Specialist Respiratory Physiologist

Job overview

Also support patient with the treatment of sleep apnoea using mechanical therapy such as CPAP. The current team is growing in numbers with service provision across multiple sites and expected to work in the newly built CDC in centre of Plymouth near the historical barbican.

***Preference will be given to internal Trust staff, as well as ‘Priority’ and 'At Risk' status including NHS At Risk staff throughout Devon who are able to display recent relevant experience as dictated by the Person Specification.***

Main duties of the job

Be involved with clinical audit processes. Have knowledge and or experience with blood gas sampling. Support junior staff in their roles. To integrate with the team and support service provision at UHP.

Working for our organisation

It is sometimes necessary to close vacancies before the closing date. If you have not heard from us within 4 weeks of the closing date, please assume that you have not been shortlisted.

1. To plan, undertake and perform simple, specialist, complex and highly complex diagnostic assessments in accordance with ARTP/BTS guidelines.

1. Spirometry, peak flow rates, flow/volume loops
2. Gas transfer
3. Static lung volumes
4. Reversibility of airways obstruction with bronchodilators
5. Field exercise tests (6MWT)
6. Overnight sleep apnoea screening
7. Arterial blood gas performance and analysis
8. Exhaled and nasal nitric oxide
9. Bronchial provocation tests for the diagnosis of asthma/ bronchial hyper-responsiveness (Mannitol, Exercise-induced asthma)
10. Respiratory muscle assessment
11. CPAP assessment and provision.
12. Hypoxic challenge
13. Respiratory/ Multi channel sleep studies.

1. Production of reports
2. Verbal and written interpretation to referring medical team and other professionals where appropriate for simple and specialist assessments.
3. As a minimum be trained in Basic Life Support.

1. Obtain brief patient medical history prior to testing to ensure safe practice.
2. Communicate requirements for accurate performance of appropriate investigations to patients/

1. Communicate basic interpretation of results to appropriate senior healthcare professionals, e.g. senior physiologists, consultants, nurses.

OTHER

1. Ensure continual service development and improvement:

1. Through maintaining up to date knowledge of specialist area
2. Obtaining membership and securing roles within national professional body and/or international societies
3. Be regulated via a voluntary/mandatory register of practitioners, e.g. RCCP, HCPC

1. Ensure equipment used in lung function assessments is functioning correctly by performing a number of calibration and validation techniques including mechanical verification and biological control procedures for quality assurance and quality control
2. Ensure any faulty equipment is reported to senior colleagues and corrective maintenance is undertaken.
3. Occasionally, on request of senior staff within the department, undertake review of department standard operating procedures to ensure these are up to date and fits with current best practice.
4. Ensure that all consumable items required to maintain an efficiently running service are kept stocked and communicate to senior colleagues when ordering of such items are required.
5. Maintenance of Continual Professional Development.

Person specification

Qualifications and experience

• Demonstrable experience working within respiratory and sleep physiological measures unit
• Competent in performing full PFT's
• Experience in Field exercise testing
• Demonstrable Experience with respiratory polygraph validation
• Qualification in clinical physiology or equivalent

• AHCS registration
• performance of ABG/CBG
• Bronchial provocation testing

KNOWLEDGE & EXPERIENCE

• A thorough proven knowledge of Respiratory and Sleep Physiology
• A wide range of abilities in performing and reporting lung function tests.
• A proven sound knowledge of scoring sleep studies.
• Demonstrable experience as a Band 5 respiratory physiologist.

• Respiratory muscle function testing
• Demonstrable Experience working in respiratory/sleep physiology

PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL COMMUNICATION WILL BE ELECTRONIC, PLEASE CHECK YOUR EMAIL ACCOUNT REGULARLY INCLUDING YOUR JUNK FOLDER.

If you need support with the online application process or require reasonable adjustments with the application and/or interview process please contact the Recruiting Manager for this post.

We recognise that work life balance is important for our colleagues and so we invite requests from applicants about less than full time/flexible working for our advertised roles. We recommend contacting the manager of the role prior to applying and we commit to giving requests full consideration.

We welcome and encourage applicants who identify with all protected characteristics to apply for our roles. We believe that diversity strengthens our teams and improves our patients' experience. At UHP we aim to create an inclusive workplace and hospital where everyone feels they belong and included.

It is sometimes necessary to close vacancies before the closing date. If you have not heard from us within 4 weeks of the closing date, please assume that you have not been shortlisted.

Providing false information is an offence & could result in the application being rejected or summary dismissal/police action if an applicant is successful.

This is an automated process & the information will only be used for these purposes prior to your taking up the position with us.

For Doctors Roles:

Unsolicited CVs and Candidate Profiles/Details

University Hospitals Plymouth has a commitment to sourcing candidates directly and as such we do not accept speculative CVs from agencies.

We do, however, work with a defined list of preferred HTE Framework suppliers who may be invited to support us in sourcing candidates for particular roles.

In line with our preferred supplier list, we only pay agency fees where we have a signed agreement in place and an agency has been instructed by a member of the Trust’s Medical Workforce team.

We do not pay agency fees where speculative and unsolicited CVs are submitted to the Trust or Trust employees by any other means than the official route above. Where this is not observed the Trust reserves the right to contact these candidates directly and initiate discussions without payment of any agency fee.

Any candidate details (whether written or spoken) or CVs that are referred directly will not constitute an introduction. The Trust will under no circumstances be responsible for any recruitment fees in relation to these contacts.

Submission of any unsolicited CVs, candidate’s details and/or proposals to the Trust will not be considered further and will be deemed evidence of full and unlimited acceptance of this Agency Protocol.

In order to establish and maintain good working relationships with the Trust’s agency suppliers, we ask that this Protocol is adhered to and thank you for your co-operation.