Career Planning

Background: Sarah qualified as an ODP in 2017 and worked in a busy district general hospital theatre department, developing specialist competence in anaesthetics and complex airway management. In 2022, she moved into a Band 6 role in the hospital's level 2 critical care unit. 

Role: Sarah works within the critical care MDT supporting the management of ventilated and critically ill patients. She uses her advanced airway skills for intubation support, tracheostomy care, and weaning management alongside ICU nurses and intensivists. She coordinates patient transfers for imaging and inter-hospital repatriation, applying her skills in maintaining a safe environment for ventilated patients during transit. 

Enhanced practice in action: Sarah leads a rolling competency programme for nurses and ODPs new to critical care airway management. She has contributed to a trust-wide audit on tracheostomy complication rates and used the findings to update the unit's standardised care bundle. She is currently completing a postgraduate module in critical care to further develop her clinical knowledge base. 

Pillars demonstrated: Clinical Practice (complex airway, risk management), Leadership (MDT contribution, transfer coordination), Education (competency programme design), Research (audit, care bundle development).

Background: Priya qualified as an ODP in 2014 and built broad experience across all three perioperative phases, including a special interest in patient safety and optimisation. In 2021 she moved into a Band 6 enhanced practice role within the trust's pre-operative assessment service. 

Role: Priya reviews patients independently prior to surgery, taking focused histories and assessing fitness for anaesthesia. She identifies patients who need anaesthetic review or onward referral and initiates optimisation pathways for patients with complex comorbidities including diabetes, obesity, and cardiorespiratory disease. 

Enhanced practice in action: Priya has redesigned the trust's pre-assessment pathway for elective colorectal surgery, contributing to a reduction in day-of-surgery cancellations due to inadequate optimisation. A key part of this work has been her contribution to the development and running of the colorectal enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) programme — she attends the ERAS MDT, contributes to patient education sessions on what to expect before, during, and after surgery, and helps audit adherence to the ERAS bundle across the colorectal surgical pathway. 

Pillars demonstrated: Clinical Practice (independent assessment, patient optimisation), Leadership (pathway redesign, ERAS MDT contribution), Education (patient education), Research (ERAS bundle audit, data-driven improvement).

Background: James qualified as an ODP in 2013 and spent several years developing specialist scrub skills across orthopaedics, gynaecology, and general surgery in an NHS trust. In 2020 he moved to a private hospital where he works as a senior scrub ODP and Surgical First Assistant (SFA), a role recognised by the Royal College of Surgeons and the Association for Perioperative Practice (AfPP). 

Role: James works directly with consultant surgeons as their primary scrub practitioner across a range of elective procedures, and acts as Surgical First Assistant for listed cases. In his SFA capacity he provides surgical assistanceunder the direct supervision of the operating surgeon — including tissue retraction, wound closure, diathermy, and maintaining the operative field — while holding full accountability for his own actions within his defined scope of practice. He also coordinates the theatre team, ensuring safety standards, WHO checklist compliance, and smooth list management. 

Enhanced practice in action: James has developed a local SFA competency and supervision framework for the hospital, drawing on the AfPP SFA Competency Toolkit and RCS curriculum. He provides mentorship to Band 5 ODPs developing their scrub skills and delivers structured orientation to new theatre staff. He contributes to the hospital's clinical governance process, presenting case reviews and near-miss data at the monthly theatre safety meeting. 

Pillars demonstrated: Clinical Practice (specialist scrub, surgical first assistance, operative field management), Leadership (theatre coordination, safety and governance contribution), Education (SFA competency framework, mentorship), Research (case review, near-miss analysis, governance reporting).

Background: Donna worked as an ODP for eight years, specialising in emergency anaesthesia and trauma. Her expertise in airway management and cardiac arrest response led her to transition into a Resuscitation Officer role, where her ODP skill set is applied in a hospital-wide capacity. The resuscitation officer role is often a Band 6–7 transitional role — once qualified as an ALS instructor, progression to Band 7 is a common and recognised pathway. 

Role: Donna responds to in-hospital cardiac arrests as a first responder and leads the whole cardiac arrest team — directing team roles, coordinating interventions, and supporting junior doctors in developing their team-leading skills. She attends paediatric and neonatal emergencies across the trust and is involved in the full range of medical emergency response. She is responsible for delivering ALS, ILS, BLS, PILS, and EPALS training to clinical staff at all grades, and manages the resuscitation equipment audit programme across the trust. 

Enhanced practice in action: Donna has redesigned the trust's mandatory resuscitation training programme using simulation-based methodology and blended learning principles. She runs regular post-arrest debriefs and in situ simulation exercises on clinical wards to build confidence and skills in staff who may rarely encounter a cardiac arrest. She represents the resuscitation service at a range of trust-wide forums including the End of Life committee, the Deteriorating Patient Group, and the National Cardiac Arrest Audit meetings. She contributes to the Resuscitation Council UK's regional training network and has co-authored the trust's post-resuscitation care policy. 

Pillars demonstrated: Clinical Practice (cardiac arrest team leadership, paediatric and neonatal emergencies, advanced airway), Leadership (trust-wide committee representation, policy authorship, junior doctor development), Education (ALS/ILS/PILS/EPALS delivery, in situ simulation, debrief facilitation), Research (National Cardiac Arrest Audit, training outcomes evaluation).

Background: Chris worked in a busy trauma centre theatre department for seven years, developing expertise in damage control surgery, complex airway management, and major haemorrhage protocols. Following the trust's workforce review, a Band 6 ODP post was created in the emergency department to support the senior clinical team. 

Role: Chris is embedded in the ED clinical team, working alongside emergency physicians and nurses to support procedural sedation, airway management for critically ill patients, preparation for emergency surgery, and care of major trauma patients. He uses his perioperative knowledge to bridge the theatre-ED interface — briefing surgical teams on incoming trauma cases, coordinating emergency theatre activation, and supporting damage control resuscitation in resus bays. 

Enhanced practice in action: Chris developed a joint ED-theatre protocol for emergency airway management that has been adopted trust-wide. He delivers regular simulation-based trauma training for junior ED doctors and nursing staff. He is currently completing a postgraduate certificate in Emergency and Acute Care to formalise his enhanced practice. His work has been shared at a regional perioperative care network event as an example of ODP workforce innovation. 

Pillars demonstrated: Clinical Practice (procedural sedation, airway management, major trauma), Leadership (pathway development, theatre coordination), Education (simulation training, junior doctor teaching), Research (protocol evaluation, regional dissemination).

Background: Rachel qualified as an ODP in 2012 and spent several years working in a major trauma centre, developing specialist expertise across orthopaedic, spinal, and damage control surgery. Her in-depth understanding of the trauma pathway, theatre systems, and MDT working led to her appointment as a Band 6 Trauma Coordinator, a role that sits at the interface between clinical practice and operational service management.

Role: Rachel coordinates the trauma theatre list across the major trauma centre, working alongside orthopaedic and general surgical consultants, anaesthetists, ward teams, and the emergency department to plan, prioritise, and schedule trauma cases in line with clinical urgency and BOAST guidelines. She attends the daily trauma meeting, contributes to decision-making around case prioritisation, and liaises with theatres, ITU, and wards to ensure patients are optimised and ready for surgery. She maintains an overview of theatre capacity and escalates delays or patient safety concerns through appropriate governance channels.

Enhanced practice in action: Rachel has led a quality improvement project reviewing time-to-theatre for neck of femur fracture patients, identifying delays in the pre-operative pathway and working with the anaesthetic and orthopaedic teams to implement a streamlined admissions process. She has developed a local trauma coordination handbook and induction pack used across the department, and delivers regular teaching to new ODPs and theatre nurses on trauma list management and BOAST standards. She is an active member of the trust's trauma governance group and contributes to the morbidity and mortality review process.

Pillars demonstrated: Clinical Practice (trauma pathway expertise, case prioritisation, patient safety oversight), Leadership (trauma meeting contribution, theatre capacity management, escalation), Education (trauma coordination handbook, induction teaching), Research (QI project, neck of femur pathway audit, M&M contribution).