Consultant Occupational Health Physician

Job overview

Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is committed to values-based leadership and aims to be a great place to work. The clinical lead for the Department reports to the Head of Occupational Health and is accountable to the Chief Medical Officer. Based in Whinacre House, the Staff Health & Wellbeing Centre delivers accredited SEQOHS services to improve staff health, reduce stress, and promote wellbeing for Trust employees and external clients.

Candidates must have Membership/Fellowship of the Faculty of Occupational Medicine, a CCST/CCT/EEA equivalent in Occupational Medicine, or be eligible for GMC Specialist Register admission within six months of interview. Part of the People and Culture Division, the Occupational Health Department provides comprehensive services to Trust staff and external organisations, generating income for the department. The department has experience training Specialty Trainees and plans to offer further training opportunities.

AAC date TBC

Main duties of the job

• Maintain an understanding of current professional and national developments applicable to Occupational Health.
• In conjunction with the Head of Workforce Health & Wellbeing represent the Occupational Health Service at relevant committee meetings to ensure that the development and improvement of service delivery programmes and protocols includes specialist occupational health advice.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• Make a specialist assessment of a patient’s health status and occupational health needs (by history, physical examination, clinical procedures and relevant tests).
• Obtain or arrange for additional medical or paramedical information from specialists or relevant therapists.
• Make a functional assessment of the patient’s physical and psychological capability for their job (or the job they might be asked to do) and make highly specialist clinical decisions following assessment of complex cases.
• Assess the impact of a patient’s work on their health.
• Assess the risk a patient’s health or fitness poses to the safety of themselves and others.
• Provide patients with information on their health, its occupational impact and the steps needed to control and reduce their personal risks.
• Communicate respectfully with patients and ensure they are fully informed.
• Provide advice on the relevant options for treatment, rehabilitation and redeployment to both clients and managers as appropriate.
• Advise on the short- and long-term modifications to a patient’s work dictated by their state of health
• Keep a clear, concise and contemporaneous patient record that details the clinical findings, the results of tests, reports given and received, decisions made, and advice given to patients and others, and relevant details of treatments and referrals.
• Involve other health and occupational health professionals where appropriate, including the patient’s general practitioner.
• To provide advice to other specialists/professionals and to non-specialists within the clinical field and to give advice to Occupational Health Advisers.
• Communicate with human resources and line managers about the patient in an ethical and meaningful way, while maintaining the important requirement of medical confidentiality.