Job overview
PLEASE NOTE – WE ARE UNABLE TO PROVIDE SPONSORSHIP FOR THIS ROLE*
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An exciting opportunity has arisen in Haematology & Blood Transfusion within the NHS East and South East London Pathology Partnership (ESEL).
We are looking for a strong team player with a positive attitude to working in a flexible manner, committed to supporting the clinical services of the Trust and meeting the needs of our patients by participating in an Agenda for Change shift system.
The successful candidate will be based at one of the following sites; Whipps Cross Hospital or Royal London Hospital, but as the ESEL Pathology Partnership evolves, the primary location of work may be subject to change reflecting service demand. HCAS will be depended on the allocated site.
Main duties of the job
The post holder will play a key support role within the Haematology and Blood Transfusion laboratories, contributing to the safe, efficient, and high-quality delivery of diagnostic services.
They will work as part of the technical and scientific team, undertaking a range of pre-analytical and support tasks to ensure the smooth operation of the department. The post holder will take direction from Senior Biomedical Scientists and provide assistance to Operational Leads in the continuous improvement and transformation of laboratory services.
Key responsibilities will include:
1. ·Technical and Scientific
2. Laboratory Informatics
3. ·Quality and Governance
4. ·Training
5. ·Financial and Resource Management
6. ·Health and Safety
7. ·Research and Development
Working for our organisation
The NHS East and South East London Pathology Partnership is an arms-length organisation providing pathology services to Barts Health NHS Trust, Homerton Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust. The Pathology Partnership is hosted by Barts Health.
The Pathology Partnership was formed in May 2021. Between 2021 and 2024 the Partnership undertook a complex transformation programme to establish a single network of laboratories, underpinned by a single Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS) and single Quality Management System (QMS).
The Partnership has a main hub laboratory at the Royal London Hospital and Essential Service Laboratories (ESL) as a minimum at the six other hospital sites served by the Partnership.
The Partnership has three operational divisions:
• Blood Sciences including Haematology, Blood Transfusion and Biochemistry
• Microbiology and Virology
• Cellular Pathology and Cancer Diagnostics
The 2024/25 total operating costs across the Partnership were c. £121m per annum with a workforce establishment of circa. 860 WTE.
We strive to live by our WeCare values and are committed to promoting inclusion, where every staff member has a sense of belonging. We value our differences and fully advocate, cultivate and support an inclusive working environment.
We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates as they are underrepresented within the Pathology Partnership and Barts Health at this band
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
The full job description provides an overview of the key tasks and responsibilities of the role, and the person specification outlines the qualifications, skills, experience, and knowledge required. For both documents, please view the attachment/s below.
We are dedicated to being an outstanding place to work and will work with you to get the best experience. We know flexible working is not a one size fits all and will mean something different to everyone. We are inclusive, so if you are interested in flexible working, please speak to the recruiting manager.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
8. BSc in a Scientific related subject
Desirable criteria
9. IBMS accredited BSc in Biomedical Science
10. IBMS certificate of Achievement
Experience
Essential criteria
11. Minimum One year experience of working in a busy, acute medical blood sciences laboratory environment.
12. Has experience at preparing laboratory reagents for general use.
13. Has experienced monitoring laboratory apparatus and temperature controlled storage units.
14. Demonstrate an ability to cope with competing priorities.
15. Demonstrates an ability to respond to change.
Desirable criteria
16. Experience interacting with and able to perform basic operator maintenance on the named equipment; •Sysmex XN (Haematology) • SP50 Slide maker stainer •TS-10 tube sorter. •Sysmex CS (Coagulation) •Bio-rad IH-500 (Blood Transfusion) •Bio-rad Variant II •Sebia Capillary Flex
17. Experienced using the following named IT systems •WinPath Enterprise (Clinisys). •EPU Middleware (Sysmex) •Q-Pulse (Ideagen)
Knowledge
Essential criteria
18. Demonstrates an understanding of the role of the assistant practitioner.
19. Knowledge of patient confidentiality requirements.
20. Awareness of Equal Opportunity and diversity issues.
Desirable criteria
21. Knowledge of the requirements to safely package and dispatch biologically hazardous samples.
22. Knowledge of quality assurance checks perform on samples and laboratory equipment.
23. Aware of Safety requirements in a laboratory.
24. Aware of the quality management system.
Skills
Essential criteria
25. Literate and numerate.
26. Good communication skills and ability to comprehend and give clear statements that are understood by patients/staff.
27. Able to follow instructions and learn standard techniques.
28. Methodical and organised.
29. Manual dexterity.
30. Demonstrate accuracy and attention to detail, even under pressure.
31. Ability to meet deadlines in a busy environment.
32. Good keyboard/VDU skills.
33. Physical skills: including hand-eye co- ordination, dexterity and manipulation.
34. Able to plan, manage and prioritise own workload ensuring completion in a timely and accurate manner.
Desirable criteria
35. Good keyboard skills
36. Polite, helpful and confident manner
Other
Essential criteria
37. Fully aware of the shifts required for the post to include night shifts and weekend working
38. Sufficient to perform the duties of the post with any aids and adaptations
39. Hold no reservations in handling human tissue, organs or infected material in accordance with health and safety policies.
40. Willingness to undertake 'house-keeping', laboratory cleaning duties.
41. Able to lift up to 20kg with help of lifting equipment.
42. The post holder must be willing to have relevant vaccinations.