Population Health Clinical Fellow

Use clinical and population health expertise to support the development and improvement of evidence-based care pathways, clinical policies and new models of care.
Support the implementation of population health management approaches, including undertaking health needs assessments, identifying opportunities for improvement and monitoring the impact of interventions.
Analyse and interpret complex quantitative and qualitative data, epidemiological information, research evidence and national guidance to inform recommendations and decision-making.
Undertake literature reviews, clinical audits, evaluations, surveys and other research activities to support service and pathway improvement.
Contribute to strategies and plans designed to improve population health outcomes, reduce health inequalities and address unwarranted variation in access, experience and outcomes.
Build effective working relationships with clinicians, managers, NHS providers, primary care, local authorities, voluntary sector organisations, patients and public representatives.
Facilitate and contribute to multidisciplinary and cross-organisational groups, workshops and meetings, managing differing or conflicting views constructively.
Communicate complex, sensitive or potentially contentious information clearly to a range of internal and external audiences, including through written reports and formal presentations.

Job description
The Clinical Fellow will work within the Population Health Unit in the Strategy, Planning and Evaluation Directorate, under the supervision of a Consultant in Public Health. The post provides an opportunity to develop practical experience in population health, public health, strategic commissioning, clinical leadership and health and care transformation across a large and complex integrated care system.
The postholder will bring a medical perspective to commissioning, service transformation, resource allocation and quality improvement. They will work across organisational and professional boundaries to help translate national policy, clinical guidance and best practice into deliverable local programmes, policies and service changes.
The Clinical Fellow will take responsibility for defined projects or workstreams, working with an appropriate degree of autonomy within agreed professional and organisational parameters. This will include planning and coordinating complex activities, managing interdependencies, identifying and resolving delivery issues, maintaining appropriate project documentation and ensuring that agreed outputs are completed.
The postholder will contribute to the organisations approach to utilisation management and value for money. This will include considering how resources are used across the health and care system, assessing the financial and operational implications of proposed changes, and contributing to business cases and programme budgets.
The role does not include direct patient contact or an on-call commitment.
Main responsibilities
1. Project and programme delivery
Take responsibility for agreed projects or discrete workstreams, developing clear objectives, milestones, deliverables and monitoring arrangements.
Coordinate contributions from different teams and organisations, ensuring that activities are aligned and interdependencies are identified and managed.
Provide concise updates and briefings to senior colleagues on progress, risks, dependencies, decisions required and proposed mitigating actions.
2. Clinical advice on commissioning decisions
Interpret clinical recommendations, professional standards and national guidance in the context of local commissioning decisions.
Apply agreed local policies and decision-making frameworks consistently when contributing to value assessments.
3. Policy review and implementation
Review existing local clinical policies to determine whether they remain consistent with current national guidance, professional standards and organisational priorities.
Draft or revise local policies and supporting documentation for consideration through the relevant approval process.
Translate national guidance into clear local requirements, identifying areas in which implementation may require changes to contracts, workforce, digital systems, referral arrangements or clinical practice.
Assess the potential consequences of proposed policy changes for patients, providers, commissioners and different population groups.
Support the implementation of approved policies by developing practical guidance, briefings, implementation plans and monitoring arrangements.
Advise colleagues on the interpretation and application of national, professional and organisational policies within the scope of the role.
4. Resource stewardship and value for money
Consider the financial, workforce, operational and opportunity-cost implications of proposed policies, services and improvement initiatives.
Contribute clinical advice to business cases, options appraisals and investment or disinvestment proposals.
Examine the potential effect of decisions across different parts of the health and care system, including the risk that costs or activity may be transferred between organisations or services.
Support the identification of opportunities to improve productivity, reduce low-value activity and make more effective use of available capacity.
5. Utilisation management
Support work to understand variation in the use of health and care services and the factors contributing to that variation.
Examine whether activity is taking place in the most clinically appropriate setting and whether alternative approaches could deliver better outcomes or value.
Contribute to reviews of referral patterns, thresholds, clinical practice and service utilisation within defined programmes.
Help identify opportunities to reduce avoidable, ineffective or lower-value activity while protecting patient safety and access to clinically necessary care.
Support the translation of utilisation findings into practical commissioning, improvement or implementation actions.
6. Clinical quality and safety
Identify potential clinical risks associated with proposed service, pathway or policy changes and ensure these are considered through the appropriate governance process.
Support the development of proportionate clinical quality and safety measures for defined programmes.
Escalate concerns promptly where information suggests a significant risk to patient safety, quality of care or organisational assurance.
Work within professional standards, organisational policies and agreed limits of competence when providing clinical advice.
Maintain appropriate confidentiality when handling patient-level, commercially sensitive or otherwise restricted information.
7. Strategic planning and implementation
Provide medical and public health input to medium- and long-term plans for service development and system transformation.
Translate strategic objectives into defined actions, deliverables and implementation requirements.
Consider how proposed changes may affect different services, organisations, professional groups and parts of the population.
Support options appraisal where several potential courses of action are available and the evidence or operating environment is uncertain.
Anticipate practical barriers to implementation and propose proportionate actions to address them.
Contribute to the alignment of local plans with national policy, organisational priorities and available resources.
8. Information systems and records
Use relevant local and national information systems required for the delivery of assigned work.
Support the effective operation of designated information systems where responsibility is allocated to the postholder.
Ensure that information is recorded, stored, shared and retained in accordance with organisational requirements.
Maintain accurate records of project activity, recommendations, decisions and supporting evidence.
Apply information governance, data protection and confidentiality requirements when using identifiable or sensitive information.
9. Governance, assurance and accountability
Ensure that assigned work complies with relevant statutory, regulatory, professional and organisational requirements.
Prepare evidence and documentation required for programme assurance, internal review or audit.
Support transparent decision-making by clearly recording the evidence reviewed, options considered, judgements made and approvals obtained.
Follow appropriate routes for clinical, financial, information and corporate governance.
Work within delegated authority and seek senior advice where matters fall outside the postholders competence or remit.
Contribute to the regular review of risks, controls, actions and delivery assurance within assigned programmes
For full details of the main duties and responsibilities of the role please refer to the job description and person specification documents attached.

Job description

The Clinical Fellow will work within the Population Health Unit in the Strategy, Planning and Evaluation Directorate, under the supervision of a Consultant in Public Health. The post provides an opportunity to develop practical experience in population health, public health, strategic commissioning, clinical leadership and health and care transformation across a large and complex integrated care system.

The postholder will bring a medical perspective to commissioning, service transformation, resource allocation and quality improvement. They will work across organisational and professional boundaries to help translate national policy, clinical guidance and best practice into deliverable local programmes, policies and service changes.

The Clinical Fellow will take responsibility for defined projects or workstreams, working with an appropriate degree of autonomy within agreed professional and organisational parameters. This will include planning and coordinating complex activities, managing interdependencies, identifying and resolving delivery issues, maintaining appropriate project documentation and ensuring that agreed outputs are completed.

The postholder will contribute to the organisations approach to utilisation management and value for money. This will include considering how resources are used across the health and care system, assessing the financial and operational implications of proposed changes, and contributing to business cases and programme budgets.

The role does not include direct patient contact or an on-call commitment.

Main responsibilities

1. Project and programme delivery

Take responsibility for agreed projects or discrete workstreams, developing clear objectives, milestones, deliverables and monitoring arrangements.
Coordinate contributions from different teams and organisations, ensuring that activities are aligned and interdependencies are identified and managed.
Provide concise updates and briefings to senior colleagues on progress, risks, dependencies, decisions required and proposed mitigating actions.

2. Clinical advice on commissioning decisions

Interpret clinical recommendations, professional standards and national guidance in the context of local commissioning decisions.
Apply agreed local policies and decision-making frameworks consistently when contributing to value assessments.

3. Policy review and implementation

Review existing local clinical policies to determine whether they remain consistent with current national guidance, professional standards and organisational priorities.
Draft or revise local policies and supporting documentation for consideration through the relevant approval process.
Translate national guidance into clear local requirements, identifying areas in which implementation may require changes to contracts, workforce, digital systems, referral arrangements or clinical practice.
Assess the potential consequences of proposed policy changes for patients, providers, commissioners and different population groups.
Support the implementation of approved policies by developing practical guidance, briefings, implementation plans and monitoring arrangements.
Advise colleagues on the interpretation and application of national, professional and organisational policies within the scope of the role.

4. Resource stewardship and value for money

Consider the financial, workforce, operational and opportunity-cost implications of proposed policies, services and improvement initiatives.
Contribute clinical advice to business cases, options appraisals and investment or disinvestment proposals.
Examine the potential effect of decisions across different parts of the health and care system, including the risk that costs or activity may be transferred between organisations or services.
Support the identification of opportunities to improve productivity, reduce low-value activity and make more effective use of available capacity.

5. Utilisation management

Support work to understand variation in the use of health and care services and the factors contributing to that variation.
Examine whether activity is taking place in the most clinically appropriate setting and whether alternative approaches could deliver better outcomes or value.
Contribute to reviews of referral patterns, thresholds, clinical practice and service utilisation within defined programmes.
Help identify opportunities to reduce avoidable, ineffective or lower-value activity while protecting patient safety and access to clinically necessary care.
Support the translation of utilisation findings into practical commissioning, improvement or implementation actions.

6. Clinical quality and safety

Identify potential clinical risks associated with proposed service, pathway or policy changes and ensure these are considered through the appropriate governance process.
Support the development of proportionate clinical quality and safety measures for defined programmes.
Escalate concerns promptly where information suggests a significant risk to patient safety, quality of care or organisational assurance.
Work within professional standards, organisational policies and agreed limits of competence when providing clinical advice.
Maintain appropriate confidentiality when handling patient-level, commercially sensitive or otherwise restricted information.

7. Strategic planning and implementation

Essential criteria
- Primary medical qualification
- Full registration and licence to practice with GMC
- Must have completed both years of foundation training by start date of August 2026 or equivalent
- Doctor in, or eligible for, UK post- graduate training programme
- Evidence of involvement in leadership and management commensurate with experience
- Demonstrates an understanding of NHS management and resources
- Evidence of involvement and leadership in service/quality improvement initiatives
- Able to provide and receive highly complex, sensitive or contentious information, and present complex and sensitive information to large and influential groups
- Able to collaborate with a range of stakeholders and develop consensus on difficult, complex and controversial issues
- Problem solving skills and ability to respond to sudden unexpected demands.
- Ability to analyse complex facts and situations from a range of information sources and develop evidence based plans.
- Takes decisions on difficult and contentious issues where there may be a number of courses of action.
- Strategic thinking - ability to anticipate and resolve problems before they arise.
- Demonstrate the ability to manage competing priorities and manage time and projects in complex circumstances.
- Must be able to use initiative to decide relevant actions and make recommendations to Sponsor/ Manager, with the aim of improving deliverables and compliance to policies.
- Ability to make decisions autonomously, when required, on difficult issues, working to tight and often changing timescales.
- Experience of identifying and interpreting National policy.
- Experience of researching best practice (globally, private and public sector), interpreting its relevance and processes/ practices which could be implemented successfully to achieve system reform (advising on policy implementation).
- Working knowledge of Microsoft Office with intermediate keyboard skills.
- Needs to have a thorough understanding of and commitment to equality of opportunity and good working relationships both in terms of day-to-day working practices, but also in relation to management systems in the area.
- Used to working in a busy environment.
- Adaptability, flexibility and ability to cope with uncertainty and change.
- Willing to engage with and learn from peers, other professionals and colleagues in the desire to provide or support the most appropriate interventions.
- Professional calm and efficient manner.
- Effective organiser, influencer and networker.
- Demonstrates a strong desire to improve performance and make a difference by focusing on goals.

Desirable criteria
- Demonstrate examples of planning and organisation skills in service improvement work.

- We are committed to creating the best place to work, where your contribution is valued, your wellbeing is supported and all our colleagues can reach their full potential. We welcome and encourage applications from all areas of the community, who meet the criteria for the role, regardless of their protected characteristic. We work to ensure that our recruitment processes are as inclusive as possible to everyone, including making adjustments for people who have a disability or long-term condition and support with the recruitment process for people with lived experience.
- We are happy to discuss flexible working options for all roles.