Practice Secretary

Job description

Job responsibilities

Job Summary:

The purpose of the role is to:

• Provide secretarial services to the clinicians and the wider HH team when required. The work in volved may be at any one of the 7 Holderness Health Sites.

The post holder will

• project a professional, positive and friendly image to patients and other visitors, either in person or via the telephone.
• Undertake a variety of secretarial duties to assist in the smooth running of the business.
• Facilitate effective communication between patients, staff and other healthcare organisations ensuring confidentiality is always maintained.

Duties and Responsibilities:

The duties and responsibilities to be undertaken by members of the secretarial team may include any or all of the items in the following list. Duties may be varied from time to time under the direction of the Management Team. All duties are to be carried out professionally.

Transcribe dictations

Process textual communications

Process and send referrals to appropriate services

Add relevant codes to patient records once work is complete

Liaise with medical professionals both inside and outside of the practice

Where appropriate, liaise with patients and carers offering appropriate advice and guidance to assist in the management of their referrals and appointments

Other general administrative duties

Incoming electronic documents accessed through workflow and actioned

Ensure tasks in EMIS are managed and actioned on a daily basis

Provide cover within the team when required.

Occasional reporting and monitoring of own and team work as well as for the wider organisation

Ensure that training is completed

Attendance at courses and meetings when required

Scanning and emailing of information using encryption

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 post-holder 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:

Using personal security systems within the workplace according to practice guidelines

Identifying the risks involved in work activities and undertaking such activities in a way that manages those risks

Making effective use of training to update knowledge and skills

Using appropriate infection control procedures, maintaining work areas in a tidy and safe way and free from hazards

Actively reporting of health and safety hazards and infection hazards immediately when recognised

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 holders role

Undertaking periodic infection control training (minimum annually)

Reporting potential risks identified

Demonstrate due regard for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children.

Equality, diversity and inclusion:

The post-holder will support the equality, diversity and rights of patients, carers and colleagues, to include:

Acting in a way that recognises the importance of peoples rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with practice procedures and policies, and current legislation

Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs and beliefs of patients, carers and colleagues

Behaving in a manner that is welcoming to and of the individual, is non-judgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings priorities and rights.

Personal/professional development:

The post-holder will participate in any training programme implemented by the practice as part of this employment, with such training to include:

Participation in an annual individual performance review, including taking responsibility for maintaining a record of own personal and/or professional development

Taking responsibility for own development, learning and performance and demonstrating skills and activities to others who are undertaking similar work

Responsible for undertaking own mandatory training as per practice policy

Quality:

The post-holder will strive to maintain quality within the practice, and will:

Alert other team members to issues of quality and risk

Assess own performance and take accountability for own actions, either directly or under supervision

Contribute to the effectiveness of the team by reflecting on own and team activities and making suggestions on ways to improve and enhance the teams performance

Work effectively with individuals in other agencies to meet patients needs

Effectively manage own time, workload and resources

Communication:

The post-holder should recognise the importance of effective communication within the team and will strive to:

Communicate effectively with other team members

Communicate effectively with patients and carers

Recognise peoples needs for alternative methods of communication and respond accordingly

Contribution to the implementation of services:

The post-holder will:

Apply practice policies, standards and guidance

Discuss with other members of the team how the policies, standards and guidelines will affect own work

Participate in audit where appropriate

Person Specification

Personal attributes

Essential

• Willingness to work additional hours occasionally covering for holidays and sickness or if there is a temporary increase in workload.
• Prepared to work out of any location if required

Qualifications

Essential

• Typing Qualification
• English and math's qualification
• Understanding of patient confidentiality, Data Protection and Caldicott

Desirable

• Medical terminology qualification
• Computer literacy qualification
• Audio typing experience

Experience

Essential

• Customer care
• Experience of using various Microsoft software

Desirable

• Experience working in a Primary care environment
• Ability to prioritise

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

Holderness Health

Address

Church View Surgery

5 Market Hill House

Hedon

HU12 8JE

Employer's website

https://www.holdernesshealth.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)