Medical Receptionist

Job description

Job responsibilities

Medical Receptionist Job Description

Post: Medical Receptionist

Accountable to: Practice Manager & Assistant Operations Manager

Place of work: Norwood Medical Centre

Job Purpose

To provide a high-quality front-line reception service to our patients and colleagues and to ensure the day-to-day activities are performed in a timely and efficient manner.

As a receptionist you are the first point of contact for people contacting the surgery and it is vital that you project a positive, friendly and professional image to patients and other visitors.

Primary Responsibilities

Ensure an effective and efficient reception service is provided to patients and other visitors to the practice.

Organise and plan room usage on the day.

Deal with all general enquiries from patients, doctors, staff and other agencies, explaining surgery procedures, making new and follow-up appointments over the telephone or with direct patient contact.

Care navigate and direct patients to the most appropriate source of help.

Action requests for repeat prescriptions and ensure they are processed as per our protocol within 48 hours.

Opening mail and ensuring that it is directed to the correct recipient as soon as possible.

Setting out letters, new prescriptions and repeat prescriptions for checking by the doctor before collection by the patient or sending to the pharmacy.

Filing and extracting patients records and any documents relating to these be it from paper or electronic records.

Entering patient information accurately and in a timely manner onto the patient record or clinical system.

Dealing with the incoming post and other forms of communication, scanning and distributing it to the appropriate members of the practice team.

Receiving and passing on messages in an accurate and timely manner to clinical and managerial staff.

Pass on all requests for home visits to the appropriate clinician, ensuring careful recording of all relevant details.

Explain the registration process and formal requirements to new patients and those seeking temporary cover and ensure procedures are followed.

Registration and documentation of new patients to the practice, including reorganisation of patient notes when they are received.

Updating patient details as requested in an accurate and timely manner.

Liaising with other outside agencies including hospitals, ambulance control, out of hours services or other bodies by telephone or email.

Keeping the consulting rooms and the reception areas adequately supplied with stationery and necessary equipment.

Tidying the reception areas at the end of a session, ensuring that any urgent or outstanding messages and tasks are passed over to incoming colleagues for completion.

Opening and closing surgery premises, checking heating and ventilation in waiting areas and switching on/off computers in reception and consulting areas.

Responsibility for checking and securing the premises, setting the security alarm.

Flexible to cover when needed for holidays, sickness and other absences.

Willingness to adopt and contribute to new processes.

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 health and safety hazards and infection hazards immediately when recognised.

Keeping own work areas and general/patient areas clean and tidy, assisting in the maintenance of general standards of cleanliness consistent with the scope of the job holder's role.

Undertaking periodic infection control training.

Reporting potential risks identified.

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

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 people's 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, 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.

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 patient 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 people's 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

Experience

Essential

• Previous reception or customer care experience
• Experience of working with the general public

Desirable

• Experience of working in Primary Care or other health care setting
• Experience of working within a changing environment
• Care navigation and signposting

Knowledge and Skills

Essential

• Ability to use a telephone system and good call handling skills including taking and recording accurate information
• Keyboard and IT Skills
• Well organised
• Ability to deal with urgent situations that may arise and work calmly under pressure
• Attention to detail and good levels of accuracy
• Confidentiality & GDPR awareness
• Excellent communications including the ability to listen, must include communication skills via:
• -Telephone
• -Email
• -In person

Desirable

• EMIS user
• Ability to use and decipher read codes
• Previous use of medical terminology

Knowledge and Skills

Essential

• Ability to use a telephone system and good call handling skills including taking and recording accurate information
• Keyboard and IT Skills
• Well organised
• Ability to deal with urgent situations that may arise and work calmly under pressure
• Attention to detail and good levels of accuracy
• Confidentiality & GDPR awareness
• Excellent communications including the ability to listen, must include communication skills via:
• -Telephone
• -Email
• -In person

Desirable

• EMIS user
• Ability to use and decipher read codes
• Previous use of medical terminology

Qualifications

Essential

• English and Maths GCSE A to C or equivalent

Desirable

• Customer care or Administration qualification or equivalent

Knowledge and Skills

Essential

• Ability to use a telephone system and good call handling skills including taking and recording accurate information
• Keyboard and IT Skills
• Well organised
• Ability to deal with urgent situations that may arise and work calmly under pressure
• Attention to detail and good levels of accuracy
• Confidentiality & GDPR awareness
• Excellent communications including the ability to listen, must include communication skills via:
• -Telephone
• -Email
• -In person

Desirable

• EMIS user
• Ability to use and decipher read codes
• Previous use of medical terminology

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

Norwood Medical Centre

Address

Norwood Medical Centre

360 Herries Road

Sheffield

S5 7HD

Employer's website

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