Job summary
We are looking to appoint an enthusiastic Specialty Doctor in Supportive Care, to work alongside our team of dedicated Consultants, Nurses and Allied Health Professionals in the newly created Directorate of Supportive Oncology.
You will join an innovative and supportive team at an exciting time, all with a shared vision of providing outstanding care at The Christie Hospital, a large specialist oncology centre. You will be part of a team who are dedicated to improving how we care for patients requiring supportive or palliative care.The post holder will be professionally responsible to the Medical Director, clinically accountable to the Deputy Clinical Director of Supportive Oncology and Operationally managed by the Service Manager for Supportive Oncology.
Main duties of the job
The post is for 10.0 PAs and is based at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust. The post holder would join a multidisciplinary team comprising two full-time consultants in supportive care and palliative medicine, and a large team of clinical nurse specialists, a Physiotherapist, a Pharmacist and a GP. These team members provide a clinical supportive care service to oncology patients and their families. They work in close collaboration with other supportive services in the Trust.
The post has 10 Programmed Activities . A broad design of 8.0 direct clinical care PAs, including clinical management and administration, and 2.0 supporting professional activities (SPA) is envisaged. There is no on call requirement. The SPAs could cover management, research, CPD and audit, supportive care education and training or a special interest activity. It is expected that the clinical PAs will consist of 4 sessions for inpatient assessments, and 4 sessions for outpatients (ESC clinic).
As an indicator of workload, the SCT as a whole accepts approximately 50 in-patient referrals per month and 40 outpatient referrals per month. The postholder would be expected to see both inpatients, sometimes jointly with another member of the MDT, approximately 4-5 inpatient reviews per day. Out-patient caseload of about 3-4 patients per day.
About us
The Christie is one of Europe's leading cancer centres, treating over 60,000 patients a year. We are based in Manchester and serve a population of 3.2 million across Greater Manchester & Cheshire, but as a national specialist around 15% patients are referred to us from other parts of the country. We provide radiotherapy through one of the largest radiotherapy departments in the world; chemotherapy on site and through 14 other hospitals; highly specialist surgery for complex and rare cancer; and a wide range of support and diagnostic services. We are also an international leader in research, with world first breakthroughs for over 100 years. We run one of the largest early clinical trial units in Europe with over 300 trials every year. Cancer research in Manchester, most of which is undertaken on the Christie site, has been officially ranked the best in the UK.
Job description
Job responsibilities
DUTIES AND RESPONSBILITES
Clinical sessions (8.0 PAs)
- The post holder will manage his/her share of the clinical workload and be responsible for onward referrals and clinical care.
- He/she would work in close collaboration with the consultants on the team and provide advice and clinical guidance to the full team.
- 1.0 flexible session for audit and research.
- 1.0 flexible session for clinical and non-clinical admin.
- Clinical administration and service management will include team meetings and MDT meetings, and supervision. The post holder would also participate in a number of additional strategy and governance groups and service development initiatives, if desired.
- In-patient referrals include adult (16 years and over) cancer patients who are registered as patients at the Trust. There is no upper age limit. Referrals are mainly received from within cancer teams at the Trust; these arise from a range of medical and surgical oncology consultants and their medical and nursing teams within the Trust, and some outlying cancer services in the Network. Specialist oncology nurses and Macmillan nurses also refer directly to the service. Referrals from the Cancer Network are currently restricted to patients who are already registered at the Trust for treatment or follow-up.
- Urgent new outpatient appointments should be provided within 1 working day of referral, wherever possible. In-patient reviews are seen within 24 hours. Interim management advice would be given where appropriate. Patients considered to be a priority would be seen urgently.
In patient referrals include patients with complex physical problems relating to their disease and/or treatment. Some patients (particularly on the wards) are seen in the terminal phase of illness. But the majority are those with treatable but incurable disease, who are on active cancer therapy. Approximately 25% of those on the current outpatient caseload are classed as cancer survivors.
Hospital team working
Working relationships with the oncology teams, the acute oncology services in the trust, onco-endocrinology, allied health professionals, and specialist nurses are already well established in The Christie.
Responsibilities and Continuity of Care
- Onward referrals to local services as required
- There is currently no on-call requirement for this post. Emergency cover for the Christie is provided out of hours, at week-ends and on public holidays between St Anns hospice and the on-call SCT (weekends 9-5pm).
- Wherever possible, the two Trust SCT consultants would attempt to provide cover for each other during annual leave as appropriate.
- The consultants will supervise the clinical fellow at The Christie.
- The post holder will assist in managing Good Medical Practice by engaging in continuing professional development and encouraging others to do so.
- NICE Guidelines and current Trust management guidelines will be used to develop supportive care pathways, referral guidelines and guidelines for prescribing.
Secretarial assistance
Clinical activity for the team is administratively supported by 2 designated band 4 medical secretaries.
Rooms
A shared office with computer plus printer and telephone will be provided.
Non-clinical sessions (1.0 PA)
2.0 non-clinical sessions (2.0 SPAs) are envisaged and these could cover the following areas:
Continuing professional development (CPD)
The trust supports the requirements for CPD as laid down by the GMC and Royal Colleagues and is committed to providing time and financial support for these activities
Job Planning
The job plan outlines the requirements of the post and may be altered by joint agreement with the Clinical Lead and Service Manager and in response to service needs. Job Plans are also subject to an annual review as detailed in the Trusts Job Planning Policy. It is expected that the initial Job Plan discussion will take place within the first six months of employment at the Trust.
The annual review will examine all aspects of the job plan (including any Educational components) and will also include an assessment of professional development with defined goals for the future.
Job description
Job responsibilities
DUTIES AND RESPONSBILITES
Clinical sessions (8.0 PAs)
- The post holder will manage his/her share of the clinical workload and be responsible for onward referrals and clinical care.
- He/she would work in close collaboration with the consultants on the team and provide advice and clinical guidance to the full team.
- 1.0 flexible session for audit and research.
- 1.0 flexible session for clinical and non-clinical admin.
- Clinical administration and service management will include team meetings and MDT meetings, and supervision. The post holder would also participate in a number of additional strategy and governance groups and service development initiatives, if desired.
- In-patient referrals include adult (16 years and over) cancer patients who are registered as patients at the Trust. There is no upper age limit. Referrals are mainly received from within cancer teams at the Trust; these arise from a range of medical and surgical oncology consultants and their medical and nursing teams within the Trust, and some outlying cancer services in the Network. Specialist oncology nurses and Macmillan nurses also refer directly to the service. Referrals from the Cancer Network are currently restricted to patients who are already registered at the Trust for treatment or follow-up.
- Urgent new outpatient appointments should be provided within 1 working day of referral, wherever possible. In-patient reviews are seen within 24 hours. Interim management advice would be given where appropriate. Patients considered to be a priority would be seen urgently.
In patient referrals include patients with complex physical problems relating to their disease and/or treatment. Some patients (particularly on the wards) are seen in the terminal phase of illness. But the majority are those with treatable but incurable disease, who are on active cancer therapy. Approximately 25% of those on the current outpatient caseload are classed as cancer survivors.
Hospital team working
Working relationships with the oncology teams, the acute oncology services in the trust, onco-endocrinology, allied health professionals, and specialist nurses are already well established in The Christie.
Responsibilities and Continuity of Care
- Onward referrals to local services as required
- There is currently no on-call requirement for this post. Emergency cover for the Christie is provided out of hours, at week-ends and on public holidays between St Anns hospice and the on-call SCT (weekends 9-5pm).
- Wherever possible, the two Trust SCT consultants would attempt to provide cover for each other during annual leave as appropriate.
- The consultants will supervise the clinical fellow at The Christie.
- The post holder will assist in managing Good Medical Practice by engaging in continuing professional development and encouraging others to do so.
- NICE Guidelines and current Trust management guidelines will be used to develop supportive care pathways, referral guidelines and guidelines for prescribing.
Secretarial assistance
Clinical activity for the team is administratively supported by 2 designated band 4 medical secretaries.
Rooms
A shared office with computer plus printer and telephone will be provided.
Non-clinical sessions (1.0 PA)
2.0 non-clinical sessions (2.0 SPAs) are envisaged and these could cover the following areas:
Continuing professional development (CPD)
The trust supports the requirements for CPD as laid down by the GMC and Royal Colleagues and is committed to providing time and financial support for these activities
Job Planning
The job plan outlines the requirements of the post and may be altered by joint agreement with the Clinical Lead and Service Manager and in response to service needs. Job Plans are also subject to an annual review as detailed in the Trusts Job Planning Policy. It is expected that the initial Job Plan discussion will take place within the first six months of employment at the Trust.
The annual review will examine all aspects of the job plan (including any Educational components) and will also include an assessment of professional development with defined goals for the future.
Person Specification
Education / Qualifications
Essential
- Full GMC registration
- 4 years post FY2 as a minimum
Desirable
- Postgraduate degree
- MRCP, MRCGP or equivalent
- A minimum of 3 years of postgraduate training in general medicine or general practice
Knowledge / Experience
Essential
- Diagnosis and treatment of supportive care problems
- Knowledge and experience of facilitating complex assessment of symptoms relating to cancer & its treatment.
Desirable
- Completed course in symptom control or palliative medicine.
- Skills and experience in an oncology setting.
- Experience in working within the field of supportive care
Skills / abilities
Essential
- Ability to work as a team worker with professional colleagues, both doctors, nurses and other health professionals
- Ability to offer leadership to MDTs
Desirable
- Skills in pain management and symptom control
- Interest and/or skills in specialist areas relevant to cancer and supportive and /or palliative care
Teaching
Essential
- Experience of teaching medical and other staff
- Ability to assist with in-service training
Desirable
- Interest in teaching postgraduate staff
- Ability to help develop and implement educational initiatives in supportive care
Research
Essential
- Ability to undertake audit and/or research.
Desirable
Policy and strategy
Essential
- Awareness of key strategy documents for this area of clinical work
Person Specification
Education / Qualifications
Essential
- Full GMC registration
- 4 years post FY2 as a minimum
Desirable
- Postgraduate degree
- MRCP, MRCGP or equivalent
- A minimum of 3 years of postgraduate training in general medicine or general practice
Knowledge / Experience
Essential
- Diagnosis and treatment of supportive care problems
- Knowledge and experience of facilitating complex assessment of symptoms relating to cancer & its treatment.
Desirable
- Completed course in symptom control or palliative medicine.
- Skills and experience in an oncology setting.
- Experience in working within the field of supportive care
Skills / abilities
Essential
- Ability to work as a team worker with professional colleagues, both doctors, nurses and other health professionals
- Ability to offer leadership to MDTs
Desirable
- Skills in pain management and symptom control
- Interest and/or skills in specialist areas relevant to cancer and supportive and /or palliative care
Teaching
Essential
- Experience of teaching medical and other staff
- Ability to assist with in-service training
Desirable
- Interest in teaching postgraduate staff
- Ability to help develop and implement educational initiatives in supportive care
Research
Essential
- Ability to undertake audit and/or research.
Desirable
Policy and strategy
Essential
- Awareness of key strategy documents for this area of clinical work
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Additional information
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
