Consultant Clinical Scientist: Head of Clinical Eng (XR11) in Leeds

The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is seeking a dynamic and motivated HCPC Registered Clinical Scientist with significant experience in the field of Clinical Engineering and/or Rehabilitation Engineering to provide strategic direction and Consultant-level scientific support to the Clinical Engineering Section in one of the largest Medical Physics & Engineering Departments in the UK. The role would be ideal for an individual with prior leadership experience at a senior scientific level in the above field and who is looking to progress their career by taking on new challenges and broaden their experience.

Main duties of the job:

• The post holder would be responsible for the operational and strategic management of a section comprising approximately 85 staff including Engineers, Clinical Scientists, Clinical Technologists and Apprentices working in the areas of equipment management, maintenance and repair, renal technology, rehabilitation engineering, gait analysis and functional electrical stimulation.
• The section also supports the medical and scientific capital equipment programme.
• The post holder is responsible for the provision and development of services in the above areas.
• The role involves working with senior clinical and non-clinical staff in different areas of the Leeds trust and other trusts and would be acting as the responsible Medical Devices Officer for the trust.
• The Clinical Engineering section falls under the departmental ISO 9001:2015 quality certification.

About us:

The Leeds Teaching Hospitals is one of the largest hospital trusts in the UK, as is its Department of Medical Physics and Engineering. The department has a strong track record of innovation both technically and commercially throughout the UK and internationally and provides support for clinical services at Leeds Teaching Hospitals as well as to other NHS organisations within the region.

The post-holder will primarily be based at the St James's Hospital site but, as the role involves support to other NHS trusts, they will be expected to travel to various sites across the region.

Job responsibilities:

• The post holder is responsible for using initiative and judgement to organise and manage the section's staff, equipment and financial resources.
• Delivering high-quality complex specialist services to patients, safely, legally and in compliance with Trust policy and practice.
• Ensuring and providing advice on the provision of medical equipment to the trust and its customers and compliance with relevant legislation, manufacturer and trust requirements and best practice throughout the equipment lifecycle.
• Responsible medical devices safety officer for the trust.
• Providing the trust and external customers with reliable and responsive scientific and technical support, using judgement and expert knowledge to provide them optimally in accordance with the needs of the customers and making best use of the resources available.
• Providing leadership and strategic direction to the section in conjunction with the Head of Medical Physics.

Principal duties & areas of responsibility:

• To take responsibility for strategically planning and managing the provision of equipment management, scientific and technical services in Clinical Engineering throughout the Trust, and to external customers including other trusts in Yorkshire.
• Accountable for managing the direct delivery of the whole Clinical Engineering service, maintaining a broad range of complex and expensive medical equipment across the Trust and beyond.
• Act as a consultant Clinical Scientist, providing highly specialised expert advice to other clinical services throughout the trust, relating to the acquisition and deployment of medical devices, and the consequences of reported incidents.
• To provide motivation and leadership to the scientific and technical staff of the section to maintain a high standard of service provision.
• To develop and maintain, in conjunction with the departmental quality manager, an appropriate quality system for the services provided by the section and ensure that the services provided by the section are of high quality.
• Ensure that the Trust fulfils its statutory obligations with respect to the provision of medical devices and other related Health and Safety legislation, including the maintenance of adequate records.
• To develop effective working relationships with senior clinical staff and other staff within the department and wider Trust.
• To use initiative and expertise to assist with the development and introduction of new techniques and technologies in the fields of medical equipment management, rehabilitation engineering, renal technology and clinical measurement.
• To motivate, organise, direct and participate in appropriate research and development work in collaboration with clinical and University staff, and as agreed with the Head of Department.
• To liaise with external organisations and regulatory bodies who have an interest in the work of the section.
• To take responsibility for provision of similar services to external organisations, as appropriate.
• Develop, review and maintain the Trust corporate policy Management of Medical Devices.
• Acts as lead scientific expert in medical equipment management for the Trust, advising and guiding the Medical Devices Group.
• Develops, reviews, maintains and implements Clinical Engineering policies, processes and procedures including carrying out research and development into novel strategies for managing risk and new methods of service delivery.
• Develops and delivers training programmes related to the clinical engineering services and undertakes appropriate teaching.
• Responsible for the section providing scientific and technical support services, which include advising on selection, installation and acceptance testing of highly complex equipment, the quality assurance, maintenance, calibration and repair of the trust's fleet of medical equipment.
• In addition, skill and knowledge is applied to design, develop and implement complex measurement, imaging and production techniques used for rehabilitation engineering, gait analysis and renal technology, which are relied upon for clinical decision making in relation to the management of patients.

More specifically, this includes:

• Responsibility for Clinical Engineering annual budget of approximately £5M.
• Responsibility for the operation and strategic development of the Equip equipment asset recording, management and service database system.
• Responsibility for effective monitoring of medical devices management and developing trust-wide action plans based on shortcomings in medical devices management practice identified in the annual Medical Devices Controls Assurance return.
• Takes responsibility for final decisions relating to electrical safety of medical equipment in exceptional or non-straightforward situations where expert guidance is needed.
• Other duties as determined by the Head of Department, and for the provision of effective services.
• Deputises for the Head of Medical Physics and Engineering as directed and acts as a departmental bronze commander, when necessary.

Communication & working relationships:

• Develop and maintain effective working relationships with the senior clinical, scientific and technical staff in all customer departments, as well as other staff in Medical Physics & Engineering.
• Be diplomatic and persuasive in resolving conflict situations, for example where research work must be delayed due to the required regulatory processes being slow, or where the needs of service delivery are perceived to conflict with arrangements for the safety of staff or patients.
• Liaise with external organisations and regulatory bodies who have an interest in the work of the section, or its customers, such as the Health and Safety Executive and the MHRA.
• This frequently requires the description of complex processes in terms that are pertinent and comprehensible to the issues that are of concern to the other party and may involve negotiating, persuasive and reassurance skills, particularly where there are barriers to understanding highly complex information.
• To liaise with trust planners and contractors in the planning and execution of projects affecting the work of the section or its customers.
• To liaise with Medical Physics and Clinical Engineering professionals throughout the UK and internationally, to maintain state-of-the-art knowledge of medical technologies, for the benefit of services provided by the LTH trust and its customers.
• To present and receive highly complex and/or sensitive and/or contentious information to large groups of staff, such as might be associated with the implementation and management of high volume medical equipment or new procedures.

Person Specification:

• Detailed professional and scientific knowledge of Clinical Engineering, management.
• Experience of managing a Clinical Engineering service.
• Thorough understanding and experience of quality systems, such as ISO 9001:2015.
• Thorough understanding of medical device standards, guidance and legislation, (e.g. ISO 13485:2016).
• Experience and knowledge of other relevant areas of clinical measurement.
• Knowledge of Clinical Movement Analysis Society standards.

Skills & behaviours:

• Ability to cope with large and unpredictable workload.
• Ability to provide leadership and work as part of a team.
• Demonstrate the ability to manage change in a complex environment.
• Ability to focus on major policy issues whilst maintaining a busy operational service.
• Proven financial management skills.

Additional Requirements:

• Ability to analyse highly complex situations where conflicting demands on limited resources have to be reconciled in order to minimise risk to the organisation.
• Use of own judgement to make evidence-based assessments of risk, where the outcome for the organisation may be in conflict with national or other published guidelines.

Qualifications:

• HCPC Registered Clinical Scientist.
• First degree or equivalent in physical sciences or electronic or electrical engineering.
• MSc degree in physical sciences or engineering, or equivalent experience and Chartered Engineer.
• Formal management and/or leadership qualification or management training in appropriate area.
• AHCS Higher Specialist Scientist Register.
• PhD in relevant area.

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.