Consultant Medical Microbiologist | University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust

We are looking for a Consultant Medical Microbiologist at University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust, based at both The Royal Bournemouth Hospital and Poole Hospital. We are an expanding department going through exciting times. As part of 'One Dorset Pathology', we have acquired a new-build hub laboratory and are transforming and aligning services across the county. As part of UHD we are providing Microbiology services during a merger of two acute trusts, leading to a great deal of investment and change, providing plenty of opportunity to develop the service and the support we provide to our clinical teams.

This is a full time (1.0 WTE) replacement post, joining five consultant colleagues (4.09 WTE), 1 Specialist doctor, 2 rotating doctors in training and a clinical antimicrobial nurse to deliver a Clinical Microbiology and Infection Prevention & Control service to University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation Trust.

Applications from candidates with joint accreditation in Medical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases or Virology are welcomed.

Applicants should be on the GMC Specialist Register with a license to practice, or be able to provide GMC confirmed eligibility for entry on the Specialist Register.

If UK trained, an applicant must hold a Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT), or be within six months of award of CCT by date of interview. If non-UK trained, they will be required to show evidence of equivalence to the UK CCT.

It is expected the appointee will hold FRCPath or equivalent.

Our values define who we are as #TeamUHD. They underpin everything we do now and in the future. They define how we treat our patients, visitors, and each other, our valued teammates and colleagues.

UHD are investing in services across the Trust, with many being transformed and developed following merger and the New Hospital Programme.

This means that some services may move site this year or next, either temporarily or long term. Recruiting Managers interviewing for this role will be happy to answer any specific questions that you have about this at interview.

There is a planned move for this service anticipated during 2025 season. Upon relocation of the role/service, excess mileage allowance / reimbursement will not apply, and any travel between the postholder's home and work base will be classified as a commute. Any other changes unrelated to this, will be handled in line with Trust/National terms and conditions.

The Department

The roles of Head of Department, Antimicrobial Lead and Infection Control Doctor rotate over agreed periods by mutual agreement of the consultant body.

Clinical Microbiology Liaison
The post holder will work closely with colleagues to continue to deliver a well-regarded liaison service to clinicians within the Trust and the local community.

This post will enable further development of the current microbiology service, increasing our ability to deliver more clinical input and specialty ward rounds, bringing expertise in the management of infection directly to a patient's bedside early in their admission. This will result in timely, appropriate and cost effective use of the diagnostic services, guiding appropriate antibiotic prescribing and providing regular education for all grades of staff in the diagnosis, management and control of infection.

The post holder will take part in routine laboratory activities including authorisation of laboratory results; bacteraemia, admission unit and intensive care ward rounds; participation in various MDTs, including those provided for Infective Endocarditis, Haematology, Diabetic Foot Infections, Infected Prosthetic Joints, C.diff Infection, OPAT; provision of telephone advice and out of hours cover. The post holder will be expected to work on both sites (Royal Bournemouth Hospital and Poole Hospital). Remote access to the laboratory system is available. Out of hours work is designated as category A.

Laboratory
All consultants will be expected to contribute to the following:

• Authorisation and interpretation of results


• Day-to-day supervision of diagnostic methods with input at pre-analytical, analytical and post-analytical stages


• Contribution towards mandatory reporting of infections to the Department of Health


• Contribution to trust-wide demand management programmes


• Involvement in drafting guidelines, policies and SOP preparation


• Responsibility for quality assurance performance within the department, including taking part in all relevant national external quality assurance (NEQAS) programmes


• Business planning, including the assessment and introduction of new methods, and forward planning for staff and equipment requirements.


• Monthly Microbiology Departmental meetings and weekly consultant/handover meetings


• Compliance with health and safety, security requirements, agreed SOPs and investigational algorithms is expected.


Antimicrobial Stewardship
Alongside the Antimicrobial Lead, the other Consultant Medical Microbiologists are expected to contribute to antimicrobial stewardship and educational activities as members of the Trust's Antimicrobial Management Team. The post-holder would also be expected to work with colleagues to develop an expanded service of antibiotic ward rounds and to contribute towards antimicrobial stewardship governance activities.

Infection Prevention and Control (IPC)
Alongside the duties of the Infection Control Doctor, the other Consultant Medical Microbiologists are expected to provide clinical IPC advice when on duty, to work closely with the IPC team and to take up the ICD role on a rotational basis.

Outpatient Parenteral Antimicrobial Therapy (OPAT)
An OPAT service has recently been developed alongside Virtual Ward and Hospital at Home services. The service operates across UHD and is run in collaboration with 4 enhanced clinical practitioners, with a weekly MDT via Teams and a clinic planned for the future.

One Dorset Pathology

This is an exciting time to join the pathology team in Dorset. We are making great progress with our vision to create a first class, integrated pathology service for the whole county. 'One Dorset Pathology' is transforming and aligning pathology services across the two main acute trusts within the Dorset Integrated Care System (ICS). The ICS serves a population of around 800,000 people and includes four hospitals, Dorset County Hospital (DCH), The Royal Bournemouth Hospital (RBH), Poole Hospital (PH) and Christchurch Hospital (CH).

A brand new Pathology Hub is nearing completion at the RBH site and the service uses a single LIMS (WinPath Enterprise) which will later be rolled out across the Southern Counties Pathology Network. This will bring significant benefits in terms of patient care, cost efficiency and collaborative opportunities whilst providing patients and clinicians with an excellent and integrated pathology service across the area.

University Hospitals Dorset NHS Foundation

This is also a great time to join our hospitals in Dorset. We have received significant investment to help transform our services and redevelop Poole Hospital and the Royal Bournemouth and Christchurch Hospitals, now merged as University Hospitals Dorset (UHD). We have been able to access these national funds because we have such a good plan in Dorset.

Our vision is to join up our services so they can be delivered in a more integrated way. We have a great opportunity together to improve outcomes for patients, make better use of all our resources, and ensure our services can be provided on a sustainable basis.

For developing our workforce, the aim is to establish modern, well-equipped centres of excellence with sustainable roles for staff, standardisation of education and training so that we can attract and retain skilled clinical and non-clinical staff to Dorset. This is a great opportunity for you to be part of the transformation as our two hospital trusts also merge.

UHD received university hospital status in 2020 in recognition of the depth of research, education and practice that exists between UHD and Bournemouth University (BU). Both organisations are committed to helping people live better, for longer, with UHD actively engaged in supporting the learning of BU students through a series of clinical placements for nursing, midwifery and students on allied health courses.

In addition, a number of research projects are taking place in fields such as orthopaedics and medical imaging, while BU also provides training and professional development opportunities for UHD staff. Drawing on this collective expertise creates opportunities for students and university and hospital staff and, crucially, promotes better patient outcomes.

Disability Confident
About Disability Confident
A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that declares they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer. It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. For more details please go to Disability Confident.