Charge Nurse - Surgical Assessment Unit

Job description

Fulfil your potential in hospitals that make history:

Charing Cross, Hammersmith, St Mary's, Queen Charlotte's & Chelsea and Western Eye.

With five world-renowned hospitals, Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust is full of opportunity if you are looking to develop your healthcare career.

We are an NHS Trust of approximately 16,000 people, providing care for over a million and a half patients from north west London and beyond every year.

We have a rich heritage and an ambitious vision for the future of our patients and local communities.

With our partners, Imperial College London, and The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust, we form Imperial College Academic Health Science Centre, one of 6 academic health science centres in the UK, working to ensure the rapid translation of research for better patient care and excellence in education.

We are proud of our heritage in innovation and we are early adopters of new insights in technologies, techniques and treatments for improving health.

Job overview

Are you an experienced surgical nurse looking to step into a pivotal leadership role?

We are incredibly excited to announce the opening of our brand-new, state-of-the-art Surgical Assessment Unit (SAU) at Charing Cross Hospital. This purpose-built unit will streamline the emergency surgical pathway, integrating closely with our Emergency Department and Same Day Emergency Care (SDEC) pathways to deliver rapid assessments, diagnostics, and treatment without unnecessary admissions.

As a Band 6 Charge Nurse , you will be at the forefront of this new service launch. Working as a deputy to the Unit Matron, you will provide strong clinical leadership, supervise junior staff, and drive efficient patient flow through a fast-paced environment. This is a rare opportunity to shape a newly formed multidisciplinary team, build a collaborative culture from the ground up, and establish clinical excellence in acute surgical care.

We are currently recruiting for 5 full-time positions and 1 part-time position.

Informal visits are highly recommended. Please contact our Lead Nurse Simon Mackie at [email protected].

Main duties of the job

• Clinical Excellence: Oversee the safe triage, assessment, stabilization, and care planning of acute surgical patients presenting with varied conditions (Colorectal, general Surgery, Urology, Plastics and ENT).
• Shift Leadership: Act as the regular shift coordinator ("taking charge"), ensuring safe staffing levels, coordinating admissions/discharges, and managing real-time patient flow.
• Team Development: Facilitate in mentoring, preceptoring, and auditing the practice of Band 5 staff nurses, healthcare assistants and student nurses.
• Interdisciplinary work:: Act as the core liaison between emergency doctors, surgical registrars, consultants, and diagnostic teams to maintain swift turnaround times.
• Quality & Safety: Ensure nursing practices strictly comply with Trust and NMC guidelines, maintaining very high standards of infection control, documentation, and patient safety.

Working for our organisation

At Imperial College Healthcare you can achieve extraordinary things with extraordinary people, working with leading clinicians pushing boundaries in patient care.

Become part of a vibrant team living our values - expert, kind, collaborative and aspirational. You'll get an experience like no other and will fast forward your career.

Benefits include career development, flexible working and wellbeing, staff recognition scheme. Make use of optional benefits including Cycle to Work, car lease schemes, season ticket loan or membership options for onsite leisure facilities.

We are committed to equal opportunities and improving the working lives of our staff and will consider applications to work flexibly, part time or job share. Please talk to us at interview.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The full job description provides an overview of the key tasks and responsibilities of the role and the person specification outlines the qualifications, skills, experience and knowledge required.

For both overviews please view the Job Description attachment with the job advert.

Person specification

Education/ qualifications

Essential criteria

• Registered Nurse
• Teaching Qualification or equivalent experience

Desirable criteria

• Leadership course or qualification

Experience

Essential criteria

• Previous experience of In an acute setting

Desirable criteria

• Experience taking charge

Skills/knowledge/ abilities

Essential criteria

• Teaching
• Ability to organise ward activities and to use initiative
• Competency in medication administration including IV medications
• Skills required to undertake clinical activity related to speciality
• Awareness of current developments in nursing

Desirable criteria

• Rostering skills
• Investigating incidents
• Conducting local audits

Right to work

If you need sponsorship to work in the UK, please visit the Home Office website for information on sponsorship and visa status before you fill in your application form. Due to recent changes in the UK immigration rules which affect Skilled Worker Visas, Global Business Mobility, Higher Skill Level and Increased Salary Thresholds, please ensure that you are able to meet the requirements to live and work in the UK before applying. Further information about eligibility is available on