Highly Specialised Cardiac Physiologist - Echocardiography (Part Time)
Our trust has over 17,000 staff serving 2 million patients every year. It comprises Barnet Hospital, Chase Farm Hospital, the Royal Free Hospital, North Middlesex University Hospital and more than 30 services in the community. This larger scale organisation provides an unprecedented opportunity for us to continue our pioneering work, particularly in finding ways to deliver even better care to our patients.
Our mission is to deliver world class care and expertise in our clinical services, underpinned by world class teaching and research and we will continue to measure our progress against our five governing objectives: excellent outcomes, excellent patient and staff experience, excellent value for taxpayers’ money, being safe and meeting our external duties, and building a strong organisation.
Everyone is welcome at Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust. We're proud of our diversity and we continue to undertake new initiatives to advance equality for LGBT+, BME, gender equality, staff carers and people with disabilities and lived experiences to promote good relations and understanding between our staff.
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Job overview
The successful applicant will join an innovative and expert team within the redesigned Echocardiography service at the Royal Free Hospital and affiliated sites . The Trust’s echo service is led by consultant cardiologists with significant expertise in echocardiography, and has undergone important changes in the last year.We have upgraded to the newest Philips echocardiography carts (CVX’s with version 9+ software) with all of the latest semi-automated 3D and strain imaging. We have a full outpatient and inpatient TTE service that serves the Trust’s general and specialist populations; the Trust is a centre of excellence for pulmonary hypertension, carcinoid heart disease, liver and renal transplant services and provides tertiary level expertise in interventional cardiology, echocardiography and valvular heart disease.
We are a friendly and expert team, and the post offers an enviable opportunity to continue to develop your skills in a facility that is set up to deliver the full range of advanced echocardiography (3D, strain imaging, contrast echo).
Main duties of the job
The post holder will already have BSE or equivalent accreditation as well as significant experience in independent TTE, and will contribute to all areas of the echocardiography programme. The programme promotes close collaboration with our consultant cardiologists across the Trust and our weekly educational sessions are an important part of our educational development.The successful applicant will have a strong track record in education and training which are priorities for the department as we expand our training initiatives. This post provides a great opportunity to join a welcoming, supportive and enthusiastic team at a time when we are developing and expanding our echo service.
Working for our organisation
The Royal Free is a successful Foundation Trust and a major teaching hospital campus within UCL. The cardiology department has expanded greatly in recent years and offers a full range of services. We are the leading European centre for carcinoid heart disease, one of the few UK referral centres for Pulmonary Hypertension and we have close collaboration with the National Amyloid Centre sited at the University site at the RFH.
The echocardiography department provides a routine TTE outpatient and inpatient service. More specialised services include 3D, Dobutamine Stress Echo, Exercise Echo, Contrast, Bubble, and TOE.
We have weekly review and teaching echo meetings.
All physiologists are encouraged to attend relevant course/meetings as continued professional development is important to our team and post-graduate exams are actively encouraged.
Our department has a strong emphasis on teaching/training of echocardiographers, specialist registrars, MSc students, and newly qualified junior members of staff. We support the PTP and STP training programs and the successful candidate would show an ongoing commitment to training in the department.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
The post is graded at band 7 and BSE accreditation is a must for the role. We offer a premia of 10% of your basic pay for recruitment and retention for candidates that meet the criteria.
Please see Job Description, Person Specification and the Physiology recruitment pack attached.
Person specification
Education & professional qualifications
Essential criteria- • Degree in Clinical/Cardiology Physiology or BSc in Healthcare Science
- • BSE accreditation or equivalent
- • Evidence of ongoing professional development
- • BLS
- • RCCP registration
Experience
Essential criteria- • Significant experience as independent echocardiographer (at least 2 years)
- • Experience in training and mentoring junior echocardiographers
- • Working knowledge of other cardiology investigations carried out in the CIU
- • Experience in Contrast and Bubble echocardiograms
Skills and aptitudes
Essential criteria- • High level of clinical and technical expertise in routine echocardiography
- • Effective time management skills
- • Engagement in peer review and quality assurance assessments
- • Knowledge of advanced echo techniques, including Strain imaging and 3D echo
Personal qualities & attributes
Essential criteria- • Ability to work under stress and to develop good working relationships within the team
- • Ability to prioritize workload, meet deadlines and be pro-active
- Covid-19 Vaccination
We encourage and support staff to get COVID-19 vaccine and a booster dose as and when they are eligible.
- AT* - Apprenticeship Training. Where AT* is entered next to the job title indicates that this vacancy is for an apprenticeship role.
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