Job Description

The role is designed to assist and direct patients in accessing the appropriate service or healthcare professional in a courteous, efficient and effective way. Provide general assistance to the practice team and project a positive and friendly image to patients and other visitors, either in person or via the telephone. The right candidate will develop into this role alongside completing the customer service practitioner apprenticeship programme which is designed to train and develop apprentices in the workplace to industry standard.

Job responsibilities include:

• Ensure an effective and efficient reception service is provided to patients and any other visitors to the practice by acting as their first point of call
• Deal with all general enquiries, explain procedures and make new and follow-up appointments
• Using your own judgment and communication skills, ensure that patients with no prior appointment but who need urgent consultation are seen in a logical and non-disruptive manner
• Explain practice arrangements and formal requirements to new patients and those seeking temporary cover, and ensure procedures and paperwork are completed
• Handling telephone and face-to-face requests for appointments and making the appointments on the computerized appointments system
• Book in patients and ensure other visitors sign in when they arrive at the surgery
• Receive and make telephone calls as required. Divert calls and take messages, ensuring accuracy of detail and prompt appropriate delivery
• Enter requests for home visits onto the visits Rota, ensuring to carefully record all relevant details and referring to duty doctor where necessary
• Advise patients of the results of routine tests
• Give completed prescriptions to patients and to local pharmacies who collect them
• Telephone or write to patients to arrange for routine appointments, e.g. for immunizations or annual health checks
• Advise patients of relevant charges for private (non General Medical Services) services, accept payment and issue receipts for same
• Photocopy paper records requested under the Data Protection Act
• Scan and file paper records
• Monitor fridge temperatures
• Receive and check deliveries
• Book patient transport if required (taxi or emergency ambulance)
• Enter patient information on to the computer as required
• Make and serve refreshments, ensure the kitchen is kept clean and tidy and air and tidy the waiting room in turn with other staff

Premises:

• Ensure that all new patients are registered onto the computer system promptly and accurately
• Undertake any other additional duties appropriate to the post as requested by the partners or the Practice Manager. Confidentiality
• In the course of seeking treatment, 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
• In the performance of the duties outlined in this job description, the post-holder may have access to confidential information relating to patients and their careers, practice staff and other healthcare workers. They may also have access to information relating to the practice as a business organization. All such information from any source is to be regarded as strictly confidential
• Information relating to patients, careers, colleagues, other healthcare workers or the business of the practice may only be divulged to authorized persons in accordance with the practice policies and procedures relating to confidentiality and the protection of personal and sensitive data

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities