Job overview
Band 6 Orthopaedic Scrub Nurse/ODP
A vacancy has arisen for a highly skilled and experienced Band 6 Senior Nurse/ODP with a broad clinical background and demonstrable management skills in Orthopaedic Trauma.
St Thomas Main Theatres is a welcoming, friendly and supportive environment based in central London.
We are proudly made up of a diverse workforce and highly specialised teams performing innovative surgery. We are committed to developing our staff and invest in helping them to attain their full potential.
Closing date: 22/02/2026
Main duties of the job
You will need to be an experienced Orthopaedic Trauma Surgery scrub nurse/ODP who is proactive, self-motivated, has very strong interpersonal skills, and a vision for service improvement. You will be expected to actively support, coordinate and assist in the management and delivery of high quality care to patients during the Peri-operative phase of their care.
You will be expected to support St Thomas Main Theatres in conjunction with the existing band 6/ 7 team and surgical (scrub) management of a wide variety of surgical specialities.
Working for our organisation
Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust comprises five of the UK’s best known hospitals – Guy’s, St Thomas’, Evelina London Children’s Hospital, Royal Brompton and Harefield – as well as community services in Lambeth and Southwark, all with a long history of high quality care, clinical excellence, research and innovation.
We are among the UK’s busiest, most successful foundation trusts. We provide specialist care for patients including heart and lung, cancer and renal services as well as a full range of local hospital and community services for people in Lambeth and Southwark.
We have a long tradition of clinical and scientific achievement and – as part of King’s Health Partners – we are one of England’s eight academic health sciences centres, bringing together world-class clinical services, teaching and research. We have one of the National Institute for Health Research’s biomedical research centres, established with King’s College London in 2007, as well as dedicated clinical research facilities.
We have around 22,700 staff, making us one of the largest NHS Trusts in the country and one of the biggest employers locally. We aim to reflect the diversity of the communities we serve and continue to develop new and existing partnerships with local people, patients, neighbouring NHS organisations, local authorities and charitable bodies and GPs.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
1. Independently manage a group of patients within the specialty whilst working as part of the multidisciplinary team, delivering individualised and personalised direct patient care.
2. Demonstrate appropriate practice and specialist advice in the assessment, planning, implementation and evaluation of patient care.
3. Responsible for the correct administration of prescribed medication including transfusion of blood and blood products.
4. Be responsible for assessing and recognising emergencies in the speciality. To interpret information and take appropriate action and to lead others to do the same.
5. Ensure that patients’ receive high quality clinical care and a good patient experience, having regard for their customs, religious beliefs and doctrines.
6. To provide leadership, support and guidance to staff in monitoring the planning delivery and evaluation of individualised care.
7. Is wholly accountable for his / her practice in line with the NMC code of professional conduct and takes every reasonable opportunity to sustain and improve his / her knowledge and professional competence.
8. Ensure safe and effective care for complex patients requiring advance clinical skills and responsible for carrying out specialist nursing procedures to area.
9. Ensure that sensitive patient records are stored appropriately.
10. Ensure staff take precautions to minimise the risk of cross infection in relation to the safe disposal of body fluids (including blood).
11. To be an effective communicator with patients/carers/families regarding disease treatment and management.
12. Facilitate a high quality, cost effective specialist service through monitoring and audit and other quality initiatives agreed by the Trust.
13. Identify and intervene where circumstances contribute to an unsafe environment for patients and staff. To bring instances to the attention of the Sister/Charge Nurse for the area.
14. Ensure that the learning environment and specialist training is appropriate for both pre and post registration learners and participate in the development of appropriate programmes.
15. Contribute in the Trust’s clinical supervision programme for staff.
16. To assist the Sister/Charge Nurse in developing a culture that is challenging, stimulating, rewarding, compassionate and supportive.
17. To act as mentor/assessor to unqualified staff and to provide education, advice and support to a team of nurses.
18. Utilise research findings in the delivery of specialist patient care, developing new ways of working and to disseminate relevant information to staff.
19. Provide a leadership role model and demonstrate specialist knowledge and high standards of clinical practice and provide support or advice when necessary.
20. Maintain accurate records of the clinical service and ensuring that confidentiality of information is adhered to.
21. Organise own work and manage own caseload and practice, identifying and maintaining supportive networks for self and other staff members.
22. Take an active role in risk assessment, supporting implementation of strategies to minimise risk. Ensuring incidents and near misses are reported, through promoting a no blame culture.
23. To create an environment that fosters good communication between patient and health care professionals, that meets individual’s needs.
Person specification
Qualifications/Knowledge
Essential criteria
24. Evidence of professional/clinical knowledge in area supplemented by specialist clinical training and CPD – Designated peri-operative post registration qualification
25. Post registration qualification in or demonstrate relevant experience and competence (appropriate area of speciality)
26. BSC/1st degree (health related) or equivalent qualification/training and experience
Desirable criteria
27. Leadership/management qualification
28. Teaching qualification
Experience
Essential criteria
29. Previous post registration experience within the relevant specialty
30. Experienced and competent in the management of patients within the speciality
31. Experience of teaching/assessing/ supervising others in a clinical setting
32. Experiencing of co-ordinating a shift
Skills
Essential criteria
33. Demonstrates specialist expertise underpinned by theory acquired through specialty specific CPD
34. Up to date knowledge of current clinical and professional issues. Knowledge of evidence based practice.
35. Good communication skills and ability to deal with sensitive information. To include dealing with distressed relatives, care of terminally ill & other challenging situations
36. Demonstrates ability to influence and negotiate with others. Ability to organise and plan own time and that of junior staff and learners.
37. You will be able decide how best to achieve expected results, whilst acting within clearly defined policies/ procedures and codes of conduct.
38. Demonstrates an awareness of clinical governance and risk management and how this effects their role in the department
39. An understanding of resource management
Professional/ Statutory Registration
Essential criteria
40. RN1/ RN2/ RN12 or RN Child Registered Nurse on the NMC register. To hold the appropriate level for the area of speciality.
Values & Behaviour
Essential criteria
41. Values & Behaviour
Guy’s and St Thomas’ celebrates, respects and values the diversity of its staff and patients. We review our policies, procedures and practices to ensure that all employees, patients and carers are treated equitable according to their needs. We are actively committed to ensuring that no one who applies for a job, works or study’s at the Trust, or accesses our services is discriminated against on the grounds of race, ethnicity, nationality, disability, religion or belief, age, gender identity, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity/paternity, or marital/civil partnership.