Level 4 Assistant Practitioner - Vaccination Services
Role Overview
Assistant Practitioners at Level 4 play an essential role in delivering safe, effective, and person-centred vaccination services across NHS Scotland. Working under the direct or indirect supervision of a registered practitioner, they provide enhanced clinical support and contribute to high quality vaccination delivery across a range of settings. Their broader experience enables them to work confidently in more complex or non-routine situations, supporting colleagues and promoting safe equitable care.
In addition to those outlined at level 3, Assistant Practitioners at level 4 are expected to:
- Work with greater autonomy and confidence in both routine and more complex or non-routine vaccination situations (for example, individuals with allergies, communication difficulties or specific vulnerabilities).
- Coordinate the flow of vaccination sessions and troubleshoot issues that may impact safety, timing or efficiency.
- Provide informal supervision, mentoring and role modelling to support the learning and development of HCSWs, students and new staff.
- Contribute to induction, competency assessment and on-the-job learning within the vaccination team.
- Liaise with other healthcare practitioners and services to support joined-up, person-centred care.
- Identify and escalate areas for service improvement, supporting initiatives to enhance vaccine uptake, patient experience and clinic efficiency.
- Support data quality assurance by checking for accuracy and completeness of vaccination records.
- Take an active role in team briefings, debriefings and audit activity to support continuous quality improvement.
- Maintain and promote professional standards of safety, equity and compassionate care across all vaccination settings.
- Administer vaccinations to appropriate age groups according to locally agreed medicines governance and legal frameworks.
Role boundaries:
Level 4 Assistant Practitioners do not:
- Make clinical decisions about eligibility, clinical suitability, contraindications/precautions or scheduling.
- Obtain informed consent.
Qualifications and experience expected for level 4:
- Can evidence previous relevant experience using Recognition of Prior Learning .
- Normally at or working towards a SCQF Level 8 qualification in a health or social care related subject.
- At this level specific training, guidance or qualifications may be required by relevant professional bodies or legislation.
- Numeracy and literacy qualifications are required at this level of practice.
- IT/computer literacy are required at this level of practice.
Vaccination specific qualifications, experience and training:
- At least two years' experience as a HCSW. For those with less than two years' experience a wider educational programme is available at Healthcare Support Worker (HCSW) Vaccinator Education Programme | Turas | Learn (nhs.scot)
- Completion of training in basic life support and anaphylaxis management, statutory and mandatory topics (e.g., infection control, public protection), safe sharps and waste handling, vaccine preparation and administration, and demonstrate understanding of legal frameworks.
- Completion of the Promoting Effective Immunisation Practice (PEIP): Healthcare support workers (HCSWs) programme.
- Completion of enhanced role-specific training relevant to setting and population (e.g., vaccination in pregnancy, immunosuppressed individuals, childhood schedule).
- Ongoing engagement with vaccine-specific learning resources and updates (e.g., COVID-19, seasonal flu, childhood vaccines).
- Keep up to date with immunisation knowledge through guidance like the Green Book and CMO letters and regularly engage in reflective practice and CPD to maintain competence and confidence.
Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours
Detailed below are the knowledge, skills, and behaviours (KSBs) required for Level 4 practitioners, aligned to the four pillars of practice. This includes core KSBs from the NMAHP Development Framework, followed by vaccination-specific KSBs reflecting the unique needs of the vaccination workforce.
Facilitation of Learning Skills