optometrists

The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust; Newcastle upon Tyne; On-site; GBP 38,000 - 47,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading NHS hospital trust in Newcastle upon Tyne is looking for a Specialist Optometrist to join their team. Candidates will be expected to manage patient assessments, provide advanced optometric services, and work collaboratively with fellow healthcare professionals. The trust offers support for professional development towards higher qualifications, all while emphasizing quality patient care. This role is ideal for motivated optometrists eager to enhance their skills in a dynamic hospital environment.

Benefits

Structured career path

Opportunity for further education

Supportive work environment

Qualifications

• Current registration with NHS and appropriate optometric qualifications.
• Experience in specialist optometry practices is desirable.
• Ability to work effectively in a multidisciplinary team.

Responsibilities

• Lead role in specialized optometric clinics.
• Manage a caseload of patient assessments and treatments.
• Provide educational training to staff and optometry students.

Skills

Independent practice

Low vision assessment

Specialist contact lenses

Patient care management

Education

OD (Doctor of Optometry) or equivalent

Tools

Optometric equipment

Job description

Overview

To deliver a quality of service matching clinical need to available resources within the focus of Specialist Optometrist practice.

Responsibilities

• To take a lead role in extending Optometrists involvement in highly specialised clinics, for example:
• Highly specialised medically necessary contact lenses.
• Low vision assessment.
• To work as an independent practitioner and to work as part of a multidisciplinary team, providing an extensive range of advanced Optometric services to the highest standards of quality and care.
• To ensure that the patient is the central focus.
• Working as a Specialist Optometrist, provide a prompt response to calls from colleagues, prioritising importance and clinical need.
• Manage own caseload to include assessment, investigation, diagnosis and treatment within defined parameters and training.
• Provide immediate care management of patients including communication of plan to patients and significant others.
• Review and refer to appropriate person, e.g. Consultant Ophthalmologist.
• Liaise with Eye Clinic Liaison Officer for patients with untreatable sight loss.
• Provide specialist education and training at post-graduate level to qualified and pre-registration Optometrists and multiple disciplines in Ophthalmology.
• To undertake administrative responsibilities as determined by the Head or Deputy Head of Optometry.

Band and Salary

Band 6 (£38,682-£46,580)

Additional Responsibilities

• To work as part of a multi-disciplinary team providing an extensive range of advanced Optometric services for patient care to the highest standards of quality and care and meeting the changing needs of the department.
• To undertake administrative responsibilities as determined by the Head or Deputy Head of Optometry.
• To demonstrate Optometry techniques at post-graduate level for multiple disciplines within Ophthalmology.

Application Instructions

Important note on completion of reference section of Application Form: All references from current and previous employers will be sought and must cover a minimum of 3 years employment. Therefore, when completing the reference section of your application form, please give the address, telephone number and work email address of each of your current/previous line managers that cover 3 years employment. Failure to complete this section may result in your application not being processed.

Please note it is a requirement of The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust that all successful candidates who require a DBS for the post they have been offered pay for their DBS certificate. The method of payment is a salary deduction from your first month's pay.

Candidates who are shortlisted for interview will be contacted by e-mail. You should check your SPAM folders as well as your inbox. If you have not been contacted within 4 weeks of the closing date you should assume your application has been unsuccessful.

Candidate Profile

We are seeking 1.2 WTE motivated and enthusiastic optometrists to join our dedicated team at Newcastle Eye Centre. The posts offer an exciting opportunity to develop clinical skills and progress clinical interest in a hospital setting and will offer experienced optometrists without hospital experience, the opportunity to experience working life in a busy, fast paced hospital clinic and to gain clinical experience relevant to the higher qualifications offered by the College of Optometrists.

We are also keen to hear from newly qualified optometrists (including those who are anticipated to qualify in Summer 2026) with a genuine interest in hospital optometry. We will offer you a structured career path, commencing at Band 6 with progression to Specialist Optometrist (Band 7) upon successful completion of a residency period, expected within 2 years. Successful candidates will have the opportunity to gain experience in core optometry clinics, developing skills in low visual aid assessment, specialist contact lenses and paediatric assessment. There will also be the opportunity to develop skills in the eye emergency department and specialist ophthalmology clinics such as YAG capsulotomy, glaucoma, medical retina and anterior eye, depending on clinical interests, experience level, and additional qualifications. We are heavily involved in research providing assessments for patients' participating in ophthalmology and non-ophthalmology research trials and have a strong working relationship with our colleagues in the Sir Bobby Robson Oncology Unit. Non-clinical activities include audit, quality improvement and teaching a variety of staff including resident doctors, nurses, and optometrists.

A flexible approach is essential to working in fast paced and busy clinics and additional qualifications or previous experience are essential to be appointed to Band 7. Candidates without the necessary qualifications or experience may be appointed as Band 6 and progress to Band 7 on attainment of the required qualifications/experience. Full support will be given, and this will be expected to be achieved within 2 years.

Trust Information

Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is one of the busiest and largest NHS hospital trusts in the country. We have around 16,000 staff and an annual budget of £1.7 billion. With strong history of providing high quality care, clinical excellence, research and innovation regionally, nationally and internationally, we're in the top five providers of specialised health services in the country.

As well as providing a wide range of hospital and community services, we support people with a range of rare and complex medical, surgical and neurological conditions, cancers and genetic orders. We are committed to promoting equality and diversity and recognise the benefit in providing an inclusive environment. We value and respect the diversity of our employees and aim to recruit a workforce which reflects the communities we serve, and is equipped to deliver the best service to our patients. We welcome all applications irrespective of people's race, disability, sex, sexual orientation, religion or belief, age, gender identity, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity and in particular those from under- represented groups.

Newcastle Hospitals are proud to be one of the exemplar organisations across the NHS on sustainability, with a long history of delivering Sustainable Healthcare in Newcastle (Shine) and the first healthcare organisation in the world to declare a climate emergency. Our strategy includes commitments to being Net Zero by 2030, for our direct carbon footprint, and Net Zero by 2040 for our footprint plus. Delivering these ambitions will not be possible without the help, support and action of every single member of our team.

Core Optometry Service

You will be actively involved in the core optometry service and undertake rotations through our glaucoma, medical retina and cataract services, along with regular sessions in the eye emergency department. You will join the trust's preceptorship scheme which will support you with the challenges that the newly qualified health professional can meet. As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for us and for our patients, and for you. Speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement. If it works for the service, we will do our best to make it work for you.

Contact Points

With around 2 million contacts with patients every year, we deliver care from:

• Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI)
• Freeman Hospital
• Newcastle Dental Hospital
• Cramlington Manor Walks
• Urgent treatment centres
• Newcastle Fertility Centre
• Northern Centre for Cancer Care, North Cumbria
• Northern Genetics Service

These include a range of flagship services which deliver cutting‑edge care (supported by state‑of‑the‑art diagnostic services in both radiology and pathology) and are a catalyst for innovation to support pioneering clinical practice in the NHS. We also have offices at Regent Point in Gosforth and community sites. Please see attached information on what Staff Benefits we have to offer at our Trust under 'Documents to download' or 'Supporting documents'. For further information on The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust please visit: Careers | Newcastle Hospitals | NHS | Newcastle Hospitals and Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust