Acute Medicine Consultant

Job overview

Applications are invited for the post of Consultant in Acute Medicine at the Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust.  This is a great opportunity for an enthusiastic individual to join a dynamic team of consultants at a time when the service is expanding from investment.

We have up to 2.65wte available and would support applicants who wish to work full time, part time or in a flexible working pattern.  We are interested to hear from you if you have a passion for Acute Medicine, but also want to maintain a specialist interest in another area, as most of our team work in this way.  We are a warm and welcoming MDT, proud to work in this fast-paced environment using evidence-based best practice.  We would like to hear from candidates who want to develop skills in this engaging specialism, or more experienced physicians who can consolidate their own skills whilst supporting others.

The Acute Medicine service sits within Medical Division, and as part of the Integrated Front Door Service.  We provide a responsive interface between primary and secondary care needs, identifying and managing those unwell patients who require inpatient acute hospital treatment, while also supporting primary care clinicians in managing other patients safely and effectively in the community.

If you would like to know more about this opportunity, please contact our Clinical Lead, Dr Sarah Gillett on [email protected], for an informal chat.

Main duties of the job

We have a rolling rota which encompasses 7 day cover for the medical short stay unit (MSS) and patients remaining in the medical assessment unit (MAU) for daily ward rounds, and post take rounds.

We are currently expanding and refurbishing our SDEC area, located next to the Emergency Dept (ED) and MAU to be a purpose build space for this key front door service. The consultants are supported by specialty doctors, MNPs and nurses, to assess and treat patients referred from primary care, that require urgent assessment and diagnostic tests but do not necessarily require admission. We also care for patients referred by our own ED and acute medical teams, enabling a safe and supported and timely discharge from hospital.  The SDEC service manages a dedicated phone line, for community partners to access consultant advice and guidance, supporting patients to be given the right care in the right place.

MAU has a target length of stay of up to 12 - 24 hours and is for the initial assessment and management of acutely ill medical patients prior to discharge or admission into the hospital. The RUH benefits from a separate front door frailty service and a dedicated Older Persons Assessment Unit, ensuring that elderly people are cared for by the right specialty from admission.

MSS is for patients who need a 1 or 2-night stay in hospital, and these patients remain under the care of the acute medicine team, receiving consultant led ward rounds and MDT care.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see the attached detailed job description and person specification for details on the post or please contact Dr Sarah Gillett if you would like to discuss this in more detail.