Job summary
Start your career in Echocardiography with a guaranteed future
North West Anglia NHS FT is offering a rare and fully funded opportunity to train as an Echocardiographer through the nationally recognised Echocardiography Training Programme (ETP). We have three full time Band 6 trainee positions available across Peterborough City Hospital and Hinchingbrooke Hospital designed to develop the next generation of skilled echocardiographers within our service.
This structured 18 month programme, delivered in partnership with the National School of Healthcare Science combines academic learning with high-quality clinical training in a busy well supported department.
These posts are offered with a clear progression pathway to a substantive Band 7 role on successful completion of the programme, subject to achieving all required competencies and professional standards. These roles are being recruited with this progression in mind providing a clear and supported career pathway from day one.
What We Are Looking For We are seeking motivated individuals who are looking to build a long-term career in echocardiography. You will:
- Demonstrate a strong interest in cardiac physiology and imaging
- Be committed to completing an intensive training programme
- Have the ability to balance academic study with clinical practice
- Show excellent communication and patient care skills
- Be able to work flexibly across site
Main duties of the job
About the Role and Department
You will rotate across Peterborough City Hospital, Hinchingbrooke Hospital and community sites, gaining broad and varied clinical experience. Additional specialist placements may be arranged to support your development.
Across our sites, we offer:
- 6 dedicated echocardiography rooms equipped with modern imaging technology
- A highly skilled, supportive team committed to training and development
- Access to a wide range of echocardiographer-led services, including:
- Bubble contrast studies
- Left ventricular contrast imaging
- Specialist valve clinics
- Transoesophageal echocardiography
- Stress echocardiography
We are a busy and forward-thinking service with a strong focus on quality, learning, and continuous improvement.
*Please Note the advert may close sooner than the date advertised due to levels of interest, closing of the advert will happen with no notice*
About us
About the Programme
As a trainee on this programme, you will develop the full range of skills required to perform and independently report adult transthoracic echocardiograms to British Society of Echocardiography (BSE) Level 2 adult accreditation standard -- the recognised benchmark for advanced clinical competence.
On successful completion, you will achieve:
- A Postgraduate Certificate in Clinical Echocardiography
- The clinical competencies required for independent practice
- Eligibility to progress into a Band 7 Echocardiographer role within the Trust
Your learning will combine structured academic teaching with immersive clinical experience:
- Two university block weeks with your national cohort
- 75% hands-on clinical training, scanning patients under supervision
- 25% protected study time for coursework and assessment
- Development of strong technical skills, clinical reasoning, and confidence in independent practice
For full details of the national programme, please visit the National School of Healthcare Science website.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Why Join Us
This is more than a training role it is a supported pathway into a specialist career within a large NHS Trust. You will be trained in a modern environment, supported by experienced clinicians, and offered a clear route into a substantive role on completion.
We actively encourage prospective applicants to make contact for an informal discussion or to arrange a visit. This is a great opportunity to meet the team, understand the training programme in more detail and explore whether this is the right pathway for you.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Why Join Us
This is more than a training role it is a supported pathway into a specialist career within a large NHS Trust. You will be trained in a modern environment, supported by experienced clinicians, and offered a clear route into a substantive role on completion.
We actively encourage prospective applicants to make contact for an informal discussion or to arrange a visit. This is a great opportunity to meet the team, understand the training programme in more detail and explore whether this is the right pathway for you.
Person Specification
Education - must meet one of the following
Essential
- A 1st or 2:1 undergraduate honours or integrated master's degree in Cardiac Physiology (PTP) or
- A 1st or 2:1 undergraduate honours or integrated master's degree in a scientific or healthcare subject - this must include relevant modules either in human physiology and anatomy or in physics. Examples include but are not limited to: Pure or Applied Physics, Human Biology, Sports Science, Nursing and Radiography
- A 2:2 undergraduate honours degree in Cardiac Physiology (PTP) plus relevant cardiology experience. HEI approval must be obtained to confirm acceptance
- A 2:2 undergraduate honours degree plus a relevant higher degree (excluding MSc in Echocardiography)
Experience
Desirable
- Prior Experience in the NHS clinical environment
Knowledge
Essential
- Has an understanding of the role of an Echocardiographer in healthcare and disease and its application in a healthcare setting.
- Knowledge acquired through study and experience to formulate appropriate advice and judgements, including clinical judgements involving facts or situations that impact on patients.
Key Skills
Essential
- Have an understanding of quality control and management assurance in a science or work based context
- Ability to develop proficiency in the performance of routine and complex techniques currently in use where they are training (ability to follow Standard Operating Procedures accurately)
- Ability to analyse and assess scientific, technical and medical literature.
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, both writing and speaking in English
- Good active listening skills to build rapport with the listener to encourage an open discussion.
- Self-aware and flexible enough to adopt a range of evaluative or empathising listening styles according to the needs of the listener and the situation.
- Ability to work autonomously in the planning and execution of their own work and under the guidance of their Departmental Supervisors
- Ability to work under pressure (emotional resilience and ability to prioritise and plan work)
- Effective team worker, willing to adopt a role working in collaboration with others.
Desirable
- Able to identify problems associated with scientific equipment, inappropriate testing, and incompatible results and to investigate these, plan corrective action confirming appropriateness with senior colleagues and follow up.
- Ability to use, maintain and troubleshoot scientific equipment.
- Flexibility to acquire the skills to organise, plan and monitor the workload of others
- Under guidance develops good interpretative skills in the formulation of advice to multi-disciplinary team members on diagnosis and appropriate treatment of patients.
Person Specification
Education - must meet one of the following
Essential
- A 1st or 2:1 undergraduate honours or integrated master's degree in Cardiac Physiology (PTP) or
- A 1st or 2:1 undergraduate honours or integrated master's degree in a scientific or healthcare subject - this must include relevant modules either in human physiology and anatomy or in physics. Examples include but are not limited to: Pure or Applied Physics, Human Biology, Sports Science, Nursing and Radiography
- A 2:2 undergraduate honours degree in Cardiac Physiology (PTP) plus relevant cardiology experience. HEI approval must be obtained to confirm acceptance
- A 2:2 undergraduate honours degree plus a relevant higher degree (excluding MSc in Echocardiography)
Experience
Desirable
- Prior Experience in the NHS clinical environment
Knowledge
Essential
- Has an understanding of the role of an Echocardiographer in healthcare and disease and its application in a healthcare setting.
- Knowledge acquired through study and experience to formulate appropriate advice and judgements, including clinical judgements involving facts or situations that impact on patients.
Key Skills
Essential
- Have an understanding of quality control and management assurance in a science or work based context
- Ability to develop proficiency in the performance of routine and complex techniques currently in use where they are training (ability to follow Standard Operating Procedures accurately)
- Ability to analyse and assess scientific, technical and medical literature.
- Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, both writing and speaking in English
- Good active listening skills to build rapport with the listener to encourage an open discussion.
- Self-aware and flexible enough to adopt a range of evaluative or empathising listening styles according to the needs of the listener and the situation.
- Ability to work autonomously in the planning and execution of their own work and under the guidance of their Departmental Supervisors
- Ability to work under pressure (emotional resilience and ability to prioritise and plan work)
- Effective team worker, willing to adopt a role working in collaboration with others.
Desirable
- Able to identify problems associated with scientific equipment, inappropriate testing, and incompatible results and to investigate these, plan corrective action confirming appropriateness with senior colleagues and follow up.
- Ability to use, maintain and troubleshoot scientific equipment.
- Flexibility to acquire the skills to organise, plan and monitor the workload of others
- Under guidance develops good interpretative skills in the formulation of advice to multi-disciplinary team members on diagnosis and appropriate treatment of patients.
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.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
Additional information
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.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
