Anaesthesia Intern

Optivet Referrals is currently looking for one anaesthesia intern to join its team as soon as practically possible. The ideal candidate is a veterinary surgeon with a strong interest in anaesthesia and analgesia, ideally with some previous anaesthesia experience or that would like to broaden their post-graduate experience in a multidisciplinary referral hospital. This internship is an excellent opportunity for a veterinary surgeon interested in enrolling in a residency program later on, as they will gain the required experience working under the supervision of a specialist Anaesthetist (Diplomate ACVAA and ECVAA).

About us

Optivet Referrals is one of the leading Veterinary Ophthalmology hospitals in the UK, with state-of-the-art facilities, that is rapidly expanding and accepts referral surgical and medical cases apart from ophthalmology referrals. The Anaesthesia and Analgesia team consists of a senior anaesthetist (Diplomate ACVAA and ECVAA), a resident of the ECVAA and an anaesthesia intern. The rest of the team includes an ECVS diplomate Surgeon, an RCVS Internal Medicine specialist, 2 Ophthalmology specialists, 4 Ophthalmology registrars, 3 Ophthalmology residents, 2 ophthalmology interns and 2 rotating interns.  The caseload includes a wide variety of ophthalmology surgeries (cataracts, retinal reattachment, glaucoma surgery, corneal grafts, entropion, face lifts, enucleations, etc..), orthopaedic and soft tissue surgeries, medicine procedures (E.g. endoscopies, bronchoscopies, biopsies) and computed tomography cases (both inpatients and outpatients). The majority of the patients are dogs and cats (95%), and the remainder are exotics. The anaesthesia equipment incorporates advanced ventilatory and haemodynamic monitoring, including non-invasive cardiac output, mechanical ventilators, peripheral nerve stimulators (for neuromuscular function monitoring and nerve blocks) and a dedicated ultrasound machine for ultrasound-guided peripheral loco-regional blocks.

About the role

The responsibilities of the intern will be to support the veterinary team and the nursing team in the care of all patients. The anaesthesia intern will be expected to contribute to the pre- intra- and post-operative care of patients needing anaesthesia and will also have their own cases under direct supervision by the Diplomate anaesthetist. The Anaesthesia team holds weekly Journal club meetings, which the anaesthesia interns are expected to attend. The whole Optivet team holds weekly in-house CPD presentations, where the interns are expected to present at least once during the internship.

The internship will have a duration of 12 months. A competitive and attractive benefit package is offered. The interns will be expected to work 40 hours per week and will be expected to do both day and night shifts. Holidays are 25 working days plus statutory bank holidays, and CPD allowance is 5 days. A further 5 days may be taken as unpaid leave should the intern wish to pursue other training opportunities or attend other conferences. There will be a 3-month probationary period, during which the internship may be terminated by either party with a one-week notice period.

Optivet Referrals is located in Havant, Hampshire, in the South of England, near Portsmouth, Chichester, Winchester and Southampton, with easy train access to London city centre and 1 hour 20 min by car to Heathrow and Gatwick airports. The South of England enjoys more days of sun than the rest of the country, has beautiful beaches and is very close to nature reserves like the South Downs and the New Forest.

About you

Interested candidates please contact Eva Rioja Garcia (eva@optivet.com), our Head of Anaesthesia and Clinical Lead, or Emma Phillips (emma.phillips@optivet.com), our People Lead. Candidates must be already MRCVS and be in the UK, with the right to work in the UK (Pre-settled or Settled status or with a valid UK working VISA for the duration of the internship). Candidates not having currently MRCVS status or not having already the right to work in UK will not be considered this time. There is no application deadline, and we will consider all candidates until the position is filled.