Typical ~10 PA job plans comprise 3 clinical days per week on AMU/SDEC with two nonclinical days for admin/SPA (which is negotiable at job planning subject to appointment).
Successful candidates will cover 7 weekends per year. Job plans for Acute Medicine
consultants do not currently include any twilight/overnight cover, which is provided on an oncall basis by our General Medicine/Specialty Medicine colleagues.
The Acute Medical Units (combined assessment and short stay areas) comprise 39 beds at
the Cumberland Infirmary (CIC) and 29 beds at West Cumberland Hospital (WCH). Patients
are admitted either directly from the community following assessment by general practice, or
from the Emergency Department. The typical AMU take is of 40-50 patients at CIC and 10-20
patients at WCH over 24 hours.
The successful candidates will be expected to work across both hospital sites but will be
based at one of the sites for the majority of their work. It takes approximately one hour to
drive from one hospital to the other and staff parking is available on both sites. Driving time
from base hospital is job planned and included in PAs, whilst travel expenses can also be
claimed for work undertaken at the site which is not your base.
At CIC the Acute Medicine team on day shift comprises 3 consultants and 8+ doctors in
training from FY1 to registrar level based on AMU, plus 2-3 Advanced Care Practitioners
(ACPs) and 2-3 Clinical Fellows based on SDEC (Same Day Emergency Care).
At WCH the Acute Medicine team comprises 2 consultants and 5+ doctors/ACPs on AMU
plus a further 2 ACPs and one registrar on SDEC.
SDEC It is open from 8am to 8pm on weekdays on both sites and from 10am-6pm at CIC. It is
staffed by Advanced Care Practitioners, clinical fellow/registrar level doctors and one Acute
Medicine Consultant is based there on afternoons. This area and the nursing team are shared
on both sites with the General Surgical team. There are on average 10-20 medical patients
attending SDEC each day. Access is through General Practice or the Emergency
Department.
Remote cardiac telemetry is available and is monitored on Coronary Care Unit (CCU).
Patients requiring a higher degree of monitoring can be transferred to CCU or HDU as clinical
need requires. There is a CCU and an ITU on both hospital sites.
The successful candidates will be encouraged to develop a special interest to complement
the other members of the department and will participate in the provision of medical services
to the population of North Cumbria. This is an opportunity to join a clinically-led organisation
which encourages self-development and provides a generous study budget for consultants.
There are departmental opportunities to be involved with clinical governance, audit/quality
improvement including the national SAMBA audit, medical education and post-graduate
training of doctors from FY1 to Specialist Trainees in Acute Medicine.
Those wishing to join the department holding a CCT in General Medicine and a Medical
Specialty would be supported to maintain practice within that specialty but with a job plan
weighted towards Acute Medicine work. Specialties that could potentially be accommodated
comprise Rheumatology, Gastroenterology, Respiratory, Cardiology, Dermatology,
Nephrology, Diabetes and Frailty/Care of the Elderly, although any medical specialty could be
discussed.
The Full-time working week will consist of approximately 10 PA, separated into:
- 6-7.5 PA AMU/SDEC direct clinical care (usually over 3 days plus weekend
commitments)
- 1.5-1.875 PA Clinical Admin (25% of patient facing clinical time)
- 1.5 PA SPA Clinical admin time allocated for clinical and educational supervision of doctors in training
4000 Employees
3 Hospitals
