Job summary
***INTERNAL APPLICANTS ONLY***

We are seeking a motivated and enthusiastic Operating Theatre Practitioner (ODP or Registered Nurse) to join our dynamic perioperative team. This is an excellent opportunity for a newly qualified practitioner or someone at the beginning of their theatre career to consolidate, maintain, and develop their skills across all three core theatre specialities: Anaesthetics, Scrub and Post-Anaesthetic Care (Recovery).

Working within a supportive multidisciplinary team, you will provide high-quality patient care throughout the perioperative journey, assisting in the preparation of theatre environments, supporting anaesthetic procedures, maintaining a safe and sterile surgical field, and delivering compassionate care during patients' recovery from surgery. You will gain exposure to a wide range of surgical specialities and techniques, enabling you to build a broad and valuable skill set.

We are committed to supporting professional development and offer structured training, competency-based learning, and mentorship from experienced theatre practitioners. This role provides an ideal foundation for those wishing to progress their career within perioperative practice while contributing to excellent patient outcomes and high standards of clinical care.

If you are passionate about patient care, eager to learn, and looking for a role that offers variety, development, and career progression, we would love to hear from you.

Main duties of the job
As an Operating Theatre Practitioner, you will deliver safe, high-quality care across Anaesthetics, Scrub and Recovery, working in line with HCPC/NMC standards, Trust policies and best practice. You will assess, plan, deliver and evaluate patient care, ensuring safety, dignity and a positive patient experience throughout the perioperative pathway.

You will support patients and families, act as a patient advocate, prepare equipment and assist with anaesthesia, maintain aseptic practice as a scrub practitioner, and provide skilled post-operative care in recovery. You will recognise and respond to patient deterioration, maintain accurate records, comply with medicines management and infection prevention standards, and contribute to emergency responses.

Working closely with the multidisciplinary team, you will support safe, efficient theatre services, participate in quality improvement activities, and contribute to the development of students and colleagues. You will maintain your professional competence through ongoing training and development while demonstrating the Trust's values and commitment to equality, teamwork and continuous improvement.

About us
Wye Valley NHS Trust is a member of an NHS Foundation Group with South Warwickshire University NHS FT, George Eliot Hospital NHS Trust and Worcestershire Acute NHS Hospitals Trust.

Located on the border with Wales in the shadow of the Black Mountains, we provide acute and community services across Herefordshire and into parts of Powys and run Hereford County Hospital and the community hospitals in Bromyard, Leominster and Ross-on-Wye.

We are a progressive and forward looking trust with ambitious plans to improve quality and integrate patient pathways through close collaborative working with our partners to deliver the quality of care we would want for our family and friends.

More than 3,000 people work for the Trust. They tell us it's a great place to work, blending the busyness of a DGH with the benefits of working in a beautiful rural and unspoilt county like Herefordshire.

We can offer a great work-life balance and have a fine tradition of working with staff to help them achieve their full potential.

Russell Hardy, Trust Chairman: "The strength of the Trust is its amazing staff; a great place to work, a great place to develop your career and a great place to reach your potential."

Our values - Care, Accountability, Respect and Excellence - are at the heart of all we do. We believe in providing the right care in the right place at the right time.

Details
Date posted: 03 November 2026
Pay scheme: Agenda for change
Band: Band 5
Salary: Depending on experience Per Annum, Pro Rata
Contract: Permanent
Working pattern: Full-time
Reference number: 229-SUR-8402437
Closing date: 17 November 2026

Person Specification
Education and qualification (Essential)

• RODP + current HPC registration

Skills, knowledge and abilities (Essential)

• Sound knowledge of current professional issues
• Able to work within a multi-disciplinary team
• Understanding of perioperative care and anaesthetic practice
• Knowledge of infection control, health & safety, and safeguarding policies
• Awareness of clinical governance and audit processes
• Effective verbal and written communication skills including ability to deal with sensitive information and where there may be barriers to communication
• Able to plan and organise own activities to manage time effectively in order to meet service requirements
• Ability to analyse problems and coming up with viable solutions
• IT literate
• Ability to manage and use resources effectively within the team, including safe use of equipment
• Awareness of NHS policies and performance targets
• Understanding of theatre scheduling and workload management
• Ability to challenge the MDT to influence evidence-based practice when implementing Trust and departmental policies and SOPs

Experience

• Essential: Experience of applying clinical reasoning skills to a range of varied patient case mixes
• Essential: Share evidence based practices with colleagues to enhance service and standards
• Essential: Experience mentoring students or junior staff
• Essential: Competence across anaesthetic, scrub & post-anaesthesia skills
• Desirable: Personal plan for post registration continual professional development related and relevant perioperative subjects

Personal attributes (Essential)

• Advocate for the profession and role model, working within NMC/HPC codes of conduct
• Flexible & Adaptable to work 24/7 (BHs, evenings, nights, week-ends and on-call)
• Professional approach to manage challenging situations
• Compassionate and patient-focused
• Sensitive in handling of difficult information and situations
• Professional, accountable and adaptable
• Teaching and assessment abilities
• To act with honesty and integrity
• Commitment to continuous improvement and learning
• Enthusiasm for service development and innovation
• To be able to demonstrate the ability to work collaboratively with scrub and recovery team members
• To support the development of colleagues and students to get the best performance from them
• To be able to embrace change and identify opportunities for best outcomes
• To demonstrate a positive can do attitude
• Ability to work effectively under pressure
• Willingness to undertake additional responsibilities and training

Other factors

• Essential: Ability to fulfil the travel requirements of post
• Essential: Able to safely meet Moving & Handling requirements of job
• Essential: Commitment to Trust Values of Compassion, Accountability, Respect and Excellence
• Desirable: Willingness to undertake additional responsibilities and training

Contact
Team Leader Anaesthetics: Marilyn Kaye-Allen, Marilyn.kaye-allen@wvt.nhs.uk, 01432355444

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. 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. Applicants must have current UK professional registration.