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Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
About
The Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust provides a full range of acute clinical services for a catchment area of up over 1 million people. Our vision is “to provide every patient with the care we want for those we love the most”, reflecting the utmost importance that we attach to the quality of care and experience that each and every one of our patients receives.
We provide specialist services in radiotherapy, neonatalogy, paediatrics, orthopaedics, plastic surgery, ophthalmology, rheumatology, medicine and surgery. Every year our 7,000 staff treat people from Norfolk, neighbouring counties and further afield. Our patients are referred to us by around 100 local GP surgeries and other acute hospitals and primary care Trusts around the country. We are involved in the teaching and training of a wide range of health professionals, in partnership with the University of East Anglia and other local education providers.
Orthoptist
Closed for applications on: 7-May-2024 00:03
Vacancy status: Closed
Closed for applications on: 7-May-2024 00:03
Key details
Location
- Site
- Norfolk & Norwich University Hospital
- Address
- Colney Lane
- Town
- Norwich
- Postcode
- NR4 7UY
- Major / Minor Region
- Norfolk
Contract type & working pattern
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week
Salary
- Salary
- £28,407 - £34,581 per annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Grade
- (NHS AfC: Band 5)
Specialty
- Main area
- Orthoptic
- Interview date
- 14/05/2024
At NNUH it is our privilege to provide healthcare to over one million people across Norfolk and surrounding areas. Our vision is to ‘provide the best care for every patient’, and if this inspires you and you share our values, we really want you to join our team.
NNUH is currently the busiest Trauma Unit in the East of England caring for almost 850 trauma patients annually many with complex care needs. We are enhancing our urgent and emergency care specialist services for patients with significant injuries as a result of trauma and have an ambition to become a Major Trauma Centre.
Our values support our vision and guide the behaviour of everything we do, these are:
People-focused
We look after the needs of our patients, carers and colleagues, to provide a safe and caring experience for all.
Respect
We act with care, compassion and kindness and value others’ diverse needs.
Integrity
We take an honest, open and ethical approach to everything we do.
Dedication
We work as one team and support each other to maintain the highest professional standards.
Excellence
We continuously learn and improve to achieve the best outcomes for our patients and our hospital.
Wish you were here? So do we.
We want all our staff to achieve a balance between work and personal life and understand how important flexible working can be. We welcome applications on a full or part time basis, various shift patterns and hybrid working, where roles allow.
At the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (NNUH), we know the benefits diversity can bring to our organisation such as creativity, innovation and compassion. All of which have a direct impact towards our staff and patient experience. We are committed to being a Hospital for All – being equitable and inclusive, and a place where all feel a sense of belonging. We therefore particularly encourage and welcome applications from candidates who are underrepresented in NNUH’s workforce. These include people from Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic backgrounds, people with diverse abilities and people within the LGBT+ community.
Job overview
We are looking for a full time Band 5 Orthoptist to work as part of our dynamic team of 5 orthoptists, thirteen consultant ophthalmologists and three optometrists. You will be involved in all aspects of the Orthoptic Service, which includes both Paediatric and Adult strabismus services, with opportunities to develop skills in extended roles within such areas as SEN, JIA and Stroke.
The department would be happy to support and mentor new graduates through the BIOS preceptorship programme, to enable progression to a band 6. The hospital is a busy district teaching hospital, with links to the Medical School and the University of East Anglia. Our department is also committed to the teaching and supervision of undergraduate orthoptic students. The department fully supports continued professional development and is active in audit and research.
Advert
You will be involved in all aspects of the Orthoptic Service, which includes Paediatric, Ocular Motility, Neurological, TED and Ocular Plastic clinics, and Goldmann visual field assessments.
To support the delivery of a high quality, safe and compassionate healthcare service, all staff are expected to act as a role model to others in all aspects of their work and consistently demonstrate NNUH’s ‘PRIDE’ values of People focused, Respect, Integrity, Dedication and Excellence and demonstrate behaviours that support and encourage an inclusive culture.
Some evenings and weekends may be required on an ad-hoc basis as and when required.
A degree or diploma in orthoptics and State registration with the HCPC is essential.
Working for our organisation
Join us at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital and be part of a workforce of over 10,000 staff!
The NNUH is one of the largest NHS trusts in the UK, providing first-class acute care for around one million people, living in Norfolk and surrounding areas. We are a teaching and research hospital, at the forefront of innovation, home to state-of-the-art facilities, such as the Quadram Institute. We are pleased to work closely with the University of East Anglia, providing teaching opportunities for our staff and placement opportunities for their students. We attract some of the best and leading professionals from across the country and are proud that our workforce represents 94 countries from across the world.
We are a friendly, collaborative hospital, working with local services and home to N&N Hospitals Charity
We can offer you the full range of NHS benefits/discounts and in addition:
- Flexible working hours
- Fast Track Staff Physiotherapy Service
- Multi Faith prayer room
- Discounted gym memberships
- Excellent pension scheme and annual leave entitlement
- Wagestream - access up to 40% of your pay as you earn it
- Free Park & Ride service direct to NNUH site
- Free 24-hours confidential counselling support
- On-site Nursery
- On-site cafes offering staff discounts
- Support in career development
- Flexible staff bank
- Salary Sacrifice schemes including lease cars, Cycle to Work scheme and home electronics
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
- To take sole responsibility for the Orthoptic assessment, diagnosis and treatment of patients referred from outside agencies and to manage, using individual treatment plans, visual loss and visual symptoms. This group of patients includes children with significant sight defects and requires a considerable degree of empathy and family support. In adults the diagnosis of acute onset ocular motility defects require a significantly high level of anatomical and neurological knowledge when there may be the need to make a differential diagnosis between clinical conditions.
- To formulate individualised management and treatment programmes using clinical reasoning, evidence based practice, and a wide range of treatment skills. Communicating effectively with patients, parents and carers those plans and to assess capacity and gain informed consent to those treatment plans.
- To take sole responsibility to formulate relevant discharge plans and onward referral. This patient group includes patients suffering from strabismus, amblyopia (reduced vision with no apparent pathological cause), complex congenital and acquired conditions including cranial nerve palsy (neurological and systemic in origin), ocular trauma and genetic ocular disorders and associated ocular abnormalities.
- To assess, diagnose and treat patients with special needs. This group of patients can often include assessment of non-seeing babies and specialist communication skills are needed in conveying this information to parents and guardians.
- To be responsible as an autonomous practitioner for the evaluation of visual acuity and visual behaviour in referrals from specialist services. This includes infants with strabismus (squint) and amblyopia, congenital or developmental abnormalities, genetic referral, adult illiterates, children and adults with significant learning difficulties as well as acute ocular motility defects in both children and adults.
- To assess eye movement disorders in patients from specialist clinics including Neurology, Maxillo-facial, Endocrinology and Accident and Emergency.
- Where clinical signs and symptoms do not always fall into particular categories or where information is limited or unavailable the Orthoptist will be expected to determine the diagnosis, prognosis and management.
- To be competent in the analysis of complex facts in order to reach an accurate diagnosis and to determine the most appropriate treatment modality from a range of treatment options, including patients requiring orthoptic, optical, pharmacological and surgical management and to have the ability to discuss the pros and cons of procedures and their potential outcomes and to develop specialised programmes of care.
- Perform Goldmann and Bjerrum visual fields and Driving fields and interpret results for medical personnel where appropriate. To act as an autonomous practitioner with the sole responsibility to assess visual fields requested out with the Ophthalmology department i.e. Neurology and Endocrinology.
- To provide highly developed hand eye co-ordination to facilitate a high level of accuracy with all Orthoptic and Orthoptically related Ophthalmic equipment.
Please see the attached job description for full details.
The Job Description, which includes a Person Specification, provides a full outline of responsibilities and requirements for this role. Please use your supporting statement to demonstrate how you meet the person specification.
Travelling to work
Staff parking is available onsite; however, this is limited during core working hours. We have more capacity in the evening and at weekends and can usually provide spaces during those hours.
We look to allocate these spaces fairly. Our Travel Office have a set of criteria that staff must meet in order to qualify. If you qualify for a space, you may be placed on a waiting list if we are at full capacity.
The NNUH is served by a number of public buses, and we offer generously discounted monthly passes with First Bus & Konect.
The Costessey Park and Ride runs regularly each day from 06:30 (from P&R) to 20:45 (from NNUH) and this service is free for NHS staff. There is a regular Thickthorn P&R service as well which is free. Applications to the Travel Office are required for this service. We also have a discounted service from the airport P&R if you purchase a bundle. Please see Konect website for further details.
The NNUH host multiple bicycle racks and a salary sacrifice scheme. We also benefit from a Beryl station onsite.
If you work at another Trust site, please discuss travel and parking arrangements at interview.
DBS
If this post involves working with children or adults the application form will ask for information regarding previous convictions as you will be required to undertake a Criminal Record and Barring Check known as a DBS check.
If you are a new employee or registering with the Staff Bank you will need to meet the cost of this unless your salary is less than point 9 of Afc
NHS Service
Should you be appointed to the post we will need to establish any previous NHS service via the ESR IAT and we will accept the submission of your application as your agreement to this.
UK Registration
You will need to have current UK professional registration where this is a requirement of the role.
Application
Following candidate feedback and to reduce our dependency on paper, all our communication with you regarding your application will be by email so could you please check your e-mails (and Spam) regularly.
We value equality in our team and recruit from all sections of the community. We recognise there is a wealth of talent among people who have a disability and if you meet the minimum criteria detailed in the person specification and have a disability, you may wish to be considered under the Guaranteed Interview Scheme by indicating this in the relevant section on your application.
We look forward to receiving your application and if you do not hear within the next four weeks this will usually mean that you have not been short-listed. However, if you wish to confirm this please contact the person indicated on the advert.
Flexibility
Whilst every effort will be made to recruit to the post as it is advertised, there may be occasions where we consider alternative working patterns, such as part time working, or contract types, such as secondments, depending on circumstances. Should you wish to work in a different working pattern to that stated in our advertisement, please indicate this in the supporting statement to your application.
Useful Information
Make sure to follow us on Facebook and Twitter for regular updates about the exciting career opportunities available at NNUH - @NNUHjobs
Norfolk and Norwich University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Website
Video - Working at NNUH as a Registered Nurse
Video - Working at NNUH as a Health Care Assistant
Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Diploma of the British Orthoptic Council (DBO) or Health Sciences Degree (Orthoptics)
- State Registration with the Council for the Health Professions Council (HPC)
Experience
Essential criteria
- Experience of Orthoptics in an acute hospital environment.
Desirable criteria
- Previous experience of Goldmann Fields, and Visual Screening
Skills
Essential criteria
- Ability to maintain standards of patient care in a busy environment.
Attitude, aptitude
Essential criteria
- Effective role model, demonstrating NNUH’s PRIDE values of People focussed, Respect, Integrity, Dedication and Excellence
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Fiona Grady
- Job title
- Head Orthoptist
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 01603 288048
No longer accepting applications
Sorry, this vacancy is no longer accepting applications.
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