Job overview

Join Our Team as An Advanced Optometrist  at Chesterfield Royal Hospital NHS Foundation Trust!

Are you a passionate and experienced Optometrist looking for a career in an acute NHS trust or have experience of working within a hospital setting and now looking for the next career step? Chesterfield Royal Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is seeking a dynamic and dedicated Optometrist  to join our exceptional team!

The Role: Our eye centre requires an Optometrist to provide a robust and professional Optometric service to support our Ophthalmology pathways. An important focus of the role will be to provide objective and subjective refractions to a wide range of patients, but with a special expertise in managing special needs patients who may have more serious or unusual ocular pathology, in a range of age groups.  As part of your role there is also the opportunity to develop your autonomy in extended skills in one of our other Ophthalmology pathways such as Cataracts, Medical Retina or Urgent Eye Care.

You’ll thrive in this role because..

• You’ll make a real difference as part of a dedicated and supportive team.
• You’ll enjoy a Part-time role (29 hours per week) with opportunities for professional development and career progression.
• You’ll foster a positive and inclusive team spirit where everyone feels a sense of belonging and part of the team.

Main duties of the job

Key Responsibilities:

• Provide high-level professional expertise in the refraction of children and adults, including prescribing glasses.
• Ensure the delivery of high-quality, safe, and person-centred care through engagement and empowerment of others.
• Collaborate with the Eye Centre Department Lead, Head Orthoptist, Care Unit Matron, and Service Manager to develop and manage the Optometrist service.
• Lead and deliver success across key Ophthalmology Pathways programmes within the Department, including productivity, efficiency, transformation, clinical effectiveness and quality
• Low vision assessment on a small group of patients
• To accept referrals for a small caseload of Bandage contact Lenses, assisting in the monitoring and management of these therapeutic contact lenses alongside their Ophthalmology Care.
• To be responsible and accountable for your clinical caseload and any follow up care.

Essential Qualifications:

• BSc Hon Degree in Optometry and must have completed the additional Pre – Registration year.
• Must be registered as an Optometrist with the General Optical Council.
• Evidence of Post Graduate Qualifications or significant experience, with appropriate professional CPD.
• Previous experience working in a hospital eye service would be desirable
• Previous experience and wide exposure to Optometry in the Primary and Secondary Care Setting.
• Ability to provide a robust and professional Optometric service to support Ophthalmology pathways.  Working in a multidisciplinary team.

Working for our organisation

About Us: At Chesterfield Royal Hospital, we are committed to bringing our people, communities, and partners together to provide patient care we can all be proud of. Our values of Compassion, Ambition, Respect, and Encouragement guide everything we do.

Chesterfield Royal Hospital is located in Calow, Chesterfield, which is situated on a green field site on the edge of the Peak District National Park. It is home to the Crooked Spire and is also close to Sheffield, Derby and Nottingham, thus offering numerous choices for recreational activities and lifestyles.

Chesterfield Royal Hospital was officially opened by the queen in 1985 and since then it has continued to expand and modernise, currently holding approximately 550 beds. We provide acute in-patient and out-patient care for Chesterfield and the surrounding rural area of North Derbyshire, serving a population of approximately 350,000 people.

We are currently rated GOOD by the CQC.

What We Offer:

• A supportive and inclusive work environment where your contributions are valued.
• Opportunities for professional development and career progression.
• The chance to make a positive impact on patient care and the overall success of the hospital.

Join Us: If you are a compassionate, ambitious, and respectful Optometrist with a commitment to excellence, we want to hear from you! Apply now to become a part of our dedicated team and help us achieve our mission of providing exceptional patient care.

Flexible Working

If you're looking for flexible or predictable working arrangements, please speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate this. If it works for our service and patients, we will do our best to make it work for you.

COVID19 Vaccination

Chesterfield Royal Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is committed to ensuring the safety of all our staff and patients therefore encourages and supports staff to be vaccinated against COVID19 as this remains the best line of defence against the virus.

 UK Points-based immigration system

Applications from job seekers who require sponsorship to work in the United Kingdom (UK) are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications.  Please note that from 1 January 2021, to work in the UK all candidates who are not UK or Republic of Ireland (RoI) nationals require sponsorship unless you have permission to work via another route.  Non UK / RoI candidates wishing to apply can self-assess the likelihood of obtaining a Certificate of Sponsorship here Work in the UK - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

It is vital that you provide full and accurate details of your current immigration status on the application form.  Overseas applicants applying for entry clearance into the UK must present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided in continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years.  Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

If you are applying for a vacancy in health or adult social care, you may be  eligible to apply for the Health and Care Worker visa instead, which is cheaper to apply for and you do not need to pay the annual immigration health surcharge.

Communications 

Communications throughout the application process will be via e-mail therefore please check your e-mail account and Trac account regularly. References are also requested by email (where possible). Therefore to speed up the recruitment process please provide an email address for all referees when completing your application form.

If you require any support in completing the application form, please do not hesitate to contact the HR Support Services team on 01246 513177 and we will be happy to provide assistance.

Please see the attached documents and links in relation to working for Chesterfield Royal Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. In particular, the general conditions of employment and benefits of working for the trust.

This role is part of the integrated health and social care community across Derbyshire, where there are many opportunities to work across different locations and providers developing new and different skills. Whilst this role is initially based in Chesterfield there may be future opportunities to be based at different locations within the health and social care community which we may talk to you about in the future.

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