About this role
Job summary
Are you passionate about improving patient safety through digital innovation?
We are seeking an experienced and highly motivated Lead Clinical Safety Officer (CSO) to lead and develop clinical safety governance across University Hospitals Tees. This is a pivotal leadership role responsible for ensuring that digital systems and transformation programmes are designed, implemented and maintained in a way that protects patient safety and supports high-quality care.
Working closely with the Chief Clinical Information Officer (CCIO), clinicians, digital teams and suppliers, you will provide expert leadership on clinical risk management, ensuring compliance with national standards including DCB0160 and DCB0129. You will play a key role in shaping the Trust's digital future, providing assurance that innovative technologies, clinical systems and digital transformation programmes are safe, effective and deliver positive outcomes for patients and staff.
This is an exciting opportunity for a registered healthcare professional with significant experience in clinical safety, digital health and risk management to influence strategic decision-making across one of the largest digital transformation programmes in the region.
Main duties of the job
As the Lead Clinical Safety Officer, you will lead the Trust's Clinical Safety function, providing strategic and operational oversight of clinical risk management for digital systems and services across University Hospitals Tees.
You will ensure that patient safety risks associated with digital technologies are identified, assessed, mitigated and monitored throughout the lifecycle of systems and transformation programmes.
Key responsibilities include:
Leading clinical safety assurance activities for digital programmes, system implementations and operational services. Ensuring compliance with national clinical safety standards, including DCB0160 and supporting assurance of supplier compliance with DCB0129. Leading clinical risk assessments, hazard identification workshops and maintenance of hazard logs. Providing expert advice to clinicians, operational teams, senior leaders and suppliers on digital clinical safety risks and mitigations. Developing and maintaining clinical safety policies, processes, safety cases and governance arrangements. Monitoring, reporting and escalating digital clinical safety risks through appropriate governance structures. This role offers a unique opportunity to influence the safe adoption of digital technologies and support the delivery of a modern, digitally enabled healthcare service across University Hospitals Tees
About us
South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Foundation Trust have come together to form University Hospitals Tees. As a result, post holders may be required to work across sites within both organisations.
Across University Hospitals Tees, our ambition is to be the best place to work, ensuring we have the right staff in the right roles at the right time to deliver outstanding patient care and experience.
We are committed to supporting our staff through an inclusive and supportive working environment, offering health and wellbeing initiatives, staff benefits, and opportunities for personal and professional development.
We are committed to fostering an inclusive recruitment process and welcome applications from suitably qualified candidates, including those who first language is not English.
We support the 'Making Every Contact Count' approach to behaviour change in the promotion of health and wellbeing of individuals and communities.
Job description Job responsibilities
Please see the full job description and person specification document(s) attached for main responsibilities of the role.
Person Specification
Qualifications and Training Essential
Registered Doctor, Nurse, Pharmacist, Allied Health Professional or other healthcare professional with live professional registration Accredited Clinical Safety Officer, or able to demonstrate equivalent knowledge and commit to achieving accreditation within an agreed timeframe determined by UHT Degree level professional qualification or equivalent level of knowledge through professional clinical experience.
Knowledge and Skills Essential
Professional clinical knowledge acquired through registration as a Doctor, Nurse, Pharmacist, Physiotherapist or Allied Health Professional and supported by post-registration experience. Specialist knowledge of clinical safety processes and digital clinical risk management acquired through training and practical experience Knowledge of DCB0160 and DCB0129 standards and their application within healthcare organisations. Knowledge of NHS digital systems, clinical workflows and governance arrangements. Knowledge of patient safety, risk management and quality improvement principles. Ability to analyse complex clinical, operational and digital information and determine appropriate courses of action. Ability to communicate complex information clearly to a wide range of audiences.
Experience Essential
Significant experience working within a healthcare environment. Experience of applying clinical safety and risk management processes to digital systems. Experience of digital clinical system implementation, optimisation or support. Experience of facilitating risk assessments, hazard identification workshops and maintaining hazard logs. Experience of developing and implementing local policies, procedures or governance arrangements. Experience of managing staff, including recruitment, appraisal, development and performance management. Experience of working with clinicians, operational managers, digital teams and suppliers. Experience of managing resources and contributing to budget management activities
Personal Attributes Essential
Demonstrates integrity, sound judgement and discretion when handling sensitive information and high-risk issues. Credible, resilient and professionally confident in advising on patient safety risks and challenging unsafe practice where required. Collaborative, approachable and able to build effective working relationships across clinical, operational, technical and corporate teams. Analytical, organised and able to manage a complex and changing workload effectively. Committed to high standards of patient safety, governance, continuous improvement and professional development. Able to travel across UHT sites and work flexibly in line with service requirements
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.
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 South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Address The James Cook University Hospital
Middlesbrough
TS4 3BW
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://www.southtees.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)