months to complete.

To be accepted on the PG Diploma Advanced Practice programme it is essential that you are a registered Paramedic with a minimum of 3 years post registration experience and able to demonstrate learning and experience within the context of your professional role. It is desirable that you hold Degree Level education. Please see this link for advice on preparing yourself for Level 11 study.

All Advanced Practitioners will be part of the Scottish Ambulance Service overall response; you will therefore need to have a full UK manual driving licence and you will need to successfully pass the FutureQuals Emergency Response Driver Training. The Scottish Ambulance Service will provide the Emergency Response Driver training if you do not already hold this qualification.

Applicants are advised to read all of the supporting documentation prior to applying.

• The reflective learning statement should be completed by all applicants in line with the criteria and guidance document.
• Paramedics working within the Scottish Ambulance Service are required to obtain support from their current line manager.
• Please ensure you clearly demonstrate how you meet the criteria in the person specification for this role.

Successful candidates will be offered the post of Trainee Advanced Practitioner. As this is a training role, you will be paid in accordance with AfC Annex 21, at 70% of the top of Band 7 while you complete your first 2 modules and 75% of the top of Band 7 for the remainder of your training programme. On completion of the AP (UPC) training programme, staff will start at the bottom of Band 7.

Please note, you will be required to undertake an assessment day. Full details of assessment will be provided in advance.

Interviews for 2023 Advanced Practice posts will take place between 01st May and the 19th May 2023

Information on advice about the application process, the AP training programme, and the AP role to help you decide if it is right for you, it is available on the following video links.

This video has information about the Urgent and Primary Care AP training programme - https://youtu.be/q7aYjrD8YnU

This video has information on the recruitment process for the trainee Urgent and Primary Care AP posts - https://youtu.be/Hr9db5jLZZw

For any questions you have, there will be a Question and Answer session with the AP Leads on Monday 27th March 2023 at 10:00. If you wish to attend the session or for access to a recording of it, please email the SAS Advanced Practitioner Urgent and Primary Care inbox at sas.advanced-practitioner-upc@nhs.scot.

We are recruiting for the following regions/areas:

West Region - Kilmarnock, Argyll, Glasgow, Hamilton

East Region - Fife, Forth Valley, West Lothian

North Region - Aberdeen