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Job overview
An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Bereavement Support Officer to join our Pathology Department.
The Bereavement Support Officer’s role is to provide comprehensive administrative support for the bereavement service including guidance to relatives of the deceased, hospital doctors, GPs, and mortuary staff, ensuring paperwork is completed accurately and in a timely manner.
Interview Date - Week commencing 17th February 2025
Main duties of the job
To provide general advice, guidance, and support within the bereavement office for all deaths occurring in the Trust.
Carry out duties in such a way as to make a direct and positive contribution to the organization of the work.
It is essential that you exercise initiative commensurate with the role, and it is vital that confidentiality is always maintained.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
KEY DUTIES
* To liaise with mortuary staff and ward staff on a daily basis to identify deaths which have occurred in the hospital.
* To liaise with ward staff and medical staff for the timely and accurate completion of medical certificates of death.
* To facilitate the preparation of cremation forms and liaise with funeral directors, doctors, and mortuary staff.
* To verify and process all documents relating to the registration of deaths for families.
* To liaise with Coroners Officers regarding referrals of hospital deaths and relatives’ enquiries.
* To liaise with GP Surgeries informing them of the date of death and cause of death in a timely manner.
* Be able to work as part of a team, promoting effective flows in the department to cover leave and ensure the office runs smoothly.
* Work with managers to review working practices, ways of working, and find solutions to problems/update procedures.
* Liaise with appropriate stakeholders/departments in arranging hospital funerals.
* Liaise with the General Registrar’s Office concerning any queries over acceptable causes of death.
* Liaise with Coroners Liaison Officer to obtain medical certificates of death where possible for the relatives of patients that have been recently discharged from the hospital where the G.P. has been unable to issue, in order to save the relatives from the distress of the deceased having to go through a postmortem.
* To supply the Notification of Death report to other hospital departments that use stand-alone recording systems.
* When circumstances require, contacting HM Coroner’s Offices concerning any reportable deaths giving any assistance that may be required.
* To support the Bereavement Officers in general office duties.
* To assist in the production, maintenance, and implementation of SOPs and implementation of new processes.
* Participate in the new doctors’ induction day informing them of the requirements of the Bereavement Service.
* Assist with the investigation and compilation of responses to complaints, helping to ensure this is done within the optimum deadlines set by the Trust.
* Recording of deaths and all appropriate information in the death register.
* Update the deceased patient’s notes and arrange for them to be sent to the relevant department.
* Compile monthly/annual statistics for internal and external use.
* Make full use of the computer systems and packages available. Ensure all information is updated regularly and take responsibility for reporting any faults, incorrect patient data, and breaches in security.
* Collate audit data for Clinical Pathology Accreditation and Benchmarking, leading for Qualsys on documentation control for Departmental Manager. Undertake audit of own work when necessary.
* Establish, maintain, and develop professional working relations with colleagues.
* Effective verbal and written communication should be maintained at all times by extracting the correct and relevant information to deal successfully with queries/requests from GPs, staff, patients, relatives, and other agencies. Show empathy when dealing with calls of a distressing nature. Impart confidential information when instructed.
* Be aware and responsive to changes within the Trust and adopt a flexible and proactive approach to work.
* General office duties including dealing with incoming and outgoing mail, e-mail, photocopier. Participate in housekeeping of the office environment.
* Any other duties as deemed necessary for the effective service for the department.
* Undertake audits as required.
* Assist with research/data collection as required.
* Obtain information requested by Cellular Pathology Service Lead Manager/ASC Manager as and when required.
* Work with manager to review working practices, ways of working, and find solutions to problems.
* To work in a flexible manner in accordance with Trust Policy.
* Any other duties required by ASC Manager.
Person specification
Qualifications
* Good level of general education and basic numeracy and literacy skills.
Knowledge & Experience
* IT skills with knowledge and experience of Microsoft office products.
* Experience in a clerical capacity/procedure.
* Previous experience within the NHS.
* Experience of working with the general public.
Skills
* Good telephone manner and customer skills.
* Able to work as part of a team.
* Maintain confidentiality at all times.
* Excellent keyboard skills and attention to detail and accuracy.
* Able to use own initiative and manage/prioritise own workload.
* Knowledge of medical terminology.
Other
* Willing and able to learn new skills.
* Ability to work with minimal supervision.
* Able to work the hours and duties required by the post.
* Able to adopt a flexible approach when required.
Thank you for considering an application to work for Mersey West Lancashire NHS Trust. You are part of 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 Recruitment@merseywestlancs.nhs.uk.
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.
Following the recent update on UK immigration policy for those on a Health and Care Visa or Skilled Worker Visa, please 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 discuss flexible working options at the interview stage.
Working for Team MWL
Staff recognition is especially important to us; as well as performance reviews and appraisals, we recognize 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 offers a variety of services.
The Trust is a non-smoking environment across all our sites. Failure to follow this rule could lead to disciplinary action.
You must ensure that your application, including personal statements and behavior 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.
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.
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