Specialist Physiotherapist - Cardiothoracic

at  University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Band 6 Physiotherapist to join our Cardiothoracic Therapy services team at University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust.
UHS is one of Europe’s largest teaching hospitals, and is a designated cardiothoracic and regional centre for many specialties, alongside being a Major Trauma Centre covering southern England and the Channel Islands.
The well-established cardiothoracic therapy team consists of 26 Physiotherapists, Occupational therapists and therapy support staff, working cohesively to provide holistic care for our patients. We cover a large clinical area including Cardiac Intensive Care (CICU), Cardiac high dependency (CHDU), and Coronary Care Unit (CCU). In addition to the Cardiac Surgery, Cardiology and Thoracic wards.
The post holder will rotate across the various clinical areas covered by the team to enable a breadth of experience and skill development. The role requires specialist respiratory and rehabilitation skills.
You will work as part of a combined therapy services team delivering patient care across a 7-day service, including weekends and bank holidays, on a roster basis.
This post is part of the wider Therapy services department. You will have many opportunities to develop new skills and knowledge through our in-service training. You will be part of a large department of over 260 wte Therapy staff including Occupational Therapists, Physiotherapists and Therapy support staff.
Attached you will find the person specification document which provides more detail about the essential and desirable skills and experience needed for this role. We highly recommend you review this document and use it when completing your application as these criteria are used by hiring managers as guidance during shortlisting.
For an overview of the main duties of the role please see the ‘Job Description and Main Responsibilities’ section below. To understand the day-to-day responsibilities in more detail please read the full job description document attached.
As one of the largest acute teaching Trusts in England, we offer learning and development opportunities to help you achieve the career you aspire to. UHS is rated ‘Good’ by the CQC and in the latest national NHS Staff Survey, we were in the top 10 acute trusts for staff engagement and for staff recommending the hospital as a place to work or receive care.
All non-clinical roles may involve a mixture of on site and remote working, Specific details and flexible working options can be discussed as part of the interview process. UHS employees are able to access a range of NHS discounts, are entitled to a minimum of 35 days paid holiday (pro rata), and we offer a generous pension scheme.
Southampton is an attractive place to live and work situated on the south coast, with an international airport and direct trains to London. The New Forest National Park and beaches of the Jurassic coast are also right on our doorstep. The city offers living costs 20% lower than London and 14 schools rated outstanding by Ofsted.
This is a fantastic opportunity for a new, or experienced, B6 Physiotherapist to work within the speciality of Cardiac and Thoracics. The patient caseload is very varied across elective and emergency surgery, alongside conservative management, and some palliative care. We pride ourselves on providing a supportive working environment within which all staff are able and encouraged to develop and progress to reach their full potential.

ESSENTIAL SKILLS FOR THIS POST:

• Acute respiratory skills and competencies, to work on our respiratory on-call shifts
• Rehabilitation assessment and treatment skills
• An ability to treat patients with care, compassion, and dignity.

DESIRABLE SKILLS FOR THIS POST:

• Experience of working in cardiothoracics
• Experience of working in critical care
• Neurological assessment and treatment skills
• Understanding of Major Trauma management

What you’ll do

• Manage a daily clinical caseload and use proficient prioritisation
• Lead on the assessment and treatment of complex patients requiring the following skills:

respiratory, rehabilitation, neurological, trauma and orthopaedic.

• Lead on complex discharges involving the MDT.
• Develop leadership and management skills to be able to supervise other team members.
• Engage in training and developmental opportunities for yourself, and others.
• Be involved with, and lead on, service development projects.
• Assist with leading the Cardiothoracic therapy team, along with the B7 Physio’s and OT’s
• Mentor students from local universities

The post-holder needs to be able to work flexibly over a 7-day period (including weekends and Bank Holidays on a rota system), across varying hours from 7.30am – 8pm and there will be requirement to participate in our Trust-wide, acute respiratory on-call and twilight rotas.
We look forward to hearing from you, and answering any questions you may have about this role, or our wider therapy service and UHS trust.
PLEASE NOTE: AI-generated application forms may not be considered for shortlisting.
If this post is not suitable for you and you are interested in other Therapy opportunities, please email: Annette.Purkis@uhs.nhs.u

• Manage a daily clinical caseload and use proficient prioritisation
• Lead on the assessment and treatment of complex patients requiring the following skills