Chemical à Grande-Bretagne

An exciting opportunity has arisen to join the Bacteriology/Mycology department within Microbiology at Leeds General Infirmary as a Higher Level Support Worker.

The successful applicant will join an established team as a key person, providing supervision of support staff and operating complex equipment to deliver testing services.

This is an excellent opportunity for entry into a fast-paced NHS laboratory, and the successful candidates will have the chance to rotate into various roles across the department to develop a diverse portfolio of skills.

Applicants should possess A level/NVQ level 3 qualifications and have previous experience of working within a laboratory. On a personal level, you will be enthusiastic and friendly and have good communication skills. You should be computer literate, being familiar with Telepath or other laboratory information systems and be familiar with the use of Microsoft Office applications. You will need to be highly self-motivated and able to work accurately with attention to detail.

Continuing professional and self-development will be encouraged, and you will be expected to undergo some in-house training to attain competence within the laboratory.

Expected Shortlisting Date: 09/05/2025

Planned Interview Date: 03/06/2025

This role is within the Bacteriology and Mycology section of the laboratory. You will be responsible for supervising Biomedical Support Workers, performing the initial stages of sample processing and waste disposal. Bacteriology at Leeds is partially automated, and Higher Level Support Workers support the running of these analysers. Where culture is manual, you would be responsible for setting up samples for a range of pathogens. You will be expected to contribute to the ongoing quality improvement programme, and have a role in quality assurance, health & safety, and document control.

The department is currently located within the Old Medical School at Leeds General Infirmary processing in excess of one million samples per annum. A planned move to a purpose-built laboratory facility will take place in May 2025. The department uses a number of technologies to deliver the service including WASPlab, MALDI-Tof, and DS2 alongside traditional culture-based Microbiology. The successful candidate will be working in a busy laboratory, delivering services to one of the UK’s largest teaching hospitals leading to a diverse workload. The service is accredited to UKAS ISO 15189 with a robust Quality Management system in place.

The department is also the lead laboratory for Public Health England in the Yorkshire and Humber region and plays an important role in delivering Microbiology & Virology services to support this function.

Leeds Teaching Hospitals is committed to our process of redeploying 'at risk' members of our existing workforce to new roles. As such, all our job adverts are subject to this policy, and we reserve the right to close, delay or remove adverts while this process is completed. If you do experience a delay in the shortlisting stage of the recruitment cycle, please bear with us while this process is completed, and contact the named contact if you have any questions.

As a Biomedical Support Worker Higher Level, you will work as a member of the departmental team. As part of the team, you will be expected to perform a range of routine and more complex investigations, some of which may be under the supervision of more experienced scientific and technical staff. You will gain the knowledge and skills necessary to contribute towards the provision of an accurate and timely service for patients. You will be expected to apply professional judgements and specialist skills to technically complex and sometimes difficult situations, and how to work, often under pressure, either independently or as part of the team. Within the team, you may be required to organise the tasks of support workers. You will be required to communicate information, often related to patient management and care, to colleagues, healthcare staff, and other organisations.

In order to carry out the job sufficiently and effectively, you will have successfully studied to A-level standard, preferably in sciences or other equivalent qualification. You will develop your competencies and further your knowledge in all aspects of the speciality through practical experience, in-house training and structured study subject to the requirements of continuous professional development (CPD). In addition, basic computer skills are essential to carry out your work.

In order to work effectively in the role, the job holder must be able to demonstrate a number of attributes. These abilities will include:

• To gain new knowledge through experience, formal study, and participation in relevant training schemes
• To become an integral member of a team providing a clinical technical service
• To work independently when and as directed by supervisors
• To communicate clearly and effectively whether orally, graphically, or electronically
• To plan the designated workload and assist in the organisation of tasks undertaken by support workers
• To work with precision and follow accurately the documented laboratory standard operating procedures
• To operate highly complex laboratory equipment safely and efficiently
• To input and extract patient data from the laboratory computer system
• To demonstrate relevant tasks to others as appropriate
• To contribute actively towards the improvement of service quality by participation in relevant discussions with other team members
• To remain competent in established procedures and to develop new skills as experience is accrued
• To participate actively in the departmental appraisal scheme
• To take account of changes in service delivery by demonstrating a flexible approach to work

As the job holder, you will acquire sufficient knowledge and understanding to:

• Carry out a range of basic and more complex technical procedures. This will include instruction in the safe and effective use of highly complex laboratory equipment. You will understand the need to report adverse events in the event of errors and failures.
• Participate actively in departmental internal and external quality assurance schemes. Your level of knowledge and understanding will allow you to recognise when expected levels of quality have not been met.
• Participate in the maintenance of a safe working environment. This will include an awareness of the hazards associated with your work. In addition, you will be made aware of any suitable actions to take in the event of breaches in health and safety. Such hazards include fire, manual handling, breach of security, controlled and uncontrolled exposure to chemical, biological and radioactive materials.
• Maintain patient confidentiality. You will recognise the absolute requirement to protect sensitive information that is related to patient care.
• Observe the requirements of departmental policies relating to service provision, for example, sample labelling and adverse event reporting.

• Minimum A level / NVQ Level 3 (or equivalent)
• A level/NVQ Level 3 preferably in science subjects

• Previous experience of working in a Microbiology laboratory
• Competence in a range of complex laboratory procedures

• Ability to work in a team
• Ability to work independently and proven ability to troubleshoot