Neurosurgical Endoscopic Pituitary and Skull Base Fellowship

Job overview

Applications are invited to apply for the post of Neurosurgical Skull Base Fellow based at King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. This RCS accredited clinical fellowship is intended to allow a senior neurosurgical trainee to obtain experience over twelve months in the management of skull base, pituitary and facial pain pathologies. This post will provide experience sufficient to allow a successful fellow to offer himself/herself for appointment to a substantial consultant position.

Surgeons preparing to work as consultants must be intimately involved with the running of the neurosurgical service and in providing some element of continuity of care for the patients since this will be an integral part of their practice as consultants. The Fellow will therefore participate in the general neurosurgical rota, and will also be expected to share responsibility for the neurosurgical patients in their area of sub specialist interest outside of strict rota commitments.

This position is available from August 2027.

Main duties of the job

The trainee will be given experience in the following broad areas:

• The assessment and investigation of patients with skull base / pituitary lesions and facial pain pathology. The operative experience is extensive, e.g. the fellow will be expected to perform 60 to 80 pituitary surgeries as lead surgeon by the end of the fellowship. 2. The opportunity to conduct research and publish papers in peer reviewed journals. 3. The participation in regular multi-disciplinary meetings involving colleagues from various specialties including endocrinology, skull base ENT, neurology/oral medicine and surgery, pain, neuropathology, oncology and clinical nurse specialists. There is a weekly combined pituitary MDM, 3-4 monthly skull base MDMs, a monthly complex facial pain MDM (St Thomas’), a monthly NF-1 and a monthly NF-2 clinic (both held at Guy’s). 4. The fellow will be expected to attend one or two national / international meetings each year and present abstracts, COVID permitting.
• Regular progress meetings, formal as well as informal, will be held during the fellowship with the fellowship lead. This Senior Clinical Fellowship was the first to be awarded RCS accreditation in Skull Base and Pituitary Neurosurgery in the country and the successful fellow will be awarded the Royal College of Surgeons Certificate at a ceremony following successful completion of the fellowship.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The fellow’s duties will consist of care of patients on the wards, assistance in the operating theatre, attendance at appropriate clinics and a close collaboration with the clinical nurse specialists is expected. He is also expected to conduct regular review of appropriate literature and clinical data.

The fellow will be second on call, 1 in 6, with two junior colleagues, as part of the general neurosurgical rota.

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.