Job summary
The ENT team at Dorset County Hospital (DCH) are looking for an outstanding colleague to join our friendly and well-equipped department as a consultant otolaryngologist. The successful candidate will provide general ENT services with a sub-specialty interest to complement the current specialty skills within the department - ideally this would provide support to colleagues in rhinology or benign head and neck (+/- thyroid) surgery. The appointee will be part of a team of 6 consultants delivering care to West and North Dorset and South Somerset.

Main duties of the job
The contract will commence as a 10 PA contract, comprising 8.5PA Direct Clinical Care (DCC) 1.5 PA for Supporting Professional Activity (SPA). This will be reviewed once the post holder commences employment via the job planning process.

There is a 4 week rolling rota for all clinical sessions.

On-Call 1:5 with prospective cover 1.2 DCC PAs

About us
At DCHFT, we pride ourselves on the care we provide for our patients, and on the culture, we are creating for our staff. We work hard to create a fair, inclusive environment for our staff.

Our Mission is to provide outstanding care for people in ways which matter to them, and our vision is Dorset County Hospital, working with our health and social care partners, will be at the heart of improving the well-being of our communities.

We are a Trust that celebrates diversity, and we are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We welcome applications from people in all under-represented groups.

We understand that AI can be a useful tool when completing your application. However, we are seeing an increasing over-reliance of AI tools, which can negatively affect your application as it reduces a candidate's individuality, and makes it difficult for us to gain a clear and authentic understanding of your experience, skills, and in turn your suitability for the role.

All submissions must be truthful and if you do use AI, it should only be used to enhance your application and not create your supporting statement in its entirety. Your supporting statement should be in your own words and must accurately reflect your personal experience and achievements. Where we have concerns that AI has been used to generate content that misrepresents your experience and suitability for the role, we may withdraw your application.

Details
Date posted: 16 October 2026
Pay scheme: Hospital medical and dental staff
Grade: Consultant
Salary: £113,565 to £150,569 a year Per Annum
Contract: Permanent
Working pattern: Full-time
Reference number: 405-MD2671ENT
Closing date: 30 October 2026

Job responsibilities
Inpatient and most outpatient services are provided at Dorset County Hospital (all consultants currently provide one outpatient session a week at Yeovil District Hospital). We do not provide inpatient head and neck cancer services (except for thyroid cancer), there is close liaison with colleagues in Poole and Taunton for patients requiring head and neck cancer care, surgical treatment or radiotherapy. Jon Bird, Head and Neck surgeon from Poole, provides a weekly head and neck cancer clinic at DCH for both new and follow up patients. MDT support is via our head and neck Clinical Nurse Specialist. On-call service is currently a 1:5 with full middle grade and junior cover. With the recent change in configuration of the ICS we are currently in discussion to develop a regional on-call service. It is anticipated that this would commence with a shared weekend rota (1:10) initially.

The ENT department is extremely well supported by our colleagues in Audiology (general audiology and vestibular testing), Speech & Language Therapy, Macmillan Nurses and 2 ENT Nurse Practitioners. Our outpatients provide general ENT clinics as well as specialised Neck lump clinics, Allergy Clinics, Voice clinics and Virtual clinics for hearing loss and tinnitus.

Person Specification
Education, Qualifications & Training

• Full GMC Registration with a licence to practice
• CCT (proposed CCT date must be within 6mths of interview
• Portfolio Pathway/CESR or European Community Rights

Experience & Knowledge

• 5 years clinical experience in otolaryngology / head and neck surgery at specialist registrar level or equivalent
• Appropriate UK experience
• Sub-specialty Fellowship (or equivalent)
• Experience demonstrating potential ability to cope with the demands of a DGH based Consultant
• Experience in general ENT with the necessary skills to enhance the department.

Current Skills & Abilities

• Willingness and ability to fulfil the general service elements of the job description
• Evidence of the clinical skills required to fulfil the otolaryngology / head and neck elements of the job as in the job description and technical specification

Team Working and Service Development

• Ability to develop effective working relationships and team working

Understanding and Participation in Clinical Governance (Desirable)

• Evidence of understanding of clinical governance Knowledge of and direct involvement in audit. Knowledge of principles of research and evidence of involvement in research.

Management Training, Organisational Skills and Strategic Vision

• Evidence of general management training and skills appropriate for the post. Evidence of ability to contribute to the strategic direction of the Trust Knowledge of organisational aspects of the NHS

Teaching and communication

• Evidence of teaching experience and abilities appropriate to the post. Ability to present effectively to an audience Ability to communicate effectively

Disclosure and Barring Service Check
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.

Certificate of Sponsorship
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website. From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants.

UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website.

Employer details
Employer name: Dorset County Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Address: Dorset County Hospital, Williams Avenue, Dorchester, DT1 2JY, United Kingdom
Employer's website: https://www.dchft.nhs.uk/working-for-us/

For questions about the job, contact:
Mr Bruno Kenway
bruno.kenway@nhs.net
01306251150