Job summary
- Main area
- Ophthalmology
- Grade
- ST5+
- Contract
- Fixed term: 12 months (February 2026 - February 2027)
- Hours
- Full time - 40 hours per week
- Job ref
- 317-TD-25-218
- Employer
- The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Ophthalmology
- Town
- Newcastle upon Tyne
- Salary
- £65,048 - £73,992 per annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 29/08/2025 23:59
Employer heading
Corneal & External Eye Disease Fellow in Ophthalmology
ST5+
Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is one of the busiest and largest NHS foundation trusts in the country, with around 15,000 staff and an annual budget of £1.6 billion.
We have a long history of providing high quality care, clinical excellence, and innovation in medical research regionally, nationally and internationally.
We’re in the top five providers of specialised health services in the country, supporting people with a range of rare and complex medical, surgical and neurological conditions, cancers and genetic orders.
Our staff oversee around 6,500 patient contacts each day, delivering high standards of healthcare.
We are committed to promoting equality and diversity and recognise the benefit in providing an inclusive environment. We value and respect the diversity of our employees and aim to recruit a workforce which reflects the communities we serve, and is equipped to deliver the best service to our patients. We welcome all applications irrespective of people’s race, disability, sex, sexual orientation, religion or belief, age, gender identity, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity and in particular those from under- represented groups.
Newcastle Hospitals are proud to be one of the exemplar organisations across the NHS on sustainability, with a long history of delivering Sustainable Healthcare in Newcastle (Shine) and the first healthcare organisation in the world to declare a climate emergency. Our strategy includes commitments to being Net Zero by 2030, for our direct carbon footprint, and Net Zero by 2040 for our footprint plus. Delivering these ambitions will not be possible without the help, support and action of every single member of our team.
Job overview
An exciting opportunity has arisen for two Corneal & External Eye Disease Fellow in The Department of Ophthalmology based at the Royal Victoria Infirmary.
The 2 posts are available from February 2026 for a period of 12 months.
The appointment is suitable for ophthalmologists who are at, or near, the end of their periods of Higher Surgical Training and who wish to secure further training and experience in cornea and external eye diseases with a view to practising at consultant level in these subspecialties.
Main duties of the job
The training supervisors would be Professor Francisco Figueiredo, Mr Jaswant Sandhu, Mrs Ashwini Ranganath and Mr Ahmed Ragab to whom the appointee would be directly responsible in all clinical matters.
Fellows work under the supervision of the subspecialty-trained Consultants. Fellows have clinical and surgical duties as directed by the Consultants. The fellowship introduces the trainees to all aspects of diseases of the anterior segment of the eye, with the objective to further develop their skills in examination, diagnosis, treatment, and surgical procedures. With increasing experience through the year, the post holder can expect to perform corneal surgery procedures (i.e., DSAEK, DMEK, PKP, DALK, complex cataract surgery, pterygium excision combined with conjunctival autograft, amniotic membrane transplantation, collagen crosslinking among others) as first surgeon, and directly assisted by the Consultant.
Applicants will be considered whether or not they have already done a Corneal Fellowship/ASTO elsewhere, but full competence & proficiency in phacoemulsification cataract surgery is essential. Job holder surgical progress will be highly dependent on their surgical ability and previous surgical experience.
Fellows also work closely with other ophthalmology trainees and medical students rotating through our department. Fellows are responsible for case/research presentations at weekly teaching, and participation in didactic lectures & ward rounds with the Consultant.
Working for our organisation
As a flexible working friendly organisation, we want to be sure that you can work in a way that is best for us and for our patients, and for you. Speak to us about how we might be able to accommodate a flexible working arrangement. If it works for the service, we will do our best to make it work for you.
Our staff oversee over 6,500 patient contacts every day, delivering high standards of healthcare from the following sites:
• Freeman Hospital
• Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI)
• Health Innovation Neighbourhood (on the former Newcastle General Hospital and Centre for Ageing and Vitality site)
• Newcastle Dental Hospital
• Newcastle Fertility Centre
• Northern Centre for Cancer Care, North Cumbria
• Northern Genetics Service
• Cramlington Manor Walks
These include a range of flagship services which deliver cutting-edge care (supported by state-of-the-art diagnostic services in both radiology and pathology) and are a catalyst for innovation to support pioneering clinical practice in the NHS.
We also have offices at Regent Point in Gosforth and community sites.
Please see attached information on what Staff Benefits we have to offer at our Trust under ‘Documents to download’ or ‘Supporting documents’.
For further information on The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust please visit: Careers | Newcastle Hospitals | NHS | Newcastle Hospitals and Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
1. Corneal surgery including penetrating keratoplasty alone or in combination with other anterior segment procedures such as cataract surgery, endothelial keratoplasty (DSAEK, DMEK), deep anterior lamellar keratoplasty (DALK), autologous keratoepithelioplasty, ex vivo limbal and oral mucosa stem cell transplantation, amniotic membrane transplantation, pterygium excision, corneal glue (including Tisseel & Histoacryl), temporary keratoprosthesis and collagen crosslinking;
2. External diseases including the diagnosis and management of dry eye/blepharitis, all types of infections, immune, inherited dystrophies, traumatic and protozoan diseases;
3. Contact lens, corneal topography/tomography, keratoconus, and management of lens-related complications;
4. Non Laser refractive surgery including relaxing keratotomy and management of surgically induced astigmatism;
5. Eye station (methods and administration of ocular tissue for research and transplantation);
6. Small-incision, clear-corneal phacoemulsification cataract surgery and
7. Diagnostic specular, in vivo confocal microscopy, LipiView Meibography and anterior segment OCT.
Person specification
Education and Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Primary Medical Qualification.
- Full GMC registration
- FRCOphth, FRCS(Ed) (Ophth) or equivalent
Desirable criteria
- Higher degrees including MSc, PhD or MD (where research thesis not part of first medical degree)
Clinical Skills and Knowledge
Essential criteria
- Evidence of skills and knowledge at least to the level expected of a senior UK ophthalmology trainee
- Wide experience in surgical ophthalmology to the level of a senior UK ophthalmology trainee who has completed core training, in particular with documented competence in phacoemulsification cataract surgery.
Desirable criteria
- Wide ophthalmology experience. Previous experience in cornea and external eye diseases (clinical and surgical).
- Evidence of some higher-level skills in corneal and external diseases disease assessment and treatment.
- Evidence of special interest in medical and surgical corneal diseases and their management.
Maintaining Clinical Competence
Essential criteria
- Evidence of appropriate documented progression through training
- Evidence of attendance at formal CPD activities.
Desirable criteria
- Evidence of active role in CPD activities
Teaching
Essential criteria
- Experience of supervising junior staff.
- Ability to teach clinical skills.
Desirable criteria
- Evidence of active effective role as a teacher of medical trainees and/or paramedical staff.
Clinical Governance, Audit and Research
Essential criteria
- Demonstrates understanding of research including awareness of ethical issues.
- Demonstrates understanding of the basic principles of audit, clinical risk management, evidence based practice, patient safety and clinical quality improvement initiatives.
- Evidence of active participation in personal and departmental audit to at least the level expected of a senior UK ophthalmology trainee
- Evidence of understanding of the principles of research to at least the level expected of a senior UK ophthalmology trainee
Desirable criteria
- Evidence of active participation in ophthalmic research, ideally in the field of cornea and external eye diseases.
- Evidence of relevant academic publications.
- Demonstrates an understanding of clinical governance.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Victoria Cowan
- Job title
- HR Advisor
- Email address
- [email protected]
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