About this role
Job summary The post holder will provide the infection support concentrating on the St Thomas' and Evelina hospital sites. Working closely with the Paediatric Infectious Diseases team and the Infection Prevention and control team, the postholder will be the main microbiology liaison with Evelina Children's Hospital. The postholder will develop and lead a penicillin allergy de-labelling service The postholder will contribute to adult infection services Whilst individual consultants will develop their own areas of specialist expertise over time, all will deliver: o Ward-based general infection consults and telephone advice o Timetabled multi-disciplinary clinical meetings and ward rounds o ID out-patient clinics
Support the Infection Sciences laboratory services alongside the other site microbiologists and virologists.
The post-holder will be expected to contribute to the induction and training of the StRs
Work closely with clinical teams, pharmacists and the IPC nursing team to develop local clinical guidelines, manage outbreaks in relevant clinical areas
All consultants will have PA allocation for specific responsibilities e.g. antimicrobial stewardship, IPC, OPAT. The post-holder will participate in the non-resident on-call rota
Main duties of the job The postholder will be the main microbiology liaison with Evelina Children's Hospital. Specific roles will include PICU ward rounds, general infection liaison, development of broader antimicrobial stewardship activities and an infection control role leading post-infection review processes for reportable bacteraemias in Evelina. The postholder will develop and lead a penicillin allergy de-labelling service with support from the allergy team which will include setting up an outpatient clinic with nursing and/or ID pharmacy support. The postholder will contribute to adult infection services - in particular, they will provide support to the bacteraemia and endocarditis service and will contribute to the provision of cross cover at other sites within the Trust Whilst individual consultants will develop their own areas of specialist expertise over time, all will deliver: o Ward-based general infection consults and telephone advice o Timetabled multi-disciplinary clinical meetings and ward rounds o ID out-patient clinics
Support the Infection Sciences laboratory services alongside the other site microbiologists and virologists. Laboratory duties will include result authorisation, contribution to the day-to-day running of the diagnostic service, troubleshooting of unexpected results, and active participation in laboratory management and development.
About us
The DoI comprises about 115 clinical and administrative staff from the Dept. of Infectious Diseases (including the Virology & Microbiology laboratories run in partnership with Synnovis UK and Ireland) and the Dept. of Infection Prevention & Control. Dr Nicholas Price is the Clinical Director and joint-Director of IPC (DIPC) and Ms Avey Bhatia, Chief Nurse, has Executive IPC responsibility. Dr Geraldine O'Hara (Infectious Diseases & HCID) Dr Bill Newsholme (Infection Prevention & Control) and Dr James Whitehorn (Laboratories) are the medical Service Leads.
In addition to medical staff (below), there are approximately 60 IPC staff led by joint-DIPC, Dr Jon Otter, plus a dedicated ID pharmacy team. Every DoI consultant works in partnership with IPC colleagues and is allocated specific responsibilities in job planning (e.g. anti-microbial resistance/ stewardship, C. difficile and bacteraemia investigation, surgical site infection, IV line care etc.). ID consultant leadership is by example and is considered essential to driving higher standards of IPC quality across and lending front-line credibility.
The Dept of IPC comprises Acute Trust and Community nurses, an Intravascular Device team, a Surgical Site Infection Surveillance team and Decontamination team. The IPC matrons work in close partnership with a dedicated Infection consultant supporting in area.
Job description Job responsibilities
In addition the postholder will:
Support the Infection Sciences laboratory services alongside the other site microbiologists and virologists. Laboratory duties will include result authorisation, contribution to the day-to-day running of the diagnostic service, troubleshooting of unexpected results, and active participation in laboratory management and development. Alongside existing consultant colleagues, they will support the work at the new large, multi-hospital offsite laboratory hub at Blackfriars. This includes transfer of microbiology workload from GP practices in Bexley, Greenwich and Lewisham in late 2026.
The post-holder will be expected to contribute to the induction and training of the StRs rotating to Microbiology/Infectious Diseases/Virology and to take an active part in postgraduate teaching and training and participate in KCL Medical school undergraduate teaching in years 2 and 3.
Work closely with clinical teams, pharmacists and the IPC nursing team to develop local clinical guidelines, manage outbreaks in relevant clinical areas e.g. PICU, and deliver key performance objectives (e.g. C. difficile, blood stream infections etc.) and staff education/training. This will include contributing to good antimicrobial stewardship (bacterial and fungal).
All consultants will have PA allocation for specific responsibilities e.g. antimicrobial stewardship, IPC, OPAT. The post-holder will participate in the non-resident on-call rota which will be shared equally with the other consultants in the Microbiology section. Weekend authorisation is performed by the on-call Infection consultant, this can be done remotely and no weekend on-site presence is generally required. At present there is a separate on-call rota covering Guys & St. Thomas Hospitals and Royal Brompton & Harefield Hospitals, however this is under review and the post holder may be required to contribute to either rota.
Trainees
There are currently twelve StRs training in Infectious Diseases combined with either Microbiology/Virology or General Medicine, plus F1 and F3 junior doctors. The development of 2 senior infection fellow posts rotating between RBH and HH is in progress, which will offer unique specialist training opportunities under the supervision of the RBH Infection consultants.
DoI has hosted a thriving Integrated Academic Training (IAT) programme with the School of Immunology & Microbial Sciences. A
4. Postgraduate education facilities DoI education meetings centre around the DoIs own purpose-built facility, equipped with state-of-the-art AV technology to ensure high-quality remote participation and access to learning. In particular, the presentation of difficult cases or those highlighting important learning are encouraged at the weekly Thurs Case Discussion and external speakers with specific areas of expertise are invited to the Tues Academic Seminar. The DoI weekly education programme is currently as follows:
Academic Seminar (GSTT) Tuesday 09.00 - 10.00
Microbiology Tutorial (GSTT) Wednesday 09.30 10.15
Virology Tutorial (GSTT) Wednesday 10.15 - 11.00
Hospital Grand Round (GSTT) Wednesday 13.00 - 14.00
Clinical Case Discussion (GSTT) Thursday 13.00 - 14.00
In addition to the above, the KCL Academic Dept. of Infectious Diseases offers a regular programme of invited speakers with national and international reputations for their scientific research. Furthermore, the Trusts Dept. of Postgraduate Education runs an active and diverse education and training programme for all clinical staff.
The Diagnostic Laboratories A major redesign of laboratory services has occurred as part of the joint venture between Guys and St Thomas NHS Trust, Kings College Hospital and SYNLAB UK & Ireland. Working with Synnovis, the JV Has opened a Pathology Hub near Blackfriars, located about 10 minutes-walk from both St Thomas and Guys sites. This will provide a 24/7 diagnostic service for our patients with technological and operational benefits such as faster translation of rapid pathogen genome sequencing and real-time data analysis. The service offers a wide range of specialist bacteriology, virology and fungal diagnostics including cystic fibrosis and transplant bacteriology, mycobacterial identification and susceptibility testing, molecular PCR assays, serology assays and testing for the heart valve bank.
Pathology specialties have been relocated to the hub. An Essential Services Laboratory (ESL) has been retained at each site which will process urgent samples. A category 3 laboratory is also retained at St. Thomas in order to service our HCID-a centre. Further information about Synnovis and the South East London Pathology Hub can be found here: https://sel.synlab.co.uk/
Main place of employment:
The post-holder will be based at the St Thomas site and the Evelina. It is a requirement of your employment that you be prepared to work at any additional or different location owned or served by the Trust, either on an on-going or temporary basis according to the demands of the service.
Induction: There will be a personalised induction programme both for the Microbiology and clinical Infectious Diseases service. The programme will be tailored to the needs of the successful candidate.
Accommodation and equipment: The Consultant Doctor will haveaccess to a computer and desk space and the support of departmental administration and clerical staff. The Guy's, King's and St. Thomas' Medical School library is on the St. Thomas' and Guy's sites. Electronic access to the KCL e-journals will be available. There are libraries/learning zones at the Brompton and Harefield sites.
Continuing professional development (CPD) and Appraisal: The post holder will be expected to participate in CPD. Consultants can apply for professional and study leave over a three-year period up to 30 days (on average 10 days per year). Statutory and Mandatory training must be taken within the leave allocation. Consultants have access through the Post-graduate Centre to apply for funds to support CPD activities. All medical staff are required to undertake annual appraisal and revalidation. Appraisal documentation for GMC Specialist Revalidation will be submitted through the SARD system.
Mentoring:
There is an active mentoring and coaching scheme available to all consultants. New consultants are encouraged to participate in the New Consultants Forum with organised seminars supporting professional development.
Job Planning: The post holders job plan is anticipated to contain 8 Programmed Activities (PA) per week, to be carried out primarily at the St Thomas / Evelina sites.
Below is anexample outline programme based on 7 PAs but the exact job plan will vary dependant on site of working and discussed with the Clinical Director and Service Leads prior to any start date, particularly in order to reflect specific responsibilities that are agreed). The job plan will also be negotiated between the Consultant and their Clinical Lead at least annually.
When the Childrens PTC has transferred (estimated Autumn 2026) there is an opportunity to increase PAs to 10, or alternatively (subject to the job-planning process) substitute activities to incorporate childrens cancer liaison work into the current job plan.
Type of work PAs DCC
Clinical work including ward consults and ward rounds 2.5 Lab clinical validation, actioning and communicating abnormal results 1 Multi-disciplinary meetings about direct patient care 1 Penicillin allergy de-labelling service (inducing outpatient clinic) 1 On-call activity 1:5 to 1:6 (non-resident) 1 SPA
Job Planning, appraisal, CPD, clinical governance, audit, mandatory training
1
Teaching/StR supervision, being an appraiser, etc, defined in job planning according to service needs
0.5
Total
8
The exact amount of Supporting Professional Activity (SPA) allocation can be increased during the job planning process, depending on post-holders interests.
An example of the proposed timetable for the postholder:
Description of work
Start-Finish
Frequency
Cat.
Mon
Handover meeting
Ward Rounds/Consults
Diagnostic work
0900-1000
1000-1300
1300-1700
1x1w
1x1w
1x1w
DCC
DCC
DCC
Tues
Academic Seminar
Diagnostic work
MDTs/Clinical work / PICU ward round
0900-1000
1000-1300
1300-1600
1x1w
1x1w
1x1w
SPA
DCC
DCC
Wed
Ward Rounds/Consults
CPD
0900-1300
1300-1600
1x1w
1x1w
DCC
SPA
Thur
MDT/clinic
Clinical Cases meeting
Laboratory authorisation
0900-1300
1300-1400
1400-1700
1x1w
1x1w
1x1w
DCC
DCC
SPA
Fri
Other agreed SPA activity
Ward Rounds/Consults
Ward Rounds/Consults
0900-1000
1000-1300
1400-1600
1x1w
1x1w
1x1w
SPA
DCC
DCC
On Call Rota:
The appointee will be required to participate in a 1 in 5 to 1 in 6 Microbiology on-call rota dependant on site of work GSTT or RBHH (Category A) in order to authorise and communicate significant laboratory results, and provide specialist clinical advice.
Currently, separate rotas run according to site (a combined Guys and St Thomas Hospitals rota and a combined Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals rota), although it is possible that these rotas merge at some point in the future. Both rotas are supported by a Consultant Virologist on call.
Category A:this applies where the consultant may be able respond by giving telephone advice and/or by returning to work later but the complexity of work or urgency of work is such that they could on rare occasions be required to return to site.
Person Specification
Professional Qualifications Essential
Full and Specialist GMC Registration and current licence to practise. Applicants that are UK trained, must ALSO be a holder of a Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT), or be within six months of award of CCT by date of interview. Applicants that are non-UK trained, will be required to show evidence of equivalence to the UK CCT On GMC Specialist Register for Microbiology OR Microbiology and Infectious Diseases OR Virology
Desirable
MRCP or equivalent FRCPath or equivalent MD or PhD Infection Prevention and Control qualification (e.g. DipHIC or MSc)
Clinical Experience Essential
Comprehensive experience across the range of adult infectious diseases. Experience in writing clinical infection and/or laboratory guidelines. Working knowledge in Infection Prevention and Control in the acute care setting e.g. management of outbreaks and antimicrobial stewardship.
Desirable
Expert knowledge and experience in management of infection in the non-HIV immunocompromised host eg. Transplant and/or cancer patients. Diagnosis and management of infections in chronic lung disease involving non-tuberculous mycobacteria, tuberculosis, fungi, resistance to multiple antibiotics. Leading or managing a diagnostic laboratory. Introduction of new laboratory tests into the diagnostic repertoire. Managing change in order to deliver clinical infection or infection control targets. Post-graduate IPC qualification.
Clinical Skills Essential
Operating an Infectious Diseases clinical consult service and contributing to multidisciplinary clinical meetings. If applicable, running an Infectious Diseases out-patient clinic or OPAT service. Ability to work as an effective member of a multidisciplinary team.
Desirable
Clinical assessment and management of Critical Care patients and/or paediatric patients
Audit Management & IT Essential
A track record demonstrating clinical governance, audit, service development and management and IT skills Evidence of leading service development and participation in quality improvement projects for clinical and/or laboratory services
Research. Teaching skill & experience Essential
Experience of teaching and training undergraduates, postgraduates and junior medical staff.
Desirable
A track record of research, publications/ understanding / knowledge of Research ethics. Teaching qualification Experience of independently attracting research funding Holder of GCP certification and involvement in clinical trials
Leadership / Management skills Essential
Communication; Ability to communicate with clarity and intelligently in written and spoken English; ability to build rapport, listen, persuade/ negotiate. Accountability; Ability to take responsibility, lead, make decisions and exert appropriate authority. Interpersonal Skills; Empathy, understanding, listening skills, patience and ability to work co-operatively with others. Staff Management; Experience of performance management, developing and motivating staff. Ability to lead staff, balance competing demands on the diagnostic service, striving to develop an efficient and high-quality laboratory service. Finance; Knowledge of finance and budgets.
Desirable
Experience in leading a multidisciplinary team Experience of business case and service development.
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).
Employer details Employer name Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust
Address St Thomas'
Westminster Bridge Road
London
SE1 7EH
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://www.guysandstthomas.nhs.uk/careers/careers.aspx (Opens in a new tab)