Job overview
The Department of Ophthalmology at James Cook University Hospital is looking to appoint an NHS Locum consultant ophthalmologist with a view to making substantive to augment the services we provide at South Tees NHS Trust.
The department is a cohesive unit which has steadily expanded over the last ten years covering all major sub speciality areas within ophthalmology. The candidate should have appropriate surgical and clinical experience to undertake specialist care in the relevant subspecialty area. Within the hospital and department there are established research facilities and there will be opportunities to contribute to undergraduate and postgraduate education.
The department is specifically looking to appoint a candidate with subspecialty training in glaucoma and relevant experience in complex secondary glaucomas including uveitis and post-trauma cases and surgical management including the use of aqueous shunts.
Main duties of the job
·The post holder will maintain the highest clinical standards in the practice of complex glaucoma
·The post holder will join the on-call rota on a 1 in 16/18 rota (with prospective cover in DCC).
·The candidate will possess the appropriate surgical and clinical experience to undertake specialist care in the relevant subspecialty area.
·The post holder will contribute to undergraduate and postgraduate education
·The post holder will work as part of a multidisciplinary team
·A formal job plan will be agreed between the appointee and their Clinical Director on behalf of the Medical Director three months after the commencement date of the appointment.
·The job plan should be reviewed annually. It will cover all aspects of a consultants professional practice including clinical work, teaching, research, education and managerial responsibilities, including a clear schedule of commitments, both internal and external. It should include personal objectives, including details of their link to wider service objectives and details of the support required by the consultant to fulfil the job plan and the objectives.
Working for our organisation
South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust have formally agreed to form a group structure to enable closer working across the two organisations.
The group model means that the two organisations remain separate so they can represent their communities really effectively, but it has the flexibility to enable the trusts to work at scale to take strategic decisions which benefit the group as a whole and the patients we serve.
This is not a merger. Both trusts remain as separate organisations keeping their own existing identities and names but going forward, when they are working together, they can now collectively be known as University Hospitals Tees.
The two trusts are the areas largest employers, with a budget of around £1.2billion and more than 15,000 staff who deliver acute, tertiary and community health and care services across the Tees Valley, North Yorkshire, County Durham and beyond. University Hospitals Tees will deliver better outcomes for:
1. Patients by ensuring equal access to treatment and sharing best practice on how to deliver care.
2. Staff by enabling them to work on all of the groups sites more easily and develop career opportunities.
3. The wider population by collaborating to work on endemic health issues and having a coherent voice to represent the people of the Tees Valley and parts of County Durham and North Yorkshire.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please see the full job description and person specification document(s) for the main responsibilities of the role.
Person specification
Qualifications and Training
Essential criteria
4. Full GMC registration
5. FRCOphth or equivalent
6. Relevant CCT or equivalent (equivalence must be confirmed by PMETB/GMC by date of AAC)
7. Entry onto the GMC Specialist Register or eligibility for entry within 6 months of the date of the AAC
Desirable criteria
8. Training in appraisal techniques
Clinical experience and effectiveness
Essential criteria
9. Extensive experience in General Ophthalmology
10. Subspecialist experience in Glaucoma, including management of complex cases (with experience of aqueous shunts)
11. Recognised subspeciality fellowship or good evidence of subspecialty practice in a recognised medical institution
12. Understanding of quality improvement activities such as audit
Desirable criteria
13. Understanding of service development within the specialty of Glaucoma
Teaching and training experiences
Essential criteria
14. Experience of supervising resident medical staff
15. Evidence of management and administration experience
Desirable criteria
16. Other teaching skills/experience
17. Management training
18. Success in obtaining funding for research
Personal attributes
Essential criteria
19. Good leadership skills
20. Ability to communicate effectively
21. Enthusiasm and ability to work under pressure
22. Good organisational and management skills
23. Ability to work within a multidisciplinary team
24. Resident within 10 miles or 30minutes of the hospital
25. Commitment to training and continuing medical education (CME)
26. Caring attitude to patients
27. Clear recognition of boundaries in respect of sessional work outside the hospital
28. Supportive
29. Commitment to good teamwork and relationships
30. Flexibility to respond to changing service needs
Desirable criteria
31. Experience in team working outside of work
32. IT skills
33. Ability to meet the travel requirements of the post
Disclosure and Barring Checks (DBS)
It is now the policy of South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust that all successful candidates who are new to the Trust who require DBS clearance for the post they have been offered, are required to pay the cost of their DBS. The method of payment for this is via salary deduction from your first month's pay.
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is committed to promoting equality of opportunity, celebrating and valuing diversity and eliminating any form of unlawful discrimination across our workforce, ensuring our people are truly representative of the communities we serve. All individuals regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation are encouraged to apply for this post. We welcome applications from the Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME) Network; LGBT+ Network; Disability and Long-Term Health Conditions Network, Faith Network, Childless not by Choice Network and the Menopause Support Group.
As an inclusive employer, we are here to support you.
If you have any special requirements to help you with your application, email our team at
Right to Work in the UK
The Trust welcomes applications from all candidates who meet the criteria for the role. Please note that from January 2021, to work in the UK all candidates who are not UK or Republic of Ireland (RoI) nationals require sponsorship unless you have permission to work via another route. Non UK / RoI candidates wishing to apply can self-assess the likelihood of obtaining a Certificate of Sponsorship here Work in the UK - (.
Please provide full and accurate details of your current immigration status on the application form. Your current immigration status will not be considered as part of the shortlisting or interview process.
Please note that not everyone needs a Skilled Worker visa. If you are applying for a vacancy in health or adult social care, you may be eligible to apply for the Health and Care Worker visa instead.
We are able to offer sponsorship for a Health and Care Worker or Skilled Worker visa, subject to candidate and position eligibility. Please review the job eligibility guidance for skilled workers here: Skilled Worker visa: Your job - ( and for the Health and Care Worker visa here: Skilled Worker visa: eligible healthcare and education jobs - (
Please note: if the job you are applying for does not meet the eligibility criteria above, we will be unable to offer you sponsorship and you will need to explore whether you may be eligible to apply for an alternative immigration route which will secure your right to work in the UK before you apply. If you are in the UK already on a visa, please ensure you have no restrictions that would prevent you from taking this post.
The Trust encourages and supports all applicants to be fully vaccinated against both COVID19 and influenza.
Please be aware, there are occasions where some vacancies may close prior to the closing date advertised. This will only happen where sufficient applications are received AND will be made evident on the job advert.
Please note if you are successfully shortlisted, we will contact you via the email address that you have applied from so please ensure you check your emails regularly.
Existing employees of South Tees NHS Foundation Trust currently on the Redeployment Register, who meet the essential criteria for this post, will be shortlisted and interviewed prior to all other applicants.