[ref. d03349504] Outpatient Department – Receptionist/Clerical Officer RBH

We employ over 9,500 staff, many of whom are internationally renowned and have won awards for their work.

Job overview

We employ over 8,000 staff, many of whom are internationally renowned and have won awards for their work.

The post holder will be responsible for the provision of a comprehensive and efficient Reception Service to patients/service users within the East Lancashire Health Community, ensuring a high level of Customer Care whilst maintaining confidentiality at all times.

1. 5 hours Monday to Friday to work between the hours of 8am and 8pm, 7.5 hours per day. Part time hours also considered.

We have a fantastic team of people who are conscientious, caring, reliable, flexible and compassionate, all qualities which are essential to the NHS. If you want to be part of this team and have the necessary skills, we would like to meet you.

Main duties of the job

You must be able to deal with people confidentiality and sensitively both face to face and over the telephone, ensuring a high level of customer care. Arrange when necessary the attendance of interpreter/link workers for patients who require communication assistance when attending clinics and booking patient transport for their return journey.

You will also need to prepare casenotes provided for certain clinics, ensuring specific attention to the data items required for commissioning purposes and data quality in line with the Trust’s Clinical Records Policy. Adhere to departmental policies and procedures and participate in audits in order to maintain data quality and provide an efficient service

This can be a very challenging and physical environment including some manual handling (Casenotes).

Working for our organisation

Established in 2003 East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust (ELHT) is a large integrated health care organisation providing high quality acute secondary healthcare for the people of East Lancashire and Blackburn with Darwen.

We employ over 8,000 staff, many of whom are internationally renowned and have won awards for their work and achievements

As a member of the ELHT family you will be rewarded with a pension scheme and generous holiday entitlement which starts at 27 days plus bank holidays (pro rata for part time positions).

We also offer a structured in-house training programme, dedicated supervision and support, together with a comprehensive appraisal system to encourage your personal development

• Act as first point of contact for all patients and visitors to the Department, providing a comprehensive reception and clerical Service to patients, relatives, carers, consultants and their teams
• Booking in patients attending outpatient clinics and issuing return appointments as directed by the consultant/nursing staff prior to the patient leaving the Department
• Identify potential Overseas Visitors and patients liable to pay for treatment at the point of referral/reception to the department, checking the residence status for all new patients for Overseas Visitors and inform the General Office Team as per the Overseas Visitors Policy and Procedure.
• Print referrals from the Choose and Book System/email system for patients attending forthcoming clinics (Currently Eye clinic only). Check Cerner Millenium for all other specialty referrals to ensure they are available for the Clinician to view.
• Work within the departmental shift patterns to cover the opening hours of the service, i.e. 8.00am – 8.00pm as and when required, including Bank Holidays across all sites
• Cancel/reduce clinic schedules, liaising with the patient by letter, txt or by telephone in the case of short notice cancellations. Arrange for the Transport Department to hand deliver letters to patients for any short notice cancellations where telephone contact cannot be made.
• Re-schedule cancelled appointments and ensure all cancelled follow up patients are seen within reasonable time from their original appointment date in line with the Trust’s Access, Booking and Choice Policy as and when required, reporting any problems to the outpatient team leader/supervisor

Person specification

Qualifications/Experience

• English Language and Maths GCSE Grade C/Level 4 or above or equivalent, Business Administration/ Customer Care NVQ Level 2 or equivalent.
• Previous experience in a customer care environment.

Knowledge and Skills

• IT/ Keyboard skills
• Good verbal and written communication skills
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills in order to deal with all disciplines on the telephone using empathy and negotiating skills

Personal Attributes

• Ability to demonstrate confidentiality and sensitivity when dealing with the public.

Other

• Willingness to work across the departmental shift patterns to cover opening hours of the service, i.e. between the hours of 8am – 8pm; including evenings

Essential

• Ability to work under pressure, use own initiative & willingness to learn new systems & processes

• Please note that the salary advertised is for full time hours. If this post is less than 37.5 hours per week, the salary will be pro-rata. For posts on Agenda for Change pay-scales, new entrants to the NHS will normally commence on the first pay point of the relevant band.
• This vacancy may close before the closing date if the recruiting manager deems sufficient applications have been received. Therefore it is advised to complete your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.
• Please ensure you check the email account from which you apply regularly as we will use this to contact you regarding your application.
• Please note that shortlisting is completed anonymously with candidates being assessed against the essential criteria for the post. Therefore only applicants, who can clearly demonstrate how they meet our person specification criteria in their application, will be short-listed.

Disclosure and Barring Scheme (DBS)

If the role you are applying for is identified as either controlled or regulated activity as defined in in the Safeguarding vulnerable Groups Act (2006) any offer of employment is provisional upon a satisfactory DBS check being obtained.

The healthcare sector is exempted from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.

However, if you are applying for a post as a BANK worker, the payment must be made in full at the time of employment checks. By applying for this vacancy you are agreeing to this undertaking in the event you are successfully appointed.

The cost of an Enhanced Disclosure will be £55.38 and for a Standard Disclosure will be £27.38.

This cost is not applicable for a Volunteer post

The Trust is an equal opportunities employer, committed to improving the working lives of our staff and operates a 'Zero Tolerance' policy to aggression, violence, bullying and harassment. In addition, our aim is to help protect children and vulnerable adults by providing a first-class service to the recruitment of people into positions of trust.

We aim to employ a workforce that reflects the diverse communities we serve.

We welcome applications from everyone irrespective of ethnic origin, gender, age, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion, marital status, disability or social background.

We especially welcome applications from members of our black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) communities, as we have identified that ELHT has an under-representation of BAME employees. Appointments will be made on merit.

Applicants who have a disability and meet the essential criteria for the job will be interviewed if you indicate you wish to be considered under the Guaranteed Interview Scheme.

If you require a reasonable adjustment at any stage of the recruitment process please make the recruitment services team aware as soon as possible. By telephone 01254 732075 or email [email protected] or write to Employment Services, Parkview Offices, Haslingden Road, Blackburn, BB2 3HH