Job responsibilities
1. To become an effective member of the Medical Management Team, developing productive working relationships with other members of the team and developing and demonstrating a sound understanding of the aims and business activities of the Trust. To ensure that all dealings are conducted in a manner that reflects the professional reputation of the Secretariat. To support the Team Leader in the line management of the secretariat.
2. To work flexibly to provide efficient, high quality secretarial, administrative and support services to the Team Leader and their medical colleagues as required and to maintain office cover.
3. To produce documents such as clinic letters, admission and discharge summaries, A&E assessments, domiciliary assessments, ward assessments, Mental Health Act reports, memoranda, general correspondence, minutes and presentations, etc., using audio, shorthand or copy typing skills as required. This element of the job requires sustained concentration as it involves understanding the diverse accent and use of English of the doctor and the transcription of dictations which use medical terminologies, medications, abbreviations and local practices. There will be frequent interruptions requiring urgent/immediate response.
4. To manage and prioritise own workload appropriately, frequently under pressure, without supervision.
5. To react quickly to urgent situations in order to coordinate an excellent service to patients/their carers, health professionals and other professional bodies.
6. Excellent communication skills are vital: good relationships need to be established and maintained with other medical/professional staff (other doctors, CPNs, Social Workers, ward staff) involved in both inpatient and outpatient care in order to ensure that these personnel engage in taking action where there is an urgent situation requiring their input.
7. Excellent telephone skills are required to communicate with patients with acute mental health problems, including dementia, psychosis, drug and alcohol problems. Extreme patience, understanding and sensitivity is required in such situations: they can be time consuming and the patient needs to be reassured that their situation will be attended to and a response given at the earliest opportunity.
8. To pass on to the Team Leader and Consultant Psychiatrist, information received from patients/carers regarding their mental state, medication, problems they are experiencing, etc. and to ensure that this is done in an accurate and timely manner. This role is essential in the smooth running of patients care.
9. To relay advice of a clinical nature to patients, carers, GPs and members of the Community Mental Health Teams, acting on the instructions of the Team Leader and Consultant Psychiatrist, ensuring that this is done accurately and comprehensively.
10. To be able to arrange meetings on behalf of the Team Leader and where appropriate the Consultant Psychiatrist on their behalf, including the handling of associated administration such as room bookings, hospitality, the preparation and circulation of agendas and related papers as required and act as a point of contact for co-ordinating and ensuring that necessary details are made available to the Team Leader and Consultant Psychiatrist.
11. To act as a point of contact in the first instance for the Team.
12. To act as a point of contact when arranging meetings for the Team Leader and Consultant Psychiatrist with external agencies.
13. To participate, as required, in the arrangements for training programmes/conferences, ensuring that the relevant documentation is processed and that all necessary practical arrangements are in place for events to run smoothly.
14. To provide effective support to the Team Leader in order to provide a smooth and professional service in line with Trust policies.
15. To attend and minute meetings/case conferences/working groups etc. when required, and to ensure that appropriate administrative follow-up action is taken.
16. To arrange investigation appointments for patients at the request of the ~Team Leader and Consultant (e.g. bloods, EEGs, ECGs, CT Scans, MRI Scans) and, where appropriate, ensure all results are brought to the attention of the Team Leader and Consultant so that appropriate action can be taken.
17. To coordinate actions for patients requiring admission, including liaison with the necessary professionals and the ward.
18. To establish links with other Mental Health staff members within the Trust and external agencies such as the Courts, Prisons, Probation Service, Solicitors, Police, Secure Units, other commissioned services, third sector voluntary organisations etc. to ensure the smooth flow of information.
19. To maintain a good understanding of clinical risk and in the absence of the Team Leader and Consultant, take the initiative to sign post the patient in crisis to the appropriate services such as crisis teams/helplines and alert the relevant professionals of the situation. .
20. To have a good working knowledge of the electronic patient records system used in the team. To participate in the process of updating these records with relevant information such as clinical information, personal data, email, telephone and paper based communications etc. in a timely fashion.
21. To provide secretarial cover to other secretarial teams as necessary for colleagues on sick/annual leave and to work flexibly as a team member to ensure smooth and efficient flow of work through the service.
22. To process applications for annual leave/study leave, within the team ensuring that all relevant team members are aware of forthcoming absences and are advised of the cover arrangements in place.
23. To ensure that post/email/telephone enquiries are promptly sorted, recorded and actioned as appropriate, filtering them in an efficient manner in order to organise and assist with the workflow of the Team Leader. To exercise initiative where appropriate in responding to incoming mail by drafting responses.
24. To co-operate with others towards maintaining efficient filing, records and bring-forward systems, properly indexed and cross referenced, to ensure that location of all documents and files are properly recorded and that they are readily accessible.
25. To be able to access and use the NHS and the Trust information systems, e.g. to retrieve patient care related information.
26. To maintain and order stocks of stationery.
27. To take responsibility for the care and maintenance of the office equipment supplied to secretaries and the Consultants. To notify the IT Department of any problems with the computers and the other relevant repair services for equipment used.
28. To assist with the collection and collation of data and information, including statistical information relevant to the consultants scope of work to assist them to carry out their work efficiently
29. To provide day to day support and assistance to new and temporary members of staff within the team as part of induction and good team working.
30. To assist the Team Leader in the induction of trainee doctors new to the Consultants team on a regular rotational basis. Provide them with a package of template letters, including the admission and discharge summaries to help them formulate their correspondence. Provide them with a timetable of activities, clinics, ward rounds etc. Provide directions where appropriate and help organise transport.
31. To maintain a system to ensure that the doctors, during the induction, are provided with the available personal safety alarms, Dictaphone, bleeps, and keys. An up-to-date log of these to be maintained to facilitate the retrieval and re-allocation as the doctors in the team changeover.
32. To have awareness of and be compliant with performance indicators including patient choice, waiting times, DNA etc. to meet government/star rating targets.
33. To adhere to the principles and processes defined within the equal opportunities provision.
34. To report any health & safety issues or fire hazards to the Manager and take immediate action to minimise any risk or hazard.
35. To fully comply with the GDPR and related policies.
36. To recognise the sensitivity of business undertaken and to ensure strict confidentiality
