Switchboard Operator
Job overview
The Switchboard Team, Sutton, is looking for a Switchboard Operator to join the team who has the ability to remain calm under pressure and in emergency situations and can demonstrate tact and diplomacy when dealing with patient and staff related issues.
The main objective of the post is to provide an efficient and professional switchboard service to the Trust’s patients, staff, and visitors. The operator is the first point of contact for the Trust for most external callers.
The successful candidate will be required to keep a calm and professional demeanour when under pressure, especially when dealing with emotional callers and/or situations. The successful candidate is the principle point of contact ‘out of hours’ and necessarily has freedom to act across a range of possible situations, until or unless the operator takes the decision to contact more senior Trust staff.In the event of serious disruption to the Trust’s telecommunications ‘out of hours’, the operator is required to be pro-active in reporting faults to the relevant telecommunications suppliers and in setting up contingency arrangements (e.g. issuing 2-way radios and setting up the incident room), prior to the relevant ‘on call’ staff arriving on site.
The successful candidate will need to have excellent communication skills, with a strong ability to multi-task.
Main duties of the job
The main objective of the post is to provide an efficient and professional switchboard service to the Trust’s patients, staff and visitors.
The operator is the first point of contact for the Trust for most external callers.
The operator is required to keep a calm and professional demeanour when under pressure, especially when dealing with emotional callers and/or situations.
The operator is the principle point of contact ‘out of hours’ and necessarily has freedom to act across a range of possible situations, until or unless the operator takes the decision to contact more senior Trust staff. In the event of serious disruption to the Trust’s telecommunications ‘out of hours’, the operator is required to be pro-active in reporting faults to the relevant telecommunications suppliers and in setting up contingency arrangements (eg.issuing 2-way radios and setting up the incident room), prior to the relevant ‘on call’ staff arriving on site.
Working for our organisation
The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation Trust is a world-leading cancer centre. Our role is to offer our patients the best cancer care available anywhere in the world, and to continue to make a global contribution to finding better ways of diagnosing and treating cancer.We employ over 4,500 staff in a diverse range of careers including nursing, medical, science, radiography, pharmacy, occupational therapy, finance and administrative services. We have two hospitals – one in Chelsea, London, and one in Sutton, Surrey – as well as a Medical Daycare Unit in Kingston Hospital.
At The Royal Marsden, we deal with cancer every day, so we understand how valuable life is. When people entrust their lives to us, they have the right to demand the very best. That's why the pursuit of excellence lies at the heart of everything we do.
At the heart of the hospital is our dedicated team. We offer a stimulating and dynamic working environment, a wide range of staff benefits, learning and development opportunities and clear career pathways. There are opportunities to work flexibly across a range of areas and specialities and we welcome flexible working requests from point of hire to support employees work life balance.We are looking for employees who aspire to excellence, share our values and can play a crucial role in our on-going achievements.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
For further information on this role, please see the attached detailed Job Description and Person Specification.- To handle all internal and external telephone calls to the Trust’s Switchboard in a prompt, courteous and professional manner.
- To put out calls in accordance with agreed procedures, particularly in respect of ‘emergency’/2222 calls (e.g. cardiac, fire, incident/security, radiation and lifts) and to respond to various ‘alarms’ on Switchboard, including:
- Fire Alarms
- Medical Gases Alarms (e.g. Pharmacy, MRI and Theatres)
- Pharmacy Air Supply Alarm
- Boiler House Alarm
- ‘Trend’ (Estates) Alarm System (including fridges and ‘body store’)
- Panic Alarms x 13 (including disabled toilet and swimming pool)
Person specification
Education
Essential criteria- Good general education with English GCSE standard or equivalent.
- Educated to diploma level, City & Guilds in Customer Service.
Experience
Essential criteria- Switchboard or Customer Service experience which demonstrates the understanding of the key functions for providing a support service
- Good administrative/organisational skills
Skills
Essential criteria- Ability to communicate verbally in a clear and effective way to patients, visitors and staff.
- Ability to take clear and concise messages.
- Ability to respond to emergencies by following the appropriate Trust procedures.
- Proficient in the use of IT systems including Microsoft Word, Outlook and Excel.
- Evidence of working well in a team
- Ability to develop and maintain good working relationships with all levels of staff, patients and relatives.
- Confidence in making decisions when dealing with competing priorities.
- Evidence of organisational skills and attention to detail.
- Ability to work methodically in a busy environment and meet deadlines.
- Ability to concentrate even with frequent interruptions.
- Ability to handle confidential and sensitive information appropriately.
- Able to demonstrate tact and diplomacy in a patient focus environment
Other requirements
Essential criteria- Effective in managing own time
- To adopt a flexible approach.
- Able to demonstrate tact and diplomacy when dealing with patient and staff related issues
- To maintain a tidy and organised working environment.
- A commitment to the values of equality and diversity.
The Royal Marsden values diversity and is committed to the recruitment and retention of underrepresented minority groups. We particularly welcome applications from Black, Asian and minority ethnic candidates, LGBTQ+ candidates and candidates with disabilities.
As a Disability Confident Employer, we are working to create a workplace that enables all staff to reach their full potential. We are committed to this because we know that greater diversity and inclusion will lead to an even greater positive impact for the people we serve.
Due to the high volumes of applications we receive, we reserve the right to close any adverts before the published closing date once we have received a sufficient number of applications. We advise you to submit your application as early as possible to prevent disappointment.
All applicants will be contacted by email to the address supplied on your application. Applicants are advised to check their email accounts regularly and to ensure that email filters are set to allow our emails.
Flu Vaccination – What We Expect of our Staff
At The Royal Marsden we have an immune compromised patient population who we must protect as much as we can against the flu virus. Each year, seasonal flu affects thousands of people in the UK. Occurring mainly in winter, it is an infectious respiratory disease capable of producing symptoms ranging from those similar to a common cold, through to very severe or even fatal disease.
The wellbeing of our staff and patients is of the upmost importance to us, and it is the expectation of The Royal Marsden that all patient-facing staff have an annual flu vaccination, provided free of charge by the Trust.