Locum Consultant in Critical Care

Overview

The critical care unit at the Royal Liverpool University Hospital is the largest general adult critical care unit in the region, with 33 commissioned beds (L3: 17 beds; L2: 16 beds with 5 additional L1.5 surgical beds) and over 1600 emergency admissions, in addition to elective surgical admissions managed by 19 critical care consultants. The unit provides a wide spectrum of pathology for medical and surgical patients admitted from within and outside the hospital.

Bed occupancy usually exceeds 85%. Haemodialysis and haemofiltration are performed on approximately 15% of patients. The unit can treat severe respiratory failure with regular proning. The nearest ECMO unit is in Wythenshawe. Access to transthoracic and transoesophageal echocardiography is available for haemodynamic monitoring. The unit has accredited FICE, TOE and CUSIC mentors and supervisors.

Our casemix includes a high proportion of medical admissions. As a tertiary referral centre for various specialties, we manage critically ill patients with infectious diseases, acute pancreatitis, thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura and vasculitis.

• 8.5 programmed activity equivalents (PA) for direct clinical care (DCC) including on-call cover is offered. It is envisaged that the applicant would split clinical work with another specialty, subject to negotiation at appointment (typically up to 2.5 PAs). Additional clinical PAs may be available in critical care, subject to review, according to department and applicant needs.
• 1.5 PAs for Supporting Professional Activities (SPAs) are offered at appointment (with additional sessions for lead roles).

The successful applicants would join a team of nineteen consultants. For continuity of care, the rota is designed on a consultant-of-the-week basis. Daily, three consultants cover the unit (08:00–18:00/08:00–20:00/08:00–21:00). Typically a clinical week is done every 5–6 weeks with weekday on-call frequency of 1 in 13. There will be additional ad hoc clinical days to cover colleague theatre sessions. On-call cover is from 19:30 to 08:00 with resident cover until 02:00.

Weekend frequency is 1 in 4 (days and nights distribution 2/3 and 1/3 respectively). Monday to Friday there is an Outreach consultant working 08:00–13:30 who supports the CCOT team, takes referrals, and plans elective theatre activity requiring critical care.

Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust comprises Aintree University Hospital, Broadgreen Hospital and Royal Liverpool University Hospital. We are part of NHS University Hospitals of Liverpool Group, formed on 1 Nov 2024 from LUHFT and Liverpool Women s NHS Foundation Trust. The Group was formed to improve patient care. UHLG is one of the largest employers in the region, with over 16,800 colleagues.

For the 630,000 people across Merseyside, we provide general and emergency hospital care, alongside highly specialised regional services for more than two million people in the North West. Aintree University Hospital is the single receiving site for adult major trauma patients in Cheshire and Merseyside and hosts regional services including an award-winning stroke facility. Broadgreen Hospital provides elective surgical, diagnostic and treatment services and specialist patient rehabilitation.

Liverpool Women’s Hospital focuses on the health of women and babies, delivering over 7,200 babies in the UK s largest single-site maternity hospital each year. The Royal Liverpool University Hospital is the largest hospital in the country to offer inpatients with 100% single bedrooms and focuses on complex planned care and specialist services.