Expert Scientist Dissector - Histology
Northampton General Hospital
Northamptonshire, NN1 5BDView on map(opens Google Maps in a new tab)
Salary
£49,387 to £56,515
Contract
Permanent
Hours
Not specified
Closing date
18 October 2026
20 days leftJob description
The Cellular Pathology department receives, examines and reports upon a wide range of diagnostic tissue samples, these vary widely in terms of size an...
The post holder will have a pivotal role within dissection at a large Cellular Pathology department and will assist in the delivery of a quality driven, patient focused, staff supported service consistent with pathology's aims and objectives in a manner commensurate with the profession.
The post holder will be expected to work closely with the senior leadership and clinical teams, providing expert professional skills and advanced knowledge in the macroscopic description, dissection, and block sampling of tissue specimens to support accurate histological reporting and high-quality patient care.
The post holder will support the Advanced Scientist Dissector to provide resilience in dissection and cover RCPath category C specimens as well as GI Category D & E specimens upon training.
The post holder will provide support and training in category A - B specimens
The post holder must be registered with the HCPC as a Biomedical Scientist or Clinical Scientist and will undertake Continuing Professional Development and clinical audit.
The post holder must hold Membership (MIBMS) or Fellowship (FIBMS) of the Institute of Biomedical Science.
The post holder must possess the IBMS Diploma of Expert Practice including the GI module.
Communicate in a manner that is consistent with legislation policies and procedures.
Communicate effectively with all members of the Pathology staff, clinicians, and visitors to the department. Improve communication using communication skills and be aware of possible barriers to communication and how to overcome them. Deal sensitively with patient/ clinician enquiries in stressful situations.
Ensure confidentiality of all written verbal and electronic information. Keep accurate and complete records in line with legislation, policies, and procedures. Provide approved departmental information and advice to other healthcare professionals, patients, and the public, referring on appropriate specialist request for information outside their area of responsibility. Where required prepare and present information on equipment, processes, scientific and technical topics.
Attend and participate in departmental meetings and presentations. Effectively communicate outcomes and content of relevant meetings to team members.
Share information and best practice to improve levels of service provided by Pathology.
Maintain and promote the professional image of Pathology, laboratory medicine and Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust.
The post holder will be expected to dissect, describe and select appropriate areas for microscopic examination for both simple and some complex specimens (as defined by category).
Category E (Very High Complexity) Gastrointestinal Dissection
As an Expert Scientist Dissector, the post holder will demonstrate and provide a wealth of knowledge to junior staff and be instrumental to the development of their dissection skills.
An Expert Scientist Dissector is part of a clinical support team whose purpose is to provide timely and accurate high-quality scientific information that will assist service users from the hospital and community, in the establishment of a clinical diagnosis and monitoring of patient treatment. They will apply highly specialised professional judgement, scientific knowledge and practical skills to complex problem solving and Quality control issues and ensure that corrective actions are instigated in the event of non-compliance.
The post holder will use highly specialised knowledge to advise service users on laboratory protocols and convey information in a concise and clear manner that will be of help to service users in formulating patient care plans and management.
The Expert Scientist Dissector will advise service users of the suitability of methods of fixation and preparation and will work to ensure timely delivery of fully completed requests.
Please submit your application as soon as possible, as we reserve the right to close adverts once sufficient applications have been received.
We recognise that AI tools can support application writing; however, candidates are asked to keep their use to a minimum. Responses should reflect your own experience, skills and knowledge, as over-reliance on AI-generated content may result in generic answers that do not accurately represent your abilities.
University Hospitals of Northamptonshire (UHN) brings together Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust. As a group, we are committed to improving services for our communities through collaboration, modernising care delivery and striving for excellence. Working together enables us to share expertise, strengthen services and create greater opportunities, and there may be a requirement to work across sites depending on service needs.
Our Excellence Values are Compassion, Accountability, Respect, Integrity and Courage. UHN welcomes applications from all backgrounds and is committed to an inclusive working environment. We are proud signatories of the Armed Forces Covenant and hold the Gold Award under the Employer Recognition Scheme. Candidates who identify as members of the Armed Forces community and meet the essential criteria will be guaranteed an interview.
Key Competencies/Personal Qualities and Attributes
Essential: - Team worker.
Desirable: - Years experience in dissection and what categories
Knowledge and Experience
Essential
- Minimum of 5 years working experience in a hospital laboratory to include operation and maintenance of analytical equipment and quality indices. Experience of co-ordinating day to day laboratory activities.
- Experience of current platforms in use. Technical understanding of analytical platforms for routine patient sample testing and clinical understanding of data produced by such testing.
- Experience of IQC/EQA and its use.
- Experience of other quality activities such as auditing and change control.
- Experience in expert dissection to include GI
Desirable
- Experience of working in a UKAS 15189 accredited laboratory.
- Experience of portfolio supervision.
- Experience of resource management - staff, reagents, and consumables.
Educations, Training and Qualifications
Essential
- MSc or working towards an MSc qualification or experience of working in a Band 7 capacity.
- HCPC registration.
- IBMS Specialist Portfolio.
- Active CPD portfolio and plan.
- IBMS Diploma of Expert Practice (DEP) in Histological Dissection
Skills
Essential
- Oral and written communication skills.
- Ability to transmit information to other healthcare professionals.
- Effective interpersonal skills.
- Analytical skills.
- Able to perform a wide range of complex analytical techniques.
- Maintenance and troubleshooting on analytical equipment and assay issues.
- Perform and review QA, including reports and interpret within scope of practice.
- Planning and organisational skills.
- Prioritise own workload that will include several ongoing tasks.
- Supervise and organise a team of Biomedical Scientists and Biomedical support workers.
Desirable: - Basic IT skills to include use of Microsoft Office package.; - Experience of current Laboratory IT system.
How to apply
Applications are handled entirely by the employer on the original advert. We do not collect CVs, supporting statements or application data.
Provenance
Source
NHS Jobs
First seen
28 September 2026
Last checked
28 September 2026
Salary, closing date and description are taken from the employer's advert. The original advert always takes precedence.
About the employer
NHS organisation
This listing was structured from NHS Jobs. Vacancy details and the application process remain the responsibility of the original source.
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