Senior Clinical Biochemist, University Hospital

Details of Service

Cork University Hospital is one of the largest single multi-speciality hospitals in Ireland..

CUH is a major tertiary referral and trauma centre. Regional specialities include neurosurgery, plastics and burns, cystic fibrosis and cardiac surgery. It is the centre in Cork City and county for trauma orthopaedics.

Clinical Biochemistry is a consultant-led service that provides a diagnostic, analytical and interpretative service for a large range of analytes in body fluids. Clinical Biochemistry deals with the biochemical basis of disease and the use of biochemical tests for its diagnosis, prognosis, screening and management. The laboratory provides a reliable analytical service and advice on the management of patients with metabolic disturbances. As well as routine diagnostic work, the Department is actively involved in teaching students of medical science, science, and medicine. The Department has research and teaching links with the Departments of Medicine and Pathology of UCC and with Munster Technological University Biological Sciences Department. The Laboratory is involved in collaborative research with clinical colleagues, international collaborators in the EU IST framework and postgraduate research is also carried out. Staff members contribute as lecturers and project mentors to the UCC/MTU MSc. in Biomedical Sciences. The Royal College of Pathologists recognises the department for higher specialist training in Clinical Biochemistry.

The Department delivers a comprehensive routine and specialist Clinical Biochemistry service with one of the highest workloads nationally. The laboratory has recently implemented an automated track system and associated IT infrastructure and is currently focused on optimising end-to-end workflow, quality and turnaround times. Future service development will include consolidation of core services and the phased introduction of additional specialist testing aligned to clinical services on site.

Key Working Relationships

The key working relationships associated with this post are with laboratory colleagues and users of the service.

Day-to-day, the Senior Clinical Biochemist will work within the department with staff members including Biochemists, Medical Scientists, Chemical pathologists, Medical Laboratory Aides, and Clerical Staff.

The Department provides diagnostic services to a myriad of medical specialists and users include clinical and allied professionals including General Practitioners, Consultants and NCHDs, nursing staff, and operational managers throughout CUH and CUMH. Since the position has managerial and operational aspects, the candidate may be required to deal directly with diagnostic companies, Hospital management, external accreditation bodies, and external quality assurance providers.

For further information about the role, contact

Dr Seán Costelloe, Consultant Clinical Biochemist, CorkUniversity Hospital

Tel: 021 4922530

Email: sean.costelloe@hse.ie