Medical Secretary
By applying for this post you are agreeing to "name of trust" transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are appointed to a post information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.
Job overview
To provide a comprehensive administrative service in dealing effectively and efficiently with processing of daily workloads, and ad hoc office duties. Ensure cross cover working where appropriate.
Please Note: Under UK law, we are unable to sponsor candidates for VISAs for this position. Therefore, applicants must have the right to work in the UK without the need for sponsorship.
Main duties of the job
The Surgical/Medical Care Group provides a full range of acute in-patient, out-patient, day case and emergency services to the local communities of St Helens, Knowsley and Halton and out of area patients.
Working for our organisation
Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust serves a population of over 600,000 with a workforce of over 9000 dedicated and skilled staff across 21 sites.
We strongly believe that the communities we serve should all have access to Five Star Patient Care.
Our services:
Acute Care
Providing emergency and maternity services at Whiston, Southport and Ormskirk hospitals, and medical and surgical specialties across all our sites.
Primary Care
Providing primary care services at Marshalls Cross Medical Centre situated in St Helens Hospital.
Community Services
Providing adult community services for St Helens and a wheelchair service in Chorley, South Ribble, and West Lancashire. Our inpatient unit at Newton Community Hospital is where patients needing acute hospital beds can continue rehabilitation, freeing up space for more unwell patients.We also provide urgent care at our Urgent Treatment Centre located in St Helens town centre.
Specialist Regional Services
We provide the Mersey Regional Burns & Plastic Surgery Unit at Whiston Hospital and the Spinal Injuries Unit at Southport Hospital to more than 4 million people across the whole of Merseyside, West Lancashire, Cheshire, Isle of Man and North Wales.
Achievements:
- Rated Outstanding by CQC Inspection August 2018
- Top 100 places to work in the NHS (NHS Employers & Health Service Journal)
- National Preceptorship Accreditation (2023) for Nursing & AHP Preceptorship Programme
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
KEY DUTIES- To quality check documentation completed in clinical administration support.
- Audit reports bi-monthly against KPI’s (key performance indicators).
- Mentor, train and supervise relevant staff as required by the Administration Services Co-ordinator.
- Complete any Tertiary Referrals to external Trusts and ensure these are completed on PAS system. Keep track of referrals to ensure patient is reviewed promptly. Check that follow up appointments are arranged in conjunction with Referral To Treat (RTT) patient pathway.
- Type dictation from audio transcription of clinical correspondence and documentation. Ensuring appropriate follow up arrangements /investigations are in place. Liaise with Personal Medical Secretary of specialty accordingly.
- Deal appropriately with concerns from staff in line with Trust policy.
- To answer the telephone promptly and politely, telephoning patients where appropriate using tact, discretion and empathy in all situations.
- Accurate use of patient information using the Patient Administration System (PAS), including registration screen to check patient details are correct.
- Ensure efficient audit processes in place concerning correspondence to ensure quality levels maintained and rectify accordingly.
- Print off EIS reports for discharges.
- Taking minutes of meetings and circulating to relevant groups.
- Obtain information requested by Administration Services Co-Ordinator.
- Record sickness/absence, annual leave on ESR system.
- Carry out appraisals as appropriate.
- Organise and order stationary items as appropriate.
- Ensure all mandatory training is up to date and report accordingly.
- Be able to work as part of a team, promote effective flows in the department to cover leave to ensure office runs smoothly.
- General office duties including dealing with incoming and outgoing mail, e-mail, fax, photocopying. Participate in housekeeping of the office environment.
- Attend appropriate training, meetings and education sessions at the request of manager.
- Work with managers to review working practices, ways of working and find solutions to problems.
- To work in a flexible manner in accordance with the Trust Policy.
- Any other duties required by Line Manager
- Comply with Trust Safeguarding Children Policy and standard operating procedures to safeguard vulnerable children up to 18 years throughout the Trust, this includes the Protocol for Children who Do Not Attend Clinics, fulfilling your role as defined in these documents.
- Liaise with all relevant professionals (Police, Social Services) in relation to safeguarding work undertaken by your Consultant. Type any medical reports for child protection cases as requested by the Consultant, nurse or junior medical staff. Arrange multi- professional meetings regarding child protection/child in need cases. Minute multi- professional meetings as necessary.
- Provide administrative support for the Named Consultant and Named Nurse for Safeguarding Children
- Know about the range of physical abuse, emotional abuse, neglect and sexual abuse.
- Be able to recognise signs of abuse appropriate to role and what action to take.
- Know what to do if concerned that a child is being abused.
- Know about the Trust’s local policies/procedures.
- Understand the importance of sharing information, how it can help and the dangers of not sharing information.
- Be able to recognise signs of child abuse as this relates to their role. e.g observe inappropriate parenting, an unusually quiet and withdrawn child etc.
- Be able to seek advice and report concerns, ensuring that they are listened to.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria- GSCE Standard or Higher
- RSA/OCR III or equivalent
- Word Processing Skills
- Audio-Typing Skills
- Medical Terminology
- Shorthand/Speedwriting Skills
Knowledge & Experience
Essential criteria- Microsoft Office Products Experience
- Ability to work as part of a team
- 2 years’ experience working in an NHS environment
- Previous Medical Secretary Experience
- Medical Audio Typing
- Understanding of Trust Internal Policies as appropriate
- Minute Taking
Skills
Essential criteria- Excellent IT Skills
- Excellent communication skills
- Ability to manage/prioritise own workload
- Excellent Word Processing and Keyboard skills
- Ability to accurately maintain computerised and manual filing/documentation systems
- Time Management Skills
- Knowledge of Trust computer systems
Qualities
Essential criteria- Ability to use own initiative and work independently
- Capability to adapt to most situations
- Reliable and conscientious
- Ability to manage difficult/sensitive situations
- Able to work the hours and undertake duties required
- Excellent interpersonal skills
Other
Essential criteria- Comply with Trust policies and procedures at all times
- Ability and willingness to undergo further training for the post
Thank you for considering an application to work for Mersey West Lancashire NHS Trust. MWL is an exciting and forward-thinking NHS Trust who are one of the best places to work for in England.
Given sometimes we receive a high volume of applications to work for us, please be aware, that we may close a vacancy earlier than stated should a sufficient number of applications be received from which a shortlist can be confirmed. Therefore, you are advised to apply at your earliest convenience.
The Trust may contact you during the recruitment process for your feedback on your experience. We always aim for continuous improvement in our practice.
Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion
We actively cultivate a professional environment of fairness, equality, dignity, and respect for all individuals. We welcome individuals from all backgrounds and value the unique skills, perspective and experience you bring. We are grounded in the belief that diversity enhances our collective strength, fostering innovation and excellence within our workforce.We welcome all applications irrespective of people’s race, disability, gender, sexual orientation, religion/belief, age, gender identity, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy/maternity and in particular those from under- represented groups.
As a Disability Confident Leader, we commit to offering an interview to all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the job (the essential criteria) listed in the personal specification. If you wish to apply under this Guaranteed Interview Scheme, please indicate this on the online application form.
If you are having difficulty completing an online application, or require any disability reasonable adjustments, to the application process, please contact [email protected]
We also commit to offering an interview to all armed forces veterans who meet the minimum criteria for the job (the essential criteria) listed in the personal specification. If you wish to apply under this Guaranteed Interview Scheme, please indicate this on the online application form.
The Trust operates anonymous shortlisting where no personal information about you, including your name or personal details are shared with the recruiting manager. No equality information is shared at any time during the recruitment process with the recruiting manager or other people involved in the decision-making process.
The equality monitoring information you provide is used in the following situations: to review our recruitment practices; where a job is limited to a specific person to verify their eligibility to apply; and to offer disability reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process.
Certificate of Sponsorship
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years.Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
Following the recent update on UK immigration policy for those on a Health and Care Visa or Skilled Worker Visa, please click here to check your eligibility before applying for this post as we may be unable to provide sponsorship.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
If this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Please note if applicable, applicants will be required to pay for their DBS check. Costs are deducted from salary following appointment.
If you have not already done so, you are therefore encouraged to enrol for the DBS Update Service to which a small annual fee of £13 per year applies.
Flexible Working
We actively support flexible working patterns throughout MWL. Changes made to the NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook mean that:
- All employees have the right to request flexible working from day one of employment.
- There is no limit on the number of requests they can make.
- Employees have the right to make requests, have them considered, regardless of the reason.
At Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, we will consider requests for flexible working. We would also encourage you to also discuss flexible working options at interview stage.
Working for Team MWL
Staff recognition is especially important to us; as well as performance reviews and appraisals, we recognise staff through Employee of the month. Along with supporting you to achieve your career goals we offer a generous pension scheme, unsocial hours payments (where applicable), 27 days annual leave on commencement (pro rata) and access to a range of NHS discounts.Our Staff Health and Wellbeing programme offer a variety of services.
The Trust is a non-smoking across all our sites. Failure to follow this rule could lead to disciplinary action. For more information, see the Smoke Free NHS website
You must ensure that your application, including personal statements and behaviour examples, are truthful and factually accurate. Please note plagiarism can include presenting the ideas and experience of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own.
The Trust will not accept applications which are found to be AI generated.
Additional Information
Before applying, we encourage you to review the Trusts Values and Behaviours which are We are KIND, We are OPEN, We are INCLUSIVE, which can be found here.
An applicant guide to help and support you with your application and what to expect during your recruitment journey can be accessed in the supporting documents.
Good luck with your application. We hope to welcome you to Team MWL very soon.