* Please note the advert may close early if there are sufficient applicants before close date.
We have a vacancy for a Medical Receptionist to join our friendly supportive team, doing a variety of work in our busy GP Practice.
They will provide a range of reception and administration duties using SystmOne clinical system and Microsoft systems. Computer skills are essential and experience in coding and/or summarising would be desirable.
We are looking for someone who has experience in a customer care environment, ideally medical and has energy, flexibility, reliability, enthusiasm, and be self-motivated with excellent communication skills.
This is an essential role, providing a welcoming, friendly, and professional service to our patients, staff, and visitors, face to face or via the telephone.
Main duties of the job
1. Welcoming patients to the practice, booking and rearranging appointments, maintaining and monitoring the practice appointment system.
2. Care Navigation - Signpost patients to the most appropriate service (internally or externally).
3. Deal with all general enquiries, explain procedures and make new and follow-up appointments.
4. Using your own judgment and communication skills ensure that patients with no prior appointment but who need urgent consultation are seen in a logical and non-disruptive manner.
5. Chaperone patients as and when required.
6. Ensure all incoming and outgoing tasks are actioned appropriately and in a timely manner.
About us
Blackhall and Peterlee Practice is in the Easington area in County Durham and operates across two locations caring for 10,000+ patients.
We are a large training practice with four GP partners, four salaried GPs, a nursing team of nurse practitioners, nurses and HCAs, pharmacists along with a large administrative team to support the team and patients. We provide education and supervision for GP trainees and medical students.
As part of Easington Central PCN we offer enhanced access and attached staff including physiotherapists, health and wellbeing coaches, clinical pharmacists, care coordinators, adult mental health support, CAMHS, and social prescribers. Everyone within the team and wider PCN team is supportive, friendly, and approachable.
Job responsibilities
1. Welcoming patients to practice, booking and rearranging appointments, maintaining and monitoring the practice appointment system.
2. To ensure an effective and efficient reception service is provided to patients and any other visitors to the practice.
3. Answer incoming phone calls, transferring calls or dealing with the caller's request appropriately, taking messages to pass onto the appropriate person (as per practice protocol).
4. Care Navigation - Signpost patients to the most appropriate service (internally or externally).
5. Deal with all general enquiries, explain procedures and make new and follow-up appointments.
6. Using your own judgment and communication skills ensure that patients with no prior appointment but who need urgent consultation are seen in a logical and non-disruptive manner.
7. Explain practice arrangements and formal requirements to new patients and those seeking temporary cover and ensure procedures are completed.
8. Chaperone patients as and when required.
9. Ensure all incoming and outgoing tasks are actioned appropriately and in a timely manner; GP2GP transfers / appointment cancellation updates / PDS updates / new patient address / pathology / online service requests / letter to action / tasks from clinical staff.
10. Understanding and fully utilising SystmOne.
11. Input data into the patients' healthcare records as necessary.
12. Monitor and maintain the reception area and notice boards.
13. Support all clinical staff with general tasks as requested.
14. Ensure correspondence, reports, results etc. are scanned/filed promptly and in the correct records, ensuring that all recent correspondence is available when patients are seen.
15. To receive incoming and initiate outgoing telephone calls in order to facilitate timely and appropriate communications with others, taking messages and dealing with appropriate queries.
16. To maintain the computer clinic system in an accurate and secure manner.
17. To assist with the gathering of statistics and information when required.
18. Assist with coding/summarising as required.
19. You will be required to cover for members of the reception/secretarial team during periods of sickness and annual leave, across all of the sites in order to maintain operational efficiency.
20. Any other duties deemed reasonable by the Partners/Practice Management Team.
Confidentiality
In the course of seeking treatment, patients entrust us with, or allow us to gather, sensitive information in relation to their health and other matters. They do so in confidence and have the right to expect that staff will respect their privacy and act appropriately.
In the performance of the duties outlined in this Job Description, the post-holder may have access to confidential information relating to patients and their carers, practice staff, and other healthcare workers. They may also have access to information relating to the practice as a business organisation. All such information from any source is to be regarded as strictly confidential.
Information relating to patients, carers, colleagues, other healthcare workers, or the business of the practice may only be divulged to authorised persons in accordance with the practice policies and procedures relating to confidentiality and the protection of personal and sensitive data.
Health & Safety
The postholder will assist in promoting and maintaining their own and others' health, safety, and security as defined in the practice Health & Safety Policy, the practice Health & Safety manual, and the practice Infection Control policy and published procedures. This will include:
1. Using personal security systems within the workplace according to practice guidelines.
2. Identifying the risks involved in work activities and undertaking such activities in a way that manages those risks.
3. Making effective use of training to update knowledge and skills.
4. Using appropriate infection control procedures, maintaining work areas in a tidy and safe way and free from hazards.
5. Actively reporting of health and safety hazards and infection hazards immediately when recognised.
6. Keeping own work areas and general/patient areas generally clean, assisting in the maintenance of general standards of cleanliness consistent with the scope of the job holder's role.
7. Undertaking periodic infection control training (minimum annually).
8. Demonstrating due regard for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children.
Equality and Diversity
The postholder will support the equality, diversity, and rights of patients, carers, and colleagues, to include:
1. Acting in a way that recognizes the importance of people's rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with practice procedures and policies, and current legislation.
2. Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs, and beliefs of patients, carers, and colleagues.
3. Behaving in a manner that is welcoming to and of the individual, is non-judgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings, priorities, and rights.
Information Governance
The practice is committed to improving the way it manages information. Information Governance pulls together a variety of initiatives relating to how NHS agencies use information and aims to improve the security, confidentiality, quality, and accessibility of this information.
It is essential that you understand these initiatives and are aware of your responsibilities in managing information on a day-to-day basis. Several policies have been developed detailing staff obligations in relation to these areas, around IT Security, Records Management, and Freedom of Information. It is a condition of your employment that you act in accordance with these policies and participate in training offered by the practice in relation to these.
All papers and files are the property of the Practice and remain so irrespective of origin or authorship.
Personal & Professional Development
The postholder will participate in any training programme implemented by the practice as part of this employment, such training to include:
1. Participation in an annual individual performance review, including taking responsibility for maintaining a record of own personal and/or professional development.
2. Taking responsibility for own development, learning, and performance and demonstrating skills and activities to others who are undertaking similar work.
Quality
The postholder will strive to maintain quality within the practice, and will:
1. Alert other team members to issues of quality and risk.
2. Assess own performance and take accountability for own actions, either directly or under supervision.
3. Contribute to the effectiveness of the team by reflecting on own and team activities and making suggestions on ways to improve and enhance the team's performance.
4. Work effectively with individuals in other agencies to meet patients' needs.
5. Effectively manage own time, workload, and resources.
6. Ensure self and team carry out all mandatory training (CPR, Safeguarding, Information Governance, etc).
Communication:
The postholder should recognize the importance of effective communication within the team and will strive to:
1. Communicate effectively with other team members.
2. Communicate effectively with patients and carers.
3. Communicate effectively with other partner agencies including but not limited to, Community Staff, Practice and community pharmacists, Nursing Homes, and other third sector partners.
4. Recognize people's needs for alternative methods of communication and respond accordingly as per Accessible Information Standards.
Contribution to the Implementation of services:
The postholder will:
1. Apply practice policies, standards, and guidance.
2. Discuss with other members of the team how the policies, standards, and guidelines will affect own work.
3. Participate in audit where appropriate.
4. Develop protocols to support business change.
Corporate
This job description reflects the duties we currently anticipate the post holder undertaking. However, due to the nature of the role this may change over time. You will be expected to undertake tasks/duties required to maintain the efficient running of the practice which may not be detailed on this job description, but which are commensurate with your grade and within your capabilities. Any permanent changes to this job description will be made following consultation with the postholder.
There will be a probation period of six months, the rate of pay for the first four months will be £11.50 per hour. A review will take place at three months, upon satisfactory outcome, the rate of pay will uplift to £12.20 from month four.
Person Specification
Experience
* Excellent communication skills (written and oral).
* Ability to work on own initiative.
* Ability to work as a team member and autonomously.
* Experience of General Practice or in a health care setting.
* Experience with coding/ summarising.
* Good working knowledge of clinical systems (SystmOne).
Qualifications
* Educated to GCSE level or equivalent.
* GCSE Mathematics and English (C or above).
* NVQ Level 2 in Health and Social Care or Business Administration.
* Experience of working in NHS.
* Good working knowledge of clinical systems (SystmOne).
Knowledge and skills
* Time Management.
* Planning and prioritising.
* Problem solving.
* Accuracy in work.
* Able to work to tight deadlines.
* Able to work to protocols/guidelines.
* Ability to communicate effectively to the practice team.
* Ability to travel independently between sites.
* Self-motivated.
* Articulate.
* Ability to work under pressure.
* Working in an office environment.
* Adaptable/Flexibility.
* Reliable/Proven attendance record.
* Sense of humour.
* Able to manage conflict.
* Able to cope with unexpected situations and provide solutions to problems.
* Able to communicate effectively and clearly.
* Diplomacy/tact.
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.
£22,425 to £23,790 a year subject to experience.
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