Job summary
Applications are invited for the post of a Consultant General Paediatrician with an interest in Safeguarding. We are looking for an enthusiastic and highly motivated colleague to join our established team of general paediatricians working across the county of Somerset. The postholder will work across two acute hospital sites, at Yeovil District Hospital and Musgrove Park Hospital, delivering Safeguarding clinics and working with the Named Doctor for Safeguarding Children. After 3 months it is anticipated that the successful candidate with take on more responsibility and share the Named Doctor role increasing the PAs associated with the post to 8.5PAs.
General paediatric clinics will be provided in a peripheral clinic and at the Musgrove Park site along with Advice and Guidance to primary care. The successful candidate will provide acute general paediatric cover in a hot-week rota 1:12 with 1:12 on call at the Musgrove Park Hospital Site. The neonatal unit is covered on a separate rota by consultants with a specific neonatal interest. This post does not include neonatal cover.
Main duties of the job
The Paediatric Department is committed to providing the highest standard of inpatient and outpatient care on the District General Hospital sites and in the community. This post is based a Musgrove Park Hospital with some Safeguarding clinics at Yeovil District Hospital. The general paediatric and neonatal rotas are split at Musgrove Park Hospital, and consultants have on call responsibility for one of these rotas. This post involves on call for the general paediatric rota. All consultants have a special interest in one or more areas and have safeguarding responsibilities. Paediatric admissions total around 4500 per annum. There are 2700 new patient referrals from general practitioners and the birth rate is currently increasing, currently being approximately 3000 per year. The closest tertiary Centre is Bristol Royal Hospital for Children which provides support for all specialties. Wales and West Acute Transport for Children (WATCh) service provide regional retrievals and support. Tertiary specialists visit regularly providing outreach clinics.
About us
At Somerset NHS Foundation Trust, we're committed to supporting our employees with a range of benefits designed to enhance your professional and personal life. We offer:
Flexible working options to help you balance work and life
NHS pension scheme for long-term financial security
Generous annual leave allowance to recharge and relax
A strong focus on career development to help you grow and achieve your potential
Relocation Package - Subject to meeting eligibility criteria
Additionally, you'll gain access to our Blue Light Card, unlocking exclusive discounts on shopping, dining, and leisure activities, as well as NHS-specific perks to support you both inside and outside of work.
We are proud to foster a diverse, skilled, and inclusive workforce, and we encourage applications from all backgrounds.
Why Somerset? Somerset offers the perfect blend of idyllic countryside, outstanding areas of natural beauty, and breathtaking coastlines, with vibrant cities like Bristol, Bath, and Exeter just a short drive away - and only two hours to London.
The region is home to excellent educational facilities, and with affordable housing compared to other parts of the country, it's a great place to build both your career and your future.
Somerset truly has it all - the peaceful countryside and cosmopolitan city life, with something for everyone to enjoy.
Job description
Job responsibilities
General Paediatrics
The postholder will provide consultant cover as a "hot-week "on the general paediatric wards, at Musgrove Park Hospital, on a 1:12 basis, supervising junior staff, as well as 1:12 consultant on call for general paediatrics. When on call Monday-Friday, the post holder will be resident on a late shift (5pm-10pm) covering the paediatric wards, to support the tier 1 and 2 resident doctors in delivering high quality care for the acutely unwell children and young people.
Admissions during the day are seen on the Paediatric Assessment Unit (PAU) sited next to the ward which is managed by a separate PAU consultant to the consultant managing the ward. The PAU is open 7 days a week. Weekends are staffed by nursing staff and the on call medical team from April to September. From October -- March, there is an additional PAU weekend consultant working 10:00-18:00 hours. All consultants contribute to this in addition to their 1:12 on call. It equates to an additional 2 weekends over the winter months. This way of working allows us to step up cover during the winter months supporting each other and creating a safer service with better patient experience and flow.
The postholder will also provide general paediatric outpatients clinics both on site at Musgrove Park Hospital and at Chard community hospital.
We provide an Advice and Guidance service for GPs. This service triages letters from Primary Care, replying with written patient management plans or directing to appropriate paediatric clinics for assessment. The postholders will contribute to this service.
Safeguarding Special Interest Work
The postholder will have a special interest in safeguarding. A core group of the consultant team provide daily safeguarding outpatient clinics. These allow child protection medical assessments to be done in a planned way during working hours, avoiding unnecessary admission to the paediatric inpatient ward and a providing a better experience for families. Each clinic allows for assessment of one child or family and the time allocated includes admin time. This post will contribute to the safeguarding clinic rota both at the YDH and the MPH sites
Safeguarding time may involve attendance at case conferences, provision of witness statements and attendance at court. Children requiring examination for suspected acute or historic sexual abuse are referred to and examined in the specialist SARC centre in Bristol.
The post holder will work closely with Dr Louise Newbury, the Named Doctor for safeguarding and will attend Safeguarding professionals meeting and deliver safeguarding teaching across county. It is anticipated that after 3 months supportive practice in the post that the post holder with share the Named Doctor role, and an additional 0.5PA will be available for this.
It is important that the successful candidate shares the commitment of the department for excellence in clinical service and the policy of continuing the development of innovative service delivery and high-quality training for all staff. The department strategy is in three parts, and we are looking for an individual who is interested and able to add value to these strategies:
Expertise at the front end of pathways
Planning the unplanned
Integrating with primary care
He/she will be approachable, pro-active, and able to provide advice and support to colleagues, junior doctors, and members of the multidisciplinary team. The successful candidate will be able to work with a variety of professional people and participate fully as a member of a team working to develop and extend the Paediatric service. As well as caring for young people and their families we are looking for an individual who will care for themselves and the rest of the team that they work with.
All qualified staff have a responsibility to supervise unqualified/more junior staff and students on a day-to-day basis to ensure that patients receive appropriate care and that any untoward action is addressed.
In summary the post holders will contribute to the following clinical services:
Safeguarding clinics at YDH and MPH sites
Attend Safeguarding Professionals Meetings
Contribute to cross county safeguarding teaching
Inpatient care for general paediatric wards at MPH
Late shifts on a 1:12 basis, corresponding with on call (additional to a middle grade or nurse practitioner)
General Paediatric clinics
Advice and Guidance service for Primary Care.
Supervision of junior doctors.
The care and support of other team members and colleagues.
SPA activity
The successful candidate will have an office and secretarial support. Computer facilities will be provided. So far as is practicable the appointees will be expected to provide cover for annual and study leave of colleagues.
Job description
Job responsibilities
General Paediatrics
The postholder will provide consultant cover as a "hot-week "on the general paediatric wards, at Musgrove Park Hospital, on a 1:12 basis, supervising junior staff, as well as 1:12 consultant on call for general paediatrics. When on call Monday-Friday, the post holder will be resident on a late shift (5pm-10pm) covering the paediatric wards, to support the tier 1 and 2 resident doctors in delivering high quality care for the acutely unwell children and young people.
Admissions during the day are seen on the Paediatric Assessment Unit (PAU) sited next to the ward which is managed by a separate PAU consultant to the consultant managing the ward. The PAU is open 7 days a week. Weekends are staffed by nursing staff and the on call medical team from April to September. From October -- March, there is an additional PAU weekend consultant working 10:00-18:00 hours. All consultants contribute to this in addition to their 1:12 on call. It equates to an additional 2 weekends over the winter months. This way of working allows us to step up cover during the winter months supporting each other and creating a safer service with better patient experience and flow.
The postholder will also provide general paediatric outpatients clinics both on site at Musgrove Park Hospital and at Chard community hospital.
We provide an Advice and Guidance service for GPs. This service triages letters from Primary Care, replying with written patient management plans or directing to appropriate paediatric clinics for assessment. The postholders will contribute to this service.
Safeguarding Special Interest Work
The postholder will have a special interest in safeguarding. A core group of the consultant team provide daily safeguarding outpatient clinics. These allow child protection medical assessments to be done in a planned way during working hours, avoiding unnecessary admission to the paediatric inpatient ward and a providing a better experience for families. Each clinic allows for assessment of one child or family and the time allocated includes admin time. This post will contribute to the safeguarding clinic rota both at the YDH and the MPH sites
Safeguarding time may involve attendance at case conferences, provision of witness statements and attendance at court. Children requiring examination for suspected acute or historic sexual abuse are referred to and examined in the specialist SARC centre in Bristol.
The post holder will work closely with Dr Louise Newbury, the Named Doctor for safeguarding and will attend Safeguarding professionals meeting and deliver safeguarding teaching across county. It is anticipated that after 3 months supportive practice in the post that the post holder with share the Named Doctor role, and an additional 0.5PA will be available for this.
It is important that the successful candidate shares the commitment of the department for excellence in clinical service and the policy of continuing the development of innovative service delivery and high-quality training for all staff. The department strategy is in three parts, and we are looking for an individual who is interested and able to add value to these strategies:
Expertise at the front end of pathways
Planning the unplanned
Integrating with primary care
He/she will be approachable, pro-active, and able to provide advice and support to colleagues, junior doctors, and members of the multidisciplinary team. The successful candidate will be able to work with a variety of professional people and participate fully as a member of a team working to develop and extend the Paediatric service. As well as caring for young people and their families we are looking for an individual who will care for themselves and the rest of the team that they work with.
All qualified staff have a responsibility to supervise unqualified/more junior staff and students on a day-to-day basis to ensure that patients receive appropriate care and that any untoward action is addressed.
In summary the post holders will contribute to the following clinical services:
Safeguarding clinics at YDH and MPH sites
Attend Safeguarding Professionals Meetings
Contribute to cross county safeguarding teaching
Inpatient care for general paediatric wards at MPH
Late shifts on a 1:12 basis, corresponding with on call (additional to a middle grade or nurse practitioner)
General Paediatric clinics
Advice and Guidance service for Primary Care.
Supervision of junior doctors.
The care and support of other team members and colleagues.
SPA activity
The successful candidate will have an office and secretarial support. Computer facilities will be provided. So far as is practicable the appointees will be expected to provide cover for annual and study leave of colleagues.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Medical Degree
- MRCPCH or equivalent
- APLS
- Full GMC registration with a licence to practice with Specialist Registration
- To have achieved a CCT
- OR
- Can provide evidence that he/she is within 6 months of the CCT date at the time of interview, and is expected to achieve CCT
Experience
Essential
- Expertise in Acute General Paediatrics
- Expertise/training in managing child safeguarding
- Demonstrates breadth of awareness of issues
- Evidence of teaching
- Well experienced in post graduate, particularly multidisciplinary, teaching and training
Additional Criteria
Essential
- Please refer to the job description for full details of the essential criteria required to undertake this position
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Medical Degree
- MRCPCH or equivalent
- APLS
- Full GMC registration with a licence to practice with Specialist Registration
- To have achieved a CCT
- OR
- Can provide evidence that he/she is within 6 months of the CCT date at the time of interview, and is expected to achieve CCT
Experience
Essential
- Expertise in Acute General Paediatrics
- Expertise/training in managing child safeguarding
- Demonstrates breadth of awareness of issues
- Evidence of teaching
- Well experienced in post graduate, particularly multidisciplinary, teaching and training
Additional Criteria
Essential
- Please refer to the job description for full details of the essential criteria required to undertake this position
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).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
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).
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
