Associate Director - Clinical Systems
Job summary
The postholder will be responsible for the strategic development, maintenance, and support of the trust's clinical systems to develop a single, comprehensive digital clinical record. Working closely with Deputy Director of Informatics and the Chief Clinical Information Officer the role will contribute and lead the overall strategic development of digital systems and their use to support the trust clinical and operational services.
The role provides leadership and line management to the Digital Systems and Project Teams, as well as advice, support and guidance to the staff responsible for administering or managing departmental digital systems.
The post is key member of trust's senior digital leadership team.
Please note that the interview process for this role will include an assessment centre - interviews will be held on 7th September 2026.
Main duties of the job
The post holder establishes strong working relationships with internal operational teams and external systems suppliers alike to deliver the necessary suite of digital systems to support the Trust.
The role is the primary source for advice and guidance for staff managing departmental or other digital systems outside of the IT Department's corporate responsibilities.
To be a senior member of the EPR Programme management team and contribute to the strategic decision making and development process which impacts the whole organisation. Taking the lead on advising on long-term strategic IT business plan that impact the whole organisation.
Assist in the development of the Trusts Digital Strategy ensuring that the whole organisation continues to develop its digital maturity.
The postholder will be expected to create an environment of continuous quality and service improvement, patient safety and increasing digital maturity, in line with the organisation's digital strategy, the national Minimum Digital Standards and "What Good Looks Like".
The post holder will have a key role in helping to ensure that the organisation achieves its corporate objectives whilst making a positive contribution in ensuring that the care provided is safe, personal, and effective by providing digital solutions that are innovative, reliable, resilient and easy to use.
About us
Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust serves a population of over 600,000 with a workforce of over 10,500 dedicated and skilled staff across 21 sites.
Our services:
Acute Care
Providing emergency and maternity services at Whiston, Southport and Ormskirk hospitals, and medical and surgical specialties across all our sites.
Primary Care
Providing primary care services at Marshalls Cross Medical Centre situated in St Helens Hospital.
Community Services
Providing adult community services for St Helens and a wheelchair service in Chorley, South Ribble, and West Lancashire. Our inpatient unit at Newton Community Hospital is where patients needing acute hospital beds can continue rehabilitation. We also provide urgent care at our Urgent Treatment Centre located in St Helens town centre.
Specialist Regional Services
We provide the Mersey Regional Burns & Plastic Surgery Unit at Whiston Hospital and the Spinal Injuries Unit at Southport Hospital to more than 4 million people across the whole of Merseyside, West Lancashire, Cheshire, Isle of Man and North Wales.
Achievements:
- Rated Outstanding by CQC Inspection August 2018
- Top 100 places to work in the NHS (NHS Employers & Health Service Journal)
- National Preceptorship Accreditation (2023) for Nursing & AHP Preceptorship Programme.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Responsible for the management, delivery of the Digital Systems and Project services acting as the lead for Digital Systems services, offering expert advice and support to the CCIO, Informatics leadership team, Trust senior clinical management, users of corporate clinical systems, senior clinical staff and external agencies as required. The role is the primary source for advice and guidance for staff managing departmental or other clinical systems outside of the IT Departments corporate responsibilities.Communications and RelationshipsProvides and receives highly complex or contentious information, communicating with system suppliers, colleague networks, local internal governance arrangements, Trust staff and NHS bodies external to the Trust regarding the management, maintenance, improvement and strategic plans for corporate digital systems which impact the whole organisation. Assesses the impact of the gathered information on the Trusts current plans and adjusts them as required to meet the Trusts stated goals, aligning with the Digital Strategy and 5-year plan. Communicate IM&T service issues to both operational and external staff guiding them on the course of action to take. Develops and delivers complex IT presentations to large groups of peers and executive teams.Explains the financial, clinical, qualitative and patient safety benefits of the agreed plans for corporate clinical systems to staff at all levels of clinical and non-clinical staff throughout the Trust, influencing, persuading and negotiating with staff where those plans are contentious. These explanations are provided in settings that include but are not limited to, Trust Board, Hospital Management Board, IM&T Council, EPR Council, service meetings and external events, such as user groups, conferences etc.
Works collaboratively with other colleagues in delivering shared Digital Systems projects as well as providing peer review support to new implementations in other Trust in the ICS or more widely as necessary.
Working directly with the ICS and NHSE
Works with senior operational managers and directors to fulfil statutory obligations and clinical compliance, whilst maintaining performance (operational and financial).
Conveys user feedback and details of their prevailing issues within the IT Senior Team to ensure the Department remains focused on its service to end users and reflects changes in clinical service priorities and developments in care. Also conveys user feedback to suppliers in events such as user groups and workshops to influence future developments and functionality of the system.
Plays a part in the governance of IT in the Trust with membership of various Trust meetings along with chairing groups, representation on the IM&T Council as needed along with Supplier Service and programme Meetings as well as user and project groups as required.
Promotes the use of corporate digital systems and the information they provide throughout the organisation.
Provide direct management leadership to the Digital and Project teams providing expertise to work through complex service issues.
Present complex service system issues to stakeholder groups and provide advice and guidance to resolve.
Support and manage service re-design issues by presenting system options to alleviate and provide preferred outcome.
Use specialist knowledge and previous experience from similar system implementations to provide assurance to the organisation.
Communicates complex project design, financial, contractual information to senior managers, business partners, board level representatives as required.
Person Specification
Qualifications
- Degree qualification or Post Graduate qualification MSc/MBA or ability to demonstrate relevant knowledge, skills & experience to masters level
- Prince2 Qualification
- ITIL v3 (or above)
- Relevant qualification or work experience - Change Management
- Relevant Management Qualification
Knowledge & Experience
- Substantial management experience at a senior level in an EPR provision environment within the NHS
- Significant Managerial experience in an IT Department and working with various IT systems
- Significant experience with significant involvement in managing demand from multiple work streams including large scale projects
- Substantial experience of leading a department through a period of significant technological and service change
- Ability to demonstrate success in managing large complex ICT environments
- Experience of working/managing projects as part of the NHS National ICT Strategy
- Successful implementation of complex, large scale IT projects and programmes within NHS organisations
- Experience of managing organisational change projects/programmes
- Previous NHS Experience
Skills
- Extensive IT skills
- Demonstrates personal and professional credibility Proven leader
Other
- Ability to drive to various hospitals by own car/assisted driver
- Demonstrates personal and professional credibility Proven leader
- Work collaboratively with both IM&T and non-IM&T colleagues
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.
Employer details
Employer name
Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
Address
Whiston Hospital
Warrington Road
Prescot
L35 5DR
United Kingdom
Employer's website
https://www.merseywestlancs.nhs.uk/