Appointment of
Consultant in
Palliative Medicine
Helen and Douglas House
Hospice for Children and Young Adults
14A Magdalen Road
Oxford
OX41 RW
Switchboard: 01865 794749
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Contents
SECTION 1
Job description – general details
SECTION 2
Person specification
SECTION 3
Duties and responsibilities of the post
SECTION 4
Helen and Douglas House
SECTION 5
General conditions of appointment
SECTION 6
Application information
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Section 1
Job description – general details
Title
Consultant in Palliative Medicine
Location
Helen and Douglas House, Oxford
New or replacement
post
Replacement post
Prime responsibility
To provide, and facilitate the provision of, the highest level of medical
care to children and young adults at Helen and Douglas House
Specified hours
4.5 - 6 sessions per week. If further funding is acquired there is
potential for an increase in sessions.
Managerial
accountability:
Lead Doctor and Director of Clinical Services
Professional
accountability:
Lead Doctor
Responsible to:
Director of Clinical Services
Works with:
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Key tasks:

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Lead Doctor, Consultant paediatrician and other members of the
medical team
Multidisciplinary teams within Helen House and Douglas House
Community and hospital multidisciplinary teams, in particular from
paediatrics, neurology, oncology and primary care
To provide medical leadership, particularly in relation to Douglas
House, taking overall responsibility for the quality of care of young
adults
To work in partnership with the lead doctor and consultant
paediatrician in providing overall medical leadership for Helen and
Douglas House as an organisation.
To work in partnership with the consultant paediatrician, and the
rest of the medical team to provide high quality care for children in
Helen House
To provide specialist palliative care and respite care, both in
emergency and planned contexts
To work closely with statutory partners in primary, secondary and
tertiary care and voluntary organisations
In collaboration with other senior clinical colleagues, to develop
the service, in particular supporting the development of the
multidisciplinary team and further extending the care provided
within community and acute hospital settings
To participate actively in clinical governance, including providing
teaching and training, and taking responsibility for ensuring active
participation in continuing medical education (CME)
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Section 2
Person specification
REQUIREMENTS
ESSENTIAL
DESIRABLE
Qualifications

Entry on GMC Specialist Register,
eligible for entry on Register, or
within six months of receipt of
Certificate of Completion of
Training (CCT) at time of interview

Postgraduate thesis
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Success in MRCP or MRCGP
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Ability to offer expert clinical
opinion on a range of problems in
patients with any diagnosis and
palliative care needs
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6-12 months experience in
paediatrics or general practice

Interest and experience in
providing care for young adults
and children with palliative care
needs

Interest in palliative care in non
malignant conditions and/or
neurology, community
paediatrics, rehabilitation
medicine

Able to deal openly and
supportively with problems in the
performance, conduct or health
of team members

Evidence of previous roles
involving leadership skills
Clinical
experience

Skills and
knowledge
Other
requirements
Ability to take full and independent
responsibility for clinical care of
patients

Able to lead and work within a
multidisciplinary team
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Excellent communication and
interpersonal skills

Able to communicate effectively
and in a timely way with patients,
relatives, GPs and other colleagues

Able to organise and manage
conflicting clinical and non-clinical
priorities

Ability to educate multidisciplinary
groups
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Ability to apply research outcomes
to clinical problems

Medical defence cover

Access to transport
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Section 3
Duties and responsibilities of the post

To undertake a lead clinical role for adult palliative medicine services in Douglas
House, in collaboration with the Lead Doctor.

In collaboration with the consultant paediatrician and Lead Doctor, to provide senior
medical care within Helen House.

To work in partnership with the Director of Clinical Services, the Lead Doctor, the
Heads of Care, the care teams and other professional disciplines within HDH to
provide and further develop a highest quality clinical service.

To be directly involved in provision of all aspects of medical care for patients
including emergency admission, symptom management, end of life care, stepped
discharge from hospital, planned respite and overall case management, as well as
outpatient consultations and telephone advice.

To provide advice and support in relation to patients in a primary, secondary and
tertiary care, including the Oxford Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust and Oxford
Community Children’s Services and Iain Rennie team, both by outreach visits and
telephone advice.

In collaboration with the Lead Doctor and consultant paediatrician, to ensure
regular attendance by a member of the medical team at the regular interdisciplinary
meetings.

To communicate closely with colleagues within HDH, and with colleagues across a
range of disciplines and settings.

To contribute to supervision and management of the performance of junior medical
staff, including provision of teaching and training.

To ensure that the medical team makes and keeps excellent clinical records, and
updates the clinical database as required.
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To undertake out of hours responsibilities, taking part in the medical rota, including
providing senior ‘back up’ telephone support.
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To support, develop and mentor members of the multidisciplinary team in improving
their skills in specialist palliative care.

To provide medical input to the referrals process within Douglas House and, in
collaboration with colleagues, to make decisions relating to new referrals.

To take a role in development of the services, implementing plans outlined in the
HDH four-year strategic plan.

To provide advice in relation to medical care to HDH Management Team and
Trustees, in order to aid operational and strategic decision-making.

To work in partnership with national organisations, offering relevant skills and
expertise to further the development of services, training, curriculum and
accreditation in the fields of palliative care for children and young adults.

To act as a mentor (or identify a mentor) for colleagues on courses such as the
Diploma in Palliative Medicine, Extended Nurse Prescribing and/or the Masters
Programme for autonomous practitioners.

To work alongside volunteers within the clinical teams, embracing opportunities for
enhancing patient experience through voluntary contribution.
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To deputise for the Lead Doctor when required.
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To participate actively in annual appraisal and to be responsible for one’s own
professional development.

To attend mandatory and compulsory training sessions as required by the
organisation.

To participate in the provision of a robust education programme, supporting Helen
and Douglas House employees in providing specialist palliative care to children and
young adults.

To contribute to the annual training and development weeks, in collaboration with
the Education Co-ordinators.

To contribute to the development of an organisational research programme.

To contribute to the clinical governance committee, and to contribute to clinical
audit, clinical effectiveness, clinical risk management and other quality improvement
activities.

To contribute to the development and maintenance of effective operational policies
across the organisation, and to ensure the medical team works within the
organisation’s policies and procedures.

To recognise the need for and to seek personal support, using informal and formal
support mechanisms as appropriate.

In association with the Director of Clinical Services, Lead Doctor and Consultant
Paediatrician, to contribute to the annual budget setting exercise, ensuring that
there is appropriate use and monitoring of the medical team budget.
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Section 4
Helen and Douglas House
Overview
Helen and Douglas House (HDH) is one of the foremost children’s and young adults’
hospices in the country. Helen House was the first children’s hospice to open in the
world, and is currently one of only a small number of organisations in England that
provides specialist paediatric palliative care. Douglas House opened in 2004 as the first
hospice specifically caring for young adults.
Approximately 70% of HDH patients have non-malignant diagnoses. High quality one
to one nursing care is provided in both houses by experienced care teams, with
support from a medical team that includes a Clinical Reader, Consultant Paediatrician
and a Consultant in Palliative Medicine. Patients are admitted for respite care,
symptom control, and end of life care. The current active caseload is approximately
280 patients.
Strategic development
This is an exciting time to be employed within Helen and Douglas House. The
organisation is developing rapidly as a provider of specialist paediatric and young adult
palliative care. A service priority is to enhance integration with statutory providers in
primary, secondary and tertiary care sectors.
Recent increases in medical staffing are facilitating closer collaboration with the Oxford
Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust and with Oxfordshire community services. The medical
team are increasingly providing specialist advice and consultations for children and
young adults in these settings, enhancing the quality and continuity of care and,
contributing to a seamless service.
Honorary NHS contracts for the senior medical staff have been agreed with the Oxford
Radcliffe Hospitals NHS Trust, and are now in the process of being organised.
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Section 5
General conditions of appointment
1) The job plan will be discussed and agreed on appointment of the successful
candidate, and will be influenced by the experience and wishes of the appointee
as well as the needs of the organisation.
2) The successful candidate will be required to live within one hour travelling time
of Helen and Douglas House.
3) The appointee will be expected to cover for colleagues’ absence from duty on
the basis of mutually agreed arrangements.
4) Helen and Douglas House require the successful candidate to have and
maintain full registration with the General Medical Council, and to fulfil the
duties and responsibilities of a doctor as set down by that Council.
5) All appointments are subject to satisfactory Occupational Health clearance.
6) The appointment is exempt from the provisions of Section 4(2) of the
Rehabilitation Offenders Act 1974 by virtue of the Rehabilitation Act 1974
(Exemptions) Order 1975. Applicants are not entitled therefore to withhold
information about convictions which for other purposes are ‘spent’ under the
provision of the Act.
7) Within the Terms of DHSS Circular (HC)(88) – Protection of Children –
applicants are required when applying for this post to disclose any record of
convictions, bind-over orders or cautions. You will be expected to undertake an
enhanced ‘disclosure’ check.
8) Every employee must act at all times in a professional and responsible manner
and have due regard to confidentiality and Health and Safety legislation
9) The working premises are non smoking areas
10) This is an outline job description and should not be regarded as an
inflexible specification. Responsibilities will be reviewed periodically in
line with service priorities, and duties may change or new duties be
introduced after consultation with the post holder.
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Section 6
Application information
Applications should be submitted in the form of:

A fully completed Helen & Douglas House application form (Essential)
plus

Curriculum Vitae (Desirable)
Please send applications to: Laura Jones
HR Assistant
Helen and Douglas House
14A Magdalen Road
Oxford OX4 1RW
Closing date for receipt of applications is 15 October 2010.
Interviews will take place week commencing 8 November 2010.
Expenses of short-listed candidates will be reimbursed on request.
Prospective candidates are encouraged to visit Helen and Douglas House. This
can be arranged by calling either Dr Emily Harrop (Consultant Paediatrician) or
Dr Anna Spathis (Consultant in Palliative Medicine) on 01865 794749.
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