Deputy Divisional Director of Operations Critical Care, Theatres&Anaes

Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust; Greater London; On-site; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading healthcare provider in Greater London seeks a Deputy Director for Theatres and Anaesthetics. This strategic leadership role focuses on enhancing operational effectiveness and ensuring high standards of patient care across multiple sites. The successful candidate will have extensive experience in healthcare management and a relevant Masters/MBA qualification. This position offers the opportunity to influence change within a complex healthcare environment, fostering collaboration and excellence in service delivery.

Qualifications

• Proven track record in healthcare services as a senior manager.
• Extensive experience delivering change and performance improvements.
• Strong engagement with management teams and effective delegation.

Responsibilities

• Ensure operational performance and high-quality patient care.
• Drive division-wide work programmes with other management personnel.
• Implement corporate governance arrangements for the division.

Skills

Leadership

Change management

Financial management

Operational management

Clinical governance

Education

Relevant Masters/MBA qualification

Job description

About Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust

Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust (LGT) is a community-focused provider of local and acute care, delivering high-quality services to over one million people living across the London boroughs of Lewisham, Greenwich and Bexley. We provide whole-life care and support our communities to live healthier lives and to take care of them when they need us the most.

Trust Overview

Employing almost 7,500 colleagues, affectionately known as Team LGT, we provide services at Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Woolwich, University Hospital Lewisham and at over a dozen community settings in Lewisham. We also provide some services at Queen Mary’s Hospital in Sidcup.

We have recently launched our new vision and values to mark the LGT10 – the tenth anniversary of our Trust. Our Trust vision is to be exceptional in the quality of our patient care, our support for colleagues and the difference we make through our partnerships and communities.

To achieve this we value Respect, Compassion and Inclusion; Being accountable over staying comfortable; Listening over always knowing best; and Succeeding together over achieving alone.

Our hospitals and community sites provide a wide range of inpatient and outpatient services, as well as emergency and planned care. The Trust is rated as “good” or “outstanding” in over three-quarters of the services inspected by the Care Quality Commission.

Every year our work includes performing 10,000 procedures in our theatres; bringing seven and a half thousand new lives into the world; carrying out 570,000 visits to patients in their homes or communities and providing emergency care for more than 300,000 patients arriving in our busy Urgent and Emergency Departments.

LGT is a centre for the education and training of medical students enrolled with King’s College London’s GKT School of Medical Education. We are a training centre for nurses, midwives and allied health professionals. We are pioneering new roles that will support the changing needs of our patients and are one of the largest employers of physician associates in the country.

We are committed to working with our partners to deliver the best outcomes for our local communities. This means playing an active role in the South East London Integrated Care System (ICS), and in formal partnerships including the South East London Acute Provider Collaborative, provider partnerships with our local mental health trusts and borough-based boards of the ICS in Bexley, Greenwich and Lewisham.

Deputy Director – Theatres, Anaesthetics, Pain and Critical Care Directorate

The Deputy Director will play a pivotal role in enhancing operational effectiveness and efficiency in surgical services. The role supports the Director in strategic planning, operational management, clinical governance and the continuous improvement of theatres and anaesthetics, ensuring high standards of patient care and surgical productivity.

Key responsibilities include:

• Day-to-day running of operating theatres across Lewisham and Greenwich Hospital sites.
• Lead role in surgical productivity and supporting delivery of operational priorities including cancer waiting times.
• Collaboration with other general managers and divisions across the organisation, group executive teams, the Divisional Medical Director and external partners.
• Financial performance leadership for the directorate, including improvement plans and sustainable change.
• Influence and work across multidisciplinary teams to monitor performance and transform service delivery.
• Experience leading change management programmes.

Main Duties of the Job

The Deputy Director for the Directorate will:

• Account for the operational performance of a large, complex Directorate, ensuring delivery of high‑quality patient care, clinical governance, patient safety and financial targets.
• Jointly drive division-wide programmes of work and service developments with other Deputy Divisional Directors, General Managers and the Divisional management team.
• Shape and implement the corporate objectives for the Trust in partnership with the Divisional Director of Operations.
• Ensure necessary corporate governance arrangements are in place across the division.
• Deliver and govern the Peri‑Operative Productivity Programme.

Working for Our Organisation

Our people are our greatest asset. When we feel supported and happy at work, this positivity reaches those we serve. Our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion (EDI) initiatives cultivate a culture of engagement.

We have four staff networks, a corporate EDI team and a suite of programmes and events which aim to embed the five aspirations:

• Improving representation at senior levels of staff with disabilities, from Black, Asian and ethnic minorities background, who identify as LGBTQ+ and women.
• Widening access (anchor institution) and employability.
• Improving the experience of staff with disability.
• Improving EDI literacy and confidence of trust staff through training and development.
• Making equalities mainstream.

Detailed Job Description and Main Responsibilities

Leadership and Performance Management: • Provide leadership to the Directorate staff, ensuring clear communication of Trust and Directorate values, vision, priorities and expectations. • Manage the highly complex nature of the business area and deliver strategic plans within the complex operating framework. • Develop and deliver the strategy and performance management of clinical services. • Deliver complex capacity plans to achieve 18‑week and other waiting time reduction targets.

Through their partnership with clinical and support departments they:

• Improve throughput in outpatient, inpatient and day‑care settings.
• Exercise delegated authority, resolve day‑to‑day management issues and oversee Lead Clinicians and Service Managers.
• Monitor sufficient data for performance tracking and reporting.
• Provide input and challenge to clinical and business plans.
• Deputise for the Clinical Director as required and participate in Silver Commander on‑call rota.

Risk & Governance: • Implement systems, control processes and risk management arrangements to monitor compliance with clinical governance standards. • Resolve complaints and issues from patients, staff and suppliers promptly. • Support root cause analyses and trend analyses of complaints and adverse incidents. • Prepare briefing reports for the Director of Operations, COO and Trust Board.

Staff Management: • Provide senior leadership, ensuring workforce utilisation and long‑term staffing planning. • Monitor compliance with Trust‑wide staff management policies and take remedial action. • Line‑manage Lead Clinicians, Deputy General Managers and Assistant General Managers, coaching and developing senior staff.

Financial Management: • Ensure financial obligations are met and that Directorate staff work within defined budgets. • Authorise capital and revenue budgets within agreed limits. • Report on budget positions and manage large, complex budgets effectively.

Strategy, Change Management and Service Improvement: • Identify new service opportunities and respond to external or internal changes. • Support delivery of national NHS requirements and Trust strategy. • Lead change management programmes, ensuring completion of complex projects on time and budget. • Develop comprehensive estates strategy for elective and emergency surgery facilities. • Manage service improvement projects and programme delivery.

Person Specification – Essential Criteria

• Relevant Masters/MBA qualification or equivalent professional qualification.
• Proven track record of delivering effective healthcare services as a senior manager or director in a large, multifaceted healthcare environment, including staff management, financial management and change management.
• Extensive experience in delivering change and performance, engaging management teams and delegating effectively.

We reserve the right to close the post before the stated closing date, please apply early. The shortlisting outcome will not be communicated and, if shortlisted, you will receive an invite to an assessment day or interview.

As a local employer and anchor institution we work closely with our community to recruit locally and welcome applications from the widest variety of people to ensure our workforce is reflective of the local communities. We encourage all suitable candidates to apply, including if you are Black, Asian or other ethnic minorities, live with a disability (visible or not) or are LGBT+.

Please note that sponsorship under the Skilled Worker route is subject to Trust allocation and UK Visas and Immigration approval.

Applicant requirements: The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and will therefore be subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020. Disclosure to the Disclosure and Barring Service will be required.