Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust

PA to Divisional Directors - Surgery

This job is now closed

Job summary

An opportunity has arisen for an experienced, motivated and ambitious Personal Assistant to work with the Director of Operations, Director of Nursing and the Divisional Director within the Surgery Directorate at Worcestershire Acute NHS Trust.

This is a critical Personal Assistant Post, and the post holder is a core member of the Division. The successful candidate will be responsible for all aspects of a Personal Assistant role.

Main duties of the job

The role requires excellent secretarial, administrative and communication skills, diary management, email management, use of all Microsoft Office packages; the ability to assess situations, prioritise incoming information and address issues appropriately, and escalate where necessary.

About us

Our purpose is simple - Putting Patients First. We are looking for exceptional colleagues who can help us achieve this.

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust is a large acute and specialised hospital trust that provides a range of local acute services to the residents of Worcestershire and more specialised services to a larger population in Herefordshire and beyond.

The Trust operates hospital-based services from three sites in Kidderminster, Redditch and Worcester

Our workforce is over 7,000 strong, and our caring staff are recognised as providing good and outstanding patient-centred care. You could be one of them.

We are committed to recruiting the best people to work with us to achieve our Vision - working in partnership to provide the best healthcare for our communities, leading and supporting our teams to move 4ward. Our 4ward behaviours, which we ask all staff to demonstrate, underpin our everyday work and remain firmly at the heart of all we do.

Our objectives are simple:

Best services for local people
Best experience of care and best outcomes for our patients
Best use of resources
Best people

Better never stops, and our Clinical Services Strategy provides a clear future vision for our Trust, our hospitals, our services and our role in the wider health and care system.

We are proud to have achieved Timewise accreditation - this means we are committed to embedding flexible working within our organisation as a flex positive employer.

Date posted

15 April 2024

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 5

Salary

£28,407 to £34,581 a year

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

C9365-24-0480

Job locations

Charles Hastings Way

Worcester

Worcestershire

WR5 1DD

Job description

Job responsibilities

Post Title: Personal Assistant toDivisional Director, Director of Operations and Director of Nursing - Surgery

Band: Agenda for Change Band 5

Responsible to: Divisional Management Team

Line Management Accountability: Divisional Director of Operations - Surgery

Hours: Full Time 37.5 hours per week

KEY RELATIONSHIPS

Internal:

Chairman, Chief Executive, Chief Operating Officer, Deputy Chief Operating Officer, Other Divisional Management Teams, other Executive Directors, Non Executive Directors, Clinical Directors, Directorate Managers and Matrons and other senior nursing team members, PA and secretarial staff in corporate and clinical departments and other key staff within the Trust.

External:

Department of Health, NHS Executive and Improvement, NHS Trusts, Integrated Care Board, General Medical Council, Nursing and Midwifery Council, Royal College of Nursing and other related professional bodies, Trust Solicitors, NHS Confederation, Local Authorities, the Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee and other health care organisations and interest groups.

JOB PURPOSE:

To provide a high level, comprehensive, efficient and confidential senior secretarial/administrative service to the Divisional Management Team, utilising a full range of technical skills in the production of correspondence, reports and presentations without supervision. The role includes the co-ordination, administration and facilitation of the team to ensure that the Division can deliver its core objectives and targets.

The range and diversity of responsibilities will require the post holder to adopt a flexible approach. The ability to work independently, with competing priorities and to tight deadlines is essential.

The post holder is a key member of the Divisional Team whose overarching goal is to enable, promote and support the effective use of data, information, knowledge and technology to improve, inform and support a portfolio of projects, services, and initiatives for the Division.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

To play a key role in the management and day-to-day organisation of the Divisional office

Work autonomously, prioritising own workload including carrying out enquiries and investigate issues, to ensure that an efficient service is provided to the Directors at all times

To provide effective support to the Divisional Management Team by communicating complex and sometimes sensitive information, where required prioritising own and managers activities using Microsoft Office packages at an advanced level

To manage the diaries for the Divisional Director, Director of Operations and Divisional Director of Nursing negotiating facilities and appointments ensuring the best use of the Teams time

Dealing with complex enquires that will require investigating a variety of workable solutions to ensure they are managed efficiently

Provide efficient and confidential administrative secretarial assistance by developing maintaining and updating filing systems, administrative procedures and personnel files

Take responsibility for the efficient organisation and maintenance of filing systems, ensuring that all papers for meetings are available and that there is an effective bring forward system ensuring that confidentiality is maintained at all times

Organising and maintaining any archiving/storage facilities for personnel files and also documents stored electronically

Take responsibility for all matters relating to incoming and outgoing correspondence including monitor of emails, initiating replies to routine correspondence on behalf of the Directors as necessary. In the absence of a Director, to be responsible for the forwarding or re-direction of urgent items of business or correspondence

Be the initial point of contact for telephone and face-to-face enquiries from internal colleagues and external agencies, dealing with confidential, sensitive, complex and contentious issues as well as dealing with complex enquiries. Responding accordingly ensuring appropriate action is taken on specific issues

Ensure that all messages are prioritised and communicated to the Director or other member of the Divisional Management Team. In the absence of the Director initiate action where necessary and monitor action taken. Ensure that information requested from staff is received in a timely and accurate manner

Gather information requested by the Directors and present in a useful format, disseminating any information, which may be of interest to other staff members, associates and outside agencies

Maintain annual leave, sickness, study leave records ensuring leave does not coincide, Maintain annual leave, sickness, study leave records ensuring leave does not coincide

Maintain the personal files for the staff within the Directorate Management Teams

To initiate job vacancies for the recruitment of staff within the Division/Directorate Management Teams, completing payroll documentation thereafter

To be responsible for completion of the monthly turnaround documents for the senior Divisional team

Take responsibility for accessing Divisional ESR self-service and eRostering as directed

Assist in the co-ordination of complaints for the Division in conjunction with the Director of Nursing and Governance Team

Provide secretariat role to the Divisional Board and other committees chaired by the Divisional Directors. This will include co-ordinating and facilitating meetings, taking full responsibility for identification of agenda items, drafting agendas, taking formal minutes and identifying actions, distribution of relevant papers and ensuring follow-up action is undertaken

Create databases and spreadsheets. Transcribe audiotapes when required. Obtain information and report from and maintain relevant databases/electronic systems, collecting data as required

Organise multi-agency meetings liaising with all parties and negotiating with/persuading parties where diary conflicts arise. To include collation of agenda items & paperwork, taking transcribing and circulating agreed minutes for public, external and internal meetings. Also take responsibility for the allocation and tracking of actions as requested

Accompany the Director to meetings to take notes, and ensure prompt follow up of actions agreed

Receive action and monitor risk issues for the Division, liaising with relevant staff, collating information ensuring Trust required response time is achieved

Liaise with the Trust Communications Department in order that all relevant information is disseminated to appropriate parties, including external organisations, governors, staff and service users

Conduct polite and courteous telephone conversations with all stakeholders demonstrating patience and understanding of whichever dilemmas they may be facing in a reassuring manner

Establish communication and maintain links with other staff and associates to ensure an effective and efficient administrative/secretarial service for the Directors

Facilitate effective liaison with other NHS organisations, Social Services and any other health, local government or social care professionals or contractors, including other administrative support within the Health economy

Be responsible for the procurement of physical assets and supplies for the Division and raising orders when directed ensuring agreed financial guidelines are adhered to when orders are placed

To pull together and maintain rotas that facilitate the delivery of the Divisions business on a daily basis

Recruit, supervise and develop junior staff and associates as and when required

Other duties, commensurate with the post, as directed by Divisional Directors

To undertake (as a regular feature of the role) discreet projects which require analysis and interpretation, development of proposals and policy and influencing skills.

To be aware of the Divisional budgets and assist in the reduction of expenditure.

STANDARD CLAUSES

The purpose of this post should remain constant but the duties and responsibility may vary over time within the overall role and level of the post. The post holder may, from time to time, be asked to undertake other reasonable duties. Any such changes will be made in discussion with the post holder in the light of service needs.

Competence

The post holder is responsible for limiting his/her actions to those which s/he feels competent to undertake. If the post holder has any doubts as to his/her competence during the course of his/her duties, then s/he should immediately speak to their line manager or supervisor.

Codes of Conduct

All employees of the Trust who are required to be registered with a professional body to enable them to practice within their profession are required to comply with their Code of Professional Conduct and requirements of their professional registration. Those staff who are not required to be registered with a professional body are required to comply with the Trusts Code of Conduct.

Confidentiality

The post holder must maintain confidentiality, security and integrity of information relating to patients, staff and other Health Service business.

Records Management

All employees of the Trust are legally responsible for all records that they gather, create or use as part of their work within the Trust (including patient, financial, personnel and administrative), whether paper or computer based. All such records are considered public records and all employees have a legal duty of confidence to service users. Employees should consult their manager if they have any doubt as to the correct management of records with which they work.