Job responsibilities
To manage clinical policy and operational service delivery of Radiotherapy Physics in line with the needs of the service (and Trust values) within the limitations of resources and equipment
To manage the staff of Radiotherapy Physics in accordance with the Trusts values and policies, creating a culture of continuing service improvement to meet the needs of the patients, including:
To plan, initiate, oversee and lead the implementation of service improvement and developments across Radiotherapy Physics to ensure best practice techniques are provided.
To advise Consultant Oncologists and senior managers on the clinical aspects of radiotherapy physics and in conjunction with these staff define strategic plans for Oncology that are in line with the requirements of the service and national radiotherapy specification
Be responsible for the financial management of all budgets in the Radiotherapy physics service including pay, non-pay and external income and to deliver these with the allocated budgets.
Manage the procurement of equipment and supplies required to provide the service. This includes writing and overseeing: business cases, capital bids, specifications, requisition, acceptance, quality control and on-going maintenance (including contracts).
The post holder is responsible for ensuring that the Radiotherapy Physics Quality System is managed and maintained to the standards of ISO 9000 and that there is the continuation of a high quality technical service to the UHCW Oncology centre.
To be responsible for the operational strategy plans for Radiotherapy Physics to meet all ongoing local, regional and national requirements. The post holder will interpret how best to meet the operational and strategic needs of the service in alignment with the Radiotherapy Physics resources
The post holder is responsible for ensuring that the requirements of all relevant legislation (and permits) are adhered to with the department.
The post holder is required to manage the service in line with Trust protocols and ensure that services are delivered within the corporate and clinical governance framework.
They will ensure that there are effective risk management systems in place in which patient safety is paramount and that there are mechanisms to provide continuous monitoring and improvement in response to patient feedback, incident, complaints and claims.
To develop and manage an effective research programme within the department engaging external stake holders where appropriate and seeking external funding (where required).
Implement ongoing service development in Radiotherapy Physics in line with national and international policy, legislation, standards, codes of practice and guidelines.
To provide a comprehensive training programme to a wide array of staff groups including Radiotherapy Physics staff, trainees, medical and radiography staff. To ensure that education and training provided for staff and students is maintained at a suitable level to meet national standards, staff development and CPD.
To act as a Medical Physics Expert in Clinical Radiotherapy Physics:
To act as a lead source of knowledge and expertise in Radiotherapy Physics, to interpret measurement results and determine the reasons for anomalous results and the cause of subtle or non-reproducible results.
To initiate, plan and introduce specialist services in all areas of Radiotherapy physics in collaboration with the Principal Clinical Scientists and Medical Physics Experts within the department.
To be responsible for an effective dosimetry programme including the calibration, management and quality control of all equipment used.
To plan and manage the local introduction of new national and international Codes of Practice for external beam quality control and ensure an appropriate QC schedule is managed and undertaken for all relevant equipment.
To develop and build effective working partnerships with staff within the team, across the Trust and with external stakeholders.
To act as Duty Physicist when required by the Rota. i.e. To act as the first response source of specialist scientific advice in all aspects of Radiotherapy Physics.
To undertake any other duties required by Director of Clinical Physics and BioEngineering in accordance with the grade and nature of the post.
Applications are invited from experienced Radiotherapy Clinical Scientists seeking to lead a large, progressive Radiotherapy Physics team providing a comprehensive range of services to the people of Coventry and Warwickshire.
The Radiotherapy department is equipped with five Elekta linacs, an orthovoltage treatment machine, Elekta HDR brachytherapy and RayStation treatment planning system. All of the linear accelerators are equipped with Agility heads and cone beam CT whilst three are configured for FFF treatments. The department offers a modern portfolio of techniques including a growing SABR service.
Approximately 30,000 fractions of external beam radiotherapy are delivered at Coventry each year, with the majority of radical treatments delivered using VMAT. The brachytherapy service is physics led and HDR brachytherapy is undertaken using MRI and interstitial needles where required. 4D CT and 4D CBCT are currently in use and other options for motion management are in development. Either diode or EPID based IVD is used for all radical external beam treatments, with current methods soon to be replaced by a new integrated secondary dose check and EPID dosimetry system.
The Radiotherapy Physics team consists of twelve Clinical Scientists (including the post holder), eleven dosimetrists and five engineers. There are close links with other staff groups and the post-holder will be expected to work alongside the Radiotherapy Service Manager and Clinical Lead to develop the service.
The department has active research collaborations with the University of Warwick and Coventry University which the post holder will be expected to develop in collaboration with the lead research physicist. The centre is an accredited training department at all levels of medical physics including HSST.
The successful candidate will be a registered clinical scientist with MPE status in radiotherapy and have considerable experience of working in the specialty. He / she will hold a PhD or be able to demonstrate equivalence. In addition, the successful candidate will offer evidence of effective management of a large, multidisciplinary team providing a comprehensive level of radiotherapy physics services, teaching experience and an active interest in research.
To discuss this post or arrange a visit please contact Sue Large (PA to the Director of Clinical Physics) 02476 968512 or james.cullis@uhcw.nhs.uk (Interim Director of Clinical Physics & Bioengineering).
