Consultant in Acute Medicine | Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust

Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust; Greater London; On-site; GBP 100,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading healthcare provider in Greater London seeks a Senior Clinical Leader for the Acute Medical Unit. You will oversee clinical governance, manage patients with acute medical conditions, and provide supervision and training to medical staff. This whole-time role involves structured shift patterns without overnight on-call duties, ensuring a balanced work-life dynamic. If you are dedicated to safe patient discharge and effective care management, we invite you to apply.

Qualifications

• Experience in senior clinical leadership for acute medical conditions.
• Capacity for clinical supervision and training of medical staff.
• Flexibility to undertake clinical tasks as required.

Responsibilities

• Participate in clinical governance activities.
• Provide leadership and management for acute patients.
• Contribute to safe discharge planning with care services.
• Promote senior decision-making for patient flow.
• Provide mentorship to resident medical staff.

Job description

Overview of the Department

The Acute Medical Unit is a 39‑bed assessment and short‑stay ward located on the ground floor of the hospital. Eleven of the beds are side rooms, including four negative‑pressure isolation rooms for infection control. The ward is run by two acute medical teams, each led by an acute medicine consultant and caring for approximately 15–16 patients.

Key Service Details

SDEC services have been developed to reduce avoidable admissions and manage patients through ambulatory and same‑day emergency pathways. Patients may be referred to SDEC from the ED, GPs, NHS111, or the acute medicine hot phone. SDEC operates 8 a.m.–8 p.m., seven days a week, and the team is expanding to meet increased demand. Early discharge is supported by a dedicated therapies team, and specialty in‑reach is provided by medical specialities.

Responsibilities

• Participate in clinical governance activities, including incident reporting and patient safety initiatives.
• Provide senior clinical leadership and expert management for patients presenting with acute medical conditions.
• Contribute to safe discharge planning in partnership with community and primary care services.
• Promote early senior decision‑making to support effective patient flow.
• Provide clinical supervision, training, and mentoring to resident medical staff and support their professional development.
• Show flexibility and undertake appropriate clinical tasks at the request of the clinical manager as needs arise.
• Provide clinical supervision for specialist registrars.

Contract & Working Pattern

• Whole‑time 10 PA contract with 8.0 PAs dedicated to direct clinical care and 1.5 core SPAs for professional activities.
• Shift patterns include AMU A & B (0800‑1600), SDEC (0800‑1700), PTWR & Day Take (0800‑1700), weekday evening take (1700‑2000) and weekend shifts as outlined in the rota.
• There is no overnight or weekend on‑call duty for this post; on‑call supplement is not applicable.

Job Plan & On‑Call Duties

A detailed, annually reviewed job plan and shift timetable is developed in consultation with the Clinical Director. The rota balances DCC administrative duties, MDT meetings, and educational supervision. The post does not include participation in the overnight or weekend out‑of‑hours on‑call rota.

Advert Closing

This advert closes on Tuesday 23 Dec 2025.