Clinical Bioinformatician

NHS; Greater London; On-site; GBP 56,000 - 64,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading healthcare provider in Greater London is seeking a Clinical Bioinformatician to join their expanding Bioinformatics team. This role involves developing and operating next-generation sequencing pipelines, managing clinical software, and supporting diagnostic services at Guy's Hospital. The ideal candidate will need a BSc and ideally a PhD in a relevant field, along with HCPC registration or working towards it. Experience with bioinformatics pipelines and data analysis is essential. The role offers a salary range of £56,276 to £63,176 depending on experience, along with a chance to work in a dynamic team focused on innovative healthcare solutions.

Benefits

Learning opportunities through ACCE competencies programme

Funding for advanced qualifications

Innovation Accelerator Fund for new projects

Qualifications

• HCPC Registration or working towards it.
• Experience in analyzing next generation sequencing data.
• Development and maintenance of bioinformatic data analysis pipelines.

Responsibilities

• Maintain and operate bioinformatics pipelines for NGS data processing.
• Develop validated software for diagnostic services.
• Respond to daily issues as a duty bioinformatician.

Skills

Scripting languages (Python, Java, Bash)

Problem-solving

Database querying and maintenance

Understanding of molecular biology and human genetics

Education

BSc in bioinformatics, biological sciences or related field

PhD in bioinformatics, biological sciences or related field

Tools

Nextflow

AWS

DNAnexus

Job description

We are looking for a highly motivated Clinical Bioinformatician to join our expanding Bioinformatics team at the South East Genomic Laboratory Hub (SEGLH) on a 12-month fixed-term contract basis. The post will be based at Guy's Hospital, but with a planned consolidation to a hub at Blackfriars.The post will be part of the team supporting the clinical diagnostics services of both Guy's and King's College Hospitals, covering several rare disease and cancer diagnostic laboratories. You would have the opportunity to develop and troubleshoot both somatic and germline pipelines, develop and manage applications supporting the diagnostic process and manage large datasets for reporting.The successful applicant will be dedicated and enthusiastic with knowledge and experience of working with NGS pipelines and large datasets, as well as possessing strong programming and troubleshooting experience. Applicants should be good communicators, be able to take initiative, support continual quality improvement and prioritise workload. The role requires consistent attention to detail and excellent organisational skills.This is an exciting opportunity to join a dynamic team that is highly valued in Synnovis Genomics. The successful candidate will support existing diagnostic services in the South East and also be involved in a very active programme of assay and technology development.Applicants will be expected to have attained or be working towards HCPC registration.

Main duties of the job

The role will involve maintaining and operating bioinformatics pipelines for the processing of next generation sequencing data for both Guy's Hospital and King's College Hospital supporting services for the Genomic Medicine Service.The post-holders will work with other clinical scientists to support the development, validation and implementation of new/updated diagnostic tests. This will include developing and delivering validated and accredited software for delivery of diagnostic services following clinical best practice guidelines, as well as working with cloud-based infrastructure, local databases and the latest technologies to deliver bioinformatics services.We support a flexible, hybrid working pattern. The posts will be based at Guy's Hospital, though occasional travel to other Synnovis sites, such as other trust sites will be required.

About us

You will have a suite of learning opportunities available through The ACCE competencies programme, the Scientific Learning and Development Fund and the Synnovis Academy through which you can receive funding / support for advanced qualifications. Through our Innovation Accelerator Fund, you can apply for finance to get that new innovative scientific project off the ground, and participate with the wider scientific community through symposiums, conferences and other peer group meetings.

Job responsibilities

At Synnovis, we are currently shaping the future of pathology services by creating a world-leading Hub and Spoke pathology network with our NHS partners. A large part of this modernisation will involve moving 70% of our services to a purpose built, state of the art Hub laboratory in the heart of London. For now, the job you are applying for will be based at one of our hospital sites however, from 1 April 2024 our people and services will start to move to our Hub laboratory in Blackfriars, Southwark, SE1, with some work remaining in refurbished essential services laboratories across our hospital network, focusing on the rapid turnover of urgent tests. Please do ask your recruiting manager if you wish to find out more.

What you will doThe post holder will be working within a team of bioinformaticians supporting Synnovis Genomics services based across Guys and St Thomas Hospital Foundation Trusts and Kings College Hospital. This role will be a mix of acting as duty bioinformatician, development work and data analysis supporting rare disease and cancer diagnostics. The duty bioinformatician ensures the smooth operational delivery of the service and answers daily issues raised by the scientific teams. Development work includes working on new and updating existing pipelines, database projects, evaluations of applications or infrastructure planning. Supporting scientific and clinical teams is also an important part of the role, requiring strong data analysis and presentation skills.Key Responsibilities Developing, maintaining and operating bioinformatics pipelines for the processing of next generation sequencing data. Manage and maintain clinical software for delivery of diagnostic services. Develop and deliver validated software for delivery of diagnostic services following ACGS best practice guidelines. Work with cloud-based infrastructure to deliver bioinformatics services. Perform duty bioinformatician role using service management software to respond to user requests. Work with other clinical scientists to support the development, validation and implementation of new/updated diagnostic tests. Communicate complex methods and data to non-bioinformatician users. Adhere to and, as part of continuous improvement, propose changes to SOPs and policies. Have a close working relationship with technical and scientific members of the genetics laboratories and be accountable to the Operational Lead who will offer guidance and direction.

Synnovis is a pathology partnership between SYNLAB UK and Ireland, and the NHS, including sites, Guys & St Thomas NHS Foundation Trust and Kings College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, to deliver and transform pathology services across South East London.The partnership provides services to 1.7 million people living in South East London, as well as to hundreds of thousands of patients from outside the region who use local healthcare services.The partnership provides diagnostics, testing and digital pathology for hospital trusts, GP services and other healthcare providers.

GSTTGuys and St Thomas Hospital Foundation Trust is a major emergency and specialist teaching Trust which has all the specialties associated with a fascinating and career defining case load including: Womens Services, Fetal Medicine, Haematology, Oncology, Transplantation, and is also home to the Evelina Childrens Hospital and the Cancer Centre on the Guys site.You will be close to the vibrant Borough Market and the South Bank, which are exceptional London locations; perfect places to work and relax next to such iconic venues as Big Ben, The London Eye and The Shard!

Qualifications

• HCPC Registration (or working towards registration)
• BSc in bioinformatics, biological sciences or related field
• PhD in bioinformatics, biological sciences or related field

Experience

• Experience of analysing next generation sequence data
• Experience of developing, implementing and maintaining bioinformatic data analysis pipelines
• Developing cloud-based genomics apps, e.g. on AWS and DNAnexus
• Experience in scientific workflow languages for genomic pipelines (e.g. Nextflow)

Skills and Knowledge

• Ability to use scripting languages such as Python, Java and Bash.
• Ability to trouble shoot and independently solve problems.
• Experience with creating, querying and maintaining databases.
• Demonstrable broad level understanding of molecular biology and human genetics.

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.

Depending on experience £56,276 to £63,176 per annum depending on experience