Midwife Sonographer, Band 7

NHS; Gloucester; On-site; GBP 46,000 - 53,000

Job description

Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

A rare opportunity has arisen to join Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Trust as a Midwife Sonographer. This exciting opportunity comes at a time of transformation within the Trust, including expanding our obstetric ultrasound capacity across our Maternity services.

We are looking for a driven and ambitious individual to undertake this role, which involves working closely with the wider multi-disciplinary team including obstetric consultants, specialist midwives, and senior midwives.

The post-holder will be expected to work across all sites within the Trust.

Main duties of the job

1. To perform and report ultrasound scans and manage ultrasound lists.
2. To communicate the results of the ultrasound scans to the multi-disciplinary team, where appropriate.
3. Assist with audits and research within the department.
4. To support and develop learning opportunities for junior members of staff from all disciplines.
5. To support the Senior Midwifery team in the on-going development of the maternity and ultrasound services.
6. Work as part of the team who are responsible for the effective and efficient operational management of the ultrasound service within maternity.
7. If registered as a midwife, to maintain clinical midwifery competencies to ensure NMC revalidation.
8. To provide the highest standard of safe, effective and compassionate care through the effective use of evidence based practice in line with agreed local and national standards, including the Fetal Abnormality Screening Programme (FASP) standards and the NMC Code.
9. To provide a continuously improving service in line with the clinical governance framework, Trust objectives, and the NHS performance framework.
10. To support and continually develop staff to ensure they have the appropriate level of skill, knowledge and competence to meet service/specialty requirements.

About us

The Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is the largest employer in the county. With over 9,000 staff, we're one of the largest NHS trusts in the UK. We offer a huge range of opportunities and benefits in a genuinely supportive working environment.

Maternity services at Gloucestershire hospitals offer a full range of services to support the women of Gloucestershire. We deliver around 6000 babies a year across our two free-standing birth units, an alongside birth unit, home births, and an Obstetric unit, offering midwives the opportunity to work in a variety of settings in our community services, birth units and Delivery Suite.

Our team is dynamic and constantly evolving to manage the demand and challenges of the service. We work closely together to ensure a friendly, positive and supportive environment whilst recognising individual development needs.

Job responsibilities

Communication:

1. Applies effective communication/leadership skills in clinical practice with a caring and compassionate attitude at all times.
2. Excellent communication and interpersonal skills for effective patient education and teamwork.
3. Establishes and maintains effective communication with individuals, the wider multi-disciplinary team, and other health professionals regarding patients' ultrasound scans and obstetric conditions.
4. The ability to communicate highly sensitive information regarding abnormal findings of second and third trimester scans and support the multi-disciplinary team to provide seamless care to these families.
5. Works with the ultrasound team to ensure effective communication with patients' relatives and carers, explaining medical or ultrasound findings, and investigations taking into consideration level of understanding, culture and background.
6. Be able to provide appropriate counselling when necessary.
7. Actively manages barriers to communication across all areas of responsibility to ensure positive outcomes.
8. Effectively manages difficult and/or complex communication situations e.g. breaking bad news, dealing with concerns and complaints, performance management issues.
9. Actively participates in professional groups and forums within, and where appropriate external to the organisation.
10. Produces accurate and complete records of communication consistent with legislation policies and procedures.
11. Communicates regularly and effectively with the Matron for the area regarding all aspects of clinical care and provision, including budgetary, personnel and environmental issues.

Clinical responsibilities:

1. Proficient in operating ultrasound equipment and interpreting ultrasound images and diagnosis.
2. Strong clinical assessment skills and the ability to provide compassionate patient care.
3. Work as an autonomous practitioner with the support of the multidisciplinary team.
4. To be aware of the pathways re management option for miscarriage and ectopic pregnancies.
5. Ability to manage multiple tasks in a fast-paced healthcare environment.
6. Work in partnership with obstetricians for those women identified as high risk or requiring more specialist care.
7. Experienced in aspects of fetal medicine or work closely with fetal medicine consultant when outside of competent sphere of practice.
8. To provide practical training and assessment to postgraduates and clinicians in basic and advanced obstetric ultrasound.
9. To be competent and accurate with the inputting of any information or reports onto the computer system.
10. To accurately fill in forms destined for laboratories.
11. To independently undertake and report on a wide range of midwifery and ultrasound examinations using high level of specialist knowledge in line with local, regional and national guidelines where applicable.
12. Have the ability to give clear explanations to patients regarding the examinations they are having, including risks, benefits, accuracy and limitations in order for them to give informed consent.
13. Discuss antenatal screening connected with obstetric ultrasound; Obtain, record and interpret relevant antenatal screening results.
14. Receive information concerning patients' history, which is potentially highly complex and sensitive. There may be special needs that will require assessing and planning using skills of empathy and reassurance.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• NMC registration with significant post-registration experience.
• Midwifery degree or equivalent qualification.
• Hold a relevant Case Accredited Postgraduate Ultrasound certificate in Obstetric Ultrasound.
• Qualification or relevant experience in Research and Development.

Experience

• Experience in all areas of midwifery.
• Evidence of ability to teach in a variety of settings.
• Must be experienced in all types of obstetric ultrasound scans, including to confirm intrauterine death.
• Involvement in clinical audit and participation in standard setting.
• Experience in writing protocols and guidelines along with patient care pathways using research-based evidence.

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

• Must be able to perform detailed obstetric scans to look for fetal abnormalities.
• The ability to care for women whose pregnancies have the potential to be, or are complicated with: fetal anomalies, potential genetic disorders, past history of genetic disorders or previous complicated pregnancies.
• Able to monitor and assess complex and high-risk pregnancies, using Doppler when appropriate, to make decisions following assessment and make appropriate follow up appointments or take appropriate action.
• Must be able to adapt and incorporate new procedures in fetal medicine, as this is a fast-evolving area of obstetrics.
• Ability to organise and prioritise.
• The ability to manage change.
• Ability to demonstrate a flexible approach to the provision of holistic, clinically effective care.
• Ability to evidence/demonstrate key values and behaviours in line with the Trust framework.
• IT literate and able to embrace digital midwifery.
• Counselling skills.
• Effective leadership and management skills.

Qualities

• Team player.
• Committed to a culture of continuous improvement, openness and honesty.
• Ability to motivate other members of the multidisciplinary team.
• Flexible and adaptive.
• Supportive.

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.

Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

£46,148 to £52,809 a year (pa pro rata if part-time)