Human Factors Specialist and PSIRF Implementation Lead

Job overview

We are seeking an innovative, highly skilled Human Factors Specialist & PSIRF Implementation Lead to play a pivotal role in shaping patient safety across the University Hospitals of Northamptonshire. This is an exciting opportunity to embed human factors and ergonomics expertise at the heart of our safety culture, supporting the successful delivery of the Patient Safety Incident Response Framework across UHN

In this  role, you will act as an expert on human factors science—providing strategic advice, supporting complex patient safety investigations, and ensuring our systems, processes and learning responses are grounded in robust systems thinking. You will support the development of a mature patient safety culture, enhance organisational learning, and deliver high‑quality training  across the workforce.

We are looking for a motivated, resilient and values‑driven professional with significant knowledge of PSIRF, advanced experience in applying human factors in healthcare or high‑risk environments, and the confidence to coach, challenge and inspire. If you are passionate about improving patient safety through systems thinking, education and culture change, we would love to hear from you.

Main duties of the job

The Human Factors Specialist & PSIRF Implementation Lead will assume a pivotal and highly influential role in embedding human factors and ergonomics principles throughout the organisation. This includes providing strategic direction and operational expertise to ensure the successful implementation of the Patient Safety Incident Response Framework (PSIRF).

The post holder will act as the principal authority on human factors science, offering expert advice, guidance, and leadership to ensure that all patient safety investigations and improvement initiatives are firmly grounded in a robust, systems-based approach. By working in close partnership with both clinical and non-clinical teams, the post holder will champion improvements in safety culture, drive thorough incident analysis, and facilitate sustainable organisational learning.

Furthermore, the post holder will play an essential role in guaranteeing that the Trust’s patient safety strategies, systems, and processes are meticulously designed, implemented, and continuously improved to reflect a deep understanding of human behaviour and performance. This will involve proactively identifying areas for enhancement, influencing policy development, and ensuring that human factors considerations are integrated at every level of patient safety governance and operational delivery.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• Lead on the integration of human factors and ergonomics into patient safety incident investigations, supporting the transition to and implementation of PSIRF across UHN
• To ensure an equally strong presence and provide consistent support across both NGH and KGH sites, with the postholder spending balanced time at each location
• Provide expert advice and training to multidisciplinary teams on the application of human factors and systems thinking principles.
• Support complex patient safety investigations, ensuring a just culture and systems-based approach are maintained throughout.
• Proactively contribute to the design and implementation of Trust initiatives to strengthen psychological safety and wider mature patient safety culture.
• Assist partners with the development of proactive strategies to reduce Ergonomics and Human Factors patient safety risks through provision of specialist advice. This will include working closely with healthcare professionals and managers across the Trust to review work systems, processes and physical layouts, examining trends in safety insight and making recommendations to managers at all levels to reduce risk.
• Develop and deliver education programmes and resources to build organisational capability in human factors and PSIRF methodologies.
• Assist healthcare professionals across the Trust to deliver safer care through an understanding of the effects of teamwork, tasks, equipment, workspace, culture and organisation on human behaviour and abilities, and the application of that knowledge in clinical and non-clinical settings.
• Support the analysis of patient safety data, identifying trends and opportunities for improvement linked to human factors issues.
• Collaborate with quality improvement, risk management, and clinical teams to design and implement solutions that address identified risks and system vulnerabilities.
• Play a key role in ensuring that patient safety strategies, systems, and processes of the Trust are designed and managed to take account of human behaviour and performance.
• Contribute to the development, review, and continuous improvement of local PSIRF policies, processes, and governance structures.
• Represent the organisation at internal and external meetings related to human factors, patient safety, and PSIRF implementation.
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of national policy, guidance and best practice in human factors and patient safety.
• Support the development of a positive safety culture, fostering openness, learning and improvement at all levels of the organisation.
• Proactively participate in the design of the Trust human factors education strategy and contribute to its delivery.
• Proactively contribute to the patient safety improvements across the Trust and the delivery of the quality strategy by supporting clinical staff in learning and implementing change by developing human factors knowledge and skills for all staff.
• Collect, collate, review information and prepare high quality reports for multiple audiences
• Maintain links with professional bodies and stakeholders such as Chartered Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors, Health Education England, Human Factors Exchange, NHS England and Improvement Regional Team, the Clinical Human Factors Group.
• Represent the Trust at internal, local, and national forums, and report back effectively.
• Proactively contribute to and participate in the design and delivery of the Trust response to national patient safety strategy.
• Proactively participate in the delivery of patient safety learning response education, contributing expertise in human factors and ergonomics in relation to system thinking. This includes supporting the development of corporate patient safety team in their investigation responsibilities for patient safety incident investigations.
• Work collaboratively with clinical teams and improvement initiatives to design and deliver other key education programmes related to patient safety priorities of the Trust, for example, deteriorating patient, NatSSIPs.
• Travel between the Northampton and Kettering Hospital sites and other sites where required.

For Full details and responsibilities of the role, please see attached job description and person specification