Consultant Clinical Scientist

Synnovis; London; On-site; GBP 84,000 - 97,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is looking for a Consultant Clinical Scientist to join their Infection Sciences team in London. This pivotal role involves scientific leadership and expertise to ensure high-quality diagnostic services in microbiology and virology. You'll collaborate with NHS partners to shape the future of pathology, leading innovative projects and providing mentorship to junior scientists. With opportunities for professional development and a commitment to quality, this position offers a chance to make a significant impact in the healthcare sector. If you're passionate about advancing diagnostic services, this role is for you.

Benefits

Contributory pension scheme

Generous annual leave entitlement

Funding for advanced qualifications

Innovation Accelerator Fund

Access to symposiums and conferences

Qualifications

• Registered clinical scientist with expertise in Infection Sciences.
• Experience in leading scientific teams and managing pathology services.
• Strong background in quality assurance and compliance.

Responsibilities

• Provide leadership and expertise in Infection Sciences within the laboratory team.
• Ensure successful delivery of pathology services aligned with corporate objectives.
• Initiate and coordinate research and innovation activities.

Skills

Infection Sciences

Microbiology

Virology

Leadership

Research and Development

Quality Assurance

Education

Honours degree in relevant scientific subject

MSc in relevant scientific subject

HCPC State registration as a Clinical Scientist

FRCPath Part 1 and 2 in medical microbiology or virology

PhD/Doctor of Clinical Science

Tools

Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS)

Job description

Employer Synnovis Employer type Private Sector Site Friars Bridge Court Town London Salary £84,543 to £96,170 per annum depending on experience Closing 18/05/2025 23:59

Consultant Clinical Scientist

Synnovis Pay Band 8c

The place to work in pathology

We are looking for top talent to join the UK’s leading and fastest growing pathology company – a scientific organisation with a clinical purpose.

Working in partnership with our service partners, Guy’s and St. Thomas’ Hospitals, King’s College Hospital and Princess Royal University Hospital we aim to set the standard for the future of pathology.

Job overview

Applications are invited for a Consultant Clinical Scientist to join the Infection Sciences team at Synnovis, based at the Synnovis Hub, Blackfriars Road. Working in partnership with Guy’s and St. Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust and King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and local ICBs [integrated care board] we aim to set the standard for the future of pathology.

Our organisation brings together the very best in clinical, scientific and operational expertise, and displays in action the core values at the heart of our brand: science for life, collaboration for the benefit of everyone, and innovation and quality.

This role is based in Synnovis Analytics which is responsible for the provision of Pathology testing services to Synnovis’ patients and customers . You will play a key role in shaping the future of infectious disease diagnostics.

Main duties of the job

This is a key scientific leadership role providing the primary source of Clinical Scientist expertise within the Department of Infection Sciences [Microbiology and Virology] as part of the laboratory team in Synnovis. You will have a high level of responsibility to ensure the successful delivery of pathology services, in line with our corporate objectives. Our approach to leadership is through a local tripartite relationship between the Strategic Clinical Leads in Microbiology and Virology, Deputy Operations Service Director and Lead Scientist. This combined effort ensures that day-to-day performance, development, and requirements are managed and met.

This is a senior role that will lead and promote innovation in your specialist field providing significant positive impact to infection sciences services and the wider healthcare economy.

This role is key to the delivery of Clinical Science as part of the infection sciences laboratory team in Synnovis. The Consultant Clinical Scientist will have a high level of responsibility, including being the primary source of expert advice in infection sciences (technical and clinical), quality processes and training to ensure the successful day-to-day delivery of pathology services, in line with our corporate objectives, with a focus on diagnostic Microbiology, Mycology & Virology.

Working for our organisation

You will have a suite of learning opportunities available through The Synnovis Way Development 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.

Detailed job description and main 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.

The post holder will provide scientific leadership and work closely with Service Operations Service Leads/Transformation lead, Principal Clinical Scientist, Strategic Clinical Leads in Microbiology and Virology, Operations Managers and Biomedical Scientists to ensure provision of a high-quality diagnostic Infection Sciences service.

Main Duties and Responsibilities
• Provide professional leadership for scientists at all levels in the service line. This will include providing direction on planning and developing strategies to improve service delivery excellence.
• Lead your specialised area providing an advanced level of clinical and scientific expertise, including advising and guiding clinicians. Perform highly complex and specialised scientific work using your expertise.
• Communicate using highly developed skills obtained through specific training to large groups of disparate people such as multidisciplinary meetings or conferences, imparting highly complex specialist information informing decisions to treat patients in both verbal and written form.
• Communicate to clinical colleagues and other healthcare professionals, providing and receiving highly complex and sensitive clinical information to and from professional colleagues.
• Day-to-day management and organisation of team of scientific employees in your area, ensuring that standards are met and performance is appropriately managed.
• Provide expert level of technical and operational knowledge to the laboratory services in Synnovis. This means being responsible for and ensuring that specialist training is delivered to scientific and support staff and other healthcare professionals. This could take the form of mentoring or carrying out development needs analysis.
• Initiate and coordinate research, innovation and service development activities. Publish and present research findings and activities at regional and national level.
• Use professional judgement in advising clinicians on appropriate investigations to perform on individual patients, the scientific and clinical interpretation of complex results and appropriate future patient investigations and/or management.
• Provide expert operational and technical knowledge to perform specialist analytical procedures that are complex or technically difficult to ensure high likelihood of success. Use instances like these as opportunities to teach and develop others through your experience.
• Analyse and interpret results including making judgement calls on complex cases and performing necessary actions on the Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS), ensuring all Information Governance (IG) requirements are met.
• Lead in the strategic development of the analytical service. Manage the introduction and implementation of new techniques, equipment and tests to realise patient and corporate benefits.
• Conceive, initiate and oversee the implementation of new techniques, equipment, and tests, including all verification and validation work, following extensive research in field of expertise. Where necessary this will include analysing clinical trial samples.
• Be an ambassador for your area of expertise, undertaking relevant research, presenting at conferences and seminars to share developments, innovations and training; this includes supervising MSc /PhD and medical students on research projects.
• Clinical supervision of Specialty Trainees when they are on the hub clinical authorisation desk.
• Provide mentorship to clinical scientists wishing to take up FRCPath part 1 and 2 examination in microbiology or virology.
• In conjunction with the Quality team, act as final escalation point, providing expert insight and instigate investigations such as root cause analysis to determine and establish corrective action. Supervise the monitoring, reporting and actions of errors, hazards, incidents and EQA/IQC failures logged in the CAPA module of Q-Pulse.
• Ensure compliance with all legislative and quality requirements of regulatory directives, accreditation bodies, and local management including:
Care Quality Commission
UKAS
Synnovis policies and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)
Any other body in area of responsibility.
• Provide training and support to employees in the development of scientific expertise, knowledge and professional development, including the safe use of highly complex and sensitive equipment.
• Define scientific and technical operational policies and procedures in collaboration with the relevant Clinical Lead, Service Delivery Manager, and Operations Manager.
• Review and authorise relevant documents, including clinical authorisation guidelines (CAG) / patient pathways, SOPs, COSHH and risk assessments in line with the ISO 15189 standard.
• Provide information during audits and support the delivery of progress reports against agreed KPIs. This can include delivering challenges to workforce planning, risks to service delivery etc.
• Ensure all Synnovis policies and procedures are implemented and maintained, and where necessary propose policy and service changes including those which may impact and benefit other service lines.
• Authorise the introduction of new scientific equipment and consumables. Review laboratory assets to ensure alignment with national standards and corporate objectives.
• Participate in recruitment by supporting shortlisting, interviewing, and onboarding activities, when required.
• Attend, and where required, chair regular departmental meetings and contribute to effective communication within the department.
• Deputise for senior management including attendance at meetings, as required.
• Take part in CPD activities which will include providing input on complex cases to ensure that your practices and knowledge are always relevant and up to date to your specific area.

Person specification

Qualifications

• First or second-class honours degree in relevant scientific subject or Healthcare Science
• MSc in relevant scientific subject
• HCPC State registration as a Clinical Scientist
• Higher professional qualification, for example: PhD/Doctor of Clinical Science
• FRCPath Part 1 and 2 in medical microbiology or medical virology [by examination and not by publication]
• Cand/or completed HSST or equivalence programme
• Evidence of Continuous Professional Development (CPD)
• Quality or Management qualification

Experience

• Experience as a registered clinical scientist with a detailed working knowledge of Infection Sciences (Microbiology, mycology & virology)
• Research and development in relevant field and evidence of publications and presentations at a national level
• Coaching, co -ordinating and day -to -day management of a scientific team
• Education of physiology, pathology, and scientific principles relevant to specialism at an expert level
• Providing instruction to junior medical professionals e.g. doctors in training
• Significant experience in and ability to cascade training in analysis, interpretation and technical validation of routine, complex and specialist results
• Acting as owner for escalation and communication to internal and external service users in the event of quality/ analyser/assay failures
• Resolving troubleshooting activity for highly technical and precision equipment and assays
• Using Laboratory Information Management Systems
• Maintaining quality systems
• Project management
• Membership of committees at directorate level or above

Skills & Knowledge

• Ability to use current trends to establish advancements in current practice in field of expertise
• Awareness, participation, and impact in current issues within Pathology locally and nationally
• Expert degree of skill, knowledge and judgement where interpretation of results can be highly subjective
• Intervention in requesting additional tests, where appropriate, to expedite the diagnostic process and providing clinically relevant scientific advice
• Able to establish and maintain effective networks with professional, clinical and managerial colleagues in the broader pathology space
• Well-developed physical skills, demonstrable ability to use precision equipment and consumables
• Ability to troubleshoot and train those who use the Laboratory Information Management Systems
• Ability to manage effectively in a dynamic environment with multiple conflicting priorities
• Ability to translate highly complex information to colleagues at all levels including colleagues, clinicians and external parties
• Ability to maintain focus and concentration for extended periods of time and intricate investigations
• Implementation of policies and procedures for specialised area in reference to ISO/UKAS

Applications are welcomed from applicants with a disability. We can make reasonable adjustments and offer support and advice in a variety of ways throughout the application process. All applicants are welcome to apply regardless of age, disability, gender, marital status, race, nationality or ethnic origin, religion, or sexual orientation. Equality of opportunity is our policy.

Our Bank workers enjoy competitive market rates and flexible contract assignments across all of our sites, dependent on your availability and location.

For our Permanent workforce we offer a competitive benefits package.

All employees are entitled to:

• Contributory pension scheme
• Generous annual leave entitlement

Safeguarding children and vulnerable adults. All employees have a responsibility for safeguarding children and vulnerable adults in the course of their daily duties and for ensuring that they are aware of the specific duties relating to their role.

Please apply for this post on-line. If you have problems with using the online process, or need any assistance, please email [e-mail]

Your e-mail address is important to us. We communicate to all job applicants via the e-mail address which has been provided on the application form. Please ensure that you check your e-mail on a regular basis.

Due to the high volumes of applications we receive, we reserve the right to close any adverts before the published closing date once we have received a sufficient number of applications.

If you decide to apply for this post but do not hear back from us within three weeks of the closing date, please assume that you have not been short-listed on this occasion.

Thank you for your interest in Synnovis.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.