Consultant in Stroke Medicine

Consultant in Stroke Medicine
Full time (10 PA, including up to 2 PA SPA)
Salary Scale - £111,430 - £148,064 per annum (pro rata if part time)

Looking for a new and exciting challenge? Then think about working in NHS Forth Valley in the heart of Scotland.

Stroke

This post will be focused on delivery of care in the acute/early stages of admission to hospital but there are opportunities to work within the wider stroke service and services aligned to clinical expertise.
Patients with suspected stroke or TIA are currently admitted through the Emergency Department and/or Acute Medical Unit and are then subsequently moved to our HASU. We look after adult patients of all ages with stroke. The vast majority of patients with stroke will be cared for within the Stroke Unit although the clinical needs of some patients will mean they require care elsewhere in the hospital or will develop stroke symptoms during hospital admission.

The Stroke service has a commitment to consult on such patients usually within the cardiology and general medical wards, surgical wards and the intensive care unit.

The 23-bedded Acute Stroke Unit comprises a Hyper-acute area where those receiving thrombolysis therapy are directly admitted from ED. There is an additional 8-bedded Rehabilitation Stroke Unit in the Bellfield Centre, Stirling Care Village. Since 2010, approximately 750-800 patients with stroke and 60-100 patients with TIA are discharged annually. There are an additional 375-450 patients seen each year in the Rapid Access TIA Clinic.

There is also scope to provide ambulatory care through our Rapid Access Care Unit.

Hyperacute assessment and thrombolytic therapy is provided by the stroke consultants on-site during office hours Monday to Friday. Out with these times and at weekends, this service is provided by a telemedicine service via service level agreement in conjunction with NHS Lothian. There would be scope to be part of this service if the candidate wishes. We are part of the national planning structure to improve access to thrombectomy and the systems necessary to assess and deliver this highly effective treatment.

This is a service currently offered in conjunction with Lothian and is to undergo expansion.

We have strong links with the Vascular Surgery team who provide carotid intervention for appropriate patients, surgery being undertaken at the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow.
We have a keen ethos of Quality Improvement to enhance the service and take responsibility for Stroke education within the hospital including core and advanced competency teaching and STAT (Stroke & TIA Assessment Training) run at the Scottish Centre for Simulation and Clinical Human Factors within the hospital. We work closely with our Allied Health Professional colleagues and have developed national learning tools for doctors, nurses and allied health professionals.

There is active participation in Clinical Research, with support from our R&D Department. We are involved in multicentre clinical trials including CTIMPs and qualitative studies in stroke care. We have a dedicated stroke research nurse to support these trials.
Department of Ageing and Health
Within Forth Valley Royal Hospital, Ageing and Health currently has 62 acute frailty assessment beds (Wards A22 and A32). In addition there is a 29-bedded acute frailty and ortho-geriatric ward (ward A21) with orthogeriatrics also offering an inreach service into the acute orthopaedic ward.

A Hospital at Home service was developed over 2020 as part of a holistic, whole system project with Primary Care and our Health and Social Care colleagues and is also to undergo expansion. The aim is to provide acute care to the frail, older people in their own home and this service…