Medical Examiner

The Medical Examiner Service at RWT has been established successfully since 2019. We are now working to expand our service to support the review of deaths that occur in the non‑acute sector and to also fill a vacancy amongst our current establishment.

We currently have 11 MEs working on the rota and we wish to invite applications from those interested in joining the rota to expand the service for 2 PA/Session per week.

We are seeking experienced clinicians who wish to take up the additional role that will be remunerated on a sessional basis. The minimum commitment is 1 PA / Session per week. Successful candidates will need to cover one of the following sessions:

• Thursday AM
• Thursday PM

Successful candidates are expected to complete the e‑Learning module for medical examiners and any additional training, as specified by the Medical Examiners committee of the RCPath before commencing work as a medical examiner. MEs should maintain up‑to‑date knowledge of clinical causes of death, together with death certification requirements and processes (https://(Use the "Apply for this Job" box below).).

A Medical Examiner must be a medical practitioner, registered with the General Medical Council and maintaining a licence to practise by compliance with the GMC requirements for revalidation. They must meet the essential requirements of the person specification and comply with the duties set out in the job description. Medical practitioners must have been registered as a medical practitioner and in practice throughout the previous five years as at the date of appointment.

The medical examiners will undergo online training offered by Health Education England.

• Ensure compliance with the legal and procedural requirements associated with the current processes of certification, investigation (by coroners) and registration of deaths within a Local Authority area
• Attend the Bereavement Office Monday to Friday to review deaths where the responsible clinical team attend to complete the required processes, with an option to join the Out of Hours service at weekends and Bank Holidays
• Support doctors preparing an MCCD
• Identify deaths which need discussion or referral with the coroner
• Scrutinise the certified causes of all in‑hospital deaths in a way that is compliant with proposed national protocols
• Work closely with the Bereavement Nurse/office and consider concerns and complaints raised by family members which may trigger a referral to the coroner or review via the Serious Incident framework
• Review the notes of all deaths in appropriate detail to ensure that further review is conducted as needed
• Identify all deaths that require mandatory review. The Medical Examiner scrutiny also selects cases which require a second‑tier, in‑depth structured judgement review
• Maintain comprehensive records of all deaths scrutinised and undertake analysis and provide information as required to Office of National Statistics & locally for clinical governance purposes
• Work with any other local medical examiner(s) in the Trust to arrange reciprocal cover for holidays and other periods of absence
• Ensure that there is no potential conflict of interest between the medical examiner and the death being scrutinised
• Explain to bereaved relatives the cause of death in a transparent, tactful and sympathetic manner, respecting different faith, cultural, ethnic and diversity considerations
• Explore any concerns that the bereaved relatives have about the care received by the patient, and take further action as needed
• Support the training of junior doctors in completion of MCCDs and provide feedback on accuracy of certification locally
• Undertake a period of initial training according to national guidelines, with local orientation where local rules exist (e.g., Coroners)
• Update training as necessary in the light of developing legislation and advice on the role of the Medical Examiner
• Further information regarding this role is provided within the attached Job Description and Person Specification

We are delighted that we have been rated as Good by CQC and have achieved numerous awards, including the Nursing Times Best Diversity and Inclusion Practice and Best UK Employer of the Year for Nursing Staff in 2020.

The Trust is a supportive working environment committed to creating flexible working arrangements that suit your needs and, as such, will consider all requests from applicants who wish to work flexibly.

Medical practitioners must be registered by the General Medical Council to practise in the UK.