Detailed job description and main responsibilities
1. General
1. Ensure all work they carry out complies with current UK legislation for work with ionizing radiation (IRR 2017, IRMER 2017) and the Trust's ISO 9001-2015 compliant quality system for provision of radiotherapy.
2. The post holder must be and must remain registered as a clinical scientist and complete an agreed scheme of continuing professional development (CPD).
3. Provide specialist technical advice within the trust for the procurement of high capital value complex clinical equipment.
4. The place of work is normally The Christie in Withington, but the post holder may be required to carry out work at other local hospitals with a radiotherapy service.
5. Hours are worked flexibly, in agreement with the line manager, to provide round the clock services where necessary to cover the normal range of clinical duties.
2. Scientific Computing Support
1. Be responsible for the maintenance and management of a Clinical Software Quality Management System to support the safe and effective delivery of radiotherapy across the Trust.
2. Be responsible for the implementation of in-house software (including medical devices), ensuring patient safety and compliance with relevant regulations, standards, and guidance.
3. Provide solutions to the day-to-day clinical scientific computing problems encountered by users, offering initial judgements and decisions on the urgency and the support required to deal with the situations and providing a remedy or arranging for appropriate remedial action.
4. Develop systems, including software, to increase the efficiency of processes/procedures to reduce delays in treatment and make best use of staff resources.
5. Lead on Medical Physics input to AI activities across the Trust, working closely with clinical, technical, academic and industry colleagues as required.
6. Ensure effective and efficient adoption of AI and other digital health technologies, in a way that is compliant with relevant regulations, standards and guidance.
7. When required, develop bespoke software and hardware solutions for specific clinical settings in a way that is safe, legally compliant, and effective, for example using open-source software within an appropriate framework.
8. Provide support and expert advice for the procurement of relevant hardware and software and associated site requirements. Support strategic planning for new technologies based on understanding of clinical need, technology and standards.
9. Organise and provide quality assurance of radiotherapy datasets and data sources.
3. Management of Radiotherapy Systems
1. Contribute to the provision of relevant strategies, policies, procedures, quality standards and risk assessments relating to the development, evaluation, deployment and management of clinical software and systems in the light of complex legislation, guidelines, standards, and practices, taking account of clinical experience and highly specialist scientific knowledge.
2. Participate in the management, development, and optimisation of advanced clinical computing systems in radiotherapy, e.g. Treatment Planning Systems, Oncology Management Systems, Auto-contouring tools etc.
3. Provide specialist clinical technical services required to support clinical computing systems and their integration, maintaining and developing experience in that area.
4. Perform troubleshooting for faults on highly complex information systems and make decisions on whether faults require immediate remedial action. Work and liaise with manufacturer's engineering and technical staff to identify and rectify faults to minimise system down time. Train other staff in aspects of fault-finding and rectification and ensure that written procedures are available for dealing with common fault situations.
5. Work and liaise with trust IT and digital services to support clinical and scientific computing services.
4. Clinical work in Radiotherapy Physics
1. Act as required in the role of Medical Physics Expert (MPE) under IR(ME)R in one or more areas of Radiotherapy Physics. Provide expert advice to other professional groups on both patient specific issues and on matters of clinical service provision and development.
2. Interpret national and international guidelines concerning the work of the Radiotherapy Physics section and implement protocols to keep the section's work in line with recommended practice.
3. Contribute to the radiotherapy physics clinical service in at least one of the areas specified in sections 4.a, 4.b, and 4.c.
4.a. Dosimetry
1. Maintain, develop and participate in the clinical quality control programme for highly complex radiotherapy equipment, including linear accelerators and simulators to ensure all such equipment is fit for clinical use.
2. Manage the ongoing quality assurance of individual linear accelerators assigned by the Team Leader for Dosimetry through regular audit and be responsible for ensuring that appropriate actions are performed effectively, liaising with and delegating tasks to radiotherapy engineers and physicists as required.
3. Investigate and resolve highly complex problems highlighted through ongoing quality control measurements and reported equipment faults.
4. Carry the physics bleep on a rotational basis, responding to issues relating to the performance of radiotherapy equipment and clinical treatment plans, raised by radiographers and engineering staff, and providing scientific advice or performing measurements as appropriate.
5. Manage and plan linear accelerator commissioning through supervision of physicists, collecting the data required to provide accurate models of radiation treatment beams necessary to ensure efficient and safe clinical implementation of the clinical service.
6. Liaise with the Radiotherapy Technical Services Manager to ensure efficient and accurate transfer of information and appropriate allocation of tasks and responsibilities between engineering and physics staff.
4.b. Treatment Planning
1. Scientifically develop and maintain the clinical treatment planning system for new applications particularly with respect to patients.
2. Ensure that the data and calculation methods are accurate and the limitations understood and documented.
3. Be the physics lead for one or more specified clinical site, working closely in a multidisciplinary team to develop and maintain clinical protocols, techniques and the patient pathways.
4. Develop and maintain the clinical pre-treatment simulation hardware and software systems and commission them for new applications particularly with respect to patients treated across the Christie Network.
5. Optimise clinical protocols for the safe and effective clinical use of pre-treatment simulation equipment in conjunction with clinical oncologists, physicists and radiographers across the Christie Network.
6. Operate, maintain and develop quality assurance procedures for computerised treatment planning systems within the ISO 9001-2015 Quality System to ensure equipment and procedures are fit for clinical use.
7. Maintain the provision of an external beam simulation and planning service to the Radiotherapy Department across the Christie Network to ensure the accuracy of treatment plans and compliance with clinical requirements.
8. Ensure effective multidisciplinary team working in pre-treatment simulation and planning by working closely with clinical oncologists and therapy radiographers.
9. Operate on a rota with other physicists to deal with problems arising with pre-treatment simulation and clinical treatment plans.
10. Implement new and improved treatment planning techniques so that patients gain maximum benefit from the available equipment throughout the Christie Network.
11. Produce or independently check highly complex radiotherapy treatment plans, based on the evaluation of anatomical and clinical information using a highly complex treatment planning system.
12. Develop systems, including software development, to increase the efficiency of clinical pre-treatment simulation and planning in order to reduce delays in treatment and make best use of staff resources.
13. Liaise with the group leader and head of radiation protection service in the investigation and reporting of any case of suspected or actual mistreatment of any patient due to a failure within treatment planning.
14. Identify areas where radiotherapy treatment improvements can be made and work as part of multidisciplinary teams.
4.c. Brachytherapy
1. Manage scientifically brachytherapy clinical treatment planning systems so that treatments can be effectively planned.
2. Maintain a brachytherapy data set to allow accurate dose calculation in brachytherapy.
3. Maintain the system of dosimetry for brachytherapy treatments to ensure brachytherapy dosimetry is linked to national primary standards.
4. Maintain and develop systems for quality assurance for brachytherapy within the ISO 9001 -2015 Quality System.
5. Ensure that the data and calculation methods are accurate and the limitations understood and documented.
6. Manage the safe storage of sealed radiotherapy sources at the Christie Hospital NHS Trust.
7. Be responsible for radiation safety in brachytherapy and liaise with the relevant radiation protection supervisors and radiation protection advisors to maintain the radiation protection quality system.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
* State Registered Clinical Scientist
* Honours degree in an appropriate physical science
* Postgraduate Degree (e.g. Masters level and above)
Desirable criteria
* Corporate member of IPEM or equivalent professional body
* PhD or equivalent evidence of research training
Experience
Essential criteria
* Appropriate experience in Radiotherapy Physics to satisfy Medical Physics Expert status.
* Experience of scientific computing in a radiotherapy setting.
Desirable criteria
* Involved with the operation of Quality Management Systems.
* Experience of implementation and commissioning of new software.
* Supervision of trainees and students.
Skills
Essential criteria
* Good interpersonal skills
* Clear and articulate communicator of complex concepts
* Use of radiation monitoring and scanning equipment, working to millimetre precision.
* Use of Treatment Planning Software.
* Able to understand and adapt a range of computer systems to meet the requirements of clinical techniques or equipment quality control.
Desirable criteria
* Effective collaboration with other organisations / departments
* Performance of staff reviews and appraisals
* Scientific report writing/track record of publications in scientific journals and conferences.
* Research skills
Knowledge
Essential criteria
* Expert knowledge in 1 or more aspects of radiotherapy physics.
* Extensive knowledge of relevant legislation, national standards, professional guidelines (e.g. IRR'17, IRMER 2017, ISO:9001,2015, IPEM Codes of Practice)
* Understanding of the clinical role of radiotherapy.
* Expert knowledge of one or more computer programming languages (e.g. Python).
Desirable criteria
* Knowledge of regulations, standards and guidance pertaining to clinical software.
Values
Essential criteria
* Ability to demonstrate the organisational values and behaviours
Research and Development
Essential criteria
* Record of dissemination / publication of scientific work
The closing date for this post may be extended if there are insufficient applicants or brought forward if there is a high volume of applicants.
We want to ensure that everyone who works at the Christie or uses our services is welcomed, valued and treated with dignity and respect. The Christie values diversity and is committed to ensuring equal opportunities for all and fair representation across the organisation at all levels. In support of these commitments, we particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and other ethnic minority people and people with disabilities for this post. Appointment will be only on merit.
We are committed to creating a balanced and diverse workforce. As such we welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds. Together we will foster inclusion and tackle inequity and health inequalities in cancer care.
As users of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy.
All positions within the Christie are subject to the receipt of satisfactory written references, medical clearance and evidence of your Right to Work in the UK. Some roles will require a Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) check. Please note if you are successfully appointed to a post with this Trust, you will be required to pay for your own DBS Disclosure.
By applying for this post you are agreeing to The Christie NHS Foundation Trust transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are offered a job information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system. Please note, all communication regarding your application will be made via email, please ensure you check your junk/spam folders as emails are sometimes filtered there.
If you have not heard from us within four weeks of the closing date, I regret that on this occasion your application will have been unsuccessful.
The Inter-Authority Transfer (IAT) process is a critical and beneficial component of ESR and will form part of the recruitment process. In the event that you are successful following interview your previous NHS employment data, if applicable will be transferred from your current / most recent employer.
Overseas candidates wishing to apply for this position and who would require immigration sponsorship, may wish to self-assess the likelihood of obtaining a Certificate of Sponsorship for the post on the UKVI website.
You should be aware the Trust operates a No Smoking Policy and therefore employees are not permitted to smoke at work.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
Documents to download
* Job Description and Person Specification (PDF, 263.9KB)
* The Christie Values and Behaviours (PDF, 919.5KB)
* Strategy Brochure (PDF, 1.0MB)
* Travel to The Christie (PDF, 3.8MB)
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