Head the Department of Anaesthetics and Critical Care at Grey’s Hospital and manage its operational and strategic matters, including coordination of relevant services within Area 2. Ensure the provision of safe, cost-effective and high-quality anaesthetic and critical care services, including appropriate clinical cover for elective and emergency procedures. Oversee preoperative assessment, intraoperative anaesthetic care, recovery and postoperative support, in collaboration with surgical and other relevant clinical departments.
Provide operational oversight of critical care services within the department’s approved scope, including admission and discharge processes, bed utilisation, patient prioritisation and referral pathways. Formulate and execute annual operational plans and medium- to long-term departmental strategies aligned with the Department of Health’s priorities. Develop and implement strategies to meet APP and other performance targets, including theatre utilisation, cancellation rates, ICU bed occupancy, patient flow, clinical outcomes and waiting times, as applicable.
Manage staff performance, EPMDS, recruitment and retention, labour relations, disciplinary processes, conflict management and grievance handling. Ensure appropriate staffing levels, skills and competencies of departmental personnel, including sessional practitioners where applicable. Promote teaching and training of registrars, medical officers, interns, nursing personnel and undergraduate students, including postgraduate supervision and academic programmes.
Maintain liaison with the relevant departments and training institutions at the University of KwaZulu- Natal, CMSA, HPCSA and other academic partners, as applicable. Ensure clinical governance through regular morbidity and mortality meetings, clinical audits, utilisation reviews, incident reviews and quality improvement activities. Maintain and review the departmental risk register and implement measures to prevent and manage clinical, operational and medico-legal incidents.
Design, implement and evaluate quality assurance and improvement programmes to reduce patient safety incidents and improve service efficiency. Participate in quality initiatives, including QA meetings, implementation of the Ideal Hospital Realization and Maintenance Framework, norms and standards, and OHSC-related activities. Manage budgets and resources prudently and ensure that essential anaesthetic and critical care equipment, medicines, medical gases and consumables are available, functional and appropriately maintained.
Work with Finance, Supply Chain Management, Clinical Engineering and relevant hospital units to address equipment downtime, procurement delays and resource constraints. Chair and participate in relevant committees at Grey’s Hospital as required. Maintain accurate departmental records and statistics, including theatre activity, anaesthetic procedures, critical care utilisation and clinical outcomes.
Work collaboratively within the Pietermaritzburg Metropolitan Hospitals Complex, with referring hospitals, DCSTs and EMS. Oversee and support outreach, in-reach and approved virtual support programmes in Area 2. Manage and address client complaints involving the department and ensure appropriate follow-up and corrective action.
Provide specialist advice to clinicians on anaesthetic, perioperative and critical care management within the scope of the department. Undertake clinical duties, including commuted overtime, as required and in accordance with prescribed requirements. Serve as acting Senior Manager: Medical Services when required and formally delegated.