We are looking for someone professional with excellent customer service offering a person-centred approach to join our Patient Experience Team on a 12-month fixed term basis as the PALS Lead.
This could also be offered as a secondment opportunity for internal candidates.
This is a great opportunity to become part of the Patient Experience Team where you will work 5 days a week, alongside the Patient Experience Manager to ensure a pro-active and dynamic approach to the management of PALS enquiries and complaints across the Trust, leading the PALS Officers and PALS Administrator.
Main duties of the job
The PALS Lead will promote excellent patient experience and contribute to continuous improvements to deliver the highest possible standards of care and ensure all enquiries are dealt with at the earliest stage and resolved as soon as possible.
There is an expectation for the PALS Lead to be highly motivated, flexible and multi-skilled; with a high standard of literacy and computer skills.
The PALS Lead will need to ensure PALS meet deadlines, collate data, and maintain standards. The PALS Lead will maintain close working relationships with frontline staff and managers to ensure that an impartial, personal, effective and efficient support is provided to all enquiries.
On occasion the PALS Lead will need to manage challenging situations via face-to-face contact with patients, carers or relatives, ensuring they escalate and seek support as necessary.
The PALS Lead will provide support to the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) and supervision of the PALS team.
About us
We provide mental health, learning disability and neurodiversity services, as well as a range of specialist & secure services for the wider south west region & nationally. We are passionate about promoting good mental health & wellbeing. We strive to use the expertise & resources within our organisation, and through our partnerships, to deliver high quality services that are safe & focused on people's recovery.
We are committed to developing a culture of co-production, involving patients, families & carers in everything we do.
Our values
We not only recruit based on qualifications & experience - we recruit individuals who possess & demonstrate the behaviours which underpin our Trust's core values. These include such attributes as showing a commitment to quality of care, improving lives of others, giving respect, dignity & compassion. We can bring those values to life in our everyday tasks by giving a smile; making time for people; challenging ourselves & others, & being open to new ideas.
We are committed to being an inclusive employer & applications are encouraged & welcomed from all sections of the community, regardless of any protected characteristics as governed by the Equality Act 2010. Part-time & flexible working applications will be considered & supported, where possible. We particularly encourage applicants with lived experience of mental health conditions, neurodiversity or learning disabilities. We are a Disability Confident Leader.
Job responsibilities
1. To support the role of the Experience, Safety and Risk Team in promoting excellent patient experience, and contributing to continuous improvements to deliver the highest possible standards of care.
2. To adopt a flexible and supportive approach to resolving requests for information regarding Trust services via the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) or its complaints functions.
3. To work closely with front line staff to receive, manage and respond to formal and informal enquiries and complaints in line with Trust policy and procedure and NHS Complaints Regulations.
4. To support the delivery of the Trust's Patient Experience, Dealing with Compliments, Concerns and Complaints policy and procedure and contribute to the wider aims of the Trust regarding Patient Experience.
5. To work as part of the Experience, Safety and Risk Team, the Patient Advice and Liaison Lead will develop and maintain close working relationships with frontline staff and managers to ensure an impartial, personal, effective and efficient support service to patients and service users, relatives and carers, and Trust staff.
6. To ensure that patients are supported in raising issues at the earliest stage and resolving as soon as possible to minimise harm and anxiety. The Patient Advice and Liaison Lead will need to be proactive and dynamic in resolving issues as they arise or facilitating the resolution of these by liaison with relevant professional and managerial staff across the Trust.
7. To manage challenging situations via face-to-face contact with patients, carers or relatives that can sometimes lead to difficult situations, which are managed autonomously, escalating and seeking support as necessary within the scope of the role.
8. To manage own time and exercise discretion to resolve concerns for patients, carers and relatives by being proactive and speaking directly with clinical staff and senior directorate management.
9. To provide support to the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) and supervision of the PALS team.
10. To ensure that deadlines imposed by the complaints regulations are adhered to and that there is appropriate escalation where cases are breaching these requirements.
11. To support the Patient Experience Manager at meetings both internal and external, and represent the team as needed.
12. To evaluate and collate the lessons to be learnt from the activity of the PALS team.
13. To maintain the PALS intranet and website pages.
Person Specification
Qualifications
* Educated to degree level or ability to evidence a thorough understanding of the NHS complaints process gained in an NHS Trust or Local Authority.
* High standard of English and an ability to convey information accurately, succinctly and in a sensitive manner, both verbally and in writing.
* Microsoft Office including Word, Excel, Outlook.
* NVQ Level 4 or equivalent in Administration.
* ECDL or equivalent.
* Management / leadership training course.
Experience
* Experience of providing day-to-day supervision and support to a team.
* Experience of managing PALS / complaints procedures and enquiries.
* Experience of working in a PALS or customer care environment.
* An understanding or experience of mental health and drug and alcohol issues.
* Experience of working without direct supervision and using own initiative.
* Experience of influencing change and promoting learning.
* Experience of working with complex and sensitive information.
* Advanced use of MS Windows, MS Office, Excel, PowerPoint including Microsoft Outlook.
* Ability to deliver training.
* NHS / public sector administrative experience.
* Familiar with the Ulysses risk management system.
Knowledge and Skills
* Detailed knowledge of the NHS complaints procedure, clinical governance and experience.
* Knowledge of complaints legislation and the Data Protection Act.
* Knowledge and understanding of safeguarding children and vulnerable adults.
* Detailed knowledge and understanding of the NHS and partner organisations.
* Knowledge of the mental health/drug and alcohol services environment.
* Have excellent verbal and written communication skills.
* Ability to communicate with both internal and external stakeholders with respect, diplomacy and compassion.
* Ability to promote and manage change whilst being sensitive to conflicting priorities.
* Flexible & adaptable to change with a can-do attitude.
* Able to motivate self and engage others.
* Able to demonstrate a commitment to self-development.
* Ability to empathise & communicate well with emotional (distressed, angry, frightened etc) people (complainants, patients, relatives & staff).
* Knowledge of policies and procedures for PALS/customer care and the Parliamentary Health Service Ombudsman.
* Facilitation/teaching skills.
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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