Highly Specialist Healthcare Science Practitioner/ Clinical Scientist

Integrated Care System; Darlington; On-site; GBP 47,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

A regional healthcare trust in Darlington is seeking an enthusiastic Highly Specialist Healthcare Science Practitioner to join their team. You will provide diagnostic cardiology and respiratory services, specializing in echocardiography. The ideal candidate will have significant experience and a relevant degree, along with strong leadership and organizational skills. The role offers a competitive salary and opportunities for professional development.

Qualifications

• Significant experience in echocardiography.
• Must be registered with AHCS or HCPC.
• Immediate Life Support certification or willingness to obtain.

Responsibilities

• Perform cardiac and physiological investigations specializing in echocardiography.
• Deliver high-quality echocardiography services.
• Supervise junior staff and train other healthcare professionals.

Skills

Echocardiography

Leadership

Communication

Organizational skills

Analysis of complex information

Education

BSc (Hons) Healthcare Science: Cardiac Physiology

MSc Clinical Science (Cardiac Science)

Job description

Go back County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust

Highly Specialist Healthcare Science Practitioner/ Clinical Scientist

The closing date is 27 August 2025

We are seeking an enthusiastic and highly motivated Highly Specialist Healthcare Science Practitioner / Clinical Scientist / Echocardiographer to work as part of our friendly team providing diagnostic Cardiology and Respiratory services to both in-patients and out-patients. We welcome suitable applicants looking for either full-time or part-time work. The principal hospitals within County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust are Darlington Memorial Hospital, The University Hospital of North Durham, Bishop Auckland Hospital, and Shotley Bridge Hospital. The Cardiology & Respiratory Investigations Units comprise a team of approximately 40 staff providing a broad range of invasive and non-invasive procedures including echocardiography, stress echocardiography, trans-oesophageal echocardiography, diagnostic angiography, pacing implant / follow-up, complex device follow-up, tilt testing, and nerve conduction studies. We are committed to providing learning and development opportunities; we actively encourage and support all appropriate professional development. The hospital base for this post is Darlington Memorial Hospital.

Main duties of the job

The successful candidate will work as part of a team in the busy Cardio-Respiratory departments. They will be highly specialist in echocardiography and responsible for delivering the highest quality echocardiography services within their designated team. They will work closely with colleagues to ensure protocols and procedures meet local and national requirements for good practice and service delivery. They will perform a range of cardiac and other physiological investigations and produce evidence-based clinical reports. They will provide training to other healthcare professionals and students and will supervise junior staff, as well as deputise for more senior staff on occasions.

About us

If you are being interviewed, you must accept an interview slot in the system to continue, even if you have arranged with the manager.

You must be able to produce ALL certificates stated as essential in the person specification, or you will not be able to complete pre-employment checks.

We provide hospital services from two acute sites - Darlington Memorial Hospital and University Hospital of North Durham. We have a centre for planned care in Bishop Auckland and provide care from community hospitals in Chester-le-Street, Shotley Bridge, Barnard Castle, Sedgefield, and Weardale, as well as over 80 other community-based settings and in patients' homes.

We particularly welcome applications from disabled and Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic (BAME) candidates, as BAME and disabled people are currently under-represented.

Full Job Descriptions can be found in the adverts supporting documents.

Over-reliance on AI-generated content is discouraged and may diminish the applicant's chances of success.

For the most up-to-date information on visa requirements and eligibility, please check online to determine whether you can apply.

From April 9th 2025 - Healthcare assistants - You must have a minimum of two years of experience working within the NHS as a HCA for the Trust to consider sponsorship (we will only consider sponsorship if you meet this criterion and have a current visa expiring within 3 months).

Job responsibilities

The candidate will independently perform a range of cardiac and physiological investigations, specialising in echocardiography, and will derive clinical reports from highly specialist diagnostic procedures. They must have experience of working in a Cardiac Investigations department at Band 6 level and have achieved the minimum academic qualifications in the Person Specification. They must be registered on the AHCS or HCPC register or be on the AHCS Specialist Echocardiography Register.

They must also hold a current certificate in Immediate Life Support or be willing to undertake this within the first 6 months.

Person Specification

Special Requirements

• Able to travel across Trust sites to meet the requirements of the post

Experience

• Significant experience in the field of echocardiography, with highly specialist knowledge.
• Experience at specialist level (Band 6 level) or equivalent.
• Experience of working within a Cardiac investigations Unit.
• Experience of a broad range of diagnostic procedures within Cardiology.
• Experience of audit and quality assurance programmes.
• Experience of training staff from a range of disciplines.
• Experience of Stress echocardiography / trans-oesophageal echocardiography.
• Experience of supervising staff teams.
• Experience of service development and change management.
• Experience of participating in local, regional, and national professional meetings and conferences.
• Able to work in a range of clinical environments.
• Experience of implementation and reviewing new services.
• Experience of budget management.

Qualifications

• BSc (Hons) Healthcare Science: Cardiac Physiology or MSc Clinical Science (Cardiac Science) or equivalent, with acceptance onto AHCS / HCPC professional register.
• Or BSc in a relevant Scientific subject and on AHCS Specialist Echocardiography Register.
• British Society of Echocardiography Adult Accreditation or equivalent.
• Immediate Life Support (or willing to undertake this within the first 6 months of employment).

Statutory Registration

• Registered with AHCS or HCPC, or on AHCS Specialist Echocardiography register.

Special Skills & Knowledge

• Specialist in the field of echocardiography, able to provide clinical advice to a range of healthcare professionals, as well as patients and carers.
• Ability to provide operational leadership for echocardiography.
• Organizational skills.
• Experience of involvement in programmes of research/audit.
• Ability to audit and supervise the work of others.
• Ability to prioritise workload.
• Good communication skills, written and verbal.
• In-depth knowledge of pathologies relevant to Cardiology.
• Ability to analyse complex information, interpret results, and provide accurate reports to Medical staff and other Healthcare professionals within primary and secondary care.
• Able to provide advice to clinicians.
• Ability to assess patient condition and seek expert assistance when required.
• Ability to train other staff of all levels and act as mentor.
• Ability to liaise with other staff both in Primary and Secondary care.
• Able to manage resources within budgetary limits and service requirements.
• Presentation Skills.
• Able to use evidence-based practice to ensure quality standards.

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.

County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust

£47,810 to £54,710 a year, per annum, pro rata