Job summary
- Main area
- Microbiology
- Grade
- NHS Medical & Dental: Consultant
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time
- Flexible working
- Job ref
- 319-7205860HD
- Employer
- Northumbria Healthcare - NHCT Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- North Tyneside General Hospital
- Town
- North Tyneside
- Salary
- £105,504 - £139,882 per annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 08/06/2025 23:59
Employer heading
Consultant in Microbiology and Infectious Diseases
NHS Medical & Dental: Consultant
Do you want to work in one of the best performing NHS organisations in England? Work for an organisation that was voted the best acute and combined acute and community trust in the country, based on the experience of its staff (NHS Staff Survey 2022). Work in an organisation that supports its staff and focuses on staff experience as much as it does the experience of its patients? You can live and breathe in an area that has the cleanest air, cost effective living, great nightlife, some of the best schools with a wealth of history available on your doorstep. Sound too good to be true? Well it isn’t, this is what you get when you work for Northumbria Healthcare and, this is…the Northumbria Way!
What the Northumbria Way means for you:
- Extensive staff health and well-being programme including access to our specialist Wellbeing Hub
- Support and connection through a variety of Staff Network groups
- A range of flexible working opportunities
- Generous annual leave and pension scheme
- Access to lease car and home electronics scheme (qualifying criteria applies)
- Opportunities to improve your professional development through our vast training programmes
- On-site nursery places via salary sacrifice
- Access to savings scheme via salary sacrifice with Northumberland Community Bank
We are proud to be one of the country’s top performing NHS trusts – rated ‘outstanding’ overall by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). We provide a range of health and care services to support more than 500,000 people living in Northumberland and North Tyneside across the largest geographical area of any NHS Trust in England. Our teams deliver care from hospitals, a range of community venues and people’s homes. Our hospitals include a specialist emergency care hospital (the first of its kind in England), three general hospitals and community hospitals. In the community we deliver a wide range of community and public health services.
We lead in innovation and quality, having opened the Northumbria Healthcare Manufacturing and Innovation Hub during the Covid-19 pandemic and have recently launched our Community Promise – a pledge to make a real impact not just in healthcare but on the wider factors that affect people’s lives, such as education, employment and the economy.
If Northumbria Healthcare sounds like somewhere you could belong we would love to hear from you. Visit our website to catch up on our latest news.
Whilst Northumbria Healthcare are a highly innovative organisation, the use of Third Party Artificial Intelligence (AI) presents a risk to the integrity of our Recruitment & Selection processes. If you use AI, and it poses a risk to the integrity your individual recruitment process, we may withdraw your application at any stage of the process.
Job overview
Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is seeking to appoint a Consultant Microbiologist and Infectious Diseases Consultant based at North Tyneside General Hospital.
The successful candidate will join a dynamic Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases Service, working alongside four consultant microbiologists and three infectious diseases consultants. The post includes participation in a 1:5 microbiology on-call rota and acting as infectious diseases consultant of the week on a 1:4 rota, providing comprehensive clinical microbiology, laboratory oversight, infection control, and multidisciplinary liaison. Duties encompass supervision of diagnostic methods, result interpretation, quality assurance, policy development, and contribution to hospital committees.
The Trust encourages the development of subspecialty interests, supports continuing professional development, research, and undergraduate and postgraduate teaching in partnership with Newcastle and Sunderland universities. Northumbria Healthcare is committed to promoting a positive work-life balance and welcomes applications for full-time, part-time, and job-share appointments, with flexibility to tailor the role to personal circumstances.
Please note we reserve the right to close this vacancy early if a suitable number of applications are received.
Main duties of the job
The post holder will provide Clinical Microbiology and Infectious Diseases services alongside four consultant microbiologists and three infectious diseases consultants. They will participate in a microbiology on-call rota (1:5) and act as infectious diseases consultant of the week on a 1:4 rota.
Core duties include overseeing diagnostic laboratory services—supervising specimen processing, authorising and interpreting results, and developing standard operating procedures. The consultant will ensure quality assurance through NEQAS participation and maintain UKAS ISO 15189 accreditation. They will advise the infection control team, support hospital and community outbreak investigations, and contribute to relevant committees.
Clinical responsibilities encompass ward and critical care rounds, liaising with multidisciplinary teams to guide antimicrobial therapy. The role involves providing public health surveillance data to the UK Health Security Agency, participating in sentinel and enhanced surveillance, and engaging in service development, business planning, resource management, audit, research, and undergraduate and postgraduate teaching.
Working for our organisation
We manage three major locality hospitals at North Tyneside, Wansbeck and Hexham, plus a number of smaller community hospitals and clinics from Tynemouth to Berwick Upon Tweed, covering one of the largest geographical areas of any NHS trust in the country. Leading in innovation and quality – opening a state of the art Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital, the first of its kind in England. Do you want to work in one of the best performing NHS organisations in England? Work in an organisation that supports its staff and focuses on staff experience as much as it does the experience of its patients? You can live and breathe in an area that has the cleanest air, cost effective living, great nightlife, some of the best schools with a wealth of history available on your doorstep. Sound too good to be true? Well it isn’t, this is what you get when you work for Northumbria Healthcare, this is the Northumbria Way! Please read ‘applicant guidance notes’ before submitting your application.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
The successful applicant for this post will work closely with all the Consultant Medical Microbiologists and Infection Disease Consultants to provide a comprehensive, efficient and cost-effective service.
The successful applicant will be expected to take part in:
-
Provide clinical microbiology and infectious diseases consultations for inpatients and outpatients.
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Participate in a 1:5 microbiology on-call rota and a 1:4 infectious diseases consultant-of-the-week rota.
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Oversee diagnostic laboratory services, including specimen processing and result authorisation.
-
Develop, review, and implement standard operating procedures and laboratory policies.
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Maintain quality assurance via NEQAS and uphold UKAS ISO 15189 accreditation standards.
-
Advise the infection control team on outbreak management, surveillance, and prevention strategies.
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Conduct ward and critical care rounds; liaise with multidisciplinary teams on antimicrobial therapy.
-
Generate, analyse, and submit public health, sentinel, and enhanced surveillance data to UKHSA and regional networks.
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Engage in service development and support clinical governance through audit, research, and quality improvement initiatives.
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Deliver undergraduate and postgraduate teaching in collaboration with Newcastle and Sunderland universities.
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Advise and support clinical staff and committees on antimicrobial stewardship policies and governance.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Fully registered on the UK General Medical Council's Specialist Register (Microbiology and Infectious Diseases) or Specialist Registrars may apply if within 6 months of CCT at date of the Advisory Appointment Committee.
- Member/Fellow of the Royal College of Pathologists or equivalent
- Full GMC Registration
- Certificate of Completed Training (CCT) in Microbiology
Desirable criteria
- Educational Qualification
Experience
Essential criteria
- High standard of clinical skill and expertise in clinical microbiology
Desirable criteria
- Experience in infection prevention and control
- Experience in antibiotic stewardship.
- Experience of audit management
- Experience of teaching basic clinical skills to undergraduates
- Teaching of non-medical health professionals
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
- Dr Surya Banerjee
- Job title
- Microbiology Clinical Lead
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Additional information
We strongly encourage interested applicants to visit the Trust and meet prospective colleagues.
Arrangements for visiting may be made by contacting:
Sarah Mankin - Pathology Team Secretary
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