Senior Optometrist
Barts Health is one of the largest NHS trusts in the country, and one of Britain’s leading healthcare providers.
The Barts Health group of NHS hospitals is entering an exciting new era on our improvement journey to becoming an outstanding organisation with a world-class clinical reputation. Having lifted ourselves out of special measures, we now have the impetus and breathing space to chart a fresh course in which we are continually striving to improve all our services for patients.
Our vision is to be a high-performing group of NHS hospitals, renowned for excellence and innovation, and providing safe and compassionate care to our patients in east London and beyond. That means being a provider of excellent patient safety, known for delivering consistently high standards of harm-free care and always caring for patients in the right place at the right time.It also means being an outstanding place to work, in which our WeCare values and behaviours are visible to all and guide us in how we work together.
Barts Health supports the Pregnancy Loss Pledge and commits to supporting their staff through the distress of miscarriage.
Job overview
An exciting vacancy has become available for a part-time role as Senior Optometrist which involves working within the core clinics including the Low Vision clinic and Paediatrics at Whipps Cross. We are looking for an enthusiastic and highly motivated Optometrist to join our teams for this fixed-term contract starting from April 2025.
The post-holder will work two Wednesdays per month as part of the multi-disciplinary Optometry and Ophthalmology teams that provide comprehensive and quality ophthalmology services for the Trust.
You will be based in the Eye Treatment Centre at Whipps Cross University Hospital. The Eye Treatment Centre is a dedicated unit covering all ophthalmology specialties including vitreo-retinal, medical retina, glaucoma, cornea, oculo-plastics, paediatrics, neuro-ophthalmology and we also have a busy eye emergency service.
You will participate in the educational activities run by and for the Optical Services and Ophthalmology Departments. This includes the teaching of other health care professionals, medical undergraduates and junior doctors.
There are significant opportunities to develop within the role gaining experience in extended roles and a being involved in audit and research
Main duties of the job
We are a friendly, close-knit multidisciplinary team consisting of full-time and part-time 12 Orthoptists,18 Optometrists, 1 Contact Lens Practitioner, 13 Consultants across paediatrics and adult services, a nursing team including HCA’s, an ECLO, photography and administrative teams.
We will support you in both your clinical and leadership roles to develop your skills and knowledge. We are in a position to fund courses both in leadership and in clinical areas such as attaining Independent Prescribing and other areas. The extensive range of clinics you can be involved in will also allow you to develop and progress in the areas you enjoy.
We are open to considering applications from Optometrists who would be interested in doing this post as a job share. Working hours and days to be agreed with the successful candidate.
For further information or to visit the departments please contact Laura Grant (Head Orthoptist, WX & NUH) 020 8535 6710 email: [email protected] or Sejal Vithlani (Principal Optometrist) [email protected]
Working for our organisation
Barts Health is one of the largest NHS trusts in the country, and one of Britain’s leading healthcare providers.
The Barts Health group of NHS hospitals is entering an exciting new era on our improvement journey to becoming an outstanding organisation with a world-class clinical reputation. Having lifted ourselves out of special measures, we now have the impetus and breathing space to chart a fresh course in which we are continually striving to improve all our services for patients.
Our vision is to be a high-performing group of NHS hospitals, renowned for excellence and innovation, and providing safe and compassionate care to our patients in east London and beyond. That means being a provider of excellent patient safety, known for delivering consistently high standards of harm-free care and always caring for patients in the right place at the right time.It also means being an outstanding place to work, in which our WeCare values and behaviours are visible to all and guide us in how we work together.
We strive to live by our WeCare values and are committed to promoting inclusion, where every staff member has a sense of belonging. We value our differences and fully advocate, cultivate and support an inclusive working environment.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Although this position is a 6 months fixed-term contract, the actual contract duration will be adjusted to account for the time taken to advertise the post, complete the hiring process, and finalise pre-employment checks. This means the contract will begin when the candidate starts the role and may be slightly shorter than 6 months.
The full job description provides an overview of the key tasks and responsibilities of the role, and the person specification outlines the qualifications, skills, experience, and knowledge required. For both documents, please view the attachment/s below.
Person specification
Experience
Essential criteria- Community eye service experience
- Sound clinical experience and judgment underpinned by specialist theoretical knowledge base
- Knowledge/understanding of the optometry profession
- Hospital ophthalmology clinical attachment or experience elsewhere
- Research experience
- Audit experience
- Teaching experience
Skills
Essential criteria- Ability to offer super-user status on at least one aspect of specialist optometric instrumentation and/or to undertake extended clinical role
- Ability to demonstrate empathy and professionalism throughout patient consultations and achieve sound clinical outcome, even when receiving/delivering complex or distressing information
- Ability to analyse and prioritise complex medical information to help devise appropriate specialize care plans
- Knowledge of MS Office (including Word, Excel and Outlook)
- Keyboard skills
- Ability to pass on knowledge and deliver training
- Ability to undertake highly accurate record keeping using electronic systems
- Time management skills
- Ability to organize, plan and prioritise workload
- Team working and people skills
- Excellent communication skills
- Ability to present information both orally and written in a clear, logical manner
- Presentation skills Flexible and reliable approach to working patterns
- Caring and considerate attitude
- Well motivated and enthusiastic
- Confident
- Ability to work under pressure
- Able to carry out moderate to intense effort throughout the working day and carry out concurrent activities with frequent interruptions
- Demonstrates attention and accuracy to detail
- Commitment to non-discriminatory practice
- Professional approach in difficult or emotional situations
Knowledge
Essential criteria- Developed knowledge of current best practice in Optometry in the relevant setting
- Understanding legal responsibilities of the profession and the associated code of ethics
- Keen to invest in continued professional development
- Audit and research experience & knowledge
- Demonstrates understanding of clinical governance
- Knowledge of MS Office (including Word, Excel and Outlook)
- Keyboard skills
- Knowledge of Cerner Millennium/equivalent system Knowledge of electronic patient records e.g. MediSight Ophthalmology
Qualifications
Essential criteria- Registration with the General Optical Council (GOC)
- BSc(Hons)Ophthalmic Optics or Optometry (2i or above), completion of 12-month clinical postgraduate training post and achievement of all General Optical Council competencies as assessed by the College of Optometrists
- MOptom (master of Optometry) specialist optometry degree, achieving all General Optical Council competencies
- Further postgraduate Optometric qualification relating to highly specialist aspects of clinical and technical expertise (taught course)
- Independent Prescribing qualification DipTp(IP)
Other
Essential criteria- Sufficient to perform the duties of the post with any aids and adaptations
We aim to create an equitable working environment where every individual can fulfil their potential.
As an Equal Opportunities Employer we actively support applications from individuals’ who apply under the Guaranteed Interview Scheme and will process your application as appropriate.
We reserve the right to expire vacancies prior to the advertised closing date once a sufficient number of applications has been received and we regret that we are unable to provide notification if your application is unsuccessful.
After applying via NHS Jobs, your submitted application will be imported into our preferred Third party recruitment system. All subsequent information regarding your application will be generated from apps.trac.jobs.
By applying for this post you are agreeing to Barts Heath NHS Trust transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are offered a job, information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.
Barts Health is committed to safeguarding the welfare of children and to child protection. The Trust aims to ensure as far as is possible that anyone, paid or unpaid, who seeks to work in our organisation and who gains access to children, is safe to do so.As such, you may be required to undertake a Disclosure and Barring Check as part of the recruitment process if appointed to a post with direct access to children or vulnerable adults.
Barts Health promotes active travel as part of its goal to reach Net Zero. Each site is accessible by public transport and the Trust has a cycle to work scheme and some sites have Brompton Hire Pods.