Head Optometrist

Job summary

Working Full time: hours per week

Who this Opportunity is for:

Optometrists with experience of working in the Hospital Eye Service

Optometrists with a special interest in glaucoma and medical retina

What this Opportunity means:

This is an exciting opportunity to lead a small, but expanding optometry department.

We are a small, friendly and supportive team working closely with the ophthalmologists and orthoptic department.

The department is involved in a variety of core and extended role clinics, working closely with the Speciality Ophthalmologists and the wider multi-disciplinary team.

The successful applicant will have the opportunity to use their knowledge and skills in face-to-face and virtual glaucoma and medical retina clinics

There will be a clinical requirement for the post holder in glaucoma, medical retina and core services.

Main duties of the job

Lead for the department

Management of the optometry department including HR and financial responsibilities

Glaucoma clinics

Small involvement in AMD service and supporting the core optometry services

Please see the job description for further details but note that the only extended roles on offer are glaucoma and medical retina.

About us

The Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust provides services to West Cheshire and to Welsh patients covered by Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board. The Trust works collaboratively within the wider Cheshire and Merseyside Health and Care Partnership. Its services are provided from three locations:

The Countess of Chester Hospital: providing 438 general and acute beds. Ellesmere Port Hospital: providing 56 beds as a rehabilitation, intermediate and outpatient facility. Tarporley War Memorial Hospital: a base for community services which serve the local rural population.

The Trust employs over 6258 staff (headcount) which includes temporary bank staff and provides acute emergency and elective services, primary care direct access services and obstetric services to a population of approximately 407,000. This includes 357,000 residents in Chester and West Cheshire which includes Ellesmere Port and Neston as well as the Deeside area of Flintshire which has a population of approximately 50,000.

The Trust is a busy district general hospital and in 2022/2023, there were more than 503,342 patient attendances (inpatient, outpatient and diagnostic) ranging from a simple outpatient appointment to major cancer surgery. This is an increase of nearly 10,000 compared to the previous year when there were 494,387 patient attendances.

Job description

Job responsibilities

See Job Description for further details.

Recruitment selection processes are based on competence (see Person specification) and values.

Please note applicants will be required to pay for their DBS check. Costs are deducted from salary following appointment. The cost of the DBS application is £23 (standard) or £43 (enhanced), this cost will be deducted from your salary over the first three months of employment.

You are encouraged to enrol for the DBS Update Service. A small annual fee of £13 per year applies.

New entrants to the NHS will commence on the minimum of the scale stated above.

Applicants are advised to apply early as if a large number of applications are received for this post, we reserve the right to close the vacancy prior to the advertised date.

Good luck with your application.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

Registered with General Optical Council as an Optometrist MSc Optometry

Desirable

Management training/qualification

Knowledge and skills

Essential

Previous experience of training and working in extended optometry roles and shared-care clinics Previous experience of hospital optometry within an NHS Trust

Desirable

Experience in clinical audit procedures

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