Head of Dosimetry and QA Clinical Scientist

Transformationunitgm; Plymouth; On-site; GBP 50,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading healthcare organization is seeking a Head of Dosimetry and QA Clinical Scientist to oversee radiation dosimetry and QA for Radiotherapy. This pivotal role involves supervision of scientific support teams and ensures compliance with safety standards while contributing to cutting-edge developments in medical physics. The successful candidate will need to maintain professional development and uphold rigorous quality management standards within a dynamic healthcare environment.

Benefits

Career development opportunities

Flexible working arrangements

Support for professional development

Qualifications

• Proven knowledge of radiation protection legislation
• Experience in radiotherapy treatment planning
• Detailed knowledge of relevant legislation and guidelines

Responsibilities

• Lead the provision of dosimetry for external beam Radiotherapy
• Supervise radiation protection operations
• Coordinate and maintain quality assurance protocols

Skills

Radiation protection

Quality assurance

Dosimetry measurements

Clinical application of new radiotherapy techniques

IT skills

Education

M.Sc. in Radiation/Medical Physics

HCPC registration as a Clinical Scientist

Certificate of competence as a Medical Physics Expert

Tools

Dosimetry equipment

Job description

Head of Dosimetry and QA Clinical Scientist

NHS AfC: Band 8b

Job overview

The post holder will work as a Medical Physics Expert and take a lead role in the provision of the radiation dosimetry and management for external beam Radiotherapy.

The post holder will supervise and manage scientific support for the following key Oncology work streams:

• Quality assurance
• Radiation protection for external beam radiotherapy

Provide support as required in specialist areas, including but not limited to:

• Image-guided radiotherapy and surface-guided radiotherapy (IGRT/SGRT)
• Stereotactic radiosurgery and radiotherapy (SRS/SRT)
• High dose rate (HDR) brachytherapy
• Radiotherapy treatment planning services

Act as a Medical Physics Expert (MPE) in Radiotherapy Physics for University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust.

***Preference will be given to internal Trust staff, as well as ‘Priority’ and 'At Risk' status including NHS At Risk staff throughout Devon who are able to display recent relevant experience as dictated by the Person Specification.***

Main duties of the job

The post holder will take the lead in providing Radiotherapy Physics services for the establishment, development and support for the Dosimetry of external beam Radiotherapy, including Quality Assurance of the linear accelerators and associated equipment, dosimetry equipment and related non-dosimetric equipment.

The post holder acts as a Medical Physics Expert (MPE) for external beam dosimetry and be able to act as MPE in other areas of radiotherapy physics in the absence of other MPEs.

The post holder will act as a Radiation Protection Supervisor for External Beam Radiotherapy to ensure appropriate security and safety checks are in place and performed.

Professional

Undertake continuing professional development (CPD) in order to maintain:

Registration as a Clinical Scientist with the Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC).

Certification as a Medical Physics Expert (MPE).

Keep abreast of the latest scientific and technical developments and their applications in medical and associated fields. Attend appropriate seminars and courses as personal development and to further the work of the department.

Ensure that all activities are carried out within a quality framework and conform to Statutory Regulations, Approved Codes of Practice and local safety rules.

Working for our organisation

We are a people business – where every member of staff matters and can make a difference. Patients are at the heart of everything we do. Joining University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust means becoming part of a team of dedicated staff, who are committed to leading the way through innovation, clinical excellence and great customer care. The Trust has great opportunities for career development in a highly progressive working environment. We offer all of this in a vibrant, modern city with a historic reputation for adventure. PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL COMMUNICATION WILL BE ELECTRONIC, PLEASE CHECK YOUR EMAIL ACCOUNT REGULARLY. If you have any issues with applying online and need additional support including reasonable adjustments with the application process please contact the recruitment team on 01752 432100. We recognise that work life balance is important for our colleagues and so we invite requests from applicants around less than full time/flexible working for our advertised roles. Please contact the recruiting manager to discuss this prior to your application submission. We commit to giving this full consideration in each case. We encourage people from diverse backgrounds to apply for our roles, as diversity strengthens our teams. It is sometimes necessary to close vacancies before the closing date. If you have not heard from us within 4 weeks of the closing date, please assume that you have not been shortlisted.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Managerial

Advise the Head of Radiotherapy Physics on matters relating to the workload in external beam dosimetry and QA

Supervise the ordering of materials and consumables required by these aspects of the service.

Inform the Head of Radiotherapy Physics on current projects with regular reports.

Maintain appropriate and accurate records of the procedures performed.

Liaise and co-ordinate activities with other departments, as required.

Be familiar with the Trust Incident Reporting and equivalent accredited Quality System procedures.

Participate in regular multi-disciplinary meetings, as required.

Act as Training Supervisor for STP trainees.

Organise the annual calibration of dosimetry equipment in accordance with statutory requirements.

Adhere to the ISO 9001:2015 accredited quality system.

Coordinate competency program for new staff and Clinical scientists.

Work with the Head of Radiotherapy Physics in developing relevant Service Level Agreements.

Plan/develop commissioning programs for new radiotherapy equipment or upgrades to existing equipment.

Participate and organise regular multi-disciplinary meetings, as required.

Coordinate staff assignment for quality assurance programme.

Dosimetry and QA

Perform relative and absolute dosimetry measurements to a high degree of accuracy with suitable equipment and perform quality control and other measurements and procedures on highly complex patient-critical equipment.

Perform the cross-calibration measurements for the radiotherapy treatment machines.

Undertake Quality Assurance measurements for radiotherapy, brachytherapy and treatment planning equipment and contribute to their maintenance, application and development.

Take an active role in the maintenance and development of the Quality Management System in conjunction with the quality systems within the Directorate of Healthcare Science and University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust.

Contribute to the maintenance and development of protocols and procedures for testing highly complex radiotherapy equipment in accordance with regional and national guidelines to satisfy legislative requirements.

Undertake commissioning measurements and clinical application of new radiotherapy treatment equipment and techniques. Undertake measurements of radiotherapy beam data for clinical use.

Participate in dosimetry audits in other Trusts across the Southwest and facilitate external dosimetry audits.

Radiation Protection

Assist the Radiation Protection Adviser with the application of current legislation, codes of practice, guidance notes and appropriate standards relating to all aspects of Radiation Protection and Quality Assurance pertaining to Radiotherapy.

Act as an operator under the definitions of the IR(ME)R regulations in accordance with Trust Policies and Practices and be responsible for the safe personal use of all highly complex equipment used in connection with radiotherapy treatments.

Act as the lead Medical Physics Expert under IR(ME)R legislation for the external beam dosimetry service.

Ensure that effective measures are taken to avoid unjustified radiation doses to all persons consistent with regulatory requirements.

See full detailed job description attached

Person specification

Knowledge and Experience

• • Advanced proven theoretical knowledge and practical experience across the range of working procedures and practices in radiotherapy physics
• • Advanced proven knowledge of radiation protection legislation in healthcare and biomedical research.
• • Proven knowledge of the techniques employed to measure the performance and radiological safety of state-of-the-art radiotherapy equipment.
• • Advanced demonstrable experience in judging measures required to ensure compliance with relevant legislation.
• • Demonstrable experience in radiotherapy treatment planning.
• • Advanced demonstrable experience in the use of dosimetry equipment in radiotherapy.
• • Detailed proven knowledge of relevant legislation, national standards, professional and other guidelines (e.g. IRR, IR(ME)R, Health & Safety, COSHH) to ensure compliance.
• • Well-developed IT skills, including Office suite and specialist software systems; able to manage, manipulate and report information.
• • Understanding of hazards and precautions needed when frequently exposed to: Ionising radiation (x-rays, other radiation types, radioactive materials), non-ionising radiations (e.g lasers, optical devices, radiofrequency radiation, static and time-varying magnetic fields, ultraviolet radiation, ultrasound), electrical hazards, hazardous materials, mechanical hazards and biological hazards (e.g. occasionally handling equipment or in a working environment that is potentially contaminated with bodily fluids)
• • Understanding of hazards and precautions needed when frequently exposed to: Ionising radiation (x-rays, other radiation types, radioactive materials), non-ionising radiations (e.g. Lasers & other optical devices, Radiofrequency radiation, static and time-varying magnetic fields, ultraviolet radiation, ultrasound), electrical hazardous, hazardous material, mechanical hazards and biological hazards
• Basic proven knowledge of other areas of Medical Physics e.g. Diagnostic Radiology, Nuclear Medicine, MRI etc.
• Demonstrable experience of Varian equipment.
• Proven evidence of publications.

Qualifications

• • M.Sc. in Radiation/Medical Physics or related subject.
• • HCPC registration as a Clinical Scientist.
• • Certificate of competence as a Medical Physics Expert from RPA 2000.

PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL COMMUNICATION WILL BE ELECTRONIC, PLEASE CHECK YOUR EMAIL ACCOUNT REGULARLY INCLUDING YOUR JUNK FOLDER.

If you need support with the online application process or require reasonable adjustments with the application and/or interview process please contact the Recruiting Manager for this post.

We recognise that work life balance is important for our colleagues and so we invite requests from applicants about less than full time/flexible working for our advertised roles. We recommend contacting the manager of the role prior to applying and we commit to giving requests full consideration.

We welcome and encourage applicants who identify with all protected characteristics to apply for our roles. We believe that diversity strengthens our teams and improves our patients' experience. At UHP we aim to create an inclusive workplace and hospital where everyone feels they belong and included .

It is sometimes necessary to close vacancies before the closing date. If you have not heard from us within 4 weeks of the closing date, please assume that you have not been shortlisted.

Providing false information is an offence & could result in the application being rejected or summary dismissal/police action if an applicant is successful.

Please note that if you are successful in your application & accept the position you agree that the Staff Health and Wellbeing Department can access your health records from your current/previous employer in order to check the status of your inoculations & screening tests. This is an automated process & the information will only be used for these purposes prior to your taking up the position with us.

For Doctors Roles:

Unsolicited CVs and Candidate Profiles/Details
University Hospitals Plymouth has a commitment to sourcing candidates directly and as such we do not accept speculative CVs from agencies.

We do, however, work with a defined list of preferred HTE Framework suppliers who may be invited to support us in sourcing candidates for particular roles.

In line with our preferred supplier list, we only pay agency fees where we have a signed agreement in place and an agency has been instructed by a member of the Trust’s Medical Workforce team.

We do not pay agency fees where speculative and unsolicited CVs are submitted to the Trust or Trust employees by any other means than the official route above. Where this is not observed the Trust reserves the right to contact these candidates directly and initiate discussions without payment of any agency fee.

Any candidate details (whether written or spoken) or CVs that are referred directly will not constitute an introduction. The Trust will under no circumstances be responsible for any recruitment fees in relation to these contacts.

Submission of any unsolicited CVs, candidate’s details and/or proposals to the Trust will not be considered further and will be deemed evidence of full and unlimited acceptance of this Agency Protocol.

In order to establish and maintain good working relationships with the Trust’s agency suppliers, we ask that this Protocol is adhered to and thank you for your co-operation.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

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