Clinical Safety Officer

Job overview

The Electronic Patient Record (EPR) Digital Clinical Safety Officer role is pivotal in driving the success of our transformative programme to decommission the current EPR and implement a new system. This role combines clinical expertise with a deep understanding of health information technology and clinical risk management, ensuring compliance with digital clinical safety regulations.

As a senior leader, you will implement a digital clinical safety operating model, collaborate with key stakeholders, and continuously improve our digital clinical safety processes. Join us in enhancing patient care and safety through innovative, clinically led, operationally driven, and digitally enabled solutions.

Career Progression Pathways and Development Opportunities

South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust provides the widest range of NHS mental health services in the UK. We work closely with the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, and are supported by Maudsley Charity. We are part of King’s Health Partners Academic Health Sciences Centre.

We are committed to supporting staff in their career aspirations, offering career pathways, ongoing training, and development in conjunction with the British Computing Society (BCS) organisational membership.

Main duties of the job

• Lead, promote, and support adherence to digital health applications implementation activities as defined in the NHS Digital Clinical Safety Strategy and DCB 0129 and 0160 national standards.

• Ensure the development and maintenance of clinical risk management records, a clinical risk management strategy and plan, hazard logs, clinical safety case, clinical safety case report, and incident management system post-Go Live.

• Engage key stakeholders through coaching, leveraging your strong clinical background and experience in Digital Clinical Safety programmes in our Trusts.

• Adapt to evolving programme needs while maintaining core skillsets critical to the role.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Responsibilities:

• Develop and own the Digital Clinical Risk Strategy and System on behalf of the Chief Clinical Information Officer (CCIO) and the EPR programme.

• Manage and deliver digital clinical safety activities across the EPR Programme, including decommissioning the current EPR and implementing a new one.

• Develop, maintain, and refine systems and processes to identify and address patient safety risks associated with digital health applications and systems.

• Review DCB0129 documents and communicate with the supplier’s Clinical Safety Officer (CSO).

• Promote adherence to digital health applications implementation activities as defined in DCB0160 Standards.

• Facilitate awareness of the NHS Digital Clinical Safety Strategy and curate a culture aligned with digital clinical safety.

• Ensure the development and maintenance of clinical risk management records, a clinical risk management strategy and plan, hazard logs, clinical safety case, clinical safety case report, and incident management system post-Go Live.

• Support the reporting, investigation, and resolution of clinical safety incidents linked to digital health solutions.

• Work with the CCIO to ensure core digital clinical safety functions and processes are in place.

• Act as the primary digital clinical safety lead and point of contact for the EPR programme.

• Ensure that quality standards are maintained throughout, such that each digital clinical safety deliverable is fit for purpose and meets its documented requirement within DCB 0160 Digital Clinical Safety Standards and the EPR Programme scope.

• Maintain, review, and update standardised documentation and sustainability for all digital clinical safety functions and processes.

• Attend Trust patient safety and Digital Board meetings, providing updates and reports as needed.

• Ensure the digital clinical safety operating model meets specified standards and business needs.

• Communicate results, variances, and problems to the CCIO and the EPR programme team, offering solutions and options when problems arise.

• Ensure relevant digital clinical safety initiatives are undertaken and reported, and that improvement activity is undertaken as part of the risk and safety assurance framework.

• Analyse complex problems, develop practical solutions, and implement them using persuasive, motivational, and negotiating communication skills.

Project and Programme Management

• Participate in programme and project meetings within the EPR Programme, chairing meetings when necessary, coordinating papers, and ensuring records of meetings, outcomes, and actions.

• Ensure clinical IT system digital clinical safety artifacts are filed and accessible within the appropriate document libraries accompanying the EPR programme.

• Monitor and report on the progress of the Digital Clinical Safety workstream, proactively reviewing progress and managing risks and issues.

• Support individual project managers in identifying and mitigating clinical safety risks and issues.

• Ensure all projects have clearly articulated clinical benefits, supporting service leads in demonstrating achievements to ensure the programme meets its objectives.

• Manage and resolve any project risks or issues that arise.

• Business Change: Provide digital clinical safety expertise to manage local change and controls effectively.

• Business as Usual: Review supportive documentation for stabilisation, business as usual, and adoption of new systems, ensuring alignment with clinical safety needs.

Communication, Engagement, and Stakeholder Management

• Work closely with the CCIO and represent them when necessary.

• Provide support, advice, and information to the wider organisation to ensure understanding of responsibilities in relation to digital clinical safety.

• Collaborate with colleagues across the trust on risk identification and management within the EPR Programme.

• Motivate project clinical leads/champions to engage in digital clinical safety meetings and working sessions.

• Ensure Key Performance Indicators (KPI) and reports are accurate, meaningful, and fit for use by Senior Managers across organisations.

• Support end users in the clinical safety review of new or existing systems, working efficiently and empathetically.

• Explain complex subjects in clear, concise terms to staff with varying knowledge levels.

• Coordinate and motivate a multidisciplinary team, including clinicians, suppliers, IT experts, and contractors.

• Drive the smooth transition and successful adoption of the digital clinical safety system and processes across teams and stakeholders.

• Ensure effective working processes and relationships to meet performance and quality standards.

• Demonstrate high-level communication skills, presenting complex and sensitive information to multidisciplinary teams.

• Discuss sensitive and contentious information with staff of all levels, maintaining confidentiality, professionalism, and integrity.

• Request information from multi-professional teams sensitively and diplomatically when faced with potential legal cases or poor clinical outcomes.

Ongoing Learning

• Stay updated with new developments in digital clinical safety and patient safety to maintain subject matter expertise.

• Provide analysis of digital clinical safety-related intelligence to support organisational learning and improvement.

• Maintain clinical skills, active registration, and statutory and mandatory training.