Principal Optometrist

Job overview

A fantastic opportunity has become available to become the Principal Optometrist in a busy and expanding London eye department for a year of maternity cover. As Principal Optometrist you would be the line manager to our optometry team consisting of 7 part time optometrists. You would have duties and responsibilities as described within the attached job description and would also be a key member within the wider ophthalmology team, working to maintain and improve care within the ophthalmology department. 

Clinically the role would include Consultant Led Glaucoma, Optometrist Led Stable Glaucoma and Glaucoma New (dependent on previous experience), Cataract pre and post op, Cornea and Anterior Segment, Medical Retina including semi virtual assessments and injection assessing (dependent on experience), Low Vision, Medical Contact Lenses, Adult and Paediatric Refraction and a unique opportunity to work within our extended role Paediatric Ophthalmology clinics, which includes mixed pathology and specialist clinics for those with additional needs.

We are a large teaching hospital and we provide supervision and education to pre-registration optometrists who come for their 2 week placement.

We run and participate in educational activities ran by and for the Ophthalmology Department. This includes the teaching of undergraduate or orthoptic students, medical undergraduates, junior doctors and other health care professionals.

Main duties of the job

a)To line manage the optometric team at the Royal London Hospital under the direction of the Head Orthoptist

b)To communicate with and provide feedback to the Head Orthoptist and the Clinical Lead on the strategic direction of optometry at the Royal London Hospital.

c)To have responsibility for the clinical, managerial and clinical governance of optometrists working at the Royal London Hospital including the responsibility for managing departmental rotas and annual leave.

d)To provide an optometric overview for service development at the Royal London Hospital

e)To be responsible for and personally deliver a wide range of highly specialised optometric care, extended role optometric care, clinical audit, teaching, research and the supervision of pre-registration optometrists at the Royal London Hospital.

Working for our organisation

Barts Health is one of the largest NHS trusts in the country, and one of Britain’s leading healthcare providers.

The Barts Health group of NHS hospitals is entering an exciting new era on our improvement journey to becoming an outstanding organisation with a world-class clinical reputation. Having lifted ourselves out of special measures, we now have the impetus and breathing space to chart a fresh course in which we are continually striving to improve all our services for patients.

Our vision is to be a high-performing group of NHS hospitals, renowned for excellence and innovation, and providing safe and compassionate care to our patients in east London and beyond. That means being a provider of excellent patient safety, known for delivering consistently high standards of harm-free care and always caring for patients in the right place at the right time. It also means being an outstanding place to work, in which our WeCare values and behaviours are visible to all and guide us in how we work together.

We strive to live by our WeCare values and are committed to promoting inclusion, where every staff member has a sense of belonging. We value our differences and fully advocate, cultivate and support an inclusive working environment.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The full job description provides an overview of the key tasks and responsibilities of the role, and the person specification outlines the qualifications, skills, experience, and knowledge required. For both documents, please view the attachment/s below.

Person specification

Experience

Essential criteria

Post registration clinical experience with at least 2 years in a hospital specialist setting in consultant led extended role clinics Experience of teaching optometrists & ophthalmologists at undergraduate and post-graduate level and supervision of trainee optometrists Clinical Governance Knowledge and experience of governance issues, in particular clinical audit

Desirable criteria

Experience of managing clinical services Experience of development of protocols or competencies Experience of research and development activities Management/leadership Experience of dealing with HR issues (sickness, performance, disciplinary)

Skills

Essential criteria

Ability to organise and manage own workload Good organisational and planning skills Good Communication and interpersonal skills Ability to work as part of the multi-disciplinary team and under pressure Adaptable and flexible to cope with all aspects of work and changing circumstances Understanding and ability to maintain patient confidentiality Ability to develop good working relationships with hospital staff at all levels

Desirable criteria

Willingness to contribute to research within the department

Knowledge

Essential criteria

Lectures or presentations given/posters presented at a local or national level Ability to actively participate in departmental clinical education and teaching of practical optometric skills Knowledge of the Care Records System (CRS) Advanced theoretical & practical knowledge across a comprehensive range of core hospital optometry practice Advanced theoretical & practical knowledge in the clinical assessment and management of optometric extended roles Knowledge and experience to competently undertake highly specialist & advanced clinical roles that include tertiary referrals of paediatric, and adult rare and complex conditions Knowledge of complex ophthalmic surgical techniques

Desirable criteria

Paper and/or articles published in journals or newsletters

Qualifications

Essential criteria

Possession of a Bachelor of Science in Optometry BSc (Optometry) Registered with the General Optical Council (GOC) Further post-graduate optometry qualification relating to a highly specialist aspect of clinical optometry e.g. College of Optometrists Professional/Higher Certificate/Diploma Commitment to Continuing Professional Development including participation in compulsory continuing education and training as required by the General Optical Council Member of the Association of Optometrists (AOP)

Desirable criteria

NHS Leadership/Management Qualification or equivalent Member of the College of Optometry (MCOptom) or equivalent

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