Job overview
We are offering exciting opportunity for a highly experience Optometrist to join our team in an advanced clinical optometrist role.
You will join a multidisciplinary team to provide high quality ophthalmic care for the patients of Suffolk and surrounding areas.
As an advanced clinical optometrist you will have significant previous experience delivering sub speciality ophthalmology care and will be an independent prescriber on the General Optical Council Speciality register. You will be delivering independent Ophthalmology and Optometry clinics as well as supporting training and education within the department and the wider optometry community.
For candidates with less experience and post graduate qualifications, we would welcome an application to join the team in a developmental position, starting at either Band 6 or 7 depending on previous qualifications and experience. Progression through salary bands will depend on achievement of both clinical competency and post graduate qualifications.
We are fully committed to support the successful applicant to develop knowledge, skills and achieve competence.
Main duties of the job
- To act as an autonomous advanced clinical practitioner providing high quality, individualised clinical management for patients using advanced clinical assessment and diagnostic reasoning skills to determine and initiate changes to treatment as necessary.
- To provide a range of extended specialist role services.
- Working as an autonomous registered practitioner with significant experience in an ophthalmology extended role providing high quality, individualised clinical management for patients using advanced clinical assessment and diagnostic reasoning skills to determine and initiate changes to treatment as necessary.
- Act as a specialist clinical expert in direct contact care, able to make high level skills decisions, informed by advanced history taking, diagnostic, assessment and treatment skills. To be responsible and accountable for own decisions, actions and omissions at this level of practice
- To appropriately assess, examine, investigate, diagnose and treat patients resulting in the safe management of patients, autonomously formulate appropriate management plans for patients
- Use highly developed technical skills to provide specialist ocular treatments such as YAG laser and SLT
- Demonstrate a critical understanding of own level of responsibility and autonomy and the limits of own competence and professional scope of practice, including when working with complexity, risk, uncertainty and incomplete information
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
For full details of the responsibilities and duties of this role please see the attached job description.
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Applying for this NHS job
This advert is for Advanced Clinical Optometrist with East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust in Colchester, East of England, England. It is listed as a Band 8 Healthcare support worker role. The advertised salary is £57,528 - £64,750 per annum, pro rata. The contract type is Permanent. The application deadline is 14 Jun 2026.
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