Medical Secretary - Cellular Pathology
Job overview
Our Medical Secretary will provide secretarial support to the Histology, Cytology and mortuary sections of the department ensuring that all procedures are undertaken according to laboratory Standard Operating Procedures (SOP's).
They will work with other staff including Biomedical Scientists, Medical Laboratory Assistants and Pathologists to provide an efficient service. The Department of Cellular Pathology has a total workload of 21,000 surgical requests annually. In addition, 100 frozen sections, 75 skin immunofluorescence and 14,000 immunocytochemistry tests are performed.Diagnostic Cytology receives 1,500 requests.
Main duties of the job- Responsible for typing letters / correspondence for departmental consultants relating to patients.
- Responsible for typing Histopathology reports into the pathology computer system from audio tape.
- Responsible for typing Post Mortem reports from audio tape.
- Responsible for distributing reports appropriately using internal / external mail.
- Respond appropriately to enquiries from medical staff, secretaries and patients as to results of tests.
- Receive telephone enquiries for results and respond appropriately or redirect to Consultant Pathologist.
- Responsible for the maintenance of private case spreadsheet for consultants.
- Responsible for the recording of cases referred to other laboratories / reference centres.
- Responsible for packing blocks and slides for despatch to other laboratories / reference centres.
- Responsible for the maintenance of archive reports to enable location of pre-computer records, including paper and microfiche records.
- Responsible for determining the location of associated paperwork, blocks and slides of any case processed by the department in Cytology, Histology or the Mortuary.
- Advise laboratory management of changes to SOPs in accordance with changes in practice.
- Receive and distribute departmental mail appropriately.
- File and retrieval of blocks and slides from store as required
- Scanning of archived records and disposal of confidential records as required.
- Working for our organisation
The Cellular Pathology department at Torbay Hospital has a full time vacancy for a Medical Secretary Band 3. The position will be 8.30am to 5pm Monday to Friday.
The department handles around 21,000 diagnostic requests per year and performs a range of histological procedures. The department is critical to patient management by way of providing diagnosis for a range of different tissue samples. Turnaround times are excellent and well received by clinical teams.
The department uses the Clinisys WinPath LIMS system but this is due to be upgraded to EPIC/Beaker.
The successful candidate will need to be dedicated, dynamic, work well as part of a small, friendly team and show sound organisational skills. The primary role will be audio typing of histology, cytology and post mortem reports but there will also be other duties such as outlined in the job description.Excellent typing and IT skills are therefore essential. A good knowledge of medical terminology is highly desirable.
Torbay Hospital is situated within the English Riviera, in an area of outstanding natural beauty. It is adjacent to some of the country’s best beaches and close to the Dartmoor National Park. To arrange an informal visit or discuss this post further, contact Ria McCoy on 01803 655205 or email [email protected]
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Full Vacancy details can be found on the attached Job Description/Person Specification. Please refer to your suitability to the post in your supporting information from the role requirements or person specification.
Person specification
essential
Essential criteria- Good standard of general education to include GCSE in Maths and English or equivalent
- Proven accurate typing
- Good knowledge of Microsoft Office software
- Proven experience of providing a customer focused service
- Proven relevant experience in a busy office environment
- Ability to work as part of a team or independently within a team environment
- Audio typing qualification
- Have knowledge of hospital systems, i.e.: PAS, Infoflex, Cyberlab, Ultragenda, Unit4
- NHS experience
You will be joining the organisation at an exciting time. As the first fully integrated care organisation in England, we are working to improve the way we deliver safe, high-quality health and social care. We have a positive and vibrant working atmosphere, we are proud of our investment in our staff both in terms of developing potential career skills and valuing people.
If you provide support to a family member or friend with health or care needs, we aim to be a Carer-friendly employer. We have a ‘Staff Carers’ policy which includes flexible working where possible and a Carer’s Passport scheme that links you into support and discounts.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION- We reserve the right to close vacancies early if we receive a high volume of applications. Therefore, we encourage you to apply promptly.
- Please read the job description carefully and tailor your application to reflect the requirements of the role.
- Applicants who identify in their application form they are a part of the Armed Forces community will be guaranteed an interview, provided they meet the minimum essential criteria outlined in the job description and person specification for the role. Step into Health guidance can be found on our NHS Employers website.
- Correspondence will be sent via Trac, text, and email. Please ensure you check your email and Trac account regularly.
- Applicants with no previous NHS experience will ordinarily be appointed to the minimum of the band.
- If you have not received an invitation to interview within 28 days of the closing date, please assume that your application has been unsuccessful on this occasion.
- It is your responsibility to ensure the timely receipt of appropriate references.
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