To provide clinical advice and expertise regarding the suitability of patients on the acute ward to be discharged and continue their treatment in the community. To coordinate the discharge of a defined group of service users from the inpatient units into the community, carrying out an assessment and planning implementing and evaluating their care under the guidelines of ECC, without supervision. To attend and participate in daily bed capacity meetings, ensuring provision of predicted discharge activity for that day and data relating to the progress of patients being managed through the discharge planning process. To ensure a seamless approach by liaising with colleagues as required e.g.

CRHT, ward based staff, community services. To inform internal and external staff when in patient capacity is anticipated to be insufficient to meet predicted emergency or elected demand, requesting additional support to expedite hospital discharges. To arrange and attend discharge planning meetings on allocated wards. To attend the daily multi-disciplinary morning meetings in these wards to ensure appropriate length of stay / estimated discharge dates are applied, monitored and adhered to.

To report to the relevant Matron any ward-level nursing responsibility related process delays, including late referrals to therapy services, social services, community hospitals and completion of health needs assessments. To assist the Matrons to address discharge training and development needs of ward staffs that may have been identified by these delays. To attend weekly Delayed Transfers of Care meetings to ensure correct identification of those patients fitting the DTOC criteria and to provide relevant reports. To engage with multidisciplinary staff to ensure that the patients care pathways reflect their current and longer term care needs.

To provide, when necessary, the clinical challenge to non-clinical multidisciplinary staff to support the decision that the patient is no longer benefitting from an acute hospital stay, seeking support from CRHT Managers/Clinical Leads as necessary.