Highly Specialist Orthoptist

Job overview

Highly Specialist Orthoptist

The Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

We are seeking an experienced, highly motivated and proactive individual to work with the current team of 3 Orthoptists to work at Hillingdon and Mount Vernon Hospitals together with community clinics and the post holder will be expected to develop extended role in AMD clinics but this can be discussed further. The successful applicant will work as part of the team with a mixed workload including orthoptic/optometry clinics, joint consultant paediatric and adult motility clinics, stroke assessments for in-patients and out-patients, acute referrals from GPs, Neurology, Maxillo-facial, Paediatrics, Stroke Service, Endocrinology and A &E.

An Orthoptic/ optometry led fast track clinic receives school nurse, optician, child development centre and health visitor referrals. A comprehensive ophthalmology service is provided by 12 Ophthalmologists with general and speciality clinics including Paediatrics, Ocular-motility, Botulinum Toxin, AMD, Diabetic, Glaucoma, Medical Retinal, Oculoplastic and Corneal.

All staff participate in training ophthalmologists, optometrists, school nurses and medical students from Imperial and Brunel University.

Willingness to work across sites is essential.

There is a planned move for the eye department to relocate to Mount Vernon Hospital at the end of 2025.

Main duties of the job

Job summary

• To provide highly specialist orthoptic services as an autonomous practitioner.
• To assess, diagnose and manage children referred to Orthoptics, many with complex needs and challenging behaviour.
• To assess, diagnose and manage adult patients referred to orthoptics –often as emergency appointments.
• To provide and develop paediatric and adult orthoptic services within the Trust and the Community
• To develop extended role in AMD clinics
• To educate and train undergraduate orthoptic students, pre registration optometrists, junior doctors, school nurses and other health professionals.
• To deputise for the Head Orthoptist in their absence

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please refer to the attached job description for the main responsibilities of a Orthoptist (Ophthalmology)