Patient Choice Facilitator

NHS Devon Clinical Commissioning Group

This job is now closed

Job summary

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a highly motivated and enthusiastic person to join our expanding team within Devon Referral Support Service (DRSS) as a Patient Choice Facilitator.

DRSS is a referral management service which supports our patients in getting the right advice, care or treatment in a timely manner. DRSS are part of NHS Devon CCG and provide services for a number of organisations including four main hospitals, Livewell and other community services. We receive on average 20,000 referrals per month for a population of 1.3 million people.

The operational delivery of DRSS services is a constantly changing environment that will require the post holder to be innovative, flexible and motivational. DRSS is a patient-contact centre and much of the day will be spent using the telephone system.

Please look at our 'About Devon Referral Support Service' page on myhealth-devon.nhs.uk if you would like to learn more about our service.

Please note - this role has been advertised previously and therefore previous applications have already been fully considered for this role. Any previous applicants within the last 2 months need not apply.

Main duties of the job

You will be required to use your own initiative and have an ability to prioritise work, whilst working calmly and confidently under pressure and able to meet tight deadlines. You must be able to multi-task with ease and possess excellent organisational skills.

You will need to have good knowledge of Microsoft Word, Teams, Excel and Outlook.

You must have excellent communication skills (written and verbal), experience of working with the general public and providing guidance and advice, in a professional and responsive manner. Knowledge of the e-Referrals system is desirable.

Successful applicants may be expected to work weekends (attracting unsocial hours enhancement) on a rota basis.

DRSS may undergo an office move in the near future to Crownhill Court, Plymouth (1 mile from Windsor House, Plymouth). If you would like more information on these moves, please contact DRSS. If your application is successful, further details can be provided at interview stage.

About us

NHS Devon Integrated Care System

As an Integrated Care System (ICS), we recognise now more than ever that we can only provide the care that people really need by working together. Together for Devon therefore represents a partnership where health and care services work together with local communities to improve peoples health, wellbeing and care. It aims to transform health and care services so they are clinically, socially and financially sustainable.

Our vision is simple: equal chances for everyone in Devon to lead long, happy and healthy lives. To achieve this, we have set out six ambitions for the next five years that will help us transform services including: Effective and efficient care, embedding the Integrated Care Model, the Devon deal (a citizen-led approach to health and care), Children and young people, Digital Devon and ensuring Equality.

For more information, visit our ICS website www.icsdevon.co.uk and our CCG website www.devonccg.nhs.uk

Date posted

29 June 2022

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 3

Salary

£20,330 to £21,777 a year

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time

Reference number

D9144-PCFWH-22

Job locations

DRSS, NHS Devon Clinical Commissioning Group

Windsor House, Tavistock Road

Plymouth

Devon

PL6 5UF

Job description

Job responsibilities

• The post holder will be the main point of contact over the telephone for patients, their carers’ and staff from NHS and independent hospitals, working within the DRSS contact centre

• The work will involve coordinating referrals and booking appointments for patients over a range of elective specialties commissioned by the NHS Devon CCG. Under the NHS Choice Framework, patients will be offered a choice of treatment options, dates and locations

• The job description and person specification may be reviewed on an ongoing basis in accordance with the changing needs of the Department and the Organisation

Key accountabilities

• Carrying out a check on each patient’s referral to identify the appropriate outcome for the patient

• Using reference materials provided to identify suitable services in order to offer appropriate choice of appointment to the patient

• Being polite, patient, professional and empathetic when speaking to callers on the telephone

• Answer telephone calls, taking messages and passing on accurately to the relevant departments/person

• Recording referral information accurately on a bespoke database

• Use own initiative to be able to problem solve and answer queries as they arise

Knowledge, skills, training and experience

The post holder will have the following:

• A proven ability to provide excellent customer service

• Experience of working with the general public and an ability to communicate information over the telephone to enable patients to make informed choices will be essential to the post, as well as the ability to work under pressure and to achieve tight deadlines

• Experience in dealing with customers/patients who may be challenging or upset

• Competency with Microsoft Excel, Word, Outlook

• The Patient Choice Facilitator role requires being up to date with The NHS Constitution and policies, particularly the NHS Choice Framework

• NVQ Level 3 in Administration and/or ECDL or equivalent level of knowledge and working experience.

• Speed and accuracy for intermediate level of keyboard skills. This is necessary to populate and alter database information

• The dexterity to use duplicate monitors on a daily basis

• Demonstrable experience of working in an administrative environment

• Awareness of a range of Health Services provisions

• Knowledge of NHS issues

• Understanding of the Data Protection legislation

Primary duties and responsibilities

• Provide clinical and logistic information on choice of services and hospitals to patients and GP practices (under protocol information used as standard in the department)

• Using provided reference material, carry out an admin triage of referrals to ensure key information is included in preparation for patients’ calls

• Using reference material, identify any referrals which need to be clinically triaged by a GPRF. (GP Referral Facilitator)

• Record, manage and retrieve referral information accurately on E-Referrals and DRSS’ database.

• Meet departmental targets relating to the number of referrals processed and the accuracy of the work completed.

• Take responsibility to ensure own knowledge is up to date

• The post holder will utilise the E-referrals service (ERS) to receive and triage referrals for patients

• This triage will include an administrative check and identifying the clinical reason for referral to ensure the patient is booked into an appropriate service

• Using information provided, the post holder will identify if a referral requires clinical vetting and will present such referrals to a GP working in the service

• The post holder will therefore need to be able to utilise and organise a wide range of reference information to enable them to quickly identify which referrals need to be vetted

• The post holder will need to analyse a mass of patient information to offer the appropriate providers for treatment

• The post holder will require theoretical and practical knowledge gained through formal training to be able to assess patient referrals at a highly accurate standard to ensure patients are offered full choice in line with the NHS Choice Framework

• They will need to demonstrate a high level of accuracy whilst completing any database tasks

• The post holder will operate within a large team and will be monitored against set performance targets as a team

• The post holder has access to confidential General Practice and NHS Healthcare Provider’s data and will therefore need to have a working knowledge and adhere to all aspects of information governance, data protection and confidentiality policies

• The post holder will need to be flexible and able to prioritise the workload of the department and adjust workload plans daily. There is a high level of changeability of daily workload and there are many disruptive elements which can impact on daily plans

• The post holder will need to maintain working knowledge of ERS in an environment where change is constant and recognize inaccuracies in referrals and act appropriately

• There is a requirement to have a proactive approach to ensure that patients are treated within specified NHS timescales and those patients who are about to ‘breach’ their treatment dates are immediately prioritised. Complexity of balancing these requirements to comply with NHS Waiting List rules is high

Communications and working relationships

• The post holder will need to receive complex information and explain/give accurate information of hospital choices for treatment to GPs, providers and patients. Tactful conversations will be required at all times

• The post holder will need to give advice to GPs and patients of services available at NHS and Independent Sector hospitals and will need to communicate, on occasion, complex patient information to other direct and indirect work colleagues

• The post holder will be required to assist in the training of new staff, mainly Patient Choice Facilitators and the Apprentice Patient Choice Facilitators

Freedom to act

• Works within departmental and national policies / procedures. The post holder will need to make decisions autonomously for the majority of the time but can refer to their line manager if required. There is a high level of judgement required to manage or change patient referrals to ensure they are booked into the correct services and do not breach government-based waiting times

Working conditions/efforts

• Almost all of the time, the post holder will be required to be sitting at a desk to operate a keyboard and two monitors, whilst using the phone simultaneously

• Work will require frequent and intense concentration on IT systems mentioned above. The post holder needs to be accurate in data entry as mistakes could result in a patient’s referral being delayed

• The team are based in a large open plan office with some noise levels from other voices/telephones, which can vary in volume. The working day will include several high-level tasks requiring intense concentration and analytical skills. There are repeated and constant telephone interruptions, which would require the post holder to change tasks immediately

• Within the role of offering patients ‘Choice’ of treatment hospital, there is a requirement to impart unwelcome news and information to patients who do not meet clinical criteria for treatment. The post holder needs to deal with worried or distressed patients or relatives on the telephone or assisting other departmental staff who are distressed by similar issues

• At times there is a requirement to deal with complaints raised by patients, their carers, General Practice staff or staff from NHS and Independent Sector hospitals. These complaints, comments and suggestions have to be dealt with appropriately, in accordance with policy, resolving where possible and escalating to the line manager when appropriate