Join our Theatres team

About us

Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is the largest employer in the county and with over 8000 staff, we are one of the largest NHS trusts in the UK.

Our trust has 31 operating theatres across three sites and employs approximately 500 multidisciplinary personnel. We have a wide range of specialities serving adults and paediatric patients. These include General Surgery, Ophthalmology, Trauma and Orthopaedics, Gynaecology, Urology, Vascular, Emergency Surgery, Head and Neck and obstetrics.

We have a dedicated team of Practice Development Practitioners within theatres that is a group of resourceful, dynamic experienced nurses and Operating Department Practitioners (ODPS) who aim to support the individual, department, and Trust in achieving the best care for everyone. This includes induction of new staff, their ongoing development, and encouraging the development of multi-skilling. We also support students from across the multidisciplinary team.

There are many opportunities to develop through link roles such as infection control, tissue viability, audit, as well as the opportunity to undertake accredited apprenticeships such as Senior Healthcare Support Worker (Level 3) and ODP (Level 6). We also offer many Level 7 opportunities to support continuous professional development and service provision.

Theatres encourage their team to study with the Trust safety & Quality improvement Academy and use acquired skills to identify and facilitate changes to improve patient care.

Benefits of working with us

These are exciting times within the Theatre Department with:

• State of the art robotic surgery.
• New Day Surgery Unit at Cheltenham General Hospital.
• Theatre Refurbishment projects across the site.
• Progressive and proactive Practice Development Team.
• Access to continuous CPD (Continuous Professional Development).
• Health Care Support Workers have the opportunity to undertake a theatre specific level 3 apprenticeship. This qualification forms part of our pathway supporting colleagues to enrol onto The University of Gloucestershire Operating Department Practice BSc (Hons) programme

Theatre Team

Our teams are responsible for assessing, planning, and evaluating care for patients undergoing surgery. We provide safe and effective environments for our patients and work collaboratively with the multidisciplinary team in the following areas: anaesthetics, scrub, and recovery.

Anaesthetic

The anaesthetic practitioner will:

• Provide individualised care before and throughout the perioperative phase, including reassurance and support during vulnerable phases.
• Use a wide range of clinical skills, knowledge and understanding to ensure a safe environment during the administration and maintenance of anaesthesia.
• Position the patient to optimise surgical access.
• Maintain patients’ safety and dignity.
• Medicines management.
• Prepare a wide range of specialist equipment and devices.
• Assist the anaesthetist in the safely securing and maintaining the patient’s airway and physiological stability during anaesthesia.

Scrub

The scrub practitioner will:

• Work as part of a team to provide safe, individualised care during surgery.
• Take professional responsibility for selecting, preparing, and providing the correct sterile surgical equipment and implants to the surgeon, and being accountable for all the surgical instruments, equipment, sharps, and swabs throughout the procedure.
• Anticipate the surgical teams’ requirements, responding appropriately and effectively.
• Ensuring correct management of clinical specimens.
• Communicate effectively with patients, colleagues, and the multidisciplinary team.

Post-anaesthetic care

The post-anaesthetic care practitioner will:

• Care for the patient whilst in the post-anaesthetic care unit (PACU).
• Observe and monitor patients’ vital signs.
• Maintaining the patient’s airway, identifying and responding to changes in the individual's physiological and psychological condition.
• Provide appropriate treatment including pain control and postoperative nausea and vomiting care until the patient has recovered from the immediate effects of anaesthesia and, is assessed in order to ensure they are fit to be discharged from the post anaesthetic care unit.

Healthcare support workers

The healthcare support worker will:

• Work as part of a team to provide safe, individualised care during surgery
• Prepare the theatre.
• Assist the scrub practitioner selecting, preparing, and providing the correct sterile surgical equipment and implants.
• Check surgical instruments, equipment, sharps, and swabs throughout the procedure with the scrub practitioner.
• Anticipate scrub practitioners' needs.
• Facilitate patient transfer throughout the perioperative phases.

Apprentices

As a department, we employ apprentices into a variety of roles to support their ongoing development within theatres and further education.

Find out more about apprenticeships at GHNHSFT here

Theatres vacancies and Bank

To find out more about job opportunities in Theatres, visit: https://www.jobs.nhs.uk/ and search using the keyword “Theatres" and "Gloucestershire" for location. To apply to work on the Bank within the hospital, please contact the hospital Bank office on 0300 422 6223.