MERIT Doctor | North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust

The Medical Emergency Response Incident Team (MERIT) provides senior medical advisory supportto the Ambulance Service during major, critical, and complex incidents.

This is astrategic and operational advisory role, not a frontline intervention post. MERIT Doctors support command decision-making by providingexpert medico-legal and clinical adviceto Tactical and Operational Commanders, ensuring safe, effective, and coordinated casualty management across the system.

You will contribute to high-level decision-making in dynamic, high-risk environments, supporting the wider multi-agency response in line with national doctrine (e.g. JESIP and NHS ECU guidance).

· Provideon-call medical advisory support (24/7 rota)to NWAS command structures

· Undertake roles including:

o Tactical Medical Advisor (TMA)

o Operational Medical Advisor (OMA)

o Casualty Clearing Station Medical Lead (CCSML)

· Advise on:

o Triage strategies (e.g. TST, MITT)

o Casualty management and flow

o Use of specialist clinical resources (e.g. HEMS, BASICS, SORT)

o Clinical risk, ethics, and medico-legal considerations

· Supportmulti-agency interoperabilityin line with JESIP principles

· Maintain clear documentation, communication, and escalation within command structures

· Contribute topost-incident learning, debriefs, and system improvement

Recruitment Process

· Application review followed byvirtual interview

· Successful candidates will undergo onboarding, training, and integration into the MERIT rota

North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust provides 24 hour, 365 days a year accident and emergency services to those in need of emergency medical treatment and transport.

Our highly skilled staff provide life-saving care to patients in the community and take people to hospital or a place of care if needed.
We also provide non-emergency patient transport services for those patients who require non-emergency transport to and from hospital and who are unable to travel unaided because of their medical condition or clinical need.

Alongside the other emergency services, we also work to ensure the safety of the public and treatment of patients in the event of a major incident.

We also deliver the NHS 111 service in the North West. NHS 111 replaced NHS Direct in 2013. This service was introduced to make it easier for people to access local NHS healthcare services in England. It provides non-emergency medical help fast, and is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.