Position overview

Canberra Health Services (CHS) is focussed on the delivery of high quality, effective, person-centred care. We provide acute, sub-acute, primary and community‐based health services, to the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and surrounding regions. More information can be found on the CHS website.

The Department of Cardiology is a well-established service with 14 consultant medical staff positions, four Accredited Cardiology Advanced Trainees, and two Unaccredited Cardiology Advanced Trainees, in addition to Basic Physician Trainees and other Junior Medial Officers.  They work as part of a large multidisciplinary team including specialist nursing staff, cardiac physiologists, cardiac sonographers, administrative staff and the cardiac rehabilitation team. Patients accessing the services include adults of all ages, acuity, frailty and disability, who present for diagnosis and treatment of a range of acute and chronic cardiac conditions.  Our Cardiology Team strives to deliver an exceptional and caring service for our patients, our community and each other.

The coronary care unit is a 19-bed unit which has over 2000 admissions annually.  The cardiology outpatient service provides up to 4,500 episodes of care annually with increasing demand each year. There is a close working relationship with our cardiothoracic surgical unit.

The Interventional Cardiology Service includes two dedicated cardiac catheter laboratories which undertake over 800 coronary interventional procedures and over 1,600 angiography procedures annually.  It provides a 24/7 service for primary PCI for acute ST elevation myocardial infarction for the region. A structural heart disease program is being developed. The service also provides simple and complex cardiac device implantation service and follow up. Clinical cardiac electrophysiology services were commenced in April 2019 with complex ablation procedures.

The echocardiography service performs over 4,000 procedures per year. Regular transoesophageal echocardiography service and stress echocardiography is provided, with additional emergency cover. Cardiac CT program commenced in 2017 in collaboration with the Department of Radiology.  Cardiac MRI is part of the proposed development plan for the department.

There is a dedicated heart failure clinic coordinated by a Heart Function Advanced Practice Nurse.   These clinics provide ready access to phone advice, education on self-management, avoid recurrent presentations and to assist with reducing length of hospitalisation by early bridging to outpatient care or closer to home care program.  The Department also provides a nurse led cardiac rehabilitation service supported by cardiologists, with strong engagement from patients and their families.

Duties

Under limited direction of the Cardiology Unit Director you:

1. Provide clinical services to clients and participate in the clinics and on-call rosters for the Cardiology service. This includes:
   1. Management of patients referred to the cardiology outpatient clinics, including timely triaging, consultation, diagnosis, reporting and treatment of cardiac conditions (e.g., medical clinics, Holter monitoring, Exercise Stress Testing, and implantable device monitoring).
   2. Participation in on-call rosters.
   3. Participation in Echocardiography service (transthoracic, transoesophageal and stress echocardiography), including reporting, and conducting urgent echocardiogram studies when indicated. The role also includes provision of support to the allied health team for timely triaging of echocardiogram studies for both inpatient and outpatient clinics.
   4. Contributing to the planning, development, and provision of advanced echocardiography / multi-modality imaging services at CHS including CTCA and developing cardiac MRI service.
   5. Contributing to direct cardiology inpatient care, patient consultation requests from other units and timely ward rounds to ensure patient management is safe, optimal and expedited.

   2. Assist the Cardiology Unit Directors to ensure appropriate clinical governance mechanisms are in place for the Department.

   3. Actively engage in quality and safety activities, service redesign, and model of care development for the Department and the Division

   4. Contribute to regular teaching and training of Cardiology Advanced Trainees and the multidisciplinary clinical team including cardiac sonographers and promote clinical research within the Cardiology Department.

   5. Undertake other duties appropriate to this level of classification which contribute to the operation of the organisation.

About you

CHS is committed to workforce diversity and to creating an inclusive workplace. As part of this commitment, we welcome applications from all diversity groups. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, people with disability and people who identify as LGBTQIA+ are particularly encouraged to apply.

Behavioural Capabilities

To be successful in this position, it is expected that the successful candidate will have the following attributes:

• Adaptability and flexibility to accommodate change and provide responsive services to meet patients’ needs;
• Displays critical thinking skills and forms sound conclusions based on evidence and sound judgement;
• Effective communication skills and the ability to develop and maintain networks across Canberra Health Services and with external parties
• Ability to work within multi-disciplinary and management teams and adapt quickly to a changing environment.

In addition to a commitment to work, health and safety (WH&S) and contributing to the CHS positive patient focus displaying behaviours consistent with the organisational values of Reliable, Progressive, Respectful and Kind.

Position Requirements / Qualifications

Mandatory

• Be registered or be eligible for registration with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA).
• Hold a Fellowship of the Royal Australasian College of Physicians (FRACP) in Cardiology or an equivalent higher specialist qualification.
• Fellowship in echocardiography/ cardiac non-invasive imaging (multi-modality).
• CHS is leading the drive to digitally transform health service delivery in Australia through the implementation of a territory wide Digital Health Record. Computer literacy skills are required which are relevant to this role as you will be responsible for completing required documentation and becoming a proficient user of the Digital Health Record and/or other Information Technology systems; once proficient, you will need to remain current with changes, updates, and contingencies.
• Have an understanding of how the National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) indicators align with this role.
• Fulfil the responsibilities of this role in alignment to the CHS Exceptional Care Framework, Clinical Governance Framework, Partnering for Exceptional Care Framework and all other related frameworks.

For Senior Specialist we will also expect that you:

1. Have demonstrated advanced clinical experience outlined in a CV that clearly and comprehensively outlines the applicant’s professional history.
2. Have been employed at the equivalent of a Specialist Band 5 for a period of at least three years.
3. Have demonstrated their advanced ability to provide leadership to their colleagues through either clinical or administrative means.
4. Have gained demonstrable advanced experience and attained such ability in the relevant speciality that is acceptable to CHS, to justify a recommendation for advancement to Senior Specialist by the Review Panel.
5. Be able to demonstrate their ability to undertake duties and responsibilities deemed by CHS as those expected of a Senior Specialist.
6. Be able to demonstrate that they are performing at a level consistent with this competency framework.

Please note prior to commencement successful candidates will be required to:

• Undergo a pre-employment National Police Check.
• Prior to commencing this role, a current registration issued under the Working with Vulnerable People (Background Checking) Act 2011  is required.
• Comply with Canberra Health Services Occupational Assessment, Screening and Vaccination policy.
• Comply with Canberra Health Services Credentialing and scope of clinical practice requirements for medical professionals.

To be considered for a Senior Specialist position, you will also be assessed against two or more of the following selection criteria:

1. Clinical: Show advanced clinical expertise in their speciality area, which may include the ability to work without supervision, as recognised by their peers.
2. Safety and Quality: Provide leadership through:
   1. a demonstrated ability to be effective in leading safety and quality activities, including experience relevant to specialist college accreditation
   2. providing senior medical input to the safety and quality activities of the medical unit and clinical division, and
   3. participating actively in specialist college accreditation, as overseen by the Australian Medical Council.
3. Teaching: Provide senior input using demonstrated experience in the development and provision of teaching and training at CHS and services in the surrounding region.
4. Research: Undertake speciality-specific research and/or have relevant publications of research in a respected health or medical journal.
5. Administrative functions: Support the medical unit director in the administration of the unit and provide senior medical input to the development of policies and practices of the unit.

What you require (key selection criteria)

These are the key selection criteria for how you will be assessed in conjunction with your resumé and experience.

1. Extensive clinical experience in the practice of General Cardiology and Echocardiography/ Multimodality Imaging to manage the varied caseloads and case mix, and to practice evidence-based person-centred care, along with a demonstrated commitment to the maintenance and further development of these skills.
2. Demonstrated understanding of, and commitment to, all aspects of clinical governance relevant to the specialty.
3. Demonstrated high-level communication and interpersonal skills and demonstrated ability to provide leadership and work as a team member in a multidisciplinary environment.
4. Demonstrated interest and experience in teaching and research.
5. Demonstrates understanding of, and adherence to, safety and quality standards, work, health and safety (WH&S) and the positive patient experience. Displays behaviour consistent with CHS’s values of reliable, progressive, respectful and kind.

Work environment description

The following work environment description outlines the inherent requirements of the role and indicates how frequently each of these requirements would need to be performed. Please note that the ACT Public Service is committed to providing reasonable adjustments and ensuring all individuals have equal opportunities in the workplace.