Practice Receptionist

Receptionist job description & person specification

Job Title

Medical Receptionist

Line Manager

Reception Lead

Accountable to

Practice Manager

Hours per week

16 hours

Job Summary

To be responsible for undertaking a wide range of reception and administrative duties and the provision of general support to the multidisciplinary team. Duties can include but are not limited to, greeting and directing patients, patient registration, booking appointments, processing of information (electronic and hard copy) and assisting patients as required. To act as the central point of contact for patients, the distribution of information, messages and enquiries for the clinical team, liaising with multidisciplinary team members and external agencies such as secondary care and community service providers.

Generic Responsibilities

All staff at Chelsfield Surgery have a duty to conform to the following:

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

A good attitude and positive action towards ED&I creates and environment where all individuals are able to achieve their full potential. Creating such an environment is important for three reasons: it improves operational effectiveness, it is morally the right thing to do, and it is required by law.

Patients and their families have the right to be treated fairly and be routinely involved in decisions about their treatment and care. They can expect to be treated with dignity and respect and will not be discriminated against on any grounds including age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation. Patients have a responsibility to treat other patients and our staff with dignity and respect.

Staff have the right to be treated fairly in recruitment and career progression. Staff can expect to work in an environment where diversity is valued and equality of opportunity is promoted. Staff will not be discriminated against on any grounds including age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation. Staff have a responsibility to ensure that you treat our patients and their colleagues with dignity and respect.

Safety, Health, Environment and Fire (SHEF)

This practice is committed to supporting and promoting opportunities to for staff to maintain their health, well-being and safety. You have a duty to take reasonable care of health and safety at work for you, your team and others, and to cooperate with employers to ensure compliance with health and safety requirements. All personnel are to comply with the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, Environmental Protection Act 1990, Environment Act 1995, Fire Precautions (workplace) Regulations 1999 and other statutory legislation.

Confidentiality

This practice is committed to maintaining an outstanding confidential service. Patients entrust and permit us to collect and retain sensitive information relating to their health and other matters, pertaining to their care. They do so in confidence and have a right to expect all staff will respect their privacy and maintain confidentiality at all times. It is essential that if, the legal requirements are to be met and the trust of our patients is to be retained that all staff protect patient information and provide a confidential service.

Quality & Continuous Improvement (CI)

To preserve and improve the quality of our output, all personnel are required to think not only of what they do, but how they achieve it. By continually re-examining our processes, we will be able to develop and improve the overall effectiveness of the way we work. The responsibility for this rests with everyone working within the practice to look for opportunities to improve quality and share good practice.

This practice continually strives to improve work processes which deliver health care with improved results across all areas of our service provision. We promote a culture of continuous improvement, where everyone counts and staff are permitted to make suggestions and contributions to improve our service delivery and enhance patient care.

Induction Training

On arrival at the practice all personnel are to complete a practice induction programme; this is managed by the Deputy Practice Manager.

Learning and Development

The effective use of training and development is fundamental in ensuring that all staff are equipped with the appropriate skills, knowledge, attitude and competences to perform their role. All staff will be required to partake and complete mandatory training as directed by the training coordinator, as well as participating in the practice training programme. Staff will also be permitted (subject to approval) to undertake external training courses which will enhance their knowledge and skills, progress their career and ultimately, enable them to improve processes and service delivery.

Collaborative Working

All staff are to recognise the significance of collaborative working. Teamwork is essential in multidisciplinary environments. Effective communication is essential and all staff must ensure they communicate in a manner which enables the sharing of information in an appropriate manner.

Service Delivery

Staff at Chelsfield Surgery must adhere to the information contained with practice policies and regional directives, ensuring protocols are adhered to at all times. Staff will be given detailed information during the induction process regarding policy and procedure.

Security

The security of the practice is the responsibility of all personnel. Staff must ensure they remain vigilant at all times and report any suspicious activity immediately to their line manager. Under no circumstances are staff to share the codes for the door locks to anyone and are to ensure that restricted areas remain effectively secured.

Professional Conduct

At Chelsfield Surgery staff are required to dress appropriately for their role. Administrative staff will be expected to dress smartly whilst clinical staff must dress in accordance with their role.

Leave

All personnel are entitled to take leave. Line managers are to ensure all of their staff are afforded the opportunity to take 20 days leave pro rata each year, and should be encouraged to take all of their leave entitlement.

Primary Responsibilities

The following are the core responsibilities of the receptionist. There may be on occasion, a requirement to carry out other tasks; this will be dependent upon factors such as workload and staffing levels:

• Maintaining and monitoring the practice appointment system
• Process personal, telephone and e-requests for appointments
• Answer incoming phone calls, transferring calls or dealing with the callers request appropriately
• Action all incoming communications’
• Signpost patients to the correct service
• Process incoming and outgoing mail
• Initiating contact with and responding to, requests from patients, team members and external agencies
• Process referrals to external agencies such as secondary care using the electronic referral system (ERS)
• Process calling letters are requested
• Photocopy documentation as required
• File and store records as required
• Data entry of new and temporary registrations and relevant patient information as required
• Input data into the patient’s healthcare records as necessary.
• Process requests for information i.e. SAR, insurance / solicitors letters and DVLA forms to the administrative team
• Manage all queries (including administrative queries) as necessary in an efficient manner
• Carry out system searches as requested
• Maintain a clean, tidy, effective working area at all times
• Monitor and maintain the reception area and notice boards
• Support all clinical staff with general tasks as requested

Secondary Responsibilities

In addition to the primary responsibilities, the medical administrator may be requested to:

• Support reception staff, providing cover during staff absences
• Complete opening and closing procedures in accordance with the duty rota
• As required support prescription clerks in the management of repeat prescriptions, ensuring they are processed accurately and efficiently

The person specification for this role is detailed below.

Person Specification – Receptionist

Qualifications

Essential

Desirable

Educated to GCSE level or equivalent

GCSE Mathematics & English (C or above)

AMSPAR Receptionists Qualification

NVQ Level 2 in Health and Social Care

Experience

Essential

Desirable

Experience of working with the general public

Experience of administrative / receptionist duties

Experience of working in a health care setting

Skills

Essential

Desirable

Excellent communication skills (written and oral)

Strong IT skills

Clear, polite telephone manner

Competent in the use of Office and Outlook

EMIS user skills

Effective time management (Planning & Organising)

Ability to work as a team member and autonomously

Good interpersonal skills

Problem solving & analytical skills

Ability to follow policy and procedure

Personal Qualities

Essential

Desirable

Polite and confident

Flexible and cooperative

Motivated

Forward thinker

High levels of integrity and loyalty

Sensitive and empathetic in distressing situations

Ability to work under pressure

Other requirements

Essential

Desirable

Flexibility to work outside of core office hours

Disclosure Barring Service (DBS) check

This document may be amended following consultation with the post holder, to facilitate the development of the role, the practice and the individual. All personnel should be prepared to accept additional, or surrender existing duties, to enable the efficient running of the practice.

Job Types: Part-time, Permanent

Salary: £10.50 per hour

Expected hours: 16 per week

Benefits:

• Company pension
• On-site parking
• Sick pay

Schedule:

• Monday to Friday

Education:

• GCSE or equivalent (preferred)

Experience:

• Medical Receptionist: 1 year (preferred)

Work Location: In person