Consultant Cardiologist in Complex Cardiac Devices
Job summary
Cardiology in East Kent Hospitals is one of the largest services in the South East, and is the regional heart attack centre for Kent and Medway, the 7th busiest in the UK. We are looking for a cardiologist with expertise in complex cardiac device implantation. The post will be shaped around the successful candidate's complementary specialist interest, particularly heart failure or cardiac imaging. Other relevant expertise, including inherited cardiac conditions, maternal cardiology, adult congenital heart disease or cardio-oncology, would also be welcomed where it complements the needs of the wider service.
Main duties of the job
The successful candidate will be competent in complex cardiac device implantation and in the follow-up and management of patients with simple and complex devices.
They will understand the recognition and management of device-related complications, including infection, and the indications and pathways for lead extraction.The post holder will contribute to device multidisciplinary meetings, governance, service development, training and the introduction of newer implantation techniques. The remainder of the specialist job plan will reflect the successful candidate's complementary expertise.
Complementary expertise in areas such as inherited cardiac conditions, maternal cardiology, adult congenital heart disease or cardio-oncology would also be welcomed where this supports a coherent job plan and the needs of the wider cardiology service.
On Call Arrangements: A general cardiology inpatient service is provided across the Trust, and over an 18-week cycle, you would lead this on both sites, with a week at QEQM and a week at WHH (1 in 9 Consultant-of-the-Week). Overnight responsibilities involve category B on-call to support the WHH middle grade rota (1 in 18, separate from the arrhythmia or coronary emergency rotas).
About us
We are one of the largest hospital trusts in England, with five hospitals and community clinics serving a local population of around 800,000 people.
Our vision is 'great healthcare from great people'. Everything we do is guided by our values: 'People feel cared for, safe, respected and confident that we are making a difference'. We have a new way of working at East Kent Hospitals, called 'We care'. It's about empowering frontline staff to lead improvements day-to-day.
We're looking for compassionate people to be part of our improvement journey for the patients, families and carers we care for every day. Please note that if you require a Certificate of Sponsorship to work in the UK you must declare this on your application form, even if you currently have a certificate of sponsorship or a work permit for another role and are already working in the country.
Please note we are only able to sponsor candidates for a Skilled Worker Visa for roles that are eligible at the time of application.
Job responsibilities
This is a full-time 10 PA position, with additional sessions according to the post holders skill set. A typical week will include 23 sessions of device implantation, together with outpatient, multidisciplinary and other clinical activity reflecting the post holders complementary specialist interest.
For a candidate with expertise in heart failure, this may include heart failure clinics and multidisciplinary working with acute and community specialist nursing teams. For a candidate with imaging expertise, it may include cardiac MRI, cardiac CT or advanced echocardiography. The final job plan will be agreed according to the successful candidates skills and the needs of the service, with activity delivered across Trust sites.
There is a 1:9 consultant of the week rota (including weekends), covering WHH and QEQM, and a 1:8 emergency pacing rota.
Cardiology in East Kent Hospitals is one of the largest services in the South East, is the regional heart attack centre for Kent and Medway and the highest volume non-surgical PCI centre in the UK. The device service is the largest in the region, with physiologists and healthcare scientists managing follow up and troubleshooting of simple and complex devices, as well as a nationally recognised insertable cardiac monitoring service.
We implant transvenous and subcutaneous ICD (including use of regional block) and follow up leadless pacemakers (with ambition to implant locally). Conduction system pacing is an area of growth, fully supported by EP equipment and physiologist competency. We can also deliver emergency permanent pacing when needed.
There are active device MDMs and ICD screening clinics to troubleshoot, harmonise practice and support growth in novel implant techniques and research participation. The trust currently has four cardiac catheter laboratories, one at The Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother Hospital (QEQM) and three laboratories (two interventional and recently expanded pacing/EP lab) at The William Harvey Hospital.
The QEQM laboratory provides angiography and pacing (including complex CRT and ICD implants) and a local EP/ablation service. The WHH laboratories also provide these services and additionally provides PCI services including the primary PCI service for the whole of Kent and Medway. The EKHUFT Heart Failure Service consists of a Lead Consultant and 7 Heart Failure Specialist Nurses, including independent nurse prescribers.
There are strong links with the Kent Community Health Heart Failure Service, and with inpatient and community rehab services. The Trust has delivered an ambulatory diuretic service for many years, now complemented by a full virtual ward service, including at-home intravenous diuretic therapy and remote monitoring.
A post holder with a complementary interest in heart failure will support these services and contribute to their clinical leadership and development. More broadly, the successful candidate will be encouraged to develop services that allow appropriate regional-level care to be delivered locally, reducing the need for East Kent patients to travel outside the area wherever possible.
The trust offers a 24/7 primary PCI service, based at the William Harvey Hospital (WHH) site, on behalf of 1.8 million Kent and Medway residents, with approximately 830 admissions and 650 PPCIs per year on the pathway. We are proud that the BCIS database shows we accept a particularly high percentage of Cardiogenic Shock/OOHCA patients, with adjusted mortality well below expected for this high-risk cohort.
For our local East Kent (>750,000) population we provide 1100 PCI per year in our WHH catheter labs. This includes a rotablation service established in 2016, intracoronary imaging (IVUS/OCT), functional invasive assessment (FFR) and an antegrade CTO programme and Shockwave. We are regional leaders in Advanced Cardiac Imaging.
Our echocardiography (echo), Cardiovascular CT and Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance (CMR) services are already highly developed. In addition to providing all modes of stress echo and 3D-TOE, Physiologist-delivered stress scanning and Physiologist-led valve clinics are an integral part of our service, and we are a regional training hub for both medical and scientific staff.
We work closely with Radiology to deliver high-volume cardiac CT, being early adopters of CT angiography in the assessment of chest pain. Our CMR service currently provides approximately 650 local scans per year with plans to more than double this capacity.
The Cardiology Department offers the expected range of routine non-invasive investigations, including 12-lead ECG, exercise stress testing, 24-hour ECG analysis, event recorders, 24-hour ambulatory BP monitoring, tilt table testing, transthoracic and transoesophageal echocardiography and contrast stress echocardiography - pharmacological and semi supine-bike/treadmill exercise for ischaemia and valve assessment.
The specialty is currently exploring options for an exciting expansion of estates and facilities for both invasive and non-invasive sub-specialties. The Trust has a 24/7 middle grade rota at the WHH. The department participates in multicentre research across coronary intervention, cardiac imaging, heart failure and cardiac devices. Teaching is provided by the department for undergraduates from Kings, St Georges Tooting and SGISoM (Grenada).
Recent developments include regional SIM training and the first local Regional BSE training day. EKHUFT is linked to Kent and Medway Medical School. We will work with you to shape the ideal job plan upon successful appointment, and review it with you after three months and then annually so you can keep the perfect fit. We will also provide the essential resources to support you in your duties, including administrative support.
Person Specification
Qualifictaion &
Training · Essential
Full GMC Registration CCT Specialist Registration or will obtain within 6 months of interview date Minimum of English Level 2 (GCSE grade C or equivalent), IELTS, or graduate of a UK Medical School qualification MRCP or equivalent
Desirable
Working NHS experience Clinical Governance
Essential
Consistently safe and aware of cultural /team/personal influences on safety Reassuringly professional Listens and communicates clearly Understands the role of audit and adverse incident reporting
Desirable
Previous experience of audit/service improvement projects/complaint management Skills &
Experience · Essential
Experienced in general clinical cardiology and emergency cardiac care Demonstrable expertise in complex cardiac device implantation, with recognised accreditation or equivalent evidence of independent competence Experienced in the follow-up and management of patients with simple and complex cardiac devices, including the recognition and management of device-related complications Expertise in either heart failure or cardiac imaging, appropriate to the candidate's proposed complementary specialist interest
Desirable
Experience in inherited cardiac conditions, maternal cardiology, adult congenital heart disease or cardio-oncology Experience of device-related service development, governance, research or training Accreditation in heart failure, cardiac MRI, cardiac CT or advanced echo cardiography, as applicable to the candidate's proposed specialist interest
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Certificate of Sponsorship
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab) . From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab) .
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
