This role requires capable and autonomous diagnosis and care of patients affected by cardiac pathologies requiring surgical intervention.
The Cardiologist will work as part of a team of international specialists – experts or in training – organising and directing the training of the local medical and health care staff in his/her area of responsibility, in collaboration with the international colleagues and the Medical Coordinator of the project. Some international resident physicians (Cardiology) may be present to support clinical activity or research. The international Cardiologist is responsible to the Medical Coordinator, who is in charge of the management and organisation of the project.
The main areas of work are:
In addition, he/she will carry clinical consultancy and diagnostic procedures (electrocardiography, transthoracic and transoesophageal echocardiography):
The Centre has the capacity to carry out up to 5-6 operations per day, as well as managing possible hospital emergencies. The number of specialists working alongside the Resident Physicians and local staff is variable; the workload is distributed in such a way as to guarantee patient care 24/7, with shifts and/or on-call duty including nights and holidays.
All EMERGENCY international personnel are expected to know and follow the hospital admissions criteria, guidelines, protocols, and the diagnosis and treatment standards in use in the Centre, and to ensure the correct compilation of clinical records and statistics in both computer and paper formats.
Considering the variety of specialist cardiac procedures it is not expected that any individual cardiologist will be experienced in all areas of activity. These are:
The main duties and responsibilities of the international Cardiologist are:
Clinical activities and patient care are always carried out alongside and in collaboration with local personnel, who thus benefit from training in the field. There is also provision for more specific teaching activities, managed by the international specialists, in accordance with the clinical protocols in use and as agreed with the Medical Coordinator.
Patients with every type of congenital and acquired heart disease present at the Centre. The caseload is extremely varied and may at times be pre-selected according to the experience of the specialists present in a given period. Most patients presenting at the hospital are seriously compromised: the main cause of this is that the health care system and therefore treatment, both in the Country and in the region as a whole, is fee-paying.
Since 2007 the Salam Centre has been the only completely free Cardiac Surgery centre in the region. The Centre forms the scientific and operational nucleus of a network of paediatric clinics situated in neighbouring Countries which also carry out screening and follow-up for both adult and paediatric cardiac surgery patients. The most common pathologies treated are valvular cardiopathy of rheumatic origin (RHD – Rheumatic Heart Disease), congenital heart disease suitable for surgical treatment, and ischaemic heart disease in the non-acute phase; over the past ten years of activity (2008 – 2017) around 55% of patients admitted have been under 26 years of age.
Due to the advanced level of work carried out, the equipment available and technical, architectural and managerial innovations, the Salam Centre for Cardiac Surgery is considered a centre of excellence at an international level.
Further information on the guidelines, protocols and clinical services relevant to the post along with details of the instruments and equipment available will be provided at interview and during the period of preparation for the mission.
The general requirements and conditions apply to all the international staff.
For this role EMERGENCY is also seeking resident physicians.
6 months overseas stay including a period of leave to be taken at the end of the mission in agreement with the coordinator. Shorter missions may only be considered for specific needs as defined by the organisation.