Job summary An exciting opportunity has arisen for a highly motivated, calm and methodical team player to become a medical secretary and provide an essential administration and secretarial service within the Acute Medical Unit which is part of the Urgent and Emergency Care Directorate. We are currently recruiting for a Medical Secretary for which the nominal base will be the University Hospital of North Durham, offering flexible working following a period of training. Working in a friendly team, our Medical secretaries are an excellent resource, ensuring Consultants and the department have all the administrative support they require. The Acute Medical Unit is a friendly, supportive, busy but welcoming directorate. Main duties of the job Full Range of secretarial and Administration duties to the Acute Medical Unit and Consultants Audio Typing First point of contact for department enquiries Minute taking About us If you are being interviewed you must accept an interview slot in the system to continue, even if you have arranged with the manager You must be able to produce ALL certificates stated essential in the person specification or you will not be able to complete pre-employment checks We provide hospital services from two acute sites - Darlington Memorial Hospital and University Hospital of North Durham. We have a centre for planned care in Bishop Auckland and provide care from community hospitals in Chester-le-Street, Shotley Bridge, Barnard Castle, Sedgefield and Weardale as well as over 80 other community based settings and providing care in patients' homes. We particularly welcome applications from disabled and Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) candidates as BAME and disabled people are currently under-represented From April 1 2024 we are unable to offer sponsorship for healthcare roles that do not meet the minimum salary, If you are in the UK on a VISA please ensure you have no restrictions that would prevent you from taking this post. Full Job Descriptions can be found in the adverts supporting documents Date posted 17 January 2025 Pay scheme Agenda for change Band Band 3 Salary £24,071 to £25,674 a year Contract Permanent Working pattern Full-time Reference number C9439-25-0069 Job locations University Hospital Of North Durham North Road Durham DH1 5TW Job description Job responsibilities To provide a full range of confidential secretarial/administrative support to all clinical staff, working with minimal supervision To undertake typing and distribution of clinical and other patient-related general correspondence, dictated by Consultants and supporting clinical staff, to achieve Trust standards of accuracy and timeliness To be the point of contact for staff, patients and others within and outside the organisation, responding to external and internal telephone enquiries, taking appropriate and timely action required, including making appointments, giving non-clinical advice, onward referral to relevant department etc To receive and respond to internal and external correspondence, taking appropriate and timely action as required, in accordance with Trust and/or departmental standards and processes To book investigations and any necessary follow-up appointments, as directed by clinical staff, ensuring test results are presented to medical staff on receipt, where these are not available electronically To maintain accurate patient and GP details on the Trusts central and local Patient Administration and Clinical Systems, as required To ensure patient information is bar-coded correctly for scanning into the electronic clinical document management system (ECDMS) To manage electronic diaries, as required To organise meetings, including arranging venues, preparing agendas, collating and issuing papers and attending for taking and production of minutes, as required To operate efficient and up-to-date administrative systems and processes for all office tasks To maintain accurate and timely data entry to databases to meet service requirements To prioritise own workload to meet the needs of the patients and Consultants and ensure all deadlines are met To support new and/or less experienced staff, as directed by line manager/head of service To provide cover as required during absence of colleagues Job description Job responsibilities To provide a full range of confidential secretarial/administrative support to all clinical staff, working with minimal supervision To undertake typing and distribution of clinical and other patient-related general correspondence, dictated by Consultants and supporting clinical staff, to achieve Trust standards of accuracy and timeliness To be the point of contact for staff, patients and others within and outside the organisation, responding to external and internal telephone enquiries, taking appropriate and timely action required, including making appointments, giving non-clinical advice, onward referral to relevant department etc To receive and respond to internal and external correspondence, taking appropriate and timely action as required, in accordance with Trust and/or departmental standards and processes To book investigations and any necessary follow-up appointments, as directed by clinical staff, ensuring test results are presented to medical staff on receipt, where these are not available electronically To maintain accurate patient and GP details on the Trusts central and local Patient Administration and Clinical Systems, as required To ensure patient information is bar-coded correctly for scanning into the electronic clinical document management system (ECDMS) To manage electronic diaries, as required To organise meetings, including arranging venues, preparing agendas, collating and issuing papers and attending for taking and production of minutes, as required To operate efficient and up-to-date administrative systems and processes for all office tasks To maintain accurate and timely data entry to databases to meet service requirements To prioritise own workload to meet the needs of the patients and Consultants and ensure all deadlines are met To support new and/or less experienced staff, as directed by line manager/head of service To provide cover as required during absence of colleagues Person Specification Qualifications Essential Good standard of general education Keyboarding/typing qualification equivalent to RSA 3/OCR Advanced text/word processing or equivalent proven typing skills to a high standard (or working towards/equivalent experience) Educated to at least NVQ Level 3 in Business Administration (or working towards /equivalent experience) Understanding of medical terminology Desirable Experience of Bespoke/Therapeutic clinic management Special Skills and Knowledge Essential Knowledge of Data Protection and Caldicott Principles and understanding of the need to maintain strict confidentiality Ability to use email and maintain and update paper and electronic diaries Excellent written communication skills, with the ability to deal with and prepare routine written correspondence. Excellent verbal communication skills, with the ability to obtain information and pass on comprehensive and confidential messages. Ability to organise and prioritise workload in order to meet deadlines Ability to use own initiative and work with minimal supervision Experience Essential Experience of a secretarial/administrative role providing general provision of secretarial/administrative duties in a challenging and constantly changing environment Demonstrate Experience of using Microsoft Word Experience in setting up and maintaining office filing systems Experience of maintaining and setting up databases Experience in planning and organising meetings and taking minutes Person Specification Qualifications Essential Good standard of general education Keyboarding/typing qualification equivalent to RSA 3/OCR Advanced text/word processing or equivalent proven typing skills to a high standard (or working towards/equivalent experience) Educated to at least NVQ Level 3 in Business Administration (or working towards /equivalent experience) Understanding of medical terminology Desirable Experience of Bespoke/Therapeutic clinic management Special Skills and Knowledge Essential Knowledge of Data Protection and Caldicott Principles and understanding of the need to maintain strict confidentiality Ability to use email and maintain and update paper and electronic diaries Excellent written communication skills, with the ability to deal with and prepare routine written correspondence. Excellent verbal communication skills, with the ability to obtain information and pass on comprehensive and confidential messages. Ability to organise and prioritise workload in order to meet deadlines Ability to use own initiative and work with minimal supervision Experience Essential Experience of a secretarial/administrative role providing general provision of secretarial/administrative duties in a challenging and constantly changing environment Demonstrate Experience of using Microsoft Word Experience in setting up and maintaining office filing systems Experience of maintaining and setting up databases Experience in planning and organising meetings and taking minutes 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. Employer details Employer name County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust Address University Hospital Of North Durham North Road Durham DH1 5TW Employer's website https://www.cddft.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)