Cardiology Clinical Lead in Wrexham

This national post offers the opportunity for an experienced and dynamic Clinical Lead to join the Cardiac Implementation Network which is part of the Cardiovascular Strategic Network, NHS Wales Performance and Improvement (NHS Wales P&I). This All-Wales Clinical Lead is required to ensure clinically led delivery of the Cardiac Implementation Network. The post is critical to providing strategic clinical leadership and ensuring effective coordination, governance and quality assurance of service transformation efforts in alignment with the National Clinical Framework Board (NCF) and the deliverables outlined within the Cardiac Implementation Network's annual plan 2025-26 and beyond.

This All-Wales Clinical Lead post is integral to achieving a clinically led, joined-up and high-quality approach to service transformation and improvement, ensuring the ambitions of the Cardiac Implementation Network are delivered and sustained. The postholder will have strategic links to a wide range of stakeholders across the Health and Social Care system in Wales, working with and influencing senior stakeholders in Welsh Government, NHS Wales P&I, clinical, professional and managerial leads across the NHS.

Main duties of the job

• National level clinical leadership to oversee the development and implementation of the Cardiac Implementation Network plans to address regional variation in care delivery.
• The role is crucial to driving and sustaining clinical engagement across multiple provider organisations, ensuring service changes are clinically led, evidence-based, and focused on outcomes.
• The Clinical Lead will play a key role in identifying and addressing barriers to implementation, promoting best practice, and providing expert scrutiny and guidance to ensure timely delivery of national priorities.
• The ability to speak Welsh is desirable for this post; Welsh and/or English speakers are equally welcome to apply.

Job responsibilities

The Cardiac Implementation Network will support the design of models of care which support high quality, accessible and safe care that meets the needs of the population and supports the delivery of timely safe care in line with national priorities. To this end, the network will actively take forward:

• Primary / Community interface: ensuring options available to clinicians and patients are optimum, via support to the development adoption and implementation of health and care pathways via the Community Health Care Pathway Programme as well as e-advice and guidance.
• Promotion of the implementation of best practice pathways for Improvement resulting in improved waits to access care and outcomes.
• Modernising access to diagnostics within the speciality in the context of the creation of regional Diagnostic Hubs and the Community Health Care Pathway Programme as well as and through the lens of OPD transformation.
• Outpatient modernisation with a focus on implementation of PIFU / SOS pathways, virtual and group consultations to support more effective utilisation of capacity, achieve service balance and deliver reduced waiting times for diagnosis of clinical concerns.
• Implementation of best practice pathways for elective care. This will include but is not restricted to best practice identified by Strategic Networks, NICE, and national benchmarking / improvement bodies such as GIRFT in areas such as high volume low complexity, and movement of procedures from inpatient to day case.
• Supporting patients whilst waiting via developing waiting well information / guidance as well as signposting patients to further support.

Key aspects of this role will be to:

• Provide professional and clinical leadership for the Implementation Network.
• Provide clinical advice and scrutiny to constituent provider organisations on the activities and required support to deliver the objectives of the Implementation Network.
• Communicate the Implementation Network's focus on quality and outcomes from national through to local level, allowing the local teams to feed ideas and input back to the Network and NHS Wales Performance and Improvement as appropriate.
• Provide leadership for improving and safeguarding quality.
• Prioritise, develop and promote high level national health & care pathways.
• Challenge organisations and clinicians around the timely adoption and implementation of best practice that will support elective recovery.
• Support national strategic / policy thinking regarding the speciality in line with National Clinical Framework (NCF).
• Support and implementation associated with relevant regional working opportunities that will facilitate more timely care to patients.

Person Specification

Qualifications and Knowledge

• Qualified healthcare professional with current registration with appropriate body and in good professional standing.
• Full UK clinical accreditation and holding a substantive Medical, surgical or Nurse/Clinical Practitioner post in Wales.
• Significant experience in the service area.
• Enhanced knowledge of the service area within Wales.
• Good understanding of clinical governance.
• Relevant Professional Registration.

Experience

• Managing and chairing groups.
• Working with key stakeholders.
• Recognised lead in the service area.
• Experience in post-graduate /multidisciplinary education.
• UK and international experience working within the service area.
• Research experience.

Skills

• Competence in clinical management.
• Sound judgment and decision making.
• Proven ability to manage complex work and prioritise effectively.
• Ability to develop effective working relationships on an individual and multi-disciplinary basis.
• Ability to maintain CPD to a high standard.
• Proven ability to work as part of a multi-disciplinary team.
• Excellent communication & organisational skills.
• Ability to demonstrate understanding and application of our workplace values, together with the underpinning behaviours identified for success in this role.
• Welsh Language Skills are desirable levels 1 to 5 in understanding, speaking, reading, and writing in Welsh.

Other

• Willingness and ability to travel.
• Highly motivated.
• Ability to work on own initiative.
• Ability to work under pressure.
• Tactful and diplomatic.

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.

£110,240 to £160,951 a year. Will be paid at current salary rate for the secondment.