Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) - Clinical Director

Job description

Job summary

This is an exciting opportunity to lead the Gloucester and Swindon SARC service as a Clinical Director.

The role entails taking on clinical oversight for the service and the postholder is responsible for the clinical and forensic care delivered within the SARC including adequate documentation and that processes remain compliant with regulatory and best practice guidelines.

The post is a part-time at a senior medical level 2 days per week (15.5 hours / 4 PAs). The role is hybrid with on-site working and some working from home. We expect the candidate to be available on-site fortnightly as a minimum.

The applicant must be able to attend the SARC within the 120-minute response time when on call.

The applicant needs to hold MFFLM and must have at least five years' experience in sexual offence medicine.

The applicant must be a current member of the FFLM and be in good standing with the GMC.

The applicant should have experience of teaching, training and mentoring staff.

The service is a 24/7 adult (18+) SARC service with both nurse and medical sexual offence examiners providing cover.

We are working towards UKAS accreditation to the FSR code and ISO15189 and the applicant needs to have good awareness of the relevant guidance that applies to SARC.

All senior medics with relevant experience are welcome to apply.

Main duties of the job

The Clinical Director is professionally responsible for the clinical leadership, governance, quality assurance and strategic development of the Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) services across Gloucestershire, Swindon and Wiltshire.

The post holder will ensure delivery of safe, effective, trauma-informed and patient-centred forensic healthcare services that comply with national standards, including those of the:

• Faculty of Forensic & Legal Medicine (FFLM)
• Forensic Science Regulator (FSR)
• British Association for Sexual Health and HIV (BASHH)
• College of Sexual & Reproductive Healthcare (CoSRH)
• Care Quality Commission (CQC)
• NHS England SARC Service Specification

The Clinical Director will provide visible clinical leadership across the SARCs, promoting excellence in forensic practice, safeguarding, medicines management, clinical governance, staff development and multi-agency partnership working.

The post holder will support the strategic development of SARC services in collaboration with commissioners, police, partner agencies and regional forensic healthcare networks.

The qualification, training & experience requirements for the role are underlined in the Job Description/Person Specification.

About us

We have a skilled and dedicated workforce of over 5000 colleagues working in a diverse range of services over 55 sites and within people's homes. We strive to enable a welcoming workplace culture that builds and celebrates civility, inclusivity and diversity, while providing a sense of belonging and trust.

Annual staff surveys, regular Pulse surveys and other engagement opportunities provide our people with lots of opportunity to tell us about their experiences of working with us. In the latest staff survey, 61% of colleagues gave us their views. It was great to hear that:

• 72% of colleagues would recommend the Trust as a place to work, ranking us 1st for Provider Trusts in the South West region on this question.
• 76% would recommend the standard of care provided in our services if a friend or relative needed treatment, also ranking us 1st in the South West region.
• 81% said that care of patients and service users is the Trust's priority, compared with an average in comparable NHS Trusts in England of 64%.

This high-level overview shows we are in a healthy position, with higher scores than average for comparable organisations, alongside a great response rate, indicating good staff engagement. However, we also know we have plenty of room for improvement in many areas. To that end, we continue to prioritise and invest in our commitment to genuinely becoming a Great Place to Work with consistent top-quartile performance in the annual staff survey and Pulse surveys.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Clinical Leadership and Governance

Provide professional and clinical leadership for SARC services across Gloucestershire, Swindon and Wiltshire.Ensure delivery of high-quality forensic healthcare services that are safe, evidence-based, trauma-informed and compliant with national standards and regulatory requirements.Lead and oversee robust clinical governance systems, including:

Audit and quality improvement

Clinical incident review

Risk management

Peer review

Patient safety processes

Learning from complaints and feedback

Clinical outcomes monitoring

Ensure effective systems are in place to identify, escalate and mitigate clinical and forensic risks.Provide oversight of forensic medical examination standards, ensuring forensic integrity and adherence to FSR Codes of Practice and relevant guidance.Lead on development, implementation and review of clinical policies, standard operating procedures (SOPs), pathways and governance frameworks.Ensure safe and effective medicines management within the SARC service.Ensure safeguarding responsibilities are embedded throughout service delivery and that staff maintain compliance with safeguarding legislation, policy and inter-agency procedures.Provide professional oversight of:

Emergency interventions following rape and sexual assault

Forensic medical examinations

Sexual health assessment and management

HIV post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP)

Emergency contraception

Mental health risk assessment

Follow-up pathways and onward referrals

Safeguarding processes

Ensure compliance with all relevant clinical, forensic and information governance standards.

Strategic and Service Development Responsibilities

Contribute to the strategic planning and development of SARC services across Gloucestershire, Swindon and Wiltshire.Work collaboratively with commissioners, police, NHS organisations, voluntary sector agencies and regional SARC networks to improve patient pathways and service delivery.Support delivery of the NHS England SARC specification and wider commissioning priorities.Promote the SARC service through partnership working, education, professional networking and stakeholder engagement.Contribute to service reviews, inspections, accreditation processes and external quality assurance activities.Support innovation, research and quality improvement initiatives relevant to forensic healthcare and SARC provision.Work collaboratively with regional paediatric SARC services and Centre of Excellence pathways where appropriate.

Leadership and Workforce Responsibilities

Provide leadership, supervision and professional support to Sexual Offence Examiners and other clinical staff working within the SARC.Lead and facilitate:

Clinical supervision

Peer review meetings

Appraisal processes

Competency assessment

Continuing professional development (CPD)

Support recruitment, retention and professional development of the forensic healthcare workforce.Contribute to training programmes for healthcare professionals, police and partner agencies.Support staff involved in statement writing, court attendance and expert witness work.Review forensic statements and documentation where appropriate to ensure quality and professional standards are maintained.Foster a culture of continuous improvement, psychological safety and reflective practice.

RESEARCH, AUDIT AND QUALITY IMPROVEMENT

Lead and support clinical audit and quality improvement activity within the SARC service.Ensure audit findings and governance outcomes inform service development and patient safety improvements.Promote evidence-based practice and support research activity where appropriate.Ensure the service maintains effective clinical outcome measures and quality indicators aligned with commissioning and regulatory requirements.

The Trust is required to work in line with the Governments UK Visa and Immigration Rules and Regulations. For more information about sponsorship for certain roles, please visit - https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration/work-visas

Job description
Job responsibilities

Clinical Leadership and Governance

Provide professional and clinical leadership for SARC services across Gloucestershire, Swindon and Wiltshire.Ensure delivery of high-quality forensic healthcare services that are safe, evidence-based, trauma-informed and compliant with national standards and regulatory requirements.Lead and oversee robust clinical governance systems, including:

Audit and quality improvement

Clinical incident review

Risk management

Peer review

Patient safety processes

Learning from complaints and feedback

Clinical outcomes monitoring

Ensure effective systems are in place to identify, escalate and mitigate clinical and forensic risks.Provide oversight of forensic medical examination standards, ensuring forensic integrity and adherence to FSR Codes of Practice and relevant guidance.Lead on development, implementation and review of clinical policies, standard operating procedures (SOPs), pathways and governance frameworks.Ensure safe and effective medicines management within the SARC service.Ensure safeguarding responsibilities are embedded throughout service delivery and that staff maintain compliance with safeguarding legislation, policy and inter-agency procedures.Provide professional oversight of:

Emergency interventions following rape and sexual assault

Forensic medical examinations

Sexual health assessment and management

HIV post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP)

Emergency contraception

Mental health risk assessment

Follow-up pathways and onward referrals

Safeguarding processes

Ensure compliance with all relevant clinical, forensic and information governance standards.

Strategic and Service Development Responsibilities

Contribute to the strategic planning and development of SARC services across Gloucestershire, Swindon and Wiltshire.Work collaboratively with commissioners, police, NHS organisations, voluntary sector agencies and regional SARC networks to improve patient pathways and service delivery.Support delivery of the NHS England SARC specification and wider commissioning priorities.Promote the SARC service through partnership working, education, professional networking and stakeholder engagement.Contribute to service reviews, inspections, accreditation processes and external quality assurance activities.Support innovation, research and quality improvement initiatives relevant to forensic healthcare and SARC provision.Work collaboratively with regional paediatric SARC services and Centre of Excellence pathways where appropriate.

Leadership and Workforce Responsibilities

Provide leadership, supervision and professional support to Sexual Offence Examiners and other clinical staff working within the SARC.Lead and facilitate:

Clinical supervision

Peer review meetings

Appraisal processes

Competency assessment

Continuing professional development (CPD)

Support recruitment, retention and professional development of the forensic healthcare workforce.Contribute to training programmes for healthcare professionals, police and partner agencies.Support staff involved in statement writing, court attendance and expert witness work.Review forensic statements and documentation where appropriate to ensure quality and professional standards are maintained.Foster a culture of continuous improvement, psychological safety and reflective practice.

RESEARCH, AUDIT AND QUALITY IMPROVEMENT

Lead and support clinical audit and quality improvement activity within the SARC service.Ensure audit findings and governance outcomes inform service development and patient safety improvements.Promote evidence-based practice and support research activity where appropriate.Ensure the service maintains effective clinical outcome measures and quality indicators aligned with commissioning and regulatory requirements.

The Trust is required to work in line with the Governments UK Visa and Immigration Rules and Regulations. For more information about sponsorship for certain roles, please visit - https://www.gov.uk/browse/visas-immigration/work-visas

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• MFFLM or FFFLM

Experience

Essential

• More than five years' experience Forensic Sexual Offences Examiner

Desirable

• Successful exam completion of General Forensic Medicine

Knowledge

Essential

• Knowledge and understanding of SARC service
• Understanding of NHS senior leadership roles (directly or indirectly)

Skills

Essential

• Demonstrate leadership and team working skills

Person Specification
Qualifications

Essential

• MFFLM or FFFLM

Experience

Essential

• More than five years' experience Forensic Sexual Offences Examiner

Desirable

• Successful exam completion of General Forensic Medicine

Knowledge

Essential

• Knowledge and understanding of SARC service
• Understanding of NHS senior leadership roles (directly or indirectly)

Skills

Essential

• Demonstrate leadership and team working skills

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the .

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. .
UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see

Additional information
Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the .

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. .
UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see

Employer details

Employer name

Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust
Address

Hope House (Gloucester) and the Gables (Swindon)

Great Western Road

Gloucester

GL1 3NN

United Kingdom

Employer's website