Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

Switchboard Telephonist

This job is now closed

Job summary

We are currently looking to recruit 3 x Switchboard Telephonists to our busy Switchboard team on 18.75 hour per week, permanent contracts.

The principal role will be to work within a team to provide an efficient telephone operator service to the Trust and users of its telephone service from a wide range of backgrounds. The work is wide ranging from the handling of general business calls to the implementation of the Trust emergency procedures.

The shift patterns vary and can cover evenings, weekends and nights and operate 24hrs - 365 days a year.

Interview date: 31 August 2023

Main duties of the job

To provide an efficient front line telecommunications service for patients, business callers and staff at Mersey and West Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust. The role is wide ranging from the handling of general business calls to the implementation of Trust emergency procedures.

The post holder will work closely with other teams to develop a wide knowledge of the activities and working arrangements of all wards and departments, promoting effective communication to ensure the achievement of Trust objectives.

The post requires the use of several computerised systems and manual systems for the implementation and administration of departmental and Trust Procedures.

Out of hours' the post holder is required to work unsupervised and at times will be a lone worker. The post holder will also work with the support of the Trust's on call management team for escalation purposes.

About us

The Secretary of State has approved the partnership between St Helens & Knowsley and Southport & Ormskirk Hospitals.

From 1st July we have come together as a single organisation under the name Mersey & West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.

The Trust delivers acute hospital care, intermediate care, community, and primary care services to a population of over 600,000 people with a combined workforce of around 9000 dedicated and skilled staff from 17 locations including Whiston, Southport & Formby, St Helens, Ormskirk and Newton hospitals.

The Trust provides regional services for burns, plastic surgery and spinal injuries to more than 4 million people across Mersey and West Lancashire, Cheshire, the Isle of Man and North Wales.

Our Vision is to deliver 5 Star Patient Care:

CAREthat is evidence based, high quality and compassionate
SAFETY that is of the highest standards
COMMUNICATION that is open, inclusive and respectful
SYSTEMS that are efficient, patient centred and reliable
PATHWAYS that are best practice and embedded, but also respect the individual needs of patients

Our achievements include:

Trust rated Outstanding by CQC Inspection August 2018
Top 100 places to work in the NHS (NHS Employers & Health Service Journal)
Awarded National Preceptorship Accreditation (2023) for our Nursing & AHP Preceptorship Programme

Please see our Wellbeing & Benefits booklet for more information on our staff benefits. Accessible version available upon request.

Date posted

31 August 2023

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 2

Salary

£22,383 a year per annum, pro rata

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Part-time

Reference number

409-5536412-A

Job locations

Whiston Hospital

Warrington Road

Whiston

L35 5DR

Job description

Job responsibilities

KEY DUTIES

To operate the operator terminal to process incoming and outgoing telephone calls; ensuring that calls are delivered efficiently ensuring that callers are kept always informed of progress
Receive and relay oral and written messages internally, making amendments to rosters, and recording special instructions as required
To provide help and advice to clients and employees of the Trust requiring direction and assistance
Implement the Major Incident/ Emergency Response Procedure following the action card
To operate the Trusts internal paging system including Group Alerts for cardiac arrest and the Bleep/ Radio system
To provide an out of hours on call systems for Departments within the Trust, recording all requests for non-clinical and clinical staff as directed
To maintain effective department communication with managers and team members within both the day and night services
Liaison with relevant suppliers of communication equipment for maintenance purposes
To ensure that any difficulties in implementing emergency and Operational Policies and Procedures are reported immediately at an appropriate level
To respond to a range of alarms instigating relevant call out procedures and relaying information as directed.

Job description

Job responsibilities

KEY DUTIES

To operate the operator terminal to process incoming and outgoing telephone calls; ensuring that calls are delivered efficiently ensuring that callers are kept always informed of progress
Receive and relay oral and written messages internally, making amendments to rosters, and recording special instructions as required
To provide help and advice to clients and employees of the Trust requiring direction and assistance
Implement the Major Incident/ Emergency Response Procedure following the action card
To operate the Trusts internal paging system including Group Alerts for cardiac arrest and the Bleep/ Radio system
To provide an out of hours on call systems for Departments within the Trust, recording all requests for non-clinical and clinical staff as directed
To maintain effective department communication with managers and team members within both the day and night services
Liaison with relevant suppliers of communication equipment for maintenance purposes
To ensure that any difficulties in implementing emergency and Operational Policies and Procedures are reported immediately at an appropriate level
To respond to a range of alarms instigating relevant call out procedures and relaying information as directed.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

Educated to GCSE standard and/or equivalent qualification and/ or equivalent experience

Desirable

Customer Service, Administration or Call Centre Qualification and/or equivalent experience
CLAIT, IBT 2 & 3 or ECDL qualification or equivalent experience

Knowledge & Experience

Essential

Experience of working with telephone as a main function of the job
Experience producing work producing basic documents and database entry / searches

Desirable

Experience of working in an acute trust switchboard
Experience in handling large volume telephony in multi-

Skills

Essential

Proficient user of Microsoft Office
Excellent communication skills

Other

Desirable

Willing to travel to various sites via own car/assisted driver

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

Educated to GCSE standard and/or equivalent qualification and/ or equivalent experience

Desirable

Customer Service, Administration or Call Centre Qualification and/or equivalent experience
CLAIT, IBT 2 & 3 or ECDL qualification or equivalent experience

Knowledge & Experience

Essential

Experience of working with telephone as a main function of the job
Experience producing work producing basic documents and database entry / searches

Desirable

Experience of working in an acute trust switchboard
Experience in handling large volume telephony in multi-

Skills

Essential

Proficient user of Microsoft Office
Excellent communication skills

Other

Desirable

Willing to travel to various sites via own car/assisted driver

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

Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

Address

Whiston Hospital

Warrington Road

Whiston

L35 5DR

Employer's website

https://www.merseywestlancs.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)

Employer details

Employer name

Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

Address

Whiston Hospital

Warrington Road

Whiston

L35 5DR

Employer's website

https://www.merseywestlancs.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)