Principal Physicist (Molecular Radiotherapy)

University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust; City of Westminster; On-site; GBP 45,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A prominent teaching hospital in London is looking for a principal clinical scientist to lead the physics aspects of its Molecular Radiotherapy service. Responsibilities include management of the MRT service, contribution to clinical protocols, and overseeing a physics team. The successful candidate will enhance academic and clinical research efforts while ensuring high standards of service delivery. This position offers a unique opportunity to work with cutting-edge nuclear medicine equipment and contribute to innovative treatment protocols for diverse patient populations.

Responsibilities

• Lead the physics aspects of the Molecular Radiotherapy (MRT) service.
• Take responsibility for molecular radiotherapy services provided by the medical physics team.
• Contribute significantly to the specification and development of new clinical and research protocols.
• Provide Duty Physicist cover to the Clinical Nuclear Medicine Service.
• Contribute to audit activities within the department.
• Implement relevant policies, legislation, governance and quality standards.
• Participate in research, development, and teaching programmes.
• Act as Medical Physics Expert for the department.
• Take responsibility for the management of the MRT nuclear medicine physics team.

Job description

Overview

This exciting role is to act as a principal clinical scientist in a joint clinical-academic department in a large London teaching hospital. While the role covers the whole breadth of nuclear medicine physics practice, the principal responsibility of this role is to lead the physics aspects of our Molecular Radiotherapy service, to contribute a high standard of scientific and technical support to the clinical and research activities of the department, and to take the lead and take responsibility for major developments in the physics aspects of the molecular radiotherapy service.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the physics aspects of the Molecular Radiotherapy (MRT) service.
• Take responsibility for molecular radiotherapy services provided by the medical physics team.
• Contribute significantly to the specification and development of new and existing clinical and research protocols, including the introduction and evaluation of new procedures and equipment.
• Provide Duty Physicist cover to the Clinical Nuclear Medicine Service.
• Contribute to audit activities within the department.
• Implement relevant policies, legislation, governance and quality standards.
• Participate in the research, development and teaching programmes of the department and collaborate on research projects with other departments and external institutions.
• Undertake teaching and lecturing as required, and train, educate and supervise local and visiting staff, contributing to their continuing education and to the development of their competencies.
• Act as Medical Physics Expert for the department and any external departments supported by the Institute of Nuclear Medicine.
• Take responsibility for the day‑to‑day management of the MRT nuclear medicine physics team.

About the Trust

University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (UCLH) is one of the most complex NHS trusts in the UK, serving a large and diverse population. We provide academically led acute and specialist services to people from the local area, from throughout the United Kingdom and overseas. Our vision is to deliver top‑quality patient care, excellent education, and world‑class research. We provide first‑class acute and specialist services across eight sites: University College Hospital (incorporating the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson Wing). We are dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of many complex illnesses. UCLH specialises in women's health and the treatment of cancer, infection, neurological, gastrointestinal and oral disease. It has world‑class support services including critical care, imaging, nuclear medicine and pathology.

We are committed to sustainability and have pledged to become a carbon net zero health service, embedding sustainable practice throughout UCLH. We have set an ambitious target of net zero for our direct emissions by 2031 and indirect emissions by 2040.

Additional Details About the Role

The role is new and has been driven by the transfer of our in‑patient MRT service from radiotherapy physics to nuclear medicine physics. The in‑patient service is both a local service for thyroid cancer, and a national referral centre of somatostatin therapies using I-131 mIBG and Lu-177 Dotatate. A significant amount of our work is also in paediatric MRT where we are one of a handful of MRT services in the country. Beyond in‑patient therapy we have a thriving out‑patient MRT service with NHS funded benign thyroid and radium‑223 work, a large private Lu-177 PSMA service and a quickly developing research out‑patient service using Lu-177, Ac‑225, I‑123 and other radionuclide‑labelled ligands. We also support an HCA‑run nuclear medicine service on Harley Street which covers thyroid and SIRT therapies. Beyond MRT we have a wide range of cutting‑edge nuclear medicine equipment to manage and a wide and varied nuclear medicine imaging service.