Specialist Midwife Ultrasonographer (XR07) - #1659157

An exciting opportunity has arisen for the expansion of our already established Midwifery Sonographer team across Leeds, West Yorkshire.

The post holder is an expert clinical practitioner of midwifery, trained in ultrasonography who provides midwifery and ultrasound care for both low risk and high risk women. The post-holder will work in collaboration with the antenatal care team to provide ultrasound and midwifery care. The post carries continuing responsibility for the assessment of care needs, the development, implementation and evaluation of programmes of care and setting standards of care. The post-holder is expected to perform the full range of obstetric ultrasound procedures involved in the third trimester of pregnancy. This is a highly specialised clinical service with the postholder expected to independently report and interpret ultrasound images and document relevance accordingly.

The role will be supporting our existing team of Midwife Sonographers and Radiographers to deliver antenatal screening to nearly 10,000 women at both our St James University & Leeds General Infirmary sites.

By joining our exciting journey, you will form part of a passionate, talented team and will be able to access a wide range of learning and development opportunities. There has never been a better time to join our maternity services.

The post holder will work independently to perform ultrasound examinations and provide diagnostic reports of patients accessing the obstetric ultrasound department.

Discuss the findings with women or scan results including delicate and/or sensitive information (fetal demise, fetal abnormalities) and gives advice on appropriate follow-up or referral.

The post holder will perform a wide range of obstetric scans to include growth scans and umbilical artery Doppler.

They will participate in the training and education of nursing/midwifery students working in the division and supervise staff undertaking Sonography training, ensuring continuity of service delivery.

Provide ultrasound support for the obstetric consultants, fetal assessment unit, Antenatal Day Care Unit, Antenatal Clinic and all clinical areas within midwifery.

Ensure that the environment is conducive to safe working practice. Undertake basic fault-finding of ultrasound equipment, troubleshoot, report and document faults, undertake clinical risk assessments as appropriate.

To be an autonomous practitioner, promoting best practice and high standards whilst working closely with obstetric and midwifery colleagues.

The post holder will be expected to provide a service review when required and be actively involved in audit; implementing agreed areas for improvement and ensuring that relevant guidelines are kept up to date.

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust has approximately 9200 births per annum. The maternity units are tertiary referral centres for both obstetric and neonatal complications. The post-holder will provide midwifery and ultrasound care working autonomously and closely with other health-care professionals, and will be familiar with normal anatomy and variants as well as the enormous range of pathology.

The ANDU and Antenatal clinic is also influenced by specialities contained within this busy teaching hospital, including fetal-maternal medicine and reproductive medicine.

Leeds Teaching Hospitals is committed to our process of redeploying 'at risk' members of our existing workforce to new roles. As such, all our job adverts are subject to this policy and we reserve the right to close, delay or remove adverts while this process is completed. If you do experience a delay in the shortlisting stage of the recruitment cycle, please bear with us while this process is completed, and contact the named contact if you have any questions.

The post holder will act as a resource for ultrasound/midwifery issues for parents and healthcare professionals across the city. The post holder performs a range of obstetric ultrasound scans and reports independently on ultrasound images. This is used to inform appropriate midwifery care and referral.

The post holder will be expected to manage and co-ordinate ultrasound provision to ensure cost-effective use of resources. This post will involve direct liaison with community and acute services cross-city with medical, midwifery and nursing staff.

Clinical:

1. Provide continuity of midwifery care and ultrasound care and contribute to a seamless level of service.


2. Plan, implement and evaluate individualised programmes for women accessing antenatal care.


3. Communicate with the multidisciplinary team to enable a collaborative approach to care and take responsibility for the assessment of care needs in midwifery and ultrasound.


4. Monitor and maintain standards of midwifery and ultrasound, including health and safety.


5. Carry out a range of clinical examinations related to ultrasound and midwifery. Independently interpret, report and record ultrasound images and findings.


6. Contribute to departmental and multidisciplinary meetings.


7. The ability to deal with highly complex facts and situations that require analysis, interpretation and judgement through clinical information data and to assimilate a wide range of information to report the findings of examinations.


8. Report any abnormality or deterioration in fetal or maternal condition to the relevant fetal-medicine consultant, consultant obstetrician or specialist registrar or any other personnel as appropriate.


9. Determine the necessity for scans, repeat scans, and appropriate referral for ultrasound/midwifery/medical review.


10. Discuss the findings with women or scan results including delicate and/or sensitive information (fetal demise, fetal abnormalities) and gives advice on appropriate follow-up or referral.


11. To be an available resource offering specialist advice to other professionals.


12. Ascertain appropriate referral to other agencies.


13. Streamline the pathway of antenatal and ultrasound care and optimise clinical resources, thus reducing appointments for women and pressure on other team members.


14. Counsel women on scan results including giving bad news.


15. Provide continuity of ultrasound care and contribute to a seamless level of service.


16. Monitor and maintain standards of midwifery and ultrasonography, including health and safety.


17. Access and advise on ultrasound examination reports and take appropriate action.


18. Provide ultrasound support for the obstetric consultants, fetal assessment unit, Antenatal Day Care Unit, Antenatal Clinic and all clinical areas within midwifery.


19. Ensure that the environment is conducive to safe working practice. Undertake basic fault-finding of ultrasound equipment, troubleshoot, report and document faults, undertake clinical risk assessments as appropriate.


20. Practice seamlessly across midwifery and ultrasonography.


21. Provide a service that is cost-effective, provides high-quality care whilst fulfilling midwifery service requirements.


22. Provide guidance involving the impact of clinical findings of a midwifery examinations on the management of pregnancy.


23. Work to promote the development of midwives as considered appropriate.


24. Identify, avert and defuse potential areas of conflict within midwifery and ultrasound.


25. Be accountable for own actions and omissions and may need to advise other members of the team with regard to their actions and omissions.


26. The post holder would be required to investigate and respond to accidents and complaints within midwifery and ultrasound.


27. Liase with Matron with regard to care development issues to ensure financial viability of any developments combining midwifery and ultrasound care.


28. Lead person in implementing best practice standards and will work towards LTHT providing an ultrasound service in line with national standards and recommendations. (HTA, BMUS, UKAS, RCOG, RCR).


29. Lead in developing, maintaining, implementing and reviewing the ultrasound provision policies and guidelines working with senior managers in LTHT and in the PCTs to ensure adoption cross-city.


30. Provide guidance involving the impact of clinical findings of ultrasound examinations on the management of pregnancy.


31. Work to promote the development of colleagues training in ultrasound as considered appropriate.

Please see attached job description for full details.

• Degree in Midwifery or equivalent


• Registered Midwife


• Post graduate certificate in Ultrasound (1 year full-time university)


• Evidence of continued professional development

• Knowledge and experience of a wide range of approaches to this area to clinical practice

• Forward thinking


• Able to maintain judgement under pressure


• Motivated and enthusiastic


• Confident and able to take responsibility


• Excellent written and verbal skills


• IT Skills


• Ability to teach skills/knowledge to others within formal and informal environments


• Ability to cope working in a stressful environment

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.