Locum Plastic Surgeon special interest in Hand Surgery

Locum Plastic Surgeon with special interest in Hand Surgery

The closing date is 23 January 2026

This new, full-time job represents an exciting opportunity to work in a busy, dynamic Plastic Surgery Department within a University Hospital and Major Trauma Centre. The Hand Unit is a specialist centre that manages elective and emergency hand and wrist pathology, receiving referrals from primary and secondary care locally and regionally.

The appointee is expected to be competent to offer our patients all aspects of elective and trauma hand surgery as well as be versatile in all aspects of plastic surgery trauma requiring input during on call. The postholder must be proficient in complex soft tissue reconstructive techniques, including microsurgery. As a Level 1 Trauma Centre, St George's Hospital receives large number of patients with significant upper limb injuries so expertise in peripheral nerve surgery, tissue revascularisation and hand/digit replantation are essential.

The appointee will contribute to busy and diverse plastic surgery service and support all aspects of plastic surgery on call commitments. The new appointee will work closely with colleagues from the Orthopaedics, Hand Therapy and Radiology departments and be part of a truly multidisciplinary hand and wrist surgery team. The post attracts a 1:12 on-call commitment alongside a 1:12 Trauma Consultant of the week rota.

Part of this job (up to 2 PAs) will incorporate clinical duties at St Helier and Epsom General Hospital aiming to provide hand surgery and offer general plastic surgery support.

The appointee is expected to develop and undertake research in the field of hand surgery, teaching duties of undergraduate and postgraduate medical staff as well as allied health professionals. Participation in audit and research and Trust clinical governance programme will be essential.

St George's Hospital is a major trauma centre and has onsite, comprehensive cardiothoracic, neurological, and neurosurgical units. The Plastic Surgery team plays a crucial role by providing emergency and elective reconstructive and long-term care in support of all medical and surgical specialties. The Plastic Surgery unit is one of the busiest in London and applicants will need to demonstrate substantial experience in all aspects of Plastic Surgery, elective and trauma pathology, as well as have the ability to lead within a multi‑disciplinary work setup.

The hospital is a provider of cancer services in South West London and a key player in the Royal Marsden Partners.

The Department of Plastic Surgery currently employs 15 Consultant Plastic Surgeons and provides specialty expertise as per hub and spoke model at hospitals in Guildford (Royal County Surrey), Roehampton (Queen Mary), Kingston, Epsom (Epsom General and St Helier), and Croydon.

The Department of Plastic Surgery currently provides expertise in the following specialty related clinical categories:

• Onco‑plastics:
  Skin cancer (melanoma and non‑melanoma), Head and neck cancer, Breast reconstruction, reconstruction for urology and gynaecology
• Hand and Wrist Surgery
• Trauma and Orthopaedics
• Congenital Deformities:
  Birth marks, skin lesions, hand and upper limb abnormalities, vascular malformations
• Paediatric Trauma and General Plastic Surgery
• General Plastic Surgery:
  Wound healing, Pressure sores, Scar management, Sternotomy wounds, Facial palsy, abdominal wall reconstruction, Perineal Reconstruction;
  Gender Reaffirmation, Massive Weight Loss Surgery

• oMB ChB or equivalent oFull GMC Registration oPost-CCT oFRCS (Plast) or equivalent oHand/Wrist Fellowship
• oHigher degree (MD or PhD) oDiploma in Hand Surgery

• oExperience and training in full range of emergency and elective plastic surgery conditions oExperience in Adult and Paediatric Hand Surgery oEvidence of active engagement in Audit and Research
• oEvidence of service development in plastic surgery oIntegrating technology with clinical practice

• oGood interpersonal skills oAbility to work cooperatively and collaboratively with other health professionals and organisations oAbility to manage & lead a surgical firm oManagement of complex hand trauma including Microsurgical reconstruction oExperience of teaching & supervising junior doctors in training
• oAbility to lead & manage research projects oUse of WALANT techniques

• oUnderstanding of what the principles and values of the NHS Constitution mean to you and your responsibilities to the public, patients, your colleagues and the Trust oCommitment to quality improvement oUp to date with current practice standards
• oKnowledge of IT systems including Microsoft Teams, Cerner systems

• oStrong leadership skills and performance driven oCommitment to continuing professional development oWillingness to work flexibly oEnquiring and critical approach to work oEffective communicator with patients, relatives, GPs, nurses and other…