Welcome to our department!
Our team consists of 5 consultants, 4 rheumatology nurse practitioners, 1 research nurse, 2 specialty registrars (Oxford and Severn Postgraduate Medical Education) and administrative and secretarial support.
As a registrar in training your commitments include up to 4 general rheumatology clinics per week (including for some of your time with us one at Savernake community hospital near Marlborough), daily running of day therapy unit, ward referrals and overseeing DMARD blood test monitoring.
At present there is no on call and no general medical commitments in this job. In line with the rest of the country this is under review, and job plans will be adjusted accordingly when GIM training is needed.
There are no allocated beds for rheumatology patients. Patients are admitted to medical wards and cared for by both teams. Rheumatology is therefore mainly an outpatient specialty and allowance for increased administrative work and “on the phone” patient consultations are made in your timetable. Consultants are very supportive and always happy to be contacted.
You are expected to undertake audit and research and there is plenty of opportunity for it in this very dynamic and proactive department.
You are expected to contribute to teaching of medical students (Bristol University) and hospital junior doctors.
There are specialist clinics in bone health, Sjogren’s syndrome (tertiary referral centre), paediatric rheumatology, vasculitis and rheumatic interstitial lung diseases. You will get opportunity throughout the year to attend these.
A registrar teaching clinic runs twice a month, with direct supervision from one of the consultants. The aim is to get “on the job” feedback and teaching from consultants and allow completion of competency forms (DOPs, MinCEX, etc.).
The Great Western hospital is a modern busy medium sized district general hospital with a catchment area of up to 350,000. It provides general and acute surgery, critical care, coronary care, diagnostics, paediatric medicine and surgery, trauma and orthopaedics and midwifery and obstetric services. The relatively small size of the hospital allows close contact with other specialties in a very friendly environment. Consultants are very approachable and relationships between departments are excellent. There is a weekly educational medical meeting.
You can find out more about us here:
http://www.gwh.nhs.uk/wards-and-services/a-to-z/rheumatology/