Neonatal Simulation Fellow in Neonatal Medicine

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Neonatal Simulation Fellow post in Neonatal Medicine. This is a fixed term for 12 months commencing 5th March 2025- 3rd March 2026. This post will provide an excellent opportunity to further develop your skills in the Neonatal Department and are suitable for West Midlands paediatric trainees who are looking for opportunities for out of programme training (OOP) at ST3 equivalent and above. This post will also be attractive for future neonatal grid aspirants. It is possible to defer the start date to September 2025 (interested applicants are encouraged to apply and a deferred start date can be discussed). This current post is 60% clinical commitment and 40% commitment to neonatal departmental simulation.

The postholder will work a full middle grade on-call neonatal rota. The post holder will be working alongside other postgraduate doctors in training, clinical fellow, advanced neonatal nurse practitioners (covering purely neonatology) and neonatal consultants.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will work on a 1:9 full-shift neonatal tier 2 rota (subject to change), covering the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Transitional Care Unit, postnatal wards, Midwifery Birth Centre and Central Delivery Suite.

Working under supervision of the 9 neonatal consultants and participating in ward rounds on the NICU.

Attending high risk deliveries anywhere in the maternity centre and providing appropriate newborn resuscitation.

Supporting the junior tier doctors and ANNPs in carrying out examinations on babies who meet the criteria for a paediatric Newborn and Infant Physical Examination and entering the data onto the SMART4NIPE database. Assessment and management of babies on NICU, the postnatal wards and labour wards.

Completing admission and discharge paperwork on the Badger database for babies admitted to the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and Transitional Care Unit.

Communicating with parents of babies on the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Transitional Care Unit, postnatal wards and after discharge, as required.

Carrying out investigations on babies on the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Transitional Care Unit and postnatal wards, as required, under the supervision of the neonatal consultants.

Carrying out practical procedures, according to level of competence, under the supervision of the neonatal consultants.

Participation in the neonatal education programme

The level 3 Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at the Royal Stoke University Hospital is a lead centre and regional NICU within the Staffordshire, Shropshire and Black Country Newborn Network. The birth population is 7000 deliveries per year.

The NICU opened in 2009, providing 6 intensive care, 6 high dependency and 14 special care cots. In 2016 we opened a Transitional Care Unit and expanded to 10 cots. We have 600 NICU admissions & 630 TCU admissions each year, including tertiary referrals from other neonatal units within and outside our newborn network. The unit has facilities for conventional and volume targeted ventilation, HFOV, inhaled nitric oxide, cranial ultrasonography, echocardiography and therapeutic hypothermia. There are facilities for MRI and EEG in ventilated babies and weekday neonatal surgeons on site. The NICU has been awarded a Care Excellence Platinum Award by the trust and has won the Best Training Unit Award in the West Midlands region in 2023

The on-site training opportunities will be the same as that provided to postgraduate doctors in training (PGDiT's), who are currently on training rotations within the West Midlands School of Paediatrics. The department benefits from an ongoing departmental teaching program with many consultant delivered teaching sessions, and opportunities to participate in the departmental clinical audit and quality improvement activities.