Consultant Virologist

Job overview

This is an exciting opportunity to join the friendly team of Virologists at Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. This is a replacement post and is a permanent appointment.

If appointed, you would join the existing team of two Consultant Medical Virologists and one Consultant Clinical Scientist in Virology. We are an established and supportive department which provides clinical Virology services to seven hospital sites in Liverpool.

The post would be suitable for medical applicants with CCT in Clinical Virology or Infectious Diseases (or both), or for Consultant Clinical Scientists with FRCPath in Virology by examination.

Main duties of the job

Provision and development of clinical Virology services across sites served by LCL including Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital, Liverpool Women’s Hospital, Clatterbridge Cancer Centre Liverpool and The Walton Centre. Duties include provision of a telephone advisory service, authorisation of reports and laboratory liaison from the hub laboratory located on the Royal Liverpool site.

Other commitments can be organised by agreement of the Clinical Director of Infection and Immunity.

Working for our organisation

Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust comprises Aintree University Hospital, Broadgreen Hospital & Royal Liverpool University Hospital.

We are part of NHS University Hospitals of Liverpool Group, formed on 1 Nov 2024 from the coming together of LUHFT and Liverpool Women’s NHS Foundation Trust. The Group was born from a shared aim to improve the care we provide our patients.

UHLG is one of the largest employers in the region, with over 16,800 colleagues dedicated to caring for our communities - from birth and beyond.

For the 630,000 people across Merseyside, we are their local NHS. We provide general and emergency hospital care, alongside highly specialised regional services for more than two million people in the North West.

Liverpool Women’s Hospital specialises in the health of women and babies, delivering over 7,200 babies in the UK’s largest single site maternity hospital each year. The Royal Liverpool University Hospital is the largest hospital in the country to provide inpatients with 100% single bedrooms and focuses on complex planned care and specialist services.

For roles at Liverpool Women’s, visit their careers page.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The position is an NHS Consultant in Virology. The post holder will be located in the Directorate of Infection and Immunity based within the Liverpool Clinical Laboratories hub at the Royal Liverpool University hospital site. The appointee will participate in the consultant day and on-call rotas dealing with matters pertinent to the Virology service as they arise, support test stewardship and authorisation of results as required, provide sub-specialty leadership including guidance and policy review, complex case review, attendance at MDTs and Clinical Consults Service input where relevant.

They will work closely with colleagues to provide a high quality, accredited and responsive Virology services to all service users, encompassing clinical, diagnostic, epidemiological and scientific aspects. Development of research, audit and participation in regional, national and international working groups and committees will be encouraged as appropriate.

Responsibility for diagnostic Virology services, clinical advice and liaison, infection prevention control, supervision of trainees and departmental administration is a corporate one with all consultants taking part and having to provide cover for each other in all these areas of work.

There is however an arrangement whereby particular consultants play an important part in providing services in particular areas and disciplines. These areas of responsibility will be reviewed by agreement on appointment.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Full and Specialist registration (and with a license to practice) with the General Medical Council (GMC) or be eligible for registration within six months of interview.
• CCT or within six months of award OR commensurate qualifications and experience for a Consultant Clinical Scientist of equivalent standing including a PhD in a relevant subject and HCPC registration
• Fellow of the Royal College of Pathologists in Virology by examination, or equivalent
• Evidence of continuing medical education

• Relevant managerial qualifications or training

Experience

• Clinical training and experience equivalent to that required for gaining UK CCT in Virology, or jointly in Virology/Infectious Disease.
• Ability to offer an expert clinical and laboratory opinion on a range of problems relating to Virology in primary care, inpatient and tertiary referral settings including infection control
• Experience in managing complex virological in patients who are high risk for viral infections/disease (HIV, transplant and other immunodeficient patients).
• Experience and experise in managing critically ill patients within a medical ICU/HDU environment
• Experience in troubleshooting in diagnostic and clinical virology
• Experience of audit management

• Evidence of clinical or reserarch commitment and a relevant specialty
• Attendance at a course on presentation and teaching skills
• Ability to supervise post grad clinical and laboratory research
• Experience of FRC Path or its equivalency and undergraduate Virology teaching and training
• Peer-reviewed publications in high-impact journals

Please ensure you check the email account (including junk/spam boxes) from which you apply regularly as we will use this to contact you regarding your application.

Posts advertised to ‘internal staff’ are open to employees of hospitals within University Hospitals of Liverpool Group and you should confirm your employment within your application form.

Only those applicants who demonstrate clearly how they meet our person specification will be shortlisted for interview.

We reserve the right to close any vacancies from further applications when we have received a minimum number of applications from which to make a shortlist. Please ensure you apply without delay if you wish to be considered for this role.

Candidates applying for the role of Healthcare Assistant on the staff bank should note that due to the nature of the role, workers must be aged 18 or above when commencing in post. Applicants are therefore welcome from those aged over 18 or within 3 months’ of their 18^th birthday.

Not all roles are suitable for every flexible working opportunity all of the time. Flexible working options may include reduced hours, compressed hours, fixed shifts, time back in lieu and home working.

The Trust is committed to promoting equality and diversity; we value the contribution of individual talent, skills, knowledge and experience and aim for a workforce demography representative of the local community. We encourage applicants from the following groups that are currently under-represented in our workforce black, Asian and minority ethnic, lesbian, gay, bisexual and Transgender (LGBTQ+), disabled, male and age 16-24.

Bank posts require upfront payment. DBS applications submitted from 2nd December will be subject to the new DBS fee of £26.50 (standard) and £54.50 (Enhanced).

From April 2017, Skilled visa applicants and their adult dependant(s) will be required to provide a criminal record certificate from each country they have lived in consecutively for 12 months or more in the past ten years.

Applicants requiring sponsorship may wish to determine the likelihood of obtaining sponsorship for this position by assessing themselves against the criteria on the gov.uk website - https://www.gov.uk/check-uk-visa.

This organisation has a zero-tolerance approach to the abuse of children, young people and vulnerable adults. All staff must ensure they adhere to the organisations safeguarding children and adults’ policy and comply with the Local Safeguarding Children and Adult Board procedures.

Staff should be mindful of their responsibility to safeguard children and adults in any activity performed on behalf of the organisation in line with the requirements of statutory guidance and legislation.

All employees (and volunteers)are expected maintain their safeguarding knowledge and skills by completing mandatory safeguarding training which includes understanding and recognising the signs of abuse and neglect and taking appropriate action.

As an organisation, we have adopted the Merseyside Domestic abuse workplace scheme which supports our staff who are experiencing Domestic Abuse /any forms of sexual violence.

If you have any personal requirements that will enable you to participate in our recruitment process please contact a member of the Recruitment Services by phone on 0151 706 4666 at the earliest opportunity to ensure that measures can be put in place to enable your application for this post.

Please note: new entrants to the NHS will commence on the first pay point of the relevant band.