The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
An opportunity has arisen for a motivated and reliable individual to join our Mortuary Team, situated within the Cellular Pathology Department of Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, as a Mortuary Technical Assistant.
The successful applicant will be part of a team in providing a mortuary and autopsy service to the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Medical Staff, Police and HM Coroner, together with Funeral Directors.
Collectively the Mortuary undertakes approximately 1850 post mortems each year, including over 1600 Coroner's cases for the region. Approximately 3500 patients pass through the mortuaries each year, with 1000 chapel viewings.
Main duties of the job
The role is to support the Anatomical Pathology Technicians (APTs) by assisting with the daily duties required for the running of the mortuary, receiving and releasing deceased patients, answering telephone calls, and transferring deceased patients between the Freeman Hospital and the Royal Victoria Infirmary sites. A valid driving licence is an essential requirement.
The post holder will be required to participate in night shift and weekend rotas to support APTs during non-invasive post mortems; they would NOT be involved in directly assisting Medical Staff performing post mortems.
They will be required to provide information to families of the bereaved, Funeral Directors, Bereavement Officers, Police Officers, and staff within the Trust.
The post holder will also be required to arrange Chapel Viewings with Bereavement Officers, Chaplains, Ward Staff, and Funeral Directors, and also arrange release and collections of deceased patients with Funeral Directors.
About us
Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is one of the busiest, largest, and most successful teaching NHS foundation trusts in the country, with over 16,000 staff and an annual income of £1 billion.
We have a long history of providing high-quality care, clinical excellence, and innovation in medical research regionally, nationally, and internationally.
We're also proud to be the second largest provider of specialised services in the country. This means we support people with a range of rare and complex medical, surgical, and neurological conditions, cancers, and genetic disorders.
Our staff oversee around 2 million patients' contacts each year, delivering high standards of healthcare.
We are committed to promoting equality and diversity and recognise the benefit of providing an inclusive environment. We value and respect the diversity of our employees and aim to recruit a workforce that reflects the communities we serve, and is equipped to deliver the best service to our patients. We welcome all applications irrespective of people's race, disability, gender, sexual orientation, religion or belief, age, gender identity, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy, and maternity, and in particular those from under-represented groups.
Job responsibilities
* To participate as part of a team in providing a mortuary and autopsy service to the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Medical Staff, Police and HM Coroner together with Funeral Directors and other legitimate users of the service.
* To assist the Anatomical Pathology Technicians (APT) by handling front of house duties such as receiving and releasing bodies, answering telephone calls, helping undertakers with bodies, etc.
Please note it is a requirement of The Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust that all successful candidates who require a DBS for the post they have been offered pay for their DBS certificate. The method of payment is a salary deduction from your first month's pay.
Person Specification
Qualifications & Education
* Good general level of education (literacy and numeracy) or equivalent experience
* Driving Licence
Knowledge & Experience
* Experience of dealing with bereaved relatives.
* Good communication
* Dextrous - good hand-eye coordination
* Requirement to move bodies of up to 256kg with the aid of mechanical equipment
* Experience of working in the NHS
* Understanding of Health & Safety
* Experience of operating mechanical equipment
Skills & Abilities
* Self-organisation and the ability to prioritise
* Able to concentrate for long periods
* Keyboard Skills
* Able to lift weights of 10kg or more
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.
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