Consultant Spinal Surgeon

Job overview

Consultant spinal surgeon with elective and emergency practice. Day-to-day care of patients under the spinal service, outpatient clinics, elective theatre lists and MDTs, with a 1 in 6 week on call commitment.

We are looking for experienced neurosurgery or orthopaedic trained clinicians with appropriate expertise to work independently at consultant level. This is a full‑time clinical post.

The successful candidate will work on the RSCH site along with other neurosurgeons to deliver regional adult neurosurgical and spinal services. They will undertake outpatient clinics, elective and emergency operating and on call work for emergencies at the RSCH. This post is a specialist adult complex spinal surgery post as part of an integrated neurosurgical and complex spinal service with on‑call commitments for complex spinal surgery.

The successful applicant will be expected to work collaboratively toward developing the regional spinal service integration and delivery as part of the unit goal. This service is expected to meet the requirements laid out in the specialised services commissioning documents published by NHS England.

The clinical duties of the post include the following:

• Provision of emergency and elective spinal surgeries
• Provision of outpatient clinics balancing new and follow‑up with patient‑initiated follow‑up
• Participation in multidisciplinary meetings within the Trust and wider MSK networks
• Supervision of trainees and spinal practitioners

Triage of referrals into the spinal service

• Spinal Surgery On Call Commitment: currently 1 in 6 with internal cover

This post is offered as a substantive appointment to support the spinal service expansion. The appointee will be part of a directorate of Neurosurgery and Spinal team of eleven neurosurgical consultants and one orthopaedic spinal consultant. The post is based at the state‑of‑the‑art Louisa Martindale Building on the Royal Sussex County Hospital site in Brighton.

• Spinal fellowship – Neurosurgery/orthopaedic/dual
• FRCS or its recognised equivalent.
• Full and specialist registration with the GMC or be eligible for registration within six months of the interview. If you trained in the UK, you must also have a Certificate of Completion of Training (CCT) in Neurosurgery or Orthopaedics or be within six months of receiving it by the interview date. If you trained outside the UK, you must provide evidence that your qualifications are equivalent to the UK CCT.
  
  (Equivalence must be confirmed by GMC by date of AAC)
• Higher Degree

• Independent competence in all complex spinal elective and emergency procedures including spinal trauma, MSCC within the last 12 months.
• Subspecialty experience to complement or develop spinal service.

• Breadth of experience in and outside specialty.

• Experience and ability to work in multi‑professional teams.
• Understanding of NHS clinical governance and resource constraints.
• Evidence of managerial skills: achievements, courses attended.

• Evidence of an interest and commitment to teaching.
• Recognised teaching qualification.

• Evidence of participation in audit.
• Research experience.
• Publications.
• Prizes and honours.
• Appropriate progression of career to date.

• Evidence of good communication skills both oral and written.