Vacancy: Receptionist/Administrator (Mountwood Surgery)

• Mountwood Surgery

The Practice is at Mountwood Surgery and provides general medical services to all National Health Registered patients. The Practlce consists of the above five Partners, five employed GPs, GP Registrars, tlree Practice Nurses, along with various ancillary staff

Overview of the Receptionist

The receptionist is a key member of the team, who is at the forefront Of the Practice ensuring that all patient enquiries, in person or by telephone/post, are handled efficiently and courteously. The post involves liaison with the doctors and other members of staff in a clear and positive manner. Each receptionist has an individual task to complement the range Of services offered by The Mountwood Surgery.

Primary responsibilities

• To receive, help and direct patients who come to the surgery to access the appropriate service or the doctors or nurses in a courteous and efficient way.
• Provide general assistance to the Practice team and project a posibve and friendly image to patients and other visitors, both in person or on the telephone.
• To be considerate and willing to assist other members of the team and to foster an atmosphere of mutual respect and cooperation
• To undertake all reception tasks, be computer literate and able to use and obtain infomation from the scanner files and computer. 
• To use the computer system appropriately to communicate within the Practice
• Deal with new patientregistrations, assisting patients wit' forms and taking copies of identification docu ments where necessary according to Practice Protocols.
• To receive new patients using the adopted protocol. Positively encourage new patients. Take great care to register patients accurately
• To open and sort the incoming mail
• To open and empty the post and prescription boxes at Mountwood and forward contents as appropriate.
• To empty the internal post from the PCSE and sort appropriately
• To stamp and dispatch outgoing post deputising for nominated staff
• To receive and make telephone calls, recording messages accurately
• To make appointments using the practice computerised system
• To act as a diplomatic buffer between patient and doctor
• To chaperone patients as requested
• To report and hand Over tasks and outstanding matters to colleagues taking over shift
• To prepare surgery lists for all doctors
• To scan hospital letters/results and new patient questionnaires into patient records
• To file patient records in the absence of the Filing Clerk
• To shred confidential papers from GP rooms as required
• To attend the Administration Meetings for training purposes and practice updates
• To check and send expired temporary resident forms to PCSE
• To unlock the MounWood gates in the morning and lock at night
• To change the keypad code on the car park barrier
• To prepare Mountwood Surgery to receive patients in the morning, according to standard procedures
• To close down Mountwood Surgery in the evening according to standard procedures, set the intruder alarm and lock the staff entrance door.
• Ad hoc duties as require
• Be prepared to work flexible hours if required

Observe the rules Of confidentiality and be aware of the Data Protection Act Patients' Charter and rights regarding registration.

Confidentiality

• Patients entrust us with , or allow us to gather, sensitive information in relation to their health and other matters. They do so in confidence and have the right to expect that staff will respect their privacy and act appropriately.
• The postholder may have access to confidential information relating to patients and their carers or Practice staff. They may also have access to the Practice as a business organ isation. All such information from any source is strictly confidential and breaches in confidentiality may result in disciplinary and/or criminal proceedings.
• Information relating to patients, carers, colleagues and orthe business Of the Practice may only be divulged to authorised persons in accordance witl the Practice policies and procedures relating to confidentiality and the protection Of personal and sensitive data.

Health & Safety

The postholder will assistin promoting their own and health , safety and security as defined in the Practice Health and Safety Policy, to include:

• Using personal security systems within the workplace according to Practice guidelines
• Identifying the risks involved in work activities and undertaking such activities in a way that manages those risk
• Making effective use Of training to update knowledge and skills
• Using appropriate infection control procedures, maintaining work areas in a tidy and safe way and free from hazards
• Reporting potential risks.

Equality and Diversity

The postholder will support the equality, diversity and rights of patients, carers and colleagues to indude:

• Acting in a way that recognises the importance of people's rights, in line with Practice policies and current legislation
• Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs and beliefs of patients, carers and colleagues.
• Behaving in a manner which is welcoming to the individual, is nonjudgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings and rights.

Personal/Professional Development

• The postholder will participate in any training programme implemented by the Practice and may be required to attend courses on and off site from time to time.
• The postholder will be required to participate in an annual individual performance review, including taking responsibility for maintaining a record of freir own personal and professional development. During this review training needs will be identified and personal development plans will be linked to the Practice's needs and any possible benefit to patients.
• The postholder will be expected to take responsibility fortheir own development and learning and must be willing to demonstrate their skllls to other members within the team if necessary.

Quality

The postholder will try to maintain quality within the practice and will:

• Alert other members of the team to issues of quality and risk
• Assess own perforrnance and take accountability for own actions, either directly or under su pervision
• Contribute to the team's effectiveness by reflecting on own and team activities and making suggestions Of ways to improve the team's performance.
• Work with individuals in Other agencies to meet patients' needs
• Effectively manage own time, workload and resources.

Communication

The postholder should recogn ise the importance of effective communication within the team and will strive to:

• Communicate effectively with other team members, patients and carers
• Be courteous at all times
• Use email only in accordance with practice protocols
• Recognise other people's needs for alternative methods of communication and respond accordingly