SpR Leave Policy
This policy for the management of leave is in accordance with the Hospital policy accessible on the intranet.
This departmental policy and procedure has the following objectives:
- To have Six (6) of twelve (12) SpRs at Papworth (5 Theatre & 1 ICU) each week day.
- To maximize attendance at Friday regional teaching for rotating SpRs.
- To maximize attendance at ACTA, EACTA and SCA meetings for Papworth SpRs.
- Equitable leave opportunities.
- A clear procedure for booking leave.
Given that one (1) SpR is pre-call and that two (2) are post-call each day, leave for up to a maximum of three (3) SpRs may be approved on any particular week day.
All SpRs
SpRs should plan to take some of their leave at the beginning of the job, to ensure that they are able to take some of their preferred dates, and that leave is taken at periodic intervals to ensure that prospective cover is fairly provided by their colleagues.
The administration SpR asks that all 'not-on-call' requests are entered in the leave diary before the 10th day of the preceding month.
All requests for annual, study or special (e.g. compassionate, paternity) leave should be made in writing and sent to the College Tutor.
Once leave is approved at Departmental level the appropriate Hospital Form must be completed:
- Approved annual leave requests should be recorded on the blue annual leave card issued by the Medical Personnel Department. Completed forms should be sent to the Medical Personnel Department for recording and monitoring.
- Approved study leave requests should be recorded on white study leave application forms and sent to the Clinical (TCCA) Director for approval and forwarding to the Education Department. These forms must be used whether or not a claim for study leave expenses is made.
Public Holidays: When an SpR works on a public holiday this should be recorded on the blue annual leave card. Applications for annual leave in lieu of public holidays worked must be made in the manner described above.
SpRs may not directly enter requests for annual leave in the leave diary.
Rotating (3 month) SpRs
Rotating SpRs are entitled to up to eight (8) days annual leave.
A maximum of fifteen (15) days leave is permitted during the 3 month module. Attendance at regional teaching sessions outside Papworth Hospital is counted toward this total.
Pre-FRCA teaching takes place every fortnight during term times. Maximizing attendance at Friday teaching is achieved as follows:
- The administration SpR tries to avoid rostering you for Friday / weekend day-call when you need to go to Cambridge or Norwich.
- We run theatres on Fridays with four (4) SpRs.
- Friday annual leave is restricted to one (1) Friday during the 3 month module.
FRCA examination leave: Whenever possible, SpRs are not rostered to be on-call on the weekend before the written examination and leave is granted for the day before the examination. Longer periods of private study leave are not approved.
Papworth (6-12 month) SpRs
The total annual leave entitlement is up to thirty-two (32) days per year.
Whenever possible, leave should be spread throughout the year so as to minimize the impact of prospective cover on your colleagues.
We request that no more than twenty (20) days leave are carried forward into the second half of the job.
Requests for terminal leave in excess of two (2) weeks are very unlikely to be approved.
Because of the requirement to give priority to Friday regional teaching and periods of annual / study leave booked in one-week blocks, requests for annual leave on odd Fridays are rarely approved.
If a long weekend is required, SpRs are advised to take the following Monday and Tuesday as annual leave.
