Trainee Clinical Scientist (Nuclear Medicine)

Job content

An opportunity has arisen for an enthusiastic Medical Physicist to apply for a Band 6 Trainee Clinical Scientist in Nuclear Medicine post based at Singleton Hospital, Swansea. This post is fixed term for 10 months due to funding, so will only provide partial training towards the IPEM Clinical Scientist training program which requires a minimum of 36 months training. Applications with a B.Sc. qualification only may be considered, if sufficient training or education in Medical Physics or Nuclear Medicine can be demonstrated.

The Department of Nuclear Medicine at Singleton Hospital is part of the Medical Physics and Clinical Engineering service and has close academic links with the neighbouring Swansea University. It is a busy seafront department which offers a range of diagnostic investigations and radionuclide therapies. On site, we have two SPECT-CT scanning rooms, a regional Radiopharmacy service, an inpatient radionuclide therapy room, a mobile PET-CT service and a bone densitometry service. The Clinical Scientist team provide scientific support to both the Singleton Hospital site and to Radiology based Nuclear Medicine rooms within Swansea Bay, Hywel Dda and Cwm Taf University Health Boards.

We are looking to recruit a Trainee Clinical Scientist who will be developed to provide scientific support across all Nuclear Medicine services and will play an active part in the equipment quality assurance program. The post-holder will also be developed to communicate professionally with patients and other healthcare staff.

This is an exciting opportunity to take part in a fast developing setting, including developing the application of a state-of-the-art GE Starguide SPECT-CT system, expansion of radionuclide therapy services and working towards a static PET-CT scanner installation at Singleton Hospital.

The ability to travel between sites in a timely manner is essential.

The ability to speak Welsh is desirable for this post; English and/or Welsh speakers are equally welcome to apply.

THIS POST IS FIXED TERM FOR 10 MONTHS TO FILL A CURENT POST.

If you are an internal applicant this post will only be offered on a secondment basis and you will need to have gained your line managers approval for the secondment prior to going to interview.

We believe staff are our best asset and we want you to be happy and confident about starting your career here in Swansea Bay University Health Board.

As one of the biggest healthcare groups in the UK we can offer a wealth of professional training and development opportunities in an innovative, forward-thinking organisation.

You might be a nurse or doctor, maybe you specialise in a health science/therapy or can offer skills in one of our support services - we have a job for you.

There are also apprenticeships, work placements and volunteering roles available.

We are an inclusive employer and welcome applications from everyone whatever their sex; religion or belief; race; age; sexual orientation; gender identity or, whether they are pregnant or have recently been on maternity leave, married or are in a civil partnership; or, whether they are disabled.

Our values - Caring For Each Other, Working Together and Always Improving, show that our commitment to equality is at the heart of everything we do.

If you want excellent career and training opportunities while living on the doorstep of some of Europe’s most spectacular scenery, with all the benefits of a thriving and cosmopolitan city - look no further.

Managerial and Organisational

• Prioritise and manage own training to meet agreed outcomes, maintaining a high standard of scientific achievement; supervise and check the work of Pre-Registration Clinical Scientists and Practitioners
• In collaboration with a Clinical Scientist, plan, organise and undertake projects related to Nuclear Medicine; coordinate activities with other staff groups as required
• Liaise with, and provide specialist professional advice to Clinical Scientists, Clinical Technologists, Consultant Physicians, Radiologists and Cardiologists, Radiographers, healthcare professionals and other staff, and patients
• Liaise with manufacturers and suppliers as requested
• Organise scientific meetings including preparing a specification, evaluating tenders from possible venues, organising a programme, confirming the speakers, preparing delegate packs including abstracts, securing sponsorship, collecting fees from delegates and issuing receipts, creating spreadsheets for planning and monitoring income and expenditure, setting up and operating audio-visual equipment
• Continue personal development through further study, projects, participation in scientific meetings within and beyond the Department of Medical Physics and Clinical Engineering, and be registered for Continuous Professional Development with an appropriate body
• Record, document and report work as appropriate
• To be accountable for his/her own professional actions; although free to initiate action within broad clinical or professional policies, guidance from peers or external reference points would be required
• To take part in performance appraisal and personal development review; undertake all mandatory training as required

Clinical, Scientific and Technical

• Be familiar with and participate in the provision of quality assurance for nuclear medicine equipment (e.g. gamma cameras, SPECT-CT scanners, radionuclide calibrators, PET-CT scanners)
• Discuss and agree approaches with clinical staff to provide radiation protection advice to hospital staff, community care staff, patients and family members.
• Using specialist knowledge and experience, participate in radiation risk assessment of therapy patients
• Take dose rate measurements from radioactive inpatients prior to release and allow the hand-over of the treatment room for routine clinical use after decontamination
• Carry out duties to assist in the progression the scientific development of the Nuclear Medicine service
• Undertake travel to other centres to provide scientific support to Nuclear Medicine services in those centres
• Analyse and interpret the results of equipment testing; determine reasons for erroneous results; determine the cause of subtle or non-reproducible equipment faults and initiate corrective action under supervision
• Using appropriate procedures handle radioactive sources. Dispense and prepare radioactive substances for equipment quality control purposes and administer hazardous quantities of radiopharmaceuticals for therapy treatments. When necessary transport radioactive sources by road in accordance with relevant legislation and guidance (e.g. radionuclide calibrator check sources)
• Display developed physical skills to use a gamma camera for patient scanning, ensuring careful positioning of the gantry, couch and patient to maintain image quality
• Provide support to Imaging processing in Nuclear Medicine; use image processing software to reconstruct SPECT and SPECT-CT and to generate quantitative data from a range of diagnostic scans.
• Participate in aspects of purchasing new Nuclear Medicine equipment, including specification, evaluation, and selection, and under supervision participate in acceptance testing and commissioning of equipment and techniques
• Provide support to computational aspects of Nuclear Medicine; ensure the consistency and quality of diagnostic test results by developing and improving computer based data analysis methods.
• Provide scientific and technical advice to Consultant medical staff, Radiographers, and other clinical staff regarding patient imaging, tests and treatments
• Act as an Operator under the definitions of the IR(ME)R Regulations in accordance with Health Board Policies
• Regularly prepare reports and presentations using MS Word, Excel and PowerPoint
• Undertake all clinical, scientific and technical duties in accordance with the requirements of the Health & Safety at Work Act, relevant Statutory Regulations, Approved Codes of Conduct and Practice, Local Radiation Rules, Health Board and Department policies, protocols and procedures

Policy, Service Development and Implementation

• Participate in, and assist with the development and implementation of clinical, scientific and technical procedures, protocols and work instructions, any formal Quality System utilised within the Department of Medical Physics and Clinical Engineering, including audit; take part in working parties to agree changes to protocols affecting both services at the Singleton and elsewhere
• Assist in the implementation of new or revised clinical and non-clinical developments utilising professional guidelines where appropriate
• Keep abreast of the latest scientific and technical developments and their applications in medical and associated fields; attend suitable seminars and courses as part of training and personal development and to further the work of the Department

Teaching and Training

• Assist with the instruction and training of Clinical Scientists, Pre-Registration Scientists, Clinical Technologists, Medical staff, Radiographers, healthcare professionals and other staff, postgraduates and undergraduates in Nuclear Medicine Physics as requested by the Head of Nuclear Medicine
• Assist in supporting the work of Pre-Registration Scientists and Clinical Technologists
• Provide support in supervising postgraduate student project work, and provide limited teaching duties, as may from time-to-time be assigned by the Head of Nuclear Medicine
• Provide support for educational activities beyond the Health Board (e.g. careers events) as requested from time-to-time by the Training Coordinator

Research and Development

• Participate in formal research and development projects and clinical audit, commensurate with the achievement of clinical objectives as a major job requirement
• Assist in the development and implementation of new techniques in association with colleagues in Nuclear Medicine, Consultant Medical staff and others as relevant
• Collaborate in the development and introduction into clinical use of new equipment, and testing and adaptation as appropriate
• Participate in clinical trials and report as appropriate and as required by the Head of Nuclear Medicine
• Support and where appropriate supervise research projects for postgraduate students, Pre-Registration Scientists and Clinical Technologists, as may from time-to-time be assigned by the Head of Nuclear Medicine
• Work in accordance with Clinical Governance criteria
• Present original work at local, national and international scientific meetings, conferences and in publication; present seminars and feedback on meetings attended; use computer software to create and present (e.g. MS Office)

The post holder will:

• Execute their duties courteously and professionally at all times and seek to ensure that the highest level of service is provided by Nuclear Medicine and the Department of Medical Physics & Clinical Engineering
• Occasionally be required to perform duties outside the normal working hours of the Department; specifically, shift working may be required as part of any extended day working arrangement during the week and weekend
• Weekend working will be required as part of the job for tasks that are not

possible during weekdays

• Be offered the opportunity to work from home, once sufficiently trained, in accordance with Health Board policy
• Perform other appropriate duties which may be required from time-to-time by the Head of Nuclear Medicine or Director of Medical Physics and Clinical Engineering