Band 5 Nurse and Band 2 Healthcare Support Worker recruitment is centralised, meaning when you apply you will be considered for a number of roles across the Trust. If you have any questions please email: nursing.careers@ouh.nhs.uk.
Mortuary Support/Biomedical Support Worker
Band 2
Main area Mortuary Grade Band 2 Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week (Participation in on call rota once trained.) Job ref 321-CSS-7098688-B2
Site John Radcliffe Hospital Town Oxford Salary £24,169 Per annum pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 27/04/2025 23:59 Interview date 16/05/2025
Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is one of the largest NHS teaching trusts in the country. It provides a wide range of general and specialist clinical services and is a base for medical education, training and research.
Job overview
We are looking for an enthusiastic, adaptable person, keen to work as part of the mortuary team to assist in the provision of an efficient and smooth-running mortuary service. The mortuary provides a post mortem service to the Trust and HM Coroner. The work will be based mainly in the mortuary but may also involve limited work in the histology laboratory.
You will participate in receipt and release of the deceased, storage of personal effects, data entry for recording deceased, administration tasks associated with receipt, release and post mortems, telephone communication with a wide range of service users, sample handling, waste disposal, cleaning and other general mortuary duties.
Main duties of the job
* Receipt and release of the deceased across three sites - John Radcliffe and Churchill hospitals in Oxford and the Horton Hospital in Banbury.
* Liaising with funeral directors, bereavement officers, coroner's officers, pathologists and laboratory staff by telephone and email.
* Participating in an on call service at the weekends to assist tissue services - identification of deceased with tissue services, moving deceased to post mortem room for organ retrieval by tissue services.
* Dispatch of biological samples to testing laboratories.
* Scanning of paperwork (archival storage of patient request forms and for digital pathology).
* Filing of departmental slides, blocks and specimens to ensure regulatory compliance.
* Scanning of slides for digital pathology (histology slides converted to digital image for pathologists to make a diagnosis instead of using a microscope).
The successful candidates will work as part of a multidisciplinary team and have a positive professional approach to the work. The ability to use computers is critical for daily work to ensure correct mortuary and laboratory records are maintained.
Minimum Requirements
Essential requirements: GCSE grade A-C / 4-9 in English and Maths and a similar grade in science is highly desirable.
Desirable requirements: Car and clean driving licence, previous relevant experience is desirable but not essential as all necessary training will be provided.
This role is not suitable for sponsorship.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
The post holder, under supervision, will be expected to carry out the following duties according to the appropriate Standard Operating Procedures and ensuring Health and Safety guidance is followed.
Clinical Practice
* Receive and record the receipt of deceased from wards and other sources.
* Match details on deceased with white board / paperwork and assign unique identifying mortuary register number requiring complete accuracy and attention to detail.
* Responsible for data entry into the mortuary computer system, requiring complete accuracy and attention to detail.
* Undress deceased as required and place in refrigerator, using mechanical hoist when possible.
* Safeguard any property and valuables accompanying the deceased in line with Trust and Coroner’s procedures.
* Work with Anatomical Pathology Technologist (APT) staff to ensure work is processed in a timely and efficient manner.
* Liaise with undertakers and record the release and removal of deceased (and property) from hospital premises, ensuring compliance with all necessary paperwork.
* Participate in the preparation of disinfectants and perform routine decontamination and cleaning of the post-mortem rooms, refrigerator and their environs, waste disposal.
* Assist with deceased preparation for post-mortem / tissue donation, moving deceased from refrigeration to post-mortem station.
* Help to monitor the adequacy of resources and equipment, reporting any deficiencies to the designated senior APT.
* Dispatch biological samples to testing laboratories ensuring that sample packaging is compliant with specimen transport guidelines.
Management and organisational role
* Communicate with other members of the team, demonstrating good work relations with all members of staff to promote effective team working.
* Liaise with hospital officers and porter staff to facilitate viewing of deceased by relatives and others.
* Liaise with designated officers of HM Coroner and visiting police personnel.
* Receive sensitive information from relatives and their representatives where empathic skills are required.
* Be aware of Clinical Governance, Control of Substances Hazardous to Health (COSHH) and local Health and Safety policies, reporting problems, errors or breaches to the senior staff.
* Assist with work required to maintain UKAS accreditation and HTA licensing requirements.
* Attend departmental and Trust-wide staff meetings as appropriate.
* Demonstrate an awareness of, and compliance with, health and safety regulations, the Data Protection Act and Standard Operating Procedures.
* Treat everyone associated with the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust with courtesy and respect.
* Display and maintain an appropriate level of IT skills, in order to input patient and post-mortem data maintain and amend deceased records and interrogate the post mortem databases.
* Perform a range of administrative tasks in the mortuary as required. This includes retrieval and disposal of specimens and data, maintenance of associated records and the collection of data for audits.
Professional development and Education
* Attend mandatory training sessions required by the Trust.
* Attend any areas of further development as suggested in their Personal Development Plan (PDP).
* Attend regular appraisal, maintain competence levels within the Department and assist in own personal and professional development.
General Responsibilities
* To be aware of the inherent risks of the work and to take appropriate precautions at all times, reporting to the Mortuary Manager or Safety Officer any potential hazards.
* Abide by current policies and procedures defined by the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and/or the Pathology Risk Management Team and to comply with the Health and Safety at Work Act.
* Any matters of a confidential nature, including information relating to the diagnosis and treatment of patients, individual staff records must, under no circumstances, be divulged to any unauthorised person or persons.
Person specification
Education and Qualifications
* GCSE English A-C / 4-9 or equivalent.
* GCSE Maths A-C / 4-9 or equivalent.
* GCSE Science A-C / 4-9 or equivalent.
Experience and knowledge
* Previous mortuary or funeral director experience.
* Previous laboratory work experience in NHS laboratory.
Skills and Abilities
* Self motivated.
* Driving licence with own transport.
* Basic keyboard skills e.g. Microsoft Word and Excel.
COVID-19: The COVID-19 vaccination remains the best way to protect yourself, your family, your colleagues and of course our patients from the virus when working in our healthcare settings. Whilst COVID-19 vaccination is not a condition of employment, we do encourage our staff to get vaccinated.
Vacancy Closures: Please note, this vacancy may close early if a high volume of applications are received.
Probation Period: This post is subject to a 6 month probationary period. If you currently hold a contract of employment with the Oxford University Hospitals, this will not apply.
Referencing: When providing employment reference details please provide correct work related email addresses so references can be sought promptly when we are looking to progress your application.
Next Steps: Please make sure that you read the job description and person specification, and that your supporting statement reflects this as your application will be judged against these criteria. Candidates selected for interview will be contacted after the short-listing process, usually within 2 weeks.
No unsolicited recruitment agency telephone calls or emails.
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