HEKA Recruitment

The Resident Medical Officer (RMO) is the doctor who inhabits, is resident at the private hospital for the period of cover. Most private hospitals in the United Kingdom are required to have a RMO on site 24 hours a day to cover for cardiac arrests on behalf of consultants. The hospitals vary in size, medical complexity and workload but a typical private hospital will handle elective, low-risk surgery only. There are relatively few acute medical admissions, as private hospitals generally do not accept myocardial infarcts, etc. Only the larger hospitals (>60 beds) will have ICU or ITUs and most of the clinical workload is geared towards general ward work and managing post-operative complications.

RMOs cover private hospital for emergencies and general ward work. Some hospitals may require RMOs to assist in theatre. Outside of office hours (in the evenings and weekends), the RMO is the only doctor on site and must be confident in dealing with clinical emergencies on behalf of admitting consultants.

Salary & Rotation options:

Every full time contracted RMO will have the opportunity to earn between £32,000 and £60,000 gross per year.

Salaries are paid monthly and in a year the RMO can have 17 weeks of free time. Most EU doctors enjoy much less than 17 weeks of freedom in their current jobs and are paid significantly lower salaries in their own countries.

The contracts are signed for a fixed term of either 6, 9 or 12 months and the most common rotation is 1 week ON – 1 week OFF although other rotations are accepted as well.

Requirements:

• At least 2 years of post-graduate hospital experience.
• A very good level of English, both spoken and written.
• Recent surgical and medical experience. This means you need to have worked in a Surgery ward for at least 6 months and also 6 months in a Medical department in the last 2 years. If doctors do not have this, they will have to show pre- and post-operative experience, which includes time in Accident and Emergency and time in Anaesthesia & Intensive Care.
• Doctors must be competent in basic medical skills: blood taking, cannulation, ECG’s, urethral catheterisation,  insertion of naso-astric tubes and obtaining arterial blood gasses.
• All applicants are required to hold full adult and paediatric resuscitation qualifications (ACLS and APLS or equivalent). Support will be provided with getting these qualifications.
• Ability to carry out general ward work in line with the specific hospital job description. This often includes updating consultants, pharmacy procedures and may include clerking patients.
• You will be a team member and need to present a friendly and professional demeanor to patients and staff alike. Also, you will be expected to lead the resuscitation team in the event of a cardiac arrest and so you need to be able to display leadership skills.

Advantages of the RMO work:

• Working schedule adapted to your professional and personal needs; various rotations so that, if you want, you can keep your job in the home country;
• Attractive salaries without having to work the entire month;
• No IELTS needed for the GMC registration. The British RMO employer does not ask doctors to take the IELTS exam and generally use an alternate path to get them licence to practice.
• Meals and accommodation are provided free of charge for the RMO whilst on duty and the on-call room will usually have satellite TV and Internet access.

RMO work offers opportunities to travel, spend time with your family or work on research during your off weeks, whilst earning an excellent salary for the time you spend in the UK. It also has become the most popular way of earning a living in the UK whilst at the same time gaining firsthand experience of the British health system.

Apply for these jobs by sending us your English CV and one of our dedicated consultants will be happy to contact you to discuss the above option. Also, if you have colleagues who might be interested in these opportunities, please contact us.