PLEASE NOTE THIS IS AN INTERNAL VACANCY ONLY OPEN TO CURRENT NHS SCOTLAND STAFF **

OUR VALUES IN ACTION

Care and Compassion
Quality and Teamwork
Dignity and Respect
Openness, honesty and responsibility

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced and motivated registered nurse to join the Specialist Palliative Care Services in NHS Borders.

Are you someone who is experienced in delivering effective judgements and decisions for people with life shortening conditions
Are you someone who strives to make a difference in a person's care experience
Do you have excellent communication, leadership and organisational skills

This is a challenging and rewarding leadership role for an experienced clinician who is committed to delivering high‑quality, person‑centred palliative care and care around dying across community and acute settings.

The post holder will provide strong clinical leadership and effective management to the Palliative Care Clinical Nurse Specialist Team. The role will ensure the early identification of palliative care needs, the provision of timely specialist advice and support, and the delivery of high‑quality care through a remodelling of service delivery.

Working collaboratively with Acute Services, General Practitioners, District Nursing teams and partner agencies, the post holder will support the provision of accessible, consistent and equitable palliative care for people across both community and acute care settings.

The Lead Clinical Nurse Specialist Palliative Care will be accountable for the delivery of a responsive service, providing strong leadership and operational skills, specialist clinical knowledge and expertise within the field of Palliative Care. This role will lead on responsive care in acute services, and will provide effective care coordination within Primary Care, Secondary Care and Health and Social Care Partnership.

For informal enquiries please contact Michelle Scott, Nurse Consultant Palliative Care, BGH, 01896 826888

As from 1st April 2026 the Agenda for Change full-time working week will be reducing from 37 to 36 hours per week. Part time hours will be reduced pro-rata. However, there will be a corresponding increase in the hourly rate so that pay will not be affected.

Due to legislative changes from 1 April 2025, this post may require a different level of criminal records check done than is currently the case. If the post is assessed as a regulated role, your appointment will be subject to joining the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme. If there is any change to what is currently required, this will be confirmed by either the Hiring Manager or the Recruitment Team. For more details on these changes please visit: Disclosure Scotland Changes.

To work in the United Kingdom, there is a legal requirement for an individual to demonstrate that they have the relevant permission to work in the country. This permission is, without exception, granted by the UK Visa and Immigrations Service.

As part of the pre-employment checks for a preferred candidate, NHS Scotland Boards will check your entitlement to work in the UK. It can be evidenced through a number of routes including specific types of visa as well as EU settled and pre-settled status. To find out more about these routes of permission, please refer to the GOV.UK website here. 

For specific types of post, if you do not have the necessary eligibility to work in the UK, it might be possible (though not guaranteed) to secure sponsorship via a UK Skilled Worker/Health & Care Worker Visa. However, this is only possible if the employer is a licenced Sponsor, and if the post does not fall below the current minimum salary threshold or going rate. Further information on these criteria can be found here.

It is ESSENTIAL that you have checked that you either already have an appropriate right to work in the UK or that the post would be eligible to be sponsored BEFORE submitting your application form

PLEASE NOTE: We cannot accept late applications so please ensure your application is submitted early***

NHS Scotland is committed to encouraging equality and diversity among our workforce and eliminating unlawful discrimination. The aim is for our workforce to be truly representative and for each employee to feel respected and able to give their best. To this end, NHS Scotland welcomes applications from all sections of society.

Lead Clinical Nurse Specialist - Palliative Care