Locum Consultant NeonatologistJob Specification & Terms and ConditionsJob Title and GradeLocum Consultant NeonatologistCompetition Reference2025/163Closing DateFriday December 5th 2025Taking up AppointmentJanuary 2026Location of PostThe Rotunda Hospital, Parnell Square, Dublin. The commitment for this post will be to the Rotunda Hospital for 37 hours per week. This is a new post. This post may be subject to restructuring in the future to facilitate the re-organisation of acute services in line with new clinical models of acute and community services. It is noted that the post must be congruent with the requirements of, and facilitate implementation of national health policy, the HSE's National Clinical Programmes including commitment to deliver the relevant performance outcomes.Details of ServiceThe Rotunda Hospital was established in 1745 in the heart of Dublin and it is a modern, busy and progressive Maternity Hospital, which delivers close to 9,000 infants annually. The Rotunda Hospital provides tertiary maternity care for around 9000 deliveries per year. The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) of the Department of Paediatrics provides specialist intensive, high dependency and special care for approximately 1300 infants per annum.Reporting RelationshipAs per POCC 2023 the Consultant's reporting relationship and accountability for the discharge of his/her contract is:i) To the Master / Chief Executive Officer of the hospital through his/her Clinical Director.Purpose of the PostThe high level purpose of the post is to provide consultant expertise for the neonatology services.The Rotunda has led the way as an institution in setting up as the first regional perinatal centre. Since 2011 all babies < 27 weeks are accepted from Cavan and Drogheda. The Neonatal Unit is also a national referral centre for therapeutic hypothermia and has a 9-5 to 24/7 national neonatal transport role every third week. The Rotunda is the regional centre for neonatal support to Cavan and Drogheda (RCSI Hospital Group). This Neonatal network was established in 2008 and was originally set up and funded to cater for all babies < 27 weeks in the region.Medical student, NCHD and extended team teaching is a core part of the consultant role.Principal Duties and ResponsibilitiesStandard Duties and responsibilities:Delivery of patient care, supervision of junior colleagues in training, sharing administrative duties and contributing to the educational programme within the department of Neonatology.Clinical management of the department of Neonatology, in conjunction with other Neonatology Consultant colleagues. The precise division of responsibilities between the Consultants in Neonatology will be agreed between the Consultant, Speciality lead, the Clinical Director and the CEO or their appropriate delegate. These responsibilities will be reviewed on an annual basisParticipation in the consultant on-call rota in the Neonatology Department.Undertaking essential supporting duties for clinical care including, inter alia, risk management, critical incident investigation and oversight of rostersUndertaking of Child Protection duties associated with the role of Consultant in Neonatology and services provided at the hospital. The Consultant Neonatologist will play a lead role in ensuring systems are in place for the care of other at-risk or vulnerable neonatology patient groupsParticipation in the Clinical Directorate structure. The Consultant shall receive training and support to enable him/her to participate fully in such structuresContribution to clinical governance and clinical operations improvement activities in the Department of Neonatology.Participation in the collection, analysis and the reporting of data necessary for quality assurance activities in the Department of Neonatology.Organisation and participation in teaching, including undergraduate and postgraduate teaching, nursing and other clinical staff.Participation in conference commitments of the department and of the hospital for the Department of Neonatology.Supervision and responsibility for diagnosis, treatment and care provided by non-Consultant Hospital Doctors (NCHDs) under the Consultant's care.Being responsible for the recruitment, supervision and training of an assigned team of non-consultant hospital doctors, in conjunction with Consultant colleagues.Ensure all non-consultant hospital doctors assigned to his/her team attend Hospital Orientation and, where appropriate, departmental orientation.Contribute to the provision of structured training and situational learning opportunities for NCHDs on recognised training programmes and support the clinical and professional development of medical staff in the Department of NeonatologyInvolvement in research activities in the department, as appropriate to a Consultant Neonatologist post in the hospital.Engage in clinical audit activity and provide leadership in multidisciplinary clinical audit in the Department of Neonatology.Actively engage in Continuing Professional Development and comply with Professional Competence Assurance requirements.A willingness to develop special interest aspects of Neonatology as appropriate to one's competencies and the Department of Neonatology.Participate in Major Incident and structured Pre-hospital responses outside the hospital as appropriate to one's professional competency and skills in this area, if requested to do so on behalf of the hospital and within the governance of the HSE.Attendance at management and service development meetings at departmental, hospital, regional or national meeting of strategic importance to the department or hospital. This may include participation in other professional and administrative groups as appropriate to the role of Consultant in NeonatologistTo ensure in consultation with the Clinical Director that appropriate medical cover is available at all times.Provide such service commitments and specific duties as detailed in the Health Service Executive letter of approval for this post.Follow the agreed guidance for patient/service user engagement to ensure the voice of the child, young person and family is considered in the development and implementation of the clinical network.Attend and participate in meetings relevant to the post, e.g. Medical Board and appropriate division.Liaise with the Chief Executive/s, Group Chief Executive, Group Clinical Director, Clinical Director/s, Director of Nursing, Director of Operational Services, Management Team/s, relevant senior Medical and Nursing staff and other staff in all matters pertaining to the general efficiency of the hospital.Perform such other duties appropriate to his/her office as may be assigned to him/her from time to time by the Clinical Director/Chief Executive or their designated officer, of the hospital.The above is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all duties involved and consequently, the post holder may be required to perform other duties as appropriate to the post which may be assigned to him/her from time to time and to contribute to the development of the post while in office.Eligibility CriteriaQualifications and/ or experienceProfessional QualificationsMandatory(a) Registration as a specialist in the Specialist Division of the Register of Medical Practitioners maintained by the Medical Council in Ireland in the specialty of Neonatology or General Paediatricsand(b) Two years certified postgraduate training in Neonatology.The successful interviewee must be registered as a specialist in the relevant specialty on the Specialist Division of the Register of Medical Practitioners maintained by the Medical Council of Ireland, within 180 days of the day of interview and before taking up appointment. In exceptional circumstances proleptic appointments may be considered for candidates engaged in relevant training programmes.The Consultant must, at all times while continuing to hold office, continue to be registered with the Medical Council of Ireland. Documentary evidence of Medical Council Registration is required and must be produced annually to the Medical Administration Department.Should the successful candidate not be registered as a Specialist at that time, the post may be offered to the next suitable candidate. Should no suitable candidate exist, a further recruitment process may be initiated.DesirableClinical fellowship in Neonatology, national or international.Higher Degree qualification.Entry to competition / recruitment processHealthA candidate for and any person holding the office must be fully competent and capable of undertaking the duties attached to the office and be in a state of health such as would indicate a reasonable prospect of ability to render regular and efficient service.CharacterEach candidate for and any person holding the office must be of good characterAgeAge restrictions shall only apply to a candidate where he/she is not classified as a new entrant (within the meaning of the Public Service Superannuation Act, A candidate who is not classified as a new entrant must be under 65 years of age on the first day of the month in which the latest date for receiving completed application forms for the office occurs.Other requirements specific to the postSkills, competencies and/or knowledgeSignificant experience in clinical practice in delivery of acute unscheduled care at both local and national levels.Experienced clinician with credibility and the ability to command the respect of all clinical and non-clinical professionals.Experience of developing, applying and reviewing an evidence-based approach to decision making.Excellent inter-personal skills, including experience and familiarity with public, professional, media and political communications and stakeholder relations.Demonstrate commitment to fostering partnerships, multi-professional and multi-disciplinary relationships.Demonstrate a knowledge and undertaking of the current governance structures and anticipated changes with the establishment of the new children's hospital.Experience in reconfiguring acute services across organisations and regions.Demonstrate leadership and team management skills including the ability to manage his/her staff and service and work with multi-disciplinary team members.Experience of operating in complex and challenging environments.Knowledge of the Irish health sector, national health programmes and health reform agendas.Strong negotiation and influencing skills.Effective change management skills.Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written.Risk and issue management skills.Ability to recognise and respect the expertise of others and the contribution of team members and harness good teamwork and open contributions to enable the achievement of programme aims.Demonstrate evidence of effective planning and organising skills including awareness of resource management.Have excellent computer skills, competencies and knowledge of hospital data/ information systems.Competition Specific Selection ProcessRanking/Shortlisting / InterviewA ranking and or shortlisting exercise may be carried out on the basis of information supplied in your application form. The criteria for ranking and or shortlisting are based on the requirements of the post as outlined in the eligibility criteria and skills, competencies and/or knowledge section of this job specification. Therefore it is very important that you think about your experience in light of those requirements.Failure to include information regarding these requirements may result in you not being called forward to the next stage of the selection process.Protection of Persons Reporting Child Abuse Act 1998As this post is one of those designated under the Protection of Persons Reporting Child Abuse Act 1998, appointment to this post appoints one as a designated officer in accordance with Section 2 of the Act. You will remain a designated officer for the duration of your appointment to your current post or for the duration of your appointment to such other post as is included in the categories specified in the Ministerial Direction. You will receive full information on your responsibilities under the Act on appointment.This job description is a guide to the general range of duties assigned to the post holder. It is intended to be neither definitive nor restrictive and is subject to periodic review with the employee concerned.Informal enquiries to:Prof Michael Boyle, Neonatology Lead, Application procedure:Applications should include a current Curriculum Vitae and Cover Note.If you have any issues applying, please contact This post will be in full compliance with relevant Employment Legislation Acts.