About this role
Job summary
The successful candidate will be the first point of contact for patients and play an important role in helping them access services. Working closely with GPs, clinicians, administrators and the wider multidisciplinary team, you will enjoy the buzz of working in a busy and thriving environment.
Main duties will be managing appointments, signposting patients to suitable services, such as community pharmacy, NHS 111, urgent care or other local services.
Competent in using systems to process online, telephone and walk-in requests and help with administrative tasks, accurate message taking; form completion, managing post and requests for information.
You will be someone who is comfortable communicating clearly with patients who may have additional needs, including language, digital access or vulnerability-related requirements and enjoy working as part of the wider practice team to support the smooth running of reception and telephone systems.
Main duties of the job
Manage front of house reception areas.Deliver excellent customer service. Communicate effectively, in a calm, professional and empathetic way. Produce work accurately under pressure in a busy environment. Have good keyboard skills and the ability to learn and use clinical and administrative systems. Prioritise tasks and working effectively as part of a team. Have a flexible approach to managing your workload and service requirements.
About us
Thameside Medical Practice is a small, friendly GP surgery located in Teddington, South West London. We look after the health needs of approximately 5,500 local patients and proudly participate in providing training for the future GP workforce. We have been serving Teddington and the surrounding area for more than 30 years and are located in a purpose built building. There are 3 GP Partners, 3 salaried doctors, a nurse practitioner, clinical pharmacist, nurse associate and healthcare assistant. We also have a small team of receptionists and administrators with a structure which lends itself to career progression.
We are looking for a reliable practice receptionist to join our team so if you are friendly, enjoy helping people and are keen to work with us then we'd love to hear from you.
Some of the benefits working with us are....
A supportive and welcoming practice team Full induction and training within paid working time Opportunities to develop your knowledge and skills A varied and rewarding role within NHS primary care Pension scheme Located close to the Teddington mainline train station and several bus routes with links to Richmond, Twickenham and Kingston
Job description Job responsibilities
The post holder will work with colleagues to ensure the highest standards of care for all patients, dealing with a wide range of administrative and management tasks in a general primary healthcare practice setting.
Key responsibilities:
Provide administrative and reception support to enable the Practice to meet its agreed aims and objectives within a profitable, efficient, safe and effective working environment. The role is diverse, varying from patient requests and referrals to liaison with external health care providers.
Receptionist in line with Practice procedures and protocols:
1.Act as first point of contact for patients, carers, other healthcare professionals and visitors contacting the Practice.
2.Maintain high professional standards when representing the Practice.
3.Ensure the enquiries of patients and carers, via online, telephone and face to face, are all dealt with efficiently and courteously to the mutual satisfaction of the patient and Practice.
4.Book, amend and cancel appointments in line with Practices appointment procedures.
5.Respond to and or redirect all patient and visitor requests appropriately.
6.Registration of new patients in line with Practice procedures.
7.Ensure reception and waiting areas are kept neat and tidy.
8.Flexibility to cover all reception shifts; both am/pm as required. You will be required to cover staff absences and leave undertaking additional paid hours when necessary.
9.All related administrative tasks such as issuing of repeat medicines, informing patients of their test results, checking of emails on a daily basis, usage of text message system to inform patients of their results.
This list is indicative and not exhaustive.
Organisational duties in line with Practice procedures and protocols:
1.Work as part of the Non-clinical and Primary Healthcare Teams within the Practice.
2.Make recommendations to the Partners and Practice Manager on areas for improvement within the post holders areas of work experience within the Practice.
3.The post holder will take part in the full range of Practice activities, training and personal development and play a key role in developing the Practice within the post holders areas of work experience.
4.Ensure building security by being conversant with alarm system and completing room checks at the end of the day.
Administration duties in line with Practice procedures and protocols:
1.Supporting the Operations Manager in resolving of IT issues.
2.Issuing of repeat prescriptions on a daily basis.
3.Pulling/filing notes as necessary.
4.All related administrative tasks as directed by the Operations Manager or Practice Manager.
This list is indicative and not exhaustive.
This job description is a reflection of the current position, and the post holder is expected to view it as guide rather than an exact description of all duties and responsibilities. It may be subject to variation from time to time as services develop.
The post holder will be expected to be flexible and to undertake additional duties as may be required in discussion with the Partners, Practice Manager or Operations Manager.
Confidentiality
The post holder will have access to confidential information and is expected to ensure that the highest level of confidentiality is always maintained.
Health and Safety
The post holder is expected to make themselves aware of and comply with the Practices and National Health and Safety policies.
Person Specification
Qualifications Essential
1. Experience - experience in reception, administration, customer service or a similarly patient-facing role. 2. Communication - excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to communicate clearly and courteously with patients, carers and colleagues. 3. Customer service - welcoming, respectful and empathetic approach, including the ability to remain calm when dealing with distressed, upset or challenging individuals. 4. Organisation - able to prioritise workloads, manage competing demands and work accurately in a busy environment. 5. Confidentiality - understand the importance of confidentiality, privacy and appropriate handling of sensitive information. 6. Teamworking - able to work effectively as part of a multidisciplinary practice team and support colleagues when required. 7. IT skills - competent using computers, email, telephone systems and standard office software; able to learn new clinical and administrative systems. 8. Accuracy - good attention to detail when recording information, updating patient details and processing administrative tasks. 9. Care navigation - able to clarify the nature of a patients request, follow agreed procedures and escalate urgent or safeguarding concerns appropriately. 10. Patient access - understand the need to make reasonable adjustments and support patients who may experience language, literacy, digital access, disability or vulnerability-related barriers. 11. Professionalism - reliable, punctual, appropriately presented and committed to providing a high standard of service. 12. Flexibility - willing to adapt to changing priorities, practice procedures and service requirements.
Desirable
1. General practice experience - previous experience working in a GP practice, primary care, NHS or another healthcare setting. 2. Relevant knowledge - understanding of general practice processes, appointment systems, care navigation, NHS services and signposting arrangements. 3. Clinical systems - experience using a primary care clinical system, such as EMIS or an equivalent system. 4. Qualifications - GCSEs or equivalent, particularly in English and mathematics. A qualification in business administration, customer service or healthcare administration would be advantageous. 5. Safeguarding - awareness of safeguarding principles and the importance of escalating concerns through the practices agreed procedures. 6. Telephone experience - experience managing a busy telephone system, including prioritising calls and dealing with sensitive or difficult conversations. 7. NHS administration - experience processing referrals, prescriptions, test-result enquiries, forms, correspondence or other primary-care administrative work. 8. Equality and inclusion - understanding of equality, diversity, inclusion and reasonable adjustments in the delivery of patient services. 9. Development - willingness to undertake relevant training, participate in appraisal and contribute to service improvement.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Employer details Employer name Thameside Medical Practice
Address Thames House
180-194 High Street
Teddington
Greater London
TW11 8HU
United Kingdom
Employer's website https://thamesidemedicalpractice.co.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)