Guy’s and St Thomas’ is among the UK’s busiest and most successful NHS foundation trusts. We provide a full range of hospital and community services for people in south London and as well as specialist care for patients from further afield including cancer, renal, orthopaedic, respiratory and cardiovascular services. Guy’s is home to the largest dental school in Europe and a £160 million Cancer Centre opened in 2016. As part of our commitment to provide care closer to home, in 2017 we also opened a cancer centre and a kidney treatment centre at Queen Mary’s Hospital in Sidcup. St Thomas’ has one of the largest critical care units in the UK and one of the busiest emergency departments in London. It is also home to Evelina London Children’s Hospital. Evelina London cares for local children in Lambeth and Southwark and provides specialist services across south east England including cardiac, renal and critical care services. We lead a number of specialist service networks aiming to ensure children are treated locally where possible, but have access to specialist expertise when they need it. Our community services include health visiting, school nursing and support for families of children with long-term conditions. Our adult community services teams deliver care at the heart of the local communities we serve, working in partnership with GPs, local authorities and other healthcare and voluntary sector organisations. Working with our partners in Lambeth and Southwark, we are focusing on new ways of working to improve care for local patients. In February 2021 the Royal Brompton and Harefield joined Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, bringing together world-leading expertise in the care and research of heart and lung disease. Our merger provides a once in a generation opportunity to build a lasting, world-renowned heart and lung centre, providing the highest quality care for patients and conducting world-leading research. We have a reputation for clinical excellence and high quality teaching and research. We are part of King’s Health Partners, one of eight accredited UK academic health sciences centres. In partnership with King’s College London we have dedicated clinical research facilities including an MHRA accredited Phase I clinical trials unit. Patients are at the heart of everything we do and we pride ourselves on ensuring the best possible patient experience as well as safe, high quality care. We are proud to have one of the lowest mortality rates in the NHS. Following a comprehensive Care Quality Commission (CQC) inspection in 2019 we maintained our overall rating of ‘good’. Our adult community services achieved a rating of ‘outstanding’. The commitment of our 23,500 staff is key to our success. We are one of the largest local employers and we aim to develop and support all our staff so they are able to deliver high quality, safe and efficient care. The 2019 NHS staff survey results show that we have one of the most engaged and motivated workforces in the NHS. We know this has a positive impact on the care provided to our patients. We have one of the most ambitious capital investment programmes anywhere in the NHS. Job overview This is an excellent opportunity for those looking to develop their experience and skills in administration and management. We are looking for a highly organised person who is able to prioritise a busy workload in a demanding environment and perform well under pressure. You will have the opportunity to work with clinicians to deliver high quality care to patients within the general diagnostic services. The Ophthalmology Department at Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust provides secondary and tertiary medical services in south-east London. It is located at St Thomas's Hospital and more recently also at Minnie Kidd House in Clapham South which is mainly a diagnostic hub. The department offers a wide range of sub specialty ophthalmic services to patients. The Patient Access Officer will be an integral point of contact for the multi-disciplinary team, patients and service users, covering the reception areas, booking outpatient appointments and manning a call centre alongside colleagues. Main duties of the job We are excited to offer Band 3 Patient Access Officer roles within the Ophthalmology Department. We currently have 1 full time position at 37.5 hours and one part time at 22.5hrs a week with rotating shift patterns between 8am-6pm Monday to Friday. Shifts rotate between 8am – 4pm ;10am to 6pm ; 9am to 5pm and the expectation to work 1 Saturday per month. There is also the expectation to work cross-site at St Thomas Hospital and Minnie Kidd House in Clapham South. We are looking for dedicated and enthusiastic individuals with excellent attention to detail and customer service skills. Ability to prioritise own workload as well as good knowledge of the 18week RTT will also be needed while on this role. The successful candidate will join a large team of Access Officers and will be responsible for dealing with patient queries over the phone via our call centre, day-to-day outpatient appointment scheduling and waiting list management for some specialties. S/he will be expected to liaise regularly with the Multidisciplinary Team to ensure that patients are booked within agreed time frame and escalate any capacity issues to the team leaders for prompt resolution. A good understanding of the 18 week patient pathway and previous hospital administration experience is essential. Additional contact information [email protected] Working for our organisation Organisational Values: Our values help us to define and develop our culture, what we do and how we do it. It is important that you understand and reflect these values throughout your employment with the Trust. The post holder will be: a. Caring b. Ambitious c. Inclusive Our values and behaviours framework describes what it means for every one of us in the Trust to put our values into action. The framework can be found on our Trust careers pages and GTIntranet . Detailed job description and main responsibilities Duties and Responsibilities The duties and responsibilities listed below are representative of the Patient Access Coordinator role and its purpose within the service; they are not exhaustive and the post holder may be required to undertake additional or alternative administrative duties and responsibilities commensurate with the level of the post, to support the smooth running of the service. Main Duties Act as the first point of call for all patient access queries to the Trust. Be responsible for the scheduling of outpatient appointments according to clinical urgency and length of wait in accordance with departmental procedures and Trust Policies. Liaise with patients prior to their hospital visit to ensure that a mutually convenient date and time is agreed. Ensure that patients are appropriately reminded of their appointments. This may include sending reminder letters or contacting patients by telephone, up to seven days before their visit to re-confirm attendance in line with departmental protocols. Ensure that departmental standards are met for patients receiving notification or acknowledgement of their visit. Provide a courteous and efficient point of contact for patients both face to face and over the telephone. Ensure that each patient is treated as an individual and their individual needs are met (ie: appropriate support is in place for their appointment, such as interpreting support). Ongoing pathway management Develop expertise in all aspects of the multiple sub-specialty pathways in the department. Using the Waiting Lists, ensure that the booking of all patients is line in with Trust and National waiting time targets and escalate exceptions. Respond to patient queries or concerns in an effective and professional manner, escalating where appropriate to Team Leaders. Responsible for the accurate input and maintenance of confidential data onto relevant Trust IT systems. To have a clear and up to date knowledge of the rules and protocols of the service to ensure full and effective utilisation of clinical capacity. Ensure regular, efficient validation of all waiting list data in accordance with Trust Policies. In conjunction with Team Leaders, review cancelled/suspended/deferred patients ensuring appropriate action is taken. Work flexibly to ensure the department operates effectively, including working across both acute hospital sites and across all specialty boundaries. Assist in investigating any complaints or incidents that arise in relation appointments or admissions for your speciality. Ensure that the any telephone, e-mail or written queries are responded to within the appropriate timeframe and escalated if necessary. Develop and maintain relationships with all staff groups to ensure the patient access teams function as effectively as possible. Standards monitoring Ensure telephone calls are answered within the agreed time and in line with the Trust greeting policy. Ensure that all patient demographics are checked and updated on all Trust systems. Ensure patient cancellations/changes are recorded appropriately on all relevant Trust systems. Ensure that any patient initiated pauses to appointment or admission dates are recorded accurately and in real time on PIMS. Ensure that Patient Waiting Lists are proactively managed in line with Patient Access targets. Ensure that local and Trust policies are adhered to at all times. Ensure that all clinics are ‘cashed up’ within 24 hours of the end of the clinic with all appropriate outcomes completed. Ensure urgent referrals are dealt with in line with agreed protocols. Escalate any issues and breaches of the above standards to the Team Leader in the first instance. Support the Team Leader to investigate any breaches of the above standards. Other Work within a multi-disciplinary team in developing the service in line with departmental plans and Trust corporate objectives. Participate in department development as appropriate and participate in departmental meetings. Undertake any other duties commensurate to the grade, required to ensure the smooth and efficient running of the department. Undertake any training as required to complete the tasks associated with the job role. Ensure that all health records are appropriately tracked and securely stored whilst in the department according to the Health Records Policy. To provide general administration support as directed by management. Person specification Qualifications and Education Essential criteria Good general Education with English & Maths to GCSE standard or equivalent Desirable criteria IT package qualification / training (Word, excel, outlook etc) Customer service qualification / training Previous Experience Essential criteria Proven experience of working in an administrative role Experience of working in a customer focused environment demonstrating the ability to deal difficult customers and challenging situations Desirable criteria Experience of an administrative role within the NHS Skills and Knowledge Essential criteria Excellent communication skills Excellent organisational skills Ability to work within a team Desirable criteria Knowledge of the key waiting times targets including 18 weeks use of trust systems (IPMs, Galaxy etc) Guy’s and St Thomas’ celebrates, respects and values the diversity of its staff and patients. We review our policies, procedures and practices to ensure that all employees, patients and carers are treated equitable according to their needs. We are actively committed to ensuring that no one who applies for a job, works or study’s at the Trust, or accesses our services is discriminated against on the grounds of race, ethnicity, nationality, disability, religion or belief, age, gender identity , gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity/paternity, or marital/civil partnership. Applications are welcomed from applicants with a disability. We can make reasonable adjustments and offer support and advice in a variety of ways throughout the application process. Equality of opportunity is our policy. As an organisation we are committed to developing our services in ways that best suit the needs of our patients. This means that some staff groups will increasingly be asked to work a more flexible shift pattern so that we can offer services in the evenings or at weekends. Flexible working We are committed to supporting all employees to achieve a healthy work life balance and to work in a way that is best for them and our patients. We will consider all requests to work flexibly, taking in to account the individual’s personal circumstances as well the needs of the service. We encourage all prospective applicants to discuss their individual circumstances with the recruiting manager as part of the on-boarding process. Your e-mail address is important to us - We communicate to all job applicants via the e-mail address which has been provided on the application form. Please ensure that you check your e-mail on a regular basis. Please apply for this post by clicking "Apply Online Now." Applicant requirements The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions. Further details / informal visits contact Name Amshalekha LogeswaranEvans Job title Assistant Service Manager Email address [email protected] Additional information For an informal discussion on the role please contact; [email protected]