Senior Operating Department Practitioner/Senior NurseNHS

Job summary

We are looking for an experienced and motivated Senior Operating Department Practitioner/Senior Theatre Nurse - Band 6 to join our team at the Princess Anne Day Surgery and Endoscopy Unit, Stroud General Hospital

This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced theatre practitioner who is ready to take on a clinical role, combining hands-on patient care with leadership, coordination and support for the wider theatre team

Our ideal candidate will be able to work across scrub and anaesthetics/recovery, providing flexibility across the theatre pathway. However, we would also welcome applications from experienced practitioners whose current expertise is predominantly within scrub or anaesthetics and recovery. Current competence in at least one of these areas is essential, with dual competence highly desirable

The Princess Anne Unit comprises one operating theatre, one endoscopy suite, a 14-bedded day surgery ward and a 2-bedded recovery unit. The theatre service supports a varied range of surgical specialtiesgiving the successful candidate the opportunity to work across a broad and interesting case mix

The service currently operates Monday to Friday between 08:00 and 18:00. There may also be opportunities or requirements for cross-site working across the locality to support service delivery

This is a great opportunity to join a supportive multidisciplinary team, develop your leadership skills and play an active role in the continued development of theatre services at Stroud

Main duties of the job

As a Band 6 practitioner, you will support the Theatre, Endoscopy and Day Surgery Manager in the day-to-day leadership and coordination of the theatre service, helping to ensure that lists run safely, efficiently and effectively.

You will provide senior clinical support within scrub and/or anaesthetics and recovery, working within your current scope of practice and competence. Practitioners who are dual trained will have the opportunity to work flexibly across both areas according to service need.

Key responsibilities will include coordinating theatre activity, ensuring appropriate staffing and skill mix, responding to changing clinical priorities throughout the day and supporting the safe and effective utilisation of theatre capacity.

You will provide visible clinical leadership, act as a positive role model and support the development of registered and non-registered colleagues, students and less experienced staff. You will also contribute to appraisal, education, clinical governance, audit, quality improvement and the ongoing development of theatre practice.

The role requires excellent communication, organisation and prioritisation skills, together with the ability to work calmly and effectively in a changing clinical environment. You will work closely with members of the multidisciplinary team to maintain high standards of safe, effective and patient-centred care.

Job description

The Senior ODP/Senior Theatre Nurse will provide clinical leadership within the theatre team, supporting the Theatre, Endoscopy and Day Surgery Manager with the safe, effective and efficient delivery of the service.

The post holder will work clinically within scrub and/or anaesthetics and recovery, according to their current professional competence. Practitioners who are competent across both areas will work flexibly across the perioperative pathway in response to service and staffing requirements.

The role involves supporting the day-to-day coordination of theatre activity, including allocation and deployment of staff, maintaining an appropriate skill mix, responding to changing clinical priorities and ensuring theatre lists are delivered safely and efficiently. The post holder will work closely with surgical, anaesthetic, nursing and wider multidisciplinary colleagues to support effective patient flow and maximise theatre utilisation.

The successful candidate will have the opportunity to work across a varied range of surgical specialties, including General Surgery, Breast Surgery, Urology, Gynaecology, Trauma & Orthopaedics and Oral Surgery, providing a broad and interesting day surgery caseload.

As a Band 6 practitioner, the post holder will provide visible clinical leadership, act as a professional role model and be a source of advice and support for colleagues. They will support the supervision, teaching and development of registered practitioners, healthcare support workers and learners, including contributing to competency assessment and staff development.

The post holder will contribute to maintaining and improving standards of clinical practice through participation in clinical governance, audit, quality improvement, risk management and service development. They will promote evidence-based practice, support the implementation of policies and guidelines and appropriately report and respond to incidents, concerns and areas of risk.

They will also support the management and development of the theatre team, including undertaking delegated supervisory responsibilities and contributing to staff appraisal and professional development.

The service operates Monday to Friday, predominantly between 08:00 and 18:00. Flexibility will be required to meet service needs, and the post holder may be required to undertake cross-site working across the locality to support service delivery. The existing person specification already includes the ability to travel across the locality where required.

About us

We have a skilled and dedicated workforce of over 5000 colleagues working in a diverse range of services over 55 sites and within people's homes. We strive to enable a welcoming workplace culture that builds and celebrates civility, inclusivity and diversity, while providing a sense of belonging and trust.

Annual staff surveys, regular Pulse surveys and other engagement opportunities provide our people with lots of opportunity to tell us about their experiences of working with us. In the latest staff survey, 61% of colleagues gave us their views. It was great to hear that:

• 72% of colleagues would recommend the Trust as a place to work, ranking us 1st for Provider Trusts in the South West region on this question.
• 76% would recommend the standard of care provided in our services if a friend or relative needed treatment, also ranking us 1st in the South West region.
• 81% said that care of patients and service users is the Trust's priority, compared with an average in comparable NHS Trusts in England of 64%.

This high-level overview shows we are in a healthy position, with higher scores than average for comparable organisations, alongside a great response rate, indicating good staff engagement. However, we also know we have plenty of room for improvement in many areas. To that end, we continue to prioritise and invest in our commitment to genuinely becoming a Great Place to Work with consistent top-quartile performance in the annual staff survey and Pulse surveys.