Highly Specialist Speech and Language Therapist

Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust; Greater London; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust is seeking a Highly Specialist Speech and Language Therapist to support Royal Brompton Hospital and related sites. You will manage complex dysphagia and communication disorders in adults, including post-cardiothoracic surgery and ICU patients.

You will work within a multi-professional team, providing advanced assessments, FEES/VF, and oversee discharge planning while engaging in education and ongoing service development.

Qualifications

• Able to work as an autonomous practitioner with problem-solving skills.
• Delivering high-quality supervision, teaching and training to others.
• Completion of Practice Educator training and delivery of student placements.

Responsibilities

• Provide highly specialist assessment and management for adults with acute communication and swallowing disorders.
• Perform instrumental swallowing assessments including videofluoroscopy and FEES.
• Manage a shared caseload and liaise with SLT colleagues at multiple sites.
• Discharge planning to ensure seamless transfer of care to other hospital, outpatient and community services.
• Attend ward rounds and MDT meetings to advocate for required levels of care.

Skills

Autonomous practice

Supervision & teaching

Student placements

Education

RCSLT-accredited degree

HCPC registration

Post-graduate dysphagia training

RCSLT registration

Job description

Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust

Highly Specialist Speech and Language Therapist

The closing date is 11 November 2026

An exciting opportunity to join the small and friendly Speech and Language Therapy Herat Team at The Royal Brompton Hospital. The post holder will cover Intensive Care, Cardiothoracic Surgery, VF clinic and work closely with Dietetics, Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy in a multiprofessional team.

The post holder will be entitled to 10 days of study leave, regualr in-service training and access to QI development opportunities.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will be a member of the SLT service working at Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals. They will have advanced skills in the multidisciplinary management of adults with acute communication and swallowing problems related to complex cardiothoracic surgery and respiratory disease. This will include advanced skills in providing rehabilitation to patients in the intensive care unit with tracheostomy and ventilator dependence. They will provide highly specialist assessment, differential diagnosis, treatment and management of speech, voice, language, cognitive-communication, airway and swallowing disorders, as well as education and advice to patients and those caring for them.

Completion of competency-based learning and demonstrable experience performing instrumental dysphagia assessments including videofluoroscopy and FEES is required. They will receive regular clinical supervision from the Clinical Lead SLT and support to continually developing their skills. They will manage a shared caseload and liaise closely with SLT colleagues at the Harefield and Royal Brompton sites. They will be involved in discharge planning to ensure a seamless transfer of care to other hospital, outpatient and community services.

About us

Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust comprises five of the UK's best known hospitals - Guy's, St Thomas', Evelina London Children's Hospital, Royal Brompton and Harefield - as well as community services in Lambeth and Southwark, all with a long history of high quality care, clinical excellence, research and innovation. We are among the UK's busiest, most successful foundation trusts. We provide specialist care for patients including heart and lung, cancer and renal services as well as a full range of local hospital and community services for people in Lambeth and Southwark.

Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals joined Guy's and St Thomas' in February 2021 and is the largest specialist heart and lung centre in the UK and among the largest in Europe. We provide treatment for people with heart and lung disease, including rare and complex conditions, offering some of the most sophisticated treatment that is available anywhere in the world.

We are working in partnership with King's Health Partners, to deliver our vision of creating a new centre of excellence, which will be the global leader in the research into and treatment of heart and lung disease, in patients from pre-birth to old age.

Job responsibilities

Main tasks and responsibilities

Communication

• 1.1 To provide highly specialist advice and input for patients with communication and swallowing needs at Royal Brompton Hospital.
• 1.2 To liaise with SLTs, AHPs, medical and nursing teams, and other members of the MDT regarding prioritisation, case management and risk management of patients with communication and swallowing disorders.
• 1.3 To demonstrate interpersonal skills that grow and maintain positive working relationships with all healthcare professionals involved in patient care.
• 1.4 To communicate sensitive and complex information and sometimes unwelcome news tactfully and diplomatically to patients, parents and carers, acknowledging this may trigger a range of emotions, and to provide ongoing counselling and support.
• 1.5 To promote and contribute to multi-professional team building and collaborative practices, e.g. knowledge and skills sharing, joint working.

Patient/customer care (both direct and indirect)

• 2.1 To provide specialist assessment, differential diagnosis, treatment and management for adults with acute and chronic disorders of communication and swallowing problems including tracheostomy and ventilator-dependence.
• 2.2 To accept responsibility for a caseload of patients and to independently organise work and time so that clinical priorities are met efficiently and effectively.
• 2.3 To carry out clinical duties as an autonomous practitioner.
• 2.4 To demonstrate highly specialist knowledge of dysphagia related to respiratory conditions, ensuring a high standard of care for patients.
• 2.5 To provide comprehensive evaluation of swallowing using the instrumental techniques of Videofluoroscopy and Flexible Endoscopic Evaluation of Swallowing (FEES), including nasendoscopy, according to agreed competency levels.
• 2.6 To be flexible and balance the fluctuating and competing needs of the caseload according to clinical, team, workforce and organisational demands.
• 2.7 To develop and maintain good working relationships with all healthcare professionals involved in patient care through multidisciplinary team working.
• 2.8 To attend and contribute to ward / board rounds, multidisciplinary team meetings, case conferences, family meetings, network meetings, etc, advocating and negotiating for the required levels of care and input for patients with communication and swallowing needs.

Please review job description document for main responsibilities.

Person Specification

Skills and Abilities

• Able to work as an autonomous practitioner demonstrating problem-solving and solution-focused skills, seeking guidance and support when necessary
• Delivering high-quality supervision, teaching and training to others
• Completion of Practice Educator training and delivery of student placements

Experience and Knowledge

• In-depth knowledge and experience in assessing and treating communication and swallowing disorders in adults
• VF clinical
• 2a FEES assessor or equivelant
• ocompletion of RCSLT tracheostomy competencies including the critical care subsection
• Knowledge and experience of managing vocal fold movement impairment following surgical procedures
• Experience of working with patients following cardiothoracic surgery, ECMO, ARDS and ICU-AW
• Completion of Lead VF competencies
• Level 2b FEES assessor

Education and Qualifications

• Recognised degree accredited by the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists
• HCPC registration
• Post-graduate dysphagia training or equivalent supervised experience
• Completion of post-qualification education (e.g. short courses)
• Registration with RCSLT

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.

Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust