Project Manager - Community Dental EPR

Job description

Job responsibilities

Over the 12-week fixed term period, the Project Manager will provide day to day coordination and delivery support for the implementation of the new Community Dental EPR system. The postholder will work closely with the Community Dental Service, Digital, IT Systems, admin teams and the supplier to ensure that activities progress on time and issues are promptly resolved. Key responsibilities include:

1. Project Coordination & Tracking

Maintain and update the project plan, ensuring tasks, deadlines and responsibilities are clearly recorded.

Coordinate regular progress meetings, capture actions, and follow up to ensure timely completion.

Provide routine highlight reports, escalating delays or risks to the Care Group Programme Sponsor & Project Lead.

2. Supporting System Configuration & Readiness

Organise workshops between staff and the supplier to gather requirements and support configuration decisions.

Coordinate readiness tasks such as device checks, user account lists, environment access, and site-specific preparation.

3. Data, Process & Workflow Preparation

Support teams in preparing priority paper records for transfer or summarisation.

Help map current clinical and admin workflows into the digital equivalent, ensuring tasks and ownership are documented.

4. Training Coordination

Work with the supplier to schedule training sessions for all staff groups across multiple sites.

Ensure attendance lists, training materials and communications are prepared and shared.

Identify super users and support them ahead of go live.

5. Stakeholder Communication

Keep staff informed of timelines, expectations, and any changes.

Provide clear, accessible updates to reduce uncertainty and support engagement throughout the transition.

6. Risk & Issue Management

Maintain the project risk and issue log with appropriate detail.

Flag concerns early to senior colleagues to support timely decision making.

Track and monitor resolution of local issues (e.g., equipment, access, user preparation).

7. Go Live Support

Coordinate go live readiness checklists (training completed, devices ready, user access in place).

Act as a first point of contact for staff during the early days of go live, ensuring issues are logged and triaged to Digital, IT or the supplier as needed.

8. Post Go Live Stabilisation

Support basic troubleshooting, capturing feedback, and identifying quick adjustments to workflow or configuration.

Monitor early adoption indicators (logins, access problems, use of templates).

Prepare a handover pack summarising progress, outstanding actions, issues and recommendations.

Ensure staff have support during initial adoption, including direct liaison with super users and supplier support.

7. Post go live stabilisation and transition

Monitor early performance indicators such as user adoption, data quality, digital radiography usage and system reliability.

Identify and resolve any issues, workflows requiring adjustment or training gaps.

Prepare handover materials, including outstanding actions, benefits tracking, lessons learned and operational ownership arrangements.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Educated to degree level or equivalent relevant experience of delivering change in a Programme environment
• PRINCE2 Practitioner Project Management qualification, or equivalent

Desirable

• Chartered IT Practitioner
• MSP Foundation
• Recognized clinical qualification in the relevant specialty
• Health Informatics related qualification

Special Requirements

Essential

• Able to travel independently to Trust sites to fulfil the requirements of the post.

Experience

Essential

• Significant experience in a health informatics environment specifically with involvement in Development, Systems or User support
• Demonstrable management experience, including the ability to lead and motivate a team
• Demonstrable experience of managing change
• Health Informatics Project Management experience or involvement as a key member of a project team using a Project Management methodology such PRINCE2
• Experience of working with staff at all levels

Desirable

• Experience in dealing with Clinical System Suppliers and the ability to keep pace with developments in their systems
• Experience of working within the NHS

Special Skills & Knowledge

Essential

• Good knowledge of and ability to use appropriate computer hardware and software, including Microsoft Office and MS Project
• Knowledge of the National Digital Strategy
• Able to analyse and translate detailed technical and complex data into comprehensive reports for use at both user and Board level
• Well-developed inter-personal, communication, facilitation, management, and negotiation skills
• Able to communicate with users in development, implementation, training and support roles
• Able to identify and clarify user information needs and data collection requirements and translate appropriately.
• Able to make judgments when presented with complex situations without reference to a manager
• Able to prioritise and plan multiple projects that are on-going
• Able to work under pressure and time constraints and without supervision

Desirable

• Familiarity with the NHS Plan, national digital Strategy and the National Programme for Information Technology
• Familiarity with CDDFT Health Informatics Strategy
• A working knowledge of Community and Acute care in the NHS
• Knowledge of the data flows between NHS organisations
• Knowledge of Primary and Secondary care computer systems

Employer details

Employer name

County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Darlington Memorial Hospital NHS Trust

Hollyhurst Road

Darlington

County Durham

DL3 6HX

Employer's website

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