Highly Specialist Healthcare Science Practitioner

Highly Specialist Healthcare Science Practitioner

County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust

We are seeking an enthusiastic and highly motivated Highly Specialist Healthcare Science Practitioner / Highly Specialist Cardiac Physiologist / Clinical Scientist / Echocardiographer to work as part of our friendly team providing a diagnostic Cardiology and Respiratory service to both in-patients and out-patients. We welcome suitable applicants looking for either full-time or part-time work. The principal hospitals within County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust are Darlington Memorial Hospital, The University Hospital of North Durham, Bishop Auckland Hospital, and Shotley Bridge Hospital. The Cardiology & Respiratory Investigations Units comprise a team of approximately 40 staff who provide a broad range of invasive and non-invasive procedures including echocardiography, stress echocardiography, trans-oesophageal echocardiography, diagnostic angiography, pacing implant / follow-up, complex device follow-up, tilt testing, and nerve conduction studies. We are committed to providing learning and development opportunities; we actively encourage and support all appropriate professional development. The hospital base for this post is Darlington Memorial Hospital.

Main duties of the job

The successful candidate will work as part of a team in the busy Cardio-Respiratory departments. They will be highly specialist in echocardiography and will have a responsibility for the delivery of the highest quality echocardiography services within their designated team. They will work closely with colleagues to ensure that protocols and procedures meet local and national requirements for good practice and service delivery. They will perform a range of cardiac and other physiological investigations and produce evidence-based clinical reports. They will provide training to other healthcare professionals and students and will supervise junior staff, as well as deputise for more senior staff on occasions.

Job responsibilities

The candidate will independently perform a range of cardiac and physiological investigations, specialising in echocardiography, and will derive clinical reports from highly specialist diagnostic procedures. They must have experience of working in a Cardiac Investigations department at Band 6 level and have achieved the minimum academic qualifications in the Person Specification. They must be registered on the RCCP / AHCS / HCPC or be on the AHCS Specialist Echocardiography Register and be working towards Practitioner Training Programme equivalence. They must also hold a current certificate in Immediate Life Support or be willing to undertake this within the first 6 months.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• BSc (Hons) Healthcare Science: Cardiac Physiology or MSc Clinical Science (Cardiac Science) or equivalent, with acceptance onto AHCS/ RCCP / HCPC professional register.
• Or BSc in a relevant Scientific subject and on AHCS Specialist Echocardiography Register and working towards Practitioner Training Programme Equivalence.
• British Society of Echocardiography Adult Accreditation or equivalent.
• Immediate Life Support (or willing to undertake this within the first 6 months of employment)

Special Skills & Knowledge

• Specialist in the field of echocardiography, able to provide clinical advice to a range of healthcare professionals, as well as patients and carers.
• Ability to provide operational leadership for echocardiography.
• Organizational skills.
• Experience of involvement in programmes of research/audit.
• Ability to audit and supervise the work of others.
• Ability to prioritise workload.
• Good communication skills written and verbal.
• In-depth knowledge of pathologies relevant to Cardiology.
• Ability to analyse complex information, interpret results and provide accurate reports to Medical staff and other Healthcare professionals within primary and Secondary care.
• Able to provide advice to clinicians.
• Ability to assess patient condition and seek expert assistance when required.
• Ability to train other staff of all levels and act as mentor.
• Ability to liaise with other staff both in Primary and Secondary care.
• Able to manage resources within budgetary limits and service requirements.
• Presentation Skills.
• Able to use evidence-based practice to ensure quality standards.

Statutory Registration

• Registered with RCCP or AHCS or HCPC, or on AHCS Specialist Echocardiography register and working towards Practitioner Training Programme equivalence.

Experience

• Significant experience in the field of echocardiography, with highly specialist knowledge.
• Experience at specialist level (Band 6 level) or equivalent.
• Experience of working within a Cardiac investigations Unit.
• Experience of a broad range of diagnostic procedures within Cardiology.
• Experience of audit and quality assurance programmes.
• Experience of training staff from a range of disciplines.
• Experience of Stress echocardiography / trans-oesophageal echocardiography.
• Experience of supervising staff teams.
• Experience of service development and change management.
• Experience of participating in local, regional and national professional meetings and conferences.
• Able to work in a range of clinical environments.
• Experience of implementation and reviewing new services.
• Experience of budget management.

Special Requirements

• Able to travel across Trust sites to meet the requirements of the post.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust

£46,148 to £52,809 a year per annum, pro rata