Job summary An exciting opportunity has arisen within our busy Rheumatology Department for a highly motivated, flexible and dynamic Secretary to join our expanding team. The secretarial role provides a focal point for all department enquiries and therefore excellent communication skills are required to prioritise and resolve all queries in a timely and appropriate manner. We aim to deliver a highly effective and efficient service to ensure high standards of patient care and you will be required to support all administrative aspects of the service to achieve these outcomes. The successful candidate will be innovative, resourceful with a 'can-do' approach and flexible towards the needs of a developing service. Main duties of the job The post holder will be responsible for providing a comprehensive departmental secretarial service to the consultants, specialist nurses and other clinicians within the Rheumatology team. The departmental secretary will be instrumental in the smooth running of the office and will need to work without supervision, using their initiative when dealing with enquiries that arise in the absence of the clinicians, to bring about a successful outcome. The post demands the ability to communicate at all levels with patients, relatives, medical colleagues and allied health professionals whilst maintaining a high standard of service to meet the needs of the patient. About us Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust provides hospital services to a growing population of around 700,000 people living across Bedfordshire and the surrounding areas across two busy hospital sites in Bedford and Luton. Both hospital sites offer key services such as A&E, Obstetrics-led Maternity and Paediatrics. You will be joining a friendly, high performing Trust committed to ensuring the health and wellbeing of staff. As one of the largest NHS Trusts in our region you will have access to a programme of high quality training and development to help you grow your career. The Trust continues to be committed to delivering the best patient care using the best clinical knowledge and technology available. Our values We not only recruit based on qualifications and experience - we recruit individuals who demonstrate the behaviours which underpin our Trusts core values. We achieve this by using values based recruitment. We are dedicated to making our recruitment practices as inclusive as possible for everyone, we are committed to promoting equality and diversity, and creating a culture that values differences. Please note that vacancies may close prior to the advertised closing date when sufficient number of applications have been received. All new staff will be subject to a probationary period covering first 6 months in post. Travel between hospital sites may be required. Please review all documents attached to ensure you familiarize yourself with all requirements of the job Date posted 27 January 2025 Pay scheme Agenda for change Band Band 4 Salary £26,530 to £29,114 a year Per annum Contract Permanent Working pattern Full-time Reference number 418-RHEU1194-EH Job locations Luton and Dunstable Hospital 641 Dunstable Road Luton LU4 8RQ Job description Job responsibilities Provide the focal point of communication for all medical, professional and allied healthcare staff, both within this Trust and with external organisations, using judgment to facilitate a successful outcome for all enquiries. Deal with concerned patients/relatives with tact, patience and discretion, especially when conveying sensitive information. Patient contact by telephone is an integral part of the departmental secretarial role, often to convey information, which could be difficult and distressing for patients to comprehend Manage own workload, follow through queries and chase progress, in order to free up clinical time for clinicians, improving information and access for patients Act independently to sort, distribute and prioritise incoming mail, including fax and e-mail, using judgement and experience to prioritise and pass to clinicians or pass directly to other areas for action and information, using own initiative Liaise with and support the departmental pathway coordinator with the partial booking process to ensure that appointments and clinics are managed efficiently to meet service demands. Be responsible for ensuring that patient pathways progress in a timely manner in order to meet required target dates in conjunction with the pathway co-ordinator Manage and communicate clinic changes including setting up additional clinics, changing, moving or cancelling clinics depending on clinician availability and/or service need. Have an overview of all absences to identify sufficient clinic cover and capacity utilisation. Conduct a monthly forward look review with clinicians to ensure that all availability is accurate and any changes are acted upon in a timely manner. Support the 18/52 patient pathway by providing timely information to the medical 18 week team on a weekly basis on all tiers, 1, 2 and 3 as requested. This will involve the typing of outstanding letters on Big Hand, chasing approvals, chasing results/test/investigations and ensuring clinicians action to enable 18 week query to be reported on. Have an overview of timescales for best practice tariffs to ensure that all patients receive timely appointments Maintain electronic diaries for the team, make appointments, plan and organise arrangements within the office. This will necessitate the post holder being able to prioritise Ensure all correspondence for the clinicians including clinical letters, medico-legal reports, results, meeting minutes, IPRs etc are typed and dispatched promptly. The post-holder will be required to support the medical transcription team by typing clinic letters for an agreed number of hours each week. During periods of high demand, secretaries will type departmental letters highlighted by clinicians as urgent. Departmental secretaries will ensure that all actions are completed in a timely manner and typed letters are printed and dispatched promptly. To print off all inpatient urgent referrals from ICE and ensure that clinicians are aware the day they are received and that they are actioned and reported on that day At the request of clinicians arrange any procedures required Scan documents to Evolve as necessary Undertake audit work as required, e.g. collection, checking and interpretation of statistical data and departmental information where appropriate Maintain databases and provide reports from the databases as required Order and maintain non stock equipment and stationery for the office Organise and support regular/ad hoc meetings including business, clinical, educational and patient support group meetings. This will involve arranging the venue, equipment and catering and taking minutes if required. Occasionally meetings will be out of normal working hours. Prepare PowerPoint presentations for both clinical and educational meetings. Implement policies for own area and office/department Ensure that the administration function within the department is appropriately staffed at all times to ensure the smooth running of the department. Support senior staff with the recruitment process within the department. To include, liaising with recruitment, preparing paperwork. booking interview rooms and ensuring facilities are available to support any presentations/tests which form part of the interview process. Induct/train new departmental staff, including taking all new starters through the local induction booklet, arranging security badges, car parking, IT training etc Advise junior staff of work pattern and inform of departmental procedures. Ensure that the departmental webpage and intranet page are kept up to date To carry out any reasonable work requests to meet the needs of the service. Job description Job responsibilities Provide the focal point of communication for all medical, professional and allied healthcare staff, both within this Trust and with external organisations, using judgment to facilitate a successful outcome for all enquiries. Deal with concerned patients/relatives with tact, patience and discretion, especially when conveying sensitive information. Patient contact by telephone is an integral part of the departmental secretarial role, often to convey information, which could be difficult and distressing for patients to comprehend Manage own workload, follow through queries and chase progress, in order to free up clinical time for clinicians, improving information and access for patients Act independently to sort, distribute and prioritise incoming mail, including fax and e-mail, using judgement and experience to prioritise and pass to clinicians or pass directly to other areas for action and information, using own initiative Liaise with and support the departmental pathway coordinator with the partial booking process to ensure that appointments and clinics are managed efficiently to meet service demands. Be responsible for ensuring that patient pathways progress in a timely manner in order to meet required target dates in conjunction with the pathway co-ordinator Manage and communicate clinic changes including setting up additional clinics, changing, moving or cancelling clinics depending on clinician availability and/or service need. Have an overview of all absences to identify sufficient clinic cover and capacity utilisation. Conduct a monthly forward look review with clinicians to ensure that all availability is accurate and any changes are acted upon in a timely manner. Support the 18/52 patient pathway by providing timely information to the medical 18 week team on a weekly basis on all tiers, 1, 2 and 3 as requested. This will involve the typing of outstanding letters on Big Hand, chasing approvals, chasing results/test/investigations and ensuring clinicians action to enable 18 week query to be reported on. Have an overview of timescales for best practice tariffs to ensure that all patients receive timely appointments Maintain electronic diaries for the team, make appointments, plan and organise arrangements within the office. This will necessitate the post holder being able to prioritise Ensure all correspondence for the clinicians including clinical letters, medico-legal reports, results, meeting minutes, IPRs etc are typed and dispatched promptly. The post-holder will be required to support the medical transcription team by typing clinic letters for an agreed number of hours each week. During periods of high demand, secretaries will type departmental letters highlighted by clinicians as urgent. Departmental secretaries will ensure that all actions are completed in a timely manner and typed letters are printed and dispatched promptly. To print off all inpatient urgent referrals from ICE and ensure that clinicians are aware the day they are received and that they are actioned and reported on that day At the request of clinicians arrange any procedures required Scan documents to Evolve as necessary Undertake audit work as required, e.g. collection, checking and interpretation of statistical data and departmental information where appropriate Maintain databases and provide reports from the databases as required Order and maintain non stock equipment and stationery for the office Organise and support regular/ad hoc meetings including business, clinical, educational and patient support group meetings. This will involve arranging the venue, equipment and catering and taking minutes if required. Occasionally meetings will be out of normal working hours. Prepare PowerPoint presentations for both clinical and educational meetings. Implement policies for own area and office/department Ensure that the administration function within the department is appropriately staffed at all times to ensure the smooth running of the department. Support senior staff with the recruitment process within the department. To include, liaising with recruitment, preparing paperwork. booking interview rooms and ensuring facilities are available to support any presentations/tests which form part of the interview process. Induct/train new departmental staff, including taking all new starters through the local induction booklet, arranging security badges, car parking, IT training etc Advise junior staff of work pattern and inform of departmental procedures. Ensure that the departmental webpage and intranet page are kept up to date To carry out any reasonable work requests to meet the needs of the service. Person Specification Typing Essential Excellent Audio Typing Skills Desirable Typing / Word Processing Qualification Education Essential Maths & English GCSE Grade C or above/ Equivalent Desirable Medical Secretary Qualification Communication Skills Essential Excellent Written and Verbal Communication Desirable Experience in a role which requires communicating on the telephone IT skills Essential MicroSoft Package, Outlook Desirable Experience using clinical systems Teamwork Essential Experience of working in a team Experience Essential Experience working as a secretary in a busy office environment Desirable Experience working within within healthcare setting Experience working within a Rheumatology department Time Management Essential Experience of organising own workload and managing simultaneous tasks Person Specification Typing Essential Excellent Audio Typing Skills Desirable Typing / Word Processing Qualification Education Essential Maths & English GCSE Grade C or above/ Equivalent Desirable Medical Secretary Qualification Communication Skills Essential Excellent Written and Verbal Communication Desirable Experience in a role which requires communicating on the telephone IT skills Essential MicroSoft Package, Outlook Desirable Experience using clinical systems Teamwork Essential Experience of working in a team Experience Essential Experience working as a secretary in a busy office environment Desirable Experience working within within healthcare setting Experience working within a Rheumatology department Time Management Essential Experience of organising own workload and managing simultaneous tasks Disclosure and Barring Service Check This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such 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. 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). Additional information Disclosure and Barring Service Check This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such 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. 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). Employer details Employer name Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Address Luton and Dunstable Hospital 641 Dunstable Road Luton LU4 8RQ Employer's website https://www.bedfordshirehospitals.nhs.uk/working-here/ (Opens in a new tab)