Care Navigator

Job description

Job responsibilities

Job Role/purpose:

The Care Navigator is the first point of contact for patients contacting the GP surgery. This can be via a variety of methods including via the telephone, face to face and via our online consult service. The purpose of the role is to optimise the patients journey, taking every opportunity to ensure that requests are managed appropriately whilst delivering the best service

Main duties and responsibilities:

• Working alongside the Triage team to support the navigation of patients to the most appropriate person or service
• Answering calls from our patients, in an efficient and courteous manner, providing clear concise information
• Enter requests for home visits into Emis Web ensuring accurate recording of all relevant details and where necessary refer to the Duty Doctor or Duty Team
• Ensure an effective and efficient reception service is provided to patients and any other visitors to the practice
• Deal with all general enquiries, explain procedures and make new and follow-up appointments.
• Explain practice arrangements and formal requirements to new patients and those seeking temporary cover and ensure procedures are completed
• Ensure that all new patients are registered onto the computer system promptly and accurately
• Receive and make telephone calls as required. Divert calls and take messages, ensuring accuracy of detail and prompt appropriate delivery
• Advise patients of relevant charges for private (non-General Medical Services) services, accept payment and issue receipts
• Enter and confirm patient information accurately, on to the computer as required
• Access patient medical records to book appointments and manage patient queries, enter accurate admin notes using Emis Web
• Complete tasks on Emis web to communicate to patients, colleagues and healthcare professionals
• Keep the health care team informed of any matters arising as necessary, or as requested by other members of the health care team
• Keep the Office Manager and Reception Lead informed of any matters arising or problems/potential problems
• Ensure all Visitors sign in our Visitors book and collect the book upon your departure of the building, in the event of an evacuation
• Processing and distributing incoming (and outgoing) mail
• Filing and retrieving paperwork, scanning of medical records
• To complete general administration duties including note summarising, photocopying and franking mail/postal duties as required
• Processing repeat prescriptions in accordance with practice guidelines
• Computer data entry/data allocation and collation; processing and recording information in accordance with practice procedures
• Initiating contact with and responding to requests from patients, other team member and associated healthcare agencies and providers
• Clearing and re-stocking of consulting rooms as required
• Dealing with clinical waste and carry out emergency cleaning as required
• Provision of refreshments for staff and visitors as required and general housekeeping duties
• Maintain the reception area, notice-boards and leaflet dispensers tidy and free from obstructions and clutter
• You may be required to work late evenings to provide cover for extended access, weekends and bank holidays and to cover 7 day operation as requested subject to the business needs
• You will be required to attend training sessions at other locations, which are relevant to the job role.
• Opening up/locking up of practice premises and maintaining security in accordance with practice protocols

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
• All practice policies; Information Governance, Data Protection, Confidentiality, Caldicott and Safeguarding Policies must be adhered to at all times. The Employee should contact the information Governance Lead GP and the Practice Manager in event of any queries.
• Ensure Smartcards are not left unattended and taken off the premises and stored securely overnight

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, free from hazards
• Actively reporting 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
• To ensure you are fully up to date with the practice health and safety policies, continuity and recovery plan and relevant risk assessments which is available on the practice health and safety site.

Equality and diversity:

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.

Safeguarding of Children & Vulnerable Adults

• To adhere to the principals of effective safeguarding of children and vulnerable adults.

Training /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
• To complete all mandatory training required to complete the job role including attendance of Practice protected learning time (PLT) sessions, complete Teamnet eLearning training and completion of practice HR policies, standards and working practice

Quality:

Effectively manage own time, workload and resources

• 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
• To complete other duties as required which are commensurate to this role.

Other Information:

This appointment will be subject to Criminal Record Bureau and background checks and completion of a 6-month probationary period for new starters to the organisation.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• 3 x GCSEs including maths and English or equivalent

Desirable

• NVQ Customer Care

Experience

Essential

• Customer Service Experience
• Reception/administration experience

Desirable

• Experience of working with Emis Web, and other clinical systems
• Experience working in a health care setting
• Experience of working in Primary Care

Knowledge and skills

Essential

• Advanced numeracy skills
• Excellent keyboard and computer skills including Microsoft office
• Excellent communication skills

Qualities and attributes

Essential

• Friendly, professional and approachable
• An understanding, acceptance and adherence to the need for strict confidentiality
• Ability to use own judgement, resourcefulness and common sense
• Ability to work without direct supervision and determine own workload priorities
• Ability to work as part of an integrated multi-skilled team
• Able to work under pressure
• Able to work in a changing environment
• Able to use own initiative
• Articulate and Numerate
• Professional attitude and appearance
• Can adapt and contribute to change whilst working in a fast paced environment.

Other

Essential

• To work flexibly (days and hours) as per the admin team rota - able to work at the desired times; includes late working and will include weekends and bank holidays to cover 7 day operation as requested
• To cover holidays and sickness as required within the admin team
• To travel to attend training sessions at other locations

Desirable

• Car driver / clean licence

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

Eden Medical Group

Address

Port Road

Carlisle

Cumbria

CA2 7AJ

Employer's website

https://www.edenmedicalgroup.co.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)