Admin Assistant to Bereavement Officers.

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust

This job is now closed

Job summary

Assisting the bereavement officers, bereavement team and medical examining team, in the processing of patient deaths. Supporting the bereaved relatives with these processes and liaising with other clinical teams and outside, linked agencies.

Supporting the team with administrative roles and assisting in the smooth handling of processes in this sensitive and sometimes upsetting setting.

Main duties of the job

To deal with the administrative aspects of the deaths of patients in hospital. This includes dealing with distressed families in potentially distressing situations.

To deputise in exceptional circumstances for the Bereavement Officer band 4 to facilitate face to face meetings with families, to guide through the bereavement pathway.

To provide telephone and email advice (on occasion face to face) and support to patients, relatives and staff regarding the NHS bereavement procedure and responding to specific questions raised by relatives which can include dealing with complex, sensitive and sometimes conflicting information.

To ensure accurate processing in terms of collecting and recording key administrative data.

To ensure that the Trust complies with its statutory obligations in respect of deceased patients.

Liaise with front-line staff including doctors, ward managers and Matrons and facilitate responses to any concerns or problems raised by patients/relatives regarding the death of a patient to ensure timely, local resolution.

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

09 July 2024

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 3

Salary

Depending on experience band 3 AFC

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Part-time, Flexible working

Reference number

C9365-24-0849

Job locations

Charles Hastings Way

Worcester

Worcestershire

WR5 1DD

The Alexandra Hospital

Woodrow Drive

Redditch

Worcestershire

B98 7UB

Job description

Job responsibilities

JOB DESCRIPTION

Post Title: Admininstrative Assistant to Bereavement Offices

Pay Band: 3

Hours: Full time 15 hours per week

Contract: Permanent

Location / Department: Bereavement services Countywide

Accountable to: Bereavement Lead

Reports to: Bereavement Lead

Ref:

Key Working Relationships:

Internal:

Medical staff of all grades and specialities, Nursing staff of all grades and specialities, Other health professionals of all grades and specialities including Mortuary staff and Bereavement Officers. Operational and non-operational managers, Non-operational staff of all grades and specialties, Chaplains, Volunteers

External:

Patients, carers and the general public, General Practitioners, Registrar, Coroner and Coroners Officers, Funeral Directors, Crematorium Officials, Treasury Solicitor and Voluntary Organisations

Liases with:

Bereavement Assistant, Bereavement Officers, Patient Services/Experience team, Palliative Care Team and medical and nursing staff.

Risk Assessment:

Dealing with situations of loss, grief, and potential confrontation on a regular (daily) and frequent basis.

Significant proportion, greater than 60%, of the work involves using a VDU.

Some manual handling associated with moving files and medical records between sites and departments

Fire safety and awareness.

Some lone working

Job Purpose:

To deal with the administrative aspects of the deaths of patients in hospital. This includes dealing with distressed families in potentially distressing situations.

To work with the Bereavement Assistant and take the lead to ensure key information can be processed in the absence of the band 4 Bereavement Officer.

To deputise in exceptional circumstances for the Bereavement Officer band 4 to facilitate face to face meetings with families, to guide through the bereavement pathway.

To ensure accurate processing in terms of collecting and recording key administrative data.

To ensure that the Trust complies with its statutory obligations in respect of deceased patients.

Contribute to service improvements through promoting the use of the Voices questionnaire and feeding back to the Head of Patient, Carer and Public Engagement, the views of carers and families and undertaking actions to resolve problems and share good practice.

Key Duties:

Undertake the process for dealing with deaths in the Trust in accordance with the Trusts bereavement processes and in accordance with legal and statutory requirements.

Record all necessary information using current administrative systems.

24 hours if there is a delay and record on the weekly return and deputise for the Bereavement Officer band 4.

Ensure fair and equitable distribution of part 2 signing by means of a rota and maintain an up to date and accurate record of which doctors have signed such forms.

Collect payment for cremation forms completed by both doctors. Document when the cheques are collected and keep a record of any that are not collected and returned the funeral directors.

Ensure that relatives are contacted, and provided with the necessary information and support to enable the death of the patient to be registered appropriately, including the provision of the MCCD and information booklet.

Arrange and book appointments where necessary for patients to register the death at the Registrars office using the council registration system.

Complete and sign hospital arranged cremation/burial paper work for miscarriages, stillborn and neonatal deaths. Liaise with funeral directors/ chaplain/ bereavement midwife and relatives to organise a suitable date and time for the burial/ cremation service and keep families informed.

Complete and sign cremation paper work for welfare funerals. Register the death and notify the DWP (Department of Work and Pensions) and Treasury. Complete all necessary paperwork and documents. Liaise with funeral directors and chaplain to arrange date and time for cremation service.

Ensure that all paperwork is completed correctly by the doctors and that all relevant parties, including the GP, have been notified.

In exceptional circumstances, deputise for the Bereavement Officer band 4, to accompany families to the mortuary for viewings.

Arrange for medical staff to talk to relatives if they have any concerns or questions relating to the death of the patient, including any matters relating to the contents of the MCCD, or the necessity for a post mortem.

Ensure that good practice is developed and adopted in feeding back patients and carers views and recommending actions to resolve problems.

Liaise with wards to arrange for patient property to be delivered to the bereavement officer for collection by patients families.

Order stationery and ensure that there is a supply of MCCD certificates, cremation forms and relatives information booklets at all times.

Keep accurate records of in-patient deaths, BID (Brought in Dead), GP notifications and baby deaths within the hospital. Records to be kept on shared drive to ensure access for other members of staff who have a need to know.

Keep a written and electronic record of date, time and cause of death of the deceased and ensure that the cause of death in the deceaseds medical records.

Keep medical records in good order and file any loose paper work ensuring the notes are tracked in and out of the department.

Keep all relevant excel spread sheets up to date ready for audit.

Be aware of the implications of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, Data Protection Act 1998, Access to Health Records Act 1990, the Human Rights Act 1998 and the Trusts Confidentiality Policy in undertaking this role.

Alert the Head of Patient, Carer and Public Engagement of any patient services matters that might attract adverse media coverage

Assist in the development of patient information.

Attend and contribute to team meetings.