Jayne Harwood

I have pursued and gained academic and practical experience in many areas of Microbiology and Virology since 1987. Working in a large diagnostic laboratory has allowed me to develop as a team leader/member as well as working independently setting my own goals and timescales. I am able to prioritise tasks and meet tight deadlines. I have excellent communication skills, both written and verbal. I work alongside Biomedical Scientists, Clinical Scientists, Junior Medics and Consultants, providing advice and guidance regarding testing algorithms, technical issues and result interpretation.

I enjoy training and mentoring staff within the laboratory environment and have served as a mentor for many trainee BMS staff. I have formulated training plans and programmes for staff and delivered training to staff.

During my career, I have worked in virology, bacteriology, mycobacteriology and parasitology and have experience in a wide variety of diagnostic techniques, the use of instrumentation, automation and IT systems, which include APEX, CERNER, and Microsoft Office. I am able to use the DATIX system for the reporting of incidents and near misses and I am able to investigate such occurrences. I am proficient in the ORACLE system used within the Newcastle Trust for ordering stock and I am responsible for the introduction of a stock monitoring system within Serology.

I am currently employed as the Lead Healthcare Scientist for the Serology section. I take great pride in having set up the service from scratch and developed the service into a Regional Reference Laboratory. I work closely with other staff as well as showing autonomy. I have been responsible for horizon scanning, introduction of new assays, purchasing consumables, verification and validation of assays and writing of the reports, producing operating procedures and risk and COSHH assessments, presenting data to line managers and medical staff and implementation.

In 2017, the PHE services in Newcastle were transferred to the Newcastle NHS Trust and I led the project for the development and implementation of the transfer of the molecular services.

My role allows me to look at new technologies and equipment that would have significant effects on the laboratory service with improvements to increase the diagnostic portfolio, greater sensitivity and reliability and reduction in turnaround times but with an eye on cost effectiveness and future proofing the service. I have excellent problem solving abilities and I am often able to pre-empt problems by being proactive in the workplace.

I work closely with the Quality Manager providing quality assurance through professional accreditation, external and internal quality assurance schemes, validating and verifying new assays and instrumentation prior to use. I produce written reports on a regular basis for clinical audit and have presented complex data and information to others with varying degrees of experience at local, national and international level. I have chaired numerous meetings within the department and I am proficient in the use of Q-Pulse for recording minutes and agendas.

I was the lead for the development and introduction of Dried Blood Spot testing for blood borne viruses within the laboratory and this service is now used throughout the North East prison service, drug treatment centres and sexual health units. Through this work I have a wide knowledge of the Hepatitis C initiatives and the elimination programme throughout the North East and Cumbria. I have been involved in numerous events to encourage HCV testing and I am aware of the timescales that are necessary to achieve HCV elimination.

I participate in CPD, maintaining a personal CPD portfolio with flexible learning and attendance at appropriate meetings and conferences. I have had numerous publications published in journals, written chapters in textbooks and presented at various national and international conferences including ECCMID. This helps me keep up to date with developments in Microbiology. I enjoy working in a team and with other staff grades, encouraging younger staff members to develop themselves. I am a member of the Institute of Biomedical Science (IBMS) Virology Specialist Advisory Committee. This committee is responsible for organising the scientific programme for IBMS Congress, development of new professional qualifications and acting as a source of advice on a range of topics and representing the IBMS on local and national groups and committees. I was a member of the SABTO Advisory Committee which developed the Virology guidelines for the testing of organ/tissue donors which are now used nationally. I have also participated in numerous commercial company advisory boards, both at a national and international level.