Job summary
Receive and store bodies in a safe, dignified, secure and hygienic environment, until such times as arrangements for removal can be made.
To undertake, under the supervision of a qualified technician, aspects of the skilled technical work of the Mortuary Department.
To be responsible for the reception, identification and storage in secure, safe and hygienic conditions of all bodies received either from hospital wards or from outside the hospital.
To be responsible for the release of the deceased to authorised funeral directors in accordance with the law and local safety procedures.
To accept bodies, which are delivered from the community, that may be in a very poor state, i.e. decomposed, badly burnt, road traffic accidents and suicides involving frequent exposure to bodily fluids and distressing circumstances.
Main duties of the job
To perform office functions such as communicating with service users in person or by telephone, and arranging times for post mortems with Coroners officers and pathologists. This will include bereaved and grieving relatives, Coroners officers, police, pathologists, nurses, hospital based Clinicians, bereavement officers, porters and other Trust staff.
To liaise with tissue and organ recovery teams complying at all times with the Trust consent process.
Ensuring all documentation is kept up to date and correct as required for accrediting organisations, including current HTA standards and kept in accordance with departmental protocols, this includes correct disposal of relevant documents.
To partake in the compiling and forwarding of relevant statistics to the Mortuary Services Manager.
About us
Ashford and St. Peters Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust serves a population of more than 410,000 people living in North-West Surrey, parts of Hounslow and beyond.
Over 3,700 highly trained doctors, nurses, midwives, therapists, healthcare scientists and other support staff make up our workforce, providing a wide range of services across our two hospital sites, Ashford, Ashford, Surrey and St Peter's, Chertsey, Surrey.
We also run many specialist clinics in the community and local community hospitals and other healthcare facilities.
Our vision is to be one of the best healthcare Trusts in the country. There has never been a better time to join us in the NHS at Ashford & St Peters Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust with our strong commitment to staff health and wellbeing. We are committed to providing continuous professional development, staff benefits and flexibility to shape our workforce around our patient care.
Please see the supporting links which you can find on the right-hand side of this job advert. There is guidance on how to make an application on NHS Jobs as well as more information about joining the ASPH Team
Although it isn't the Trusts normal practice, adverts may close early, so applicants are encouraged to submit an application as soon as possible.
Job description
Job responsibilities
The successful candidate will have had previous experience of working in a mortuary or similar environment. They will possess effective communication skills and be able to liaise with a variety of people including porters, coroners officers, funeral directors and on occasion bereaved relatives. They will be compassionate and caring but also be able to deal with occasionally distressing circumstances.
To be responsible for the reception, identification and storage in secure, safe and hygienic conditions of all bodies received either from hospital wards or from outside the hospital.
To partake in the organisation and planning of the day to day work of the mortuary, to maintain accurate records using excel or other software.
To be responsible for the release of the deceased to authorised funeral directors in accordance with the law and local safety procedures.
To accept bodies, which are delivered from the community, that may be in a very poor state, i.e. decomposed, badly burnt, road traffic accidents and suicides involving frequent exposure to bodily fluids and distressing circumstances.
Job description
Job responsibilities
The successful candidate will have had previous experience of working in a mortuary or similar environment. They will possess effective communication skills and be able to liaise with a variety of people including porters, coroners officers, funeral directors and on occasion bereaved relatives. They will be compassionate and caring but also be able to deal with occasionally distressing circumstances.
To be responsible for the reception, identification and storage in secure, safe and hygienic conditions of all bodies received either from hospital wards or from outside the hospital.
To partake in the organisation and planning of the day to day work of the mortuary, to maintain accurate records using excel or other software.
To be responsible for the release of the deceased to authorised funeral directors in accordance with the law and local safety procedures.
To accept bodies, which are delivered from the community, that may be in a very poor state, i.e. decomposed, badly burnt, road traffic accidents and suicides involving frequent exposure to bodily fluids and distressing circumstances.
Person Specification
Experience
Essential
- Experience of anatomical pathology work, understanding of the role and requirements and experience of the often distressing circumstances in which work is undertaken.
- Experience of handling and working with deceased be it in the funeral, care home or embalming industry.
Personal Attributions
Essential
- Other Used to working in a busy environment.
- Adaptability, flexibility and ability to cope with uncertainty .
- Willing to engage with and learn from peers, other professionals and colleagues in the desire to provide or support the most appropriate interventions.
- Professional calm and efficient manner.
- Effective organizer/prioritisation skills.
- Demonstrates a strong desire to improve performance and make a difference by focusing on goals.
- Attention to detail.
- Ability to work independently.
Skills and Capabilities
Essential
- Works with a high degree of accuracy in labelling samples and completion of ID checks.
- Able to cope with the significant effort of mortuary work.
- Able to adapt to dynamic circumstances in dealing with releases from the mortuary.
- Calm under pressures of capacity issues.
- Attention to detail in the completion of documentation pertaining to the mortuary, often legal documentation and documentation relating to HM Coroner.
- Basic Computing skill such as MS Office.
- Able to prioritise and plan.
Qualifications
Essential
- GCSE (or equivalent) including science based subjects
Person Specification
Experience
Essential
- Experience of anatomical pathology work, understanding of the role and requirements and experience of the often distressing circumstances in which work is undertaken.
- Experience of handling and working with deceased be it in the funeral, care home or embalming industry.
Personal Attributions
Essential
- Other Used to working in a busy environment.
- Adaptability, flexibility and ability to cope with uncertainty .
- Willing to engage with and learn from peers, other professionals and colleagues in the desire to provide or support the most appropriate interventions.
- Professional calm and efficient manner.
- Effective organizer/prioritisation skills.
- Demonstrates a strong desire to improve performance and make a difference by focusing on goals.
- Attention to detail.
- Ability to work independently.
Skills and Capabilities
Essential
- Works with a high degree of accuracy in labelling samples and completion of ID checks.
- Able to cope with the significant effort of mortuary work.
- Able to adapt to dynamic circumstances in dealing with releases from the mortuary.
- Calm under pressures of capacity issues.
- Attention to detail in the completion of documentation pertaining to the mortuary, often legal documentation and documentation relating to HM Coroner.
- Basic Computing skill such as MS Office.
- Able to prioritise and plan.
Qualifications
Essential
- GCSE (or equivalent) including science based subjects
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.
