Clinical Director

Job Type: Contract/Secondment – fixed-term 12 months in first instance with possibility of extension

Hours: Part time – 4 sessions per week (0.4 wte) or job share at 2 sessions per week (2 x 0.2wte)

Department: Clinical Effectiveness Unit (CEU)

Salary: Commensurate with NHS pay scales / current salary

Reports to: Director of Clinical Quality

Clinically accountable to Vice President of Clinical Quality

Location: Hybrid – CoSRH Office (London Bridge) and home working. Flexibility to suit personal circumstances and location. Occasional travel to the office required.

The College of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare (CoSRH) is the leader in the field of sexual and reproductive healthcare, and we are the voice for professionals working in this area. As a multi-disciplinary professional membership organisation, we set clinical guidance and standards, provide training and lifelong education, and champion safe and effective sexual and reproductive healthcare across the life course for all.

The Clinical Effectiveness Unit (CEU) at the CoSRH develops a range of evidenced-based clinical guidance documents including guidelines, statements and new product reviews as well as associated activities.

The Role: We are seeking to appoint an experienced SRH clinician (or 2 as a job share) to provide expert clinical leadership and advice to support the development of clinical guidelines, guidance statements, new product reviews and patient facing information. The postholders will also play a key role in advising the College on emerging evidence, research developments, and media enquiries. The postholder will work collaboratively with systematic reviewers, CEU staff, Clinical Fellows, CoSRH Clinical Quality Committees, and senior College officers including the VP for Clinical Quality. They will also engage closely with external clinical experts and patient organisations across the sexual and reproductive healthcare sector to ensure the delivery of high-quality, evidence-based guidance. This is a rare opportunity to influence national clinical practice at a senior level, while maintaining your clinical career.

Key responsibilities include:

• Providing clinical leadership and expert input across all CEU activities and responding authoritatively to enquiries relating to clinical evidence and research.
• Advise on all aspects of guideline development content, from scoping and recruiting Guideline Development Groups (GDGs) through to drafting recommendations, consultation and peer review.
• Advise on the scope of new guideline work, including when guidance requires updating or a new statement is needed.
• Contribute to the effective quality assurance of the outputs of the CEU team.
• Work with GDGs Chairs and GDG members to ensure robust, inclusive group processes and collaborative decision-making, supporting the drafting of clear, evidence-based recommendations.
• Establish and maintain collaborative networks of national and international clinical experts in the field of sexual and reproductive health.
• Contribute to the development of webinars, blogs, articles and publications relating to guidelines and guidance products.
• Respond to CoSRH Officer, member or internal evidence enquiries including in relation to new research or products.
• Advise on the clinical impact of surveillance of new evidence relevant to the update of guidelines or guidance.
• Provide clinical input into the development of all CEU products, including Contraception Choices site.
• Supervise the work of the Clinical Fellows and their clinical input into specific guidance products.
• Advise on the CoSRH response to third party guidance such as relevant NICE guidelines.
• Support the team on planning the delivery of guidelines, guidance and associated activities.
• Identify and advise on risks and issues in guideline and guidance development, recommending appropriate mitigations.

Supporting methodological developments:

• Collaborate with the evidence methodologists/systematic reviewing team to drive continuous improvement of methodological practices, proposing process changes where appropriate.
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of developments in evidence-based practice methods, applying these to CEU work.

Communication:

• Establish effective relationships with the Clinical Quality Board and the Clinical Quality Assurance and Surveillance Group and other officers and senior members of the College.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships and engagement with a range of clinical experts, national organisations such as the MHRA, Royal Colleges and patient organisations.
• Present highly complex information to multidisciplinary groups such as at conference, to guideline development groups or CoSRH committees.
• Present complex clinical and evidence-based information clearly to multidisciplinary audiences, including at conferences, GDG meetings and CoSRH committees.
• Advise College staff on responding to member, press or officer enquiries regarding CoSRH guidance outputs and relevant evidence.
• Occasionally including media spokesperson activity for the College.

Other:

• Manage a varied and busy workload across multiple concurrent projects, prioritising effectively to meet deadlines.
• Participate in appropriate training and development activities and encourage and support the development and training of other staff, including Clinical fellows and trainees.
• Maintain continuing professional development in line with the GMC's requirements for annual appraisal and revalidation.
• Provide induction and training to Guideline Development Group members as required.

You will be:

• MBBS or equivalent medical qualification.
• Ideally you will have undertaken MCSRH OR DCSRH, LOCIUT, LOCSDI and be a member of CoSRH.
• Professionally registered with the relevant organisation such as GMC registration and entry on the GMC specialist register or GMC GP register with a current licence to practise.
• Or an advanced practitioner Registered Nurse/Midwife with current registration on the Nursing and Midwifery Council.
• A Postgraduate with a qualification in a relevant discipline.

You will have:

• Expert knowledge of policy, research and evidence related issues in the field of sexual and reproductive health.
• Knowledge of clinical guideline development and assessment methodology, critical appraisal and the interpretation and synthesis of clinical research evidence.
• Ability to identify, critically appraise, analyse and synthesise highly complex evidence and present it clearly and precisely, both verbally and in writing.
• Understanding of the principles of evidence-based healthcare, critical appraisal and the interpretation and synthesis of clinical research including use of GRADE and meta-analysis.
• Ability to work independently to tight deadlines including prioritising work.
• Ability to establish effective working relationships with a range of professionals internally and externally.
• Excellent oral, written communication and presentation skills.
• Adaptable communication style appropriate to different audiences and situations.
• A flexible attitude to the work environment and ability to work as part of a team.
• Self-motivated, proactive and innovative.

You will have experience:

• Working in or familiarity with the NHS at consultant or specialist level, as an experienced GP with a special interest in SRH or as an advanced nursing/midwifery practitioner (Nurse Consultant/Practitioner level) working in sexual and reproductive healthcare.
• Extensive experience gained as a consultant or specialist in SRH services.
• Effective leadership in a multidisciplinary environment.
• Small group facilitation and negotiation.
• Establishing clinical networks in the field of sexual and reproductive health ideally at a national or international level.
• Working familiarity with research design, methodology, conduct and reporting.
• Conducting research and preparing peer reviewed publications (desirable).
• Working on development of guidelines or guidance either developing reviews or as a committee member (desirable).
• Working on or familiarity with NICE (or similar) guidelines and processes (desirable).