Director of Nursing (Research and Academic Leadership)
Guy’s and St Thomas’ is among the UK’s busiest and most successful NHS foundation trusts. We provide a full range of hospital and community services for people in south London and as well as specialist care for patients from further afield including cancer, renal, orthopaedic, respiratory and cardiovascular services.
Guy’s is home to the largest dental school in Europe and a £160 million Cancer Centre opened in 2016. As part of our commitment to provide care closer to home, in 2017 we also opened a cancer centre and a kidney treatment centre at Queen Mary’s Hospital in Sidcup.St Thomas’ has one of the largest critical care units in the UK and one of the busiest emergency departments in London. It is also home to Evelina London Children’s Hospital.
Evelina London cares for local children in Lambeth and Southwark and provides specialist services across south east England including cardiac, renal and critical care services. We lead a number of specialist service networks aiming to ensure children are treated locally where possible, but have access to specialist expertise when they need it.Our community services include health visiting, school nursing and support for families of children with long-term conditions.
Our adult community services teams deliver care at the heart of the local communities we serve, working in partnership with GPs, local authorities and other healthcare and voluntary sector organisations. Working with our partners in Lambeth and Southwark, we are focusing on new ways of working to improve care for local patients.
In February 2021 the Royal Brompton and Harefield joined Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, bringing together world-leading expertise in the care and research of heart and lung disease. Our merger provides a once in a generation opportunity to build a lasting, world-renowned heart and lung centre, providing the highest quality care for patients and conducting world-leading research.
We have a reputation for clinical excellence and high quality teaching and research. We are part of King’s Health Partners, one of eight accredited UK academic health sciences centres. In partnership with King’s College London we have dedicated clinical research facilities including an MHRA accredited Phase I clinical trials unit.
Patients are at the heart of everything we do and we pride ourselves on ensuring the best possible patient experience as well as safe, high quality care. We are proud to have one of the lowest mortality rates in the NHS. Following a comprehensive Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection in 2019 we maintained our overall rating of ‘good’.Our adult community services achieved a rating of ‘outstanding’.
The commitment of our 23,500 staff is key to our success. We are one of the largest local employers and we aim to develop and support all our staff so they are able to deliver high quality, safe and efficient care. The 2019 NHS staff survey results show that we have one of the most engaged and motivated workforces in the NHS.We know this has a positive impact on the care provided to our patients.
We have one of the most ambitious capital investment programmes anywhere in the NHS.
Job overview
We are looking to recruit an exceptional, research active post-doctoral nurse or midwife, with strong leadership and expert research skills to build on and shape the future direction of our nursing and midwifery research strategy. This is a key leadership role responsible for developing a culture where research is part of everyday business for all nurses and midwives working at GSTT
As a pivotal member of the Chief Nurse Office team, you will be responsible for the strategic leadership of ACORN, our Centre of Research for Nurses and Midwives. You will be responsible for increasing nurses and midwives’ research awareness and engagement throughout the organisation, ensuring that our nursing and midwifery workforce contribute to and lead in the provision of outstanding, evidence-based patient care.
Main duties of the job
You will be responsible for identifying creative solutions to manage the complex environment that being a highly research active organisation with multiple academic partners brings about. You will lead on developing a framework for clinical-academic careers within Nursing and Midwifery, collaborating with other professional leads for research and our academic partners, to secure future clinical-academics who are retained within the Trust.
You will be an experienced post-doctoral nurse or midwife, leading your own research, with links to a Higher Education Institution (HEI). You will be expected to contribute to the national research agenda, working in partnership with external structures including the NIHR and NHS England.You will also work closely with the wider CNO team, Clinical Groups, the Research and Development department to support implementation of wider Trust and national professional initiatives.
Working for our organisation
Guy’s and St Thomas’ is among the UK’s busiest and most successful NHS foundation trusts. We provide a full range of hospital and community services for people in south London and as well as specialist care for patients from further afield including cancer, renal, orthopaedic, respiratory and cardiovascular services.
In February 2021 the Royal Brompton and Harefield joined Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, bringing together world-leading expertise in the care and research of heart and lung disease. Our merger provides a once in a generation opportunity to build a lasting, world-renowned heart and lung centre, providing the highest quality care for patients and conducting world-leading research.
We have a reputation for clinical excellence and high quality teaching and research. We are part of King’s Health Partners, one of eight accredited UK academic health sciences centres. In partnership with King’s College London we have dedicated clinical research facilities including an MHRA accredited Phase I clinical trials unit.
Patients are at the heart of everything we do and we pride ourselves on ensuring the best possible patient experience as well as safe, high quality care. We are proud to have one of the lowest mortality rates in the NHS.
The commitment of our 23,500 staff is key to our success. We are one of the largest local employers and we aim to develop and support all our staff so they are able to deliver high quality, safe and efficient care.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities- Provide outstanding expert professional leadership for ACORN (A Centre of Research for Nurses and Midwives), and the wider academic agenda across the Trust. Be a visible, outstanding role-model for clinical academic careers.
- Work in partnership with the R&D department to ensure that all Nursing and Midwifery aspects of R&D strategy and Nurse/midwife led research vision are achieved.
- To be accountable for the safe, effective delivery of all nurse and midwife-led research and aligned academic education for nursing and midwifery across the Trust, in line with R&D and national research governance
- To work across the system, with the wider CNO team, particularly the Nightingale Academy, Allied Health Professional Leads for research, the R&D Department, which incorporates NIHR infrastructures, ET&D and externally, including the NIHR, the National CNO, KHP and our academic partners to lead and deliver the Trust’s research vision.
- To ensure highly effective mechanisms for working with and involving patients and their families and carers, with co-production at all levels.
- To develop and implement nurse/midwife led research and education plans that support the achievement of nursing and midwifery strategic priorities and that influence and successfully support clinical academic careers locally and nationally.
- To contribute to the clinical leadership and management of the wider Trust, ensuring that the voice of nurse and midwife-led research is strong, effective and represents the Trust nationally and internationally.
Person specification
Qualifications/knowledge
Essential criteria- PhD/ Professional Doctorate
- Extensive knowledge and expertise relating to general and specialist nursing/midwifery and at least one other area of work such as advanced clinical practice, management, research and development, education, acquired through formal study and/or experience equivalent to doctorate level.
- Registered Nurse or Midwife on the NMC register
- Fully understands the regulatory environment the Trust operates in with R&D and external research agencies
- Additional professional development & research activities
- Post graduate education qualification (PG Cert)
- Knowledge of HEI Governance and Quality assurance
Previous Experience
Essential criteria- Experience as a chief, principal or co-investigator
- Experience of research capacity building activity and of supporting others
- Extensive experience as a senior nurse/midwife
- Experience of commissioning professional education programmes
- Post graduate teaching experience (research related)
- PhD supervision experience
Skills & Ability
Essential criteria- Able to manage complex and competing priorities
- Able to articulate a clear vision for nursing and midwifery research engagement, the research challenges that face the nursing/midwifery profession and can identify possible solutions
- Excellent presentational skills sufficient to present at national conferences and represent the Chief Nurse at local and national events
- Proficient in the use of IT software including MS Office (Teams, Word, Excel), and other research related software e.g. SPSS, NVIVO
- Able to write concise and clear reports up to and including Board level
Personal Qualities
Essential criteria- Being a regular authentic presence and a visible champion of improvement, evidence-based practice and research
- Upholds the principles of equality, diversity and inclusion and demonstrates these personally and professionally.
- Remaining focused on the vision and the strategy
- Organised, self-motivated and flexible in approach and attitude
Guy’s and St Thomas’ celebrates, respects and values the diversity of its staff and patients. We review our policies, procedures and practices to ensure that all employees, patients and carers are treated equitable according to their needs. We are actively committed to ensuring that no one who applies for a job, works or study’s at the Trust, or accesses our services is discriminated against on the grounds of race, ethnicity, nationality, disability, religion or belief, age, gender identity , gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity/paternity, or marital/civil partnership.
Applications are welcomed from applicants with a disability. We can make reasonable adjustments and offer support and advice in a variety of ways throughout the application process. Equality of opportunity is our policy.
As an organisation we are committed to developing our services in ways that best suit the needs of our patients. This means that some staff groups will increasingly be asked to work a more flexible shift pattern so that we can offer services in the evenings or at weekends.
Flexible working
We are committed to supporting all employees to achieve a healthy work life balance and to work in a way that is best for them and our patients. We will consider all requests to work flexibly, taking in to account the individual’s personal circumstances as well the needs of the service.We encourage all prospective applicants to discuss their individual circumstances with the recruiting manager as part of the on-boarding process.
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