The remote isle is famous for its stunning scenery.
The job is based on the Orkney island of Hoy(Image: Alan Majchrowicz / Getty Images)
A rare chance to live and work on a beautiful Scottish island has come up, with NHS Scotland advertising a new job opportunity in Orkney. The position comes with a potential salary upwards of £52,000, while accommodation will also be made available to the post-holder.
At the moment, NHS Orkney is looking to hire a nurse on the island of Hoy on a fixed-term and full-time basis. Hoy is the second-largest island in Orkney after the Mainland. It is known its beautiful and dramatic landscapes, and for being home to landmarks like the Old Man of Hoy sea stack.
The island nurse position comes with a salary of between £43,231 and £52,679 according to the NHS Scotland website, and will involve 36 hours of work per week. The successful applicant will receive rented accommodation that is available locally through a private landlord.
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According to NHS Scotland, those residing on Orkney will also receive a Distant Islands Allowance of £1,719 pro rata per year. NHS Orkney also offers a pension scheme, a number of work-life balance policies, an employee assistance programme, and a range of discounts at both local and national retailers.
The nurse will be working as part of a small team that delivers healthcare to the population of Hoy, which is home to approximately 400 people in total. Whilst on duty, the post-holder will be the only provider of comprehensive nursing services to the island’s entire population.
Hoy(Image: Cavan Images / Getty Images)
The post-holder will be responsible for the assessment and implementation of care to individuals and families on Hoy. They will also participate in the out-of-hours on-call rota to provide pre-hospital emergency care alongside the on-call GP. Additionally, the nurse must make sure that care is delivered safely and effectively.
The island nurse will undertake duties in a range of settings on the island, including its surgery, patients’ homes, and the scene of accidents such as road traffic accidents in the provision of emergency care services. They will also be responsible for chronic disease care planning and implementation, palliative care, vaccination programs, and more.
Those applying for the position must be adaptable and able to work without the resources of a hospital at hand. They should also be comfortable being responsible for the assessment, planning, and monitoring of quality health care within the community across the life span.
The nurse will be responsible for providing quality healthcare to the population of Hoy(Image: Grant Squibb / Getty Images)
Applicants should be experienced nurses who are forward thinking, highly motivated, and possess up-to-date clinical knowledge and skills. They must also have an interest in working and developing a wide range of skills in a remote and rural setting, as well as a full UK driving license.
Other desirable attributes include experience working in a remote and rural area and strong interpersonal and communication skills. Candidates should ideally also possess evidence of multidisciplinary team working, excellent organisation and leadership, and the ability to prioritise work.
NHS Scotland states: “Are you ready to develop new generalist skills and build on your experience? Could your nursing skills and experience help us to achieve our vision of becoming a centre of excellence in remote and rural healthcare? NHS Orkney aspires to being a centre of excellence in remote and rural healthcare and we are keen to recruit an Island Nurse who shares this vision to support our team on Hoy.
“Hoy, with a population of approximately 388, is a branch of the Orcades Practice (approximately 1,953 patients) which consists of six single-handed island practices with GPs and nurses providing 24/7 healthcare to the smaller islands of Orkney. Weekly Teams meetings enable clinicians to share knowledge and experience to overcome professional isolation and provide strong peer support.”
For more information about the job listing, see the NHS Scotland website.