Specialist in General Surgery

Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust; Kettering; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is seeking an experienced General Surgeon to join the General Surgery team in a substantive Specialist role at our Kettering site. The post-holder will deliver high-quality inpatient and outpatient surgical services, with potential involvement in managing surgical emergencies in line with service needs.

The successful candidate will have extensive clinical experience, including a minimum of five years within UK NHS Registrar-level General Surgery,

Qualifications

• Full GMC registration with licence to practise.
• MRCS, MBBS, FRCB or equivalent.
• More than 5 years' experience in General Surgery at Registrar level in UK, NHS.
• Managerial degree.

Responsibilities

• Provide high-quality General Surgical services across outpatient, inpatient, emergency and elective care.
• Lead departmental leadership, clinical audit, governance and patient safety initiatives.
• Support undergraduate and postgraduate education and training of junior staff.
• Coordinate rota, staff bank, annual and study leave arrangements.
• Engage in study leave, CPD and research activities.

Skills

Leadership qualities

Communication skills

Teamworking

Teaching & CPD

Education

Full GMC registration with licence to practise

MRCS, MBBS, FRCB or equivalent

5+ years' Registrar-level General Surgery in UK/NHS

Managerial degree

Job description

Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Specialist in General Surgery

The closing date is 16 November 2026

The post offers an opportunity for an experienced General Surgeon to join the General Surgery team at Kettering General Hospital in a substantive Specialist role. The post holder will contribute to the delivery and development of high-quality inpatient and outpatient specialist surgical services, with potential involvement in the management of surgical emergencies according to service requirements and experience. The successful candidate will have extensive clinical experience, including a minimum of five years' UK NHS Registrar-level experience, and demonstrate a strong commitment to patient-centred care and effective multidisciplinary working.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will provide high-quality General Surgical services, supporting the delivery of outpatient, inpatient, emergency and elective activity and achievement of agreed waiting-time, waiting-list and theatre targets. Responsibilities include providing senior clinical supervision, developing specialist interests and surgical pathways, contributing to departmental leadership, clinical audit, Clinical Governance, patient safety, quality improvement and Mortality and Morbidity meetings. The post holder will support undergraduate and postgraduate education, training and supervision of junior and middle-grade medical staff, and work with the Rota Coordinator and Staff Bank to support effective medical staffing, rota cover and annual and study leave arrangements. The role also includes relevant administrative duties, participation in job planning, annual appraisal and mandatory training, and compliance with Trust revalidation requirements.

About us

We recognise that AI tools can support application writing; however, candidates are asked to keep their use to a minimum. Responses should reflect your own experience, skills and knowledge, as over-reliance on AI-generated content may result in generic answers that do not accurately represent your abilities.

University Hospitals of Northamptonshire (UHN) brings together Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust. As a group, we are committed to improving services for our communities through collaboration, modernising care delivery and striving for excellence. Working together enables us to share expertise, strengthen services and create greater opportunities, and there may be a requirement to work across sites depending on service needs.

Our Excellence Values are Compassion, Accountability, Respect, Integrity and Courage. UHN welcomes applications from all backgrounds and is committed to an inclusive working environment. We are proud signatories of the Armed Forces Covenant and hold the Gold Award under the Employer Recognition Scheme. Candidates who identify as members of the Armed Forces community and meet the essential criteria will be guaranteed an interview.

Job responsibilities

The post holder will undertake a 10 PA job plan, comprising 6.5 PAs of Direct Clinical Care, 2 PAs of DCC administration and 1.5 PAs of Supporting Professional Activities. The role will include theatre sessions, outpatient clinics, MDT working and clinical administration, with flexibility to adapt theatre and outpatient activity according to service requirements and the final agreed job plan. The post holder will contribute to the delivery of high-quality General Surgical services and participate in relevant clinical, administrative and departmental activities.

The post holder will also contribute to undergraduate and postgraduate education and training, clinical audit, meetings and other departmental activities. A minimum of 1.5 SPAs will support professional development and revalidation, with additional SPA time available subject to agreed activity. The Trust supports appropriate study leave, continuing professional development and research activity, with mentoring available to new senior staff to support their integration into the Trust and department.

Person Specification

Education, Training & Qualifications

• Full registration with GMC with licence to practise
• MRCS, MBBS, FRCB or equivalent
• More than 5 years' experience in General Surgery at Registrar level at UK, NHS Level
• Managerial Degree

Knowledge & Experience

• Competency in management and assessment of all areas of general surgery at the level expected on completion of specialist training in general surgery or non-UK equivalent
• 5 years' emergency general surgery experience, including emergency laparotomy, bowel resection and emergency laparoscopic cholecystectomy
• Proven ability to lead and manage emergency service
• Understanding of audit and commitment to personal and departmental audit
• Proven ability to organise surgical team allocation, manage and co-ordinate leave and locum cover
• Evidence of quality improvement

Personal Skills

• Be willing to learn and committed to improve
• Be able to listen and communicate effectively
• Be able to work within multi-professional and a multi-disciplinary framework, and be a team player
• Have a highly developed interpersonal ability
• Be prepared to work collaboratively and flexibly with colleagues in the NHS and other agencies
• Ability to apply research outcomes
• Commitment to teaching and continuing professional development

Clinical Skills

• Able to independently assess and manage general surgical patients appropriate to level of competence
• Competent in common general surgical procedures appropriate to level of training/experience
• Able to recognise and appropriately manage deteriorating patients
• Able to obtain appropriate senior/specialist advice when required

Skills & Knowledge

• Evidence and experience of successful service development
• Be able to run a service and participate in the management process
• Evidence of leadership qualities and ability to develop the service

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.

Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Address

University Hospitals of Northamptonshire

University Hospitals of Northamptonshire