Senior Clinical Fellow In Infectious Diseases/Microbiology

Job overview

Please note: This job advert may close early if we receive a high volume of applicants.

A 12 months Fellowship based at Harefield (HH) and Guys Hospitals (GH) joining the wider GSTT Department of Infection is a rare and exciting opportunity to gain experience in managing a broad range of  infections in complex non-HIV immunocompromised patients including heart, lung and renal transplant recipients, those with haematological or solid organ malignancy or on systemic anti-cancer therapy and those on renal dialysis as well as gaining experiences in management of complex Cardiothoracic infections including peri/myo and endocarditis and empyema, and device related infections (cardiac and orthopaedic).

This fellowship includes 6 months on each site and is well suited to a Higher Infection Trainee wishing to develop an interest in infection in the immunocompromised and cardio-respiratory infections. The post-holders will join the existing infection team for 6 months at each of 2 sites (Guys’ and Harefield), working closely with site-based Infection Consultants, other doctors in training, Infection Control departmental staff and Infection Pharmacists.

Main duties of the job

A trainee post at the Guys’ (GH) and Harefield Hospitals (HH) is a rare an exciting opportunity to gain experience in the following areas:

• Transplant infectious diseases – heart and lung at HH and renal and pancreas at GH
• Non-HIV immunocompromised patients - those undergoing systemic anti-cancer therapy at GH including those with complex haematological malignancies, solid organ malignancies, Car-T therapy and routine chemo and immunotherapies
• Cardiothoracic infections – empyemas, peri/myo and endocarditis, complex cardiac device related infections, including experience in mechanical circulatory support infection issues and cardiothoracic post-surgical infections.
• Infections in patients renal failure and urological problems – dialysis related infections, infections with stone disease, prostatitis, epididymo-orchitis and post-surgical infections
• Orthopaedic infections – native bone and joint and metalwork associated infections including spinal infections
• ENT and head and neck infection – NecOE and base of skull osteomyelitis, retropharyngeal and mediastinal infection

These posts also involve acquiring laboratory liaison skills in Microbiology and Virology and applying these to a ward-based consult service on the Guy’s, St. Thomas’, Royal Brompton or Harefield site.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Most clinical work involves liaison with the diverse clinical specialities on each site. This may be via clinical consults comprising bedside assessment of referred patients or patients with significant microbiological or virological results, or telephone advice.

At both GH and HH there are multiple consult rounds and MDT attendances. The clinical ID service is a consult service and there are 2 consultants at HH and 3 at GH.

GH - 6-month attachment is spilt into two, three-month blocks each block working alongside an ID consultant and supporting a set of clinical specialties: Haematology, oncology, ICU, orthopaedics, ENT as one block and renal, transplant, urology and thoracics as the second. Each attachment includes attendance at speciality specific infection MDTs, weekly ward rounds, daily ward consult reviews. In addition, there weekly stewardship rounds and IPC liaison.

HH – 6-month attachment adult ICU, cardiac and thoracic surgical, endocarditis (complex, tertiary referral) and transplant ID MDTs routine weekly. There are specific transplant meetings daily with critical care and surgery that can be attended also. There is a weekly transplant ID round and reviews for management of pre and post-transplant ID patients. There is also a monthly fungal MDT. The trainees work one to one with the infection consultant but are also expected to review referrals on the wards. This often includes pericarditis, myocarditis, endocarditis, cardiac and thoracic post-operative infections, transplant related infections in the immune compromised and returning travellers with febrile illness. There is also the opportunity to work for the national transplant ID network.

Clinical service routine

The hours of work will be 9.00am to 5.30pm Monday to Friday, plus any agreed on-call duties. Outside these times may be required as necessary professional duties; nevertheless, the hours of work accord to the requirements of the ‘New Deal’ on Doctor’s hours, the European Working Time Directive and the New Junior Doctors’ Contract. It is a condition of employment that the appointee be prepared to work at any site where work relating to the appointment is carried out.

Staff should recognise that job descriptions reflect the core activities of a post at a particular time and that as the Institution and the individual develops there will inevitably be changes in the emphasis and duties of the post.  The Trust expects that all staff will recognise this and adopt a flexible approach to work and be willing to participate in training.  If changes to a job description become significant the job description should be reviewed formally by the Head of Department and the post holder. At all times staff must conduct themselves and carry out their duties in a manner which supports the Trust’s equal opportunities policy and ensues that the working and learning environment provided within the Trust is free from bias or harassment.

The post holder accepts that he/she will also perform duties in occasional emergencies in unforeseen circumstances at the request of the appropriate Consultant, in consultation where practicable with his colleagues both junior and senior.  It has been arranged between the Professions and the Department of Health that while they will perform such duties, the Secretary of State stresses that additional commitments arising out of this sub-section are exceptional; in particular, the junior should not be required to undertake work of this kind for long periods of time.

On-call

The postholder will be on the pay scale commensurate with their grade/experience. Whilst at GH the post holder will join the Infection trainee on call rota that would include an on-call commitment at a 1 in 9 frequency weekday nights (Monday-Friday) as first on call for Infection (Microbiology and Virology) advice to the Trust.  When on call, the postholder would also be expected to cover the High Consequence Infectious Diseases (HCID) service, if activated, and after appropriate training. The on-call commitment of this post will be timetabled with other junior medical staff in the Department to accord with the requirements of the ‘New Deal’ and European Working Time Directive. This will include being contactable via mobile telephone. The StR on call will be covered at all times by a Consultant Virologist and Consultant Microbiologist from the department. Whilst at HH the post holder with join the RBHH on call rota. At RBH and HH the on-call duties are on a rolling rota with 1 in 6 split weekends and evening on calls. These can be done remotely, and provisions will be given for this.

This can be discussed further to provide detail on the arrangements which will apply in varying circumstances.