Assistant Practice Manager

Main Duties / Key Tasks

• Oversee and coordinate the day-to-day operations of the practice, ensuring staff achieve their primary responsibilities.
• Actively encourage and promote the use of patient online services.
• Update and act as the focal point for the practice website and social media sites.
• Support the management team in the compilation of practice reports and the practice development plan.
• Support the practice and management team in areas of change management and continuous improvement.
• Support the Business Manager as required with projects, systems and procedures.
• Respond to and resolve all local IT issues where appropriate.
• Manage administrative staff rotas, ensuring sufficient cover is provided for periods of leave and other staff absences.
• Coordinate staff absence.
• Represent the practice locally as required.
• Respond to the needs of the Practice to appoint, retain, develop and train, discipline or dismiss staff members (including salaried GPs).
• Carry out recruitment and ensure the retention of staff to meet Practice requirements, liaising with the Business Manager who retains strategic responsibility.
• Carry out and arrange staff induction, appraisal, training and development opportunities to ensure staff are appropriately trained to fulfil their roles.
• Deliver training on relevant HR issues.
• Conduct staff 1, 3 and 6 month reviews, annual appraisals and return to work interviews after short periods of sick or other leave.
• Review and regularly update job descriptions and person specifications.
• Act as the lead for recruitment, including pre-employment checks and DBS, ensuring all staff are legally and gainfully employed.
• Evaluate, organise and oversee the staff induction programme.
• Oversee an effective staff appraisal process.
• Oversee an effective practice and staff development plan for all staff while maintaining a robust training record.
• Oversee the completion of mandatory training, planning and organising staff training.
• Produce training reports and audits.
• Ensure effective systems for the resolution of disputes and grievances, liaising with the Business Manager and the GP for HR and with the Practice's employment law solicitors and HR advisors.
• Deal with and authorise requests for annual leave, TOIL, and time off for other reasons.
• Keep abreast of changes in employment legislation and ensure that all members of staff are legally employed.
• Ensure the updating and security of HR documentation, including employment records and contracts, policies and job descriptions, delegating as appropriate.
• Attend team, management and external meetings as required.
• Proactively seek to understand readiness for change and develop and lead initiatives to ensure successful implementation with key stakeholders.
• Ensure structural change is well managed.
• Develop HR policies, ensuring their alignment with best practice.
• Undertake training as necessary in line with the development of the post and as agreed with the Business Manager.
• Proactively work to develop and promote a culture of healthy employee relations and effective partnership working.
• Support payroll processing when required.
• Actively support the motivation and mentoring of staff both as individuals and as team members to equip them to provide patient-centred care.

Patient Services

• Adopt a strategic approach to the development and management of patient services.
• Acknowledge, investigate and respond to patient concerns and complaints.
• Ensure service development and delivery is in accordance with local and national guidelines.
• Ensure that the practice complies with NHS contractual obligations in relation to patient care.
• Maintain registration policies and monitor patient turnover and capitation.
• Oversee and develop repeat prescribing systems.
• Oversee and develop and manage an effective appointments system.
• Routinely monitor and assess practice performance against patient access and demand management targets.
• Develop and implement an effective complaints management system.
• Liaise with patient groups.
• Implement systems to ensure compliance with CQC regulations and standards.
• Support the Business Manager in reviewing and updating policies and procedures.
• Provide leadership and guidance to staff ensuring adherence to policy and procedure at all times.
• In conjunction with the Business Manager, set and monitor performance targets, identifying areas for improvement to enhance patient services.
• Be aware of duties and responsibilities regarding current legislation and adhere to practice policies and procedures on Safeguarding Adults and Safeguarding Children.
• Deputise for the Business Manager in their absence.
• Attend a formal appraisal with their manager at least every 12 months.
• Once a performance/training objective has been set, progress will be reviewed regularly so that new objectives can be agreed.
• Other responsibilities may be passed to you as deemed appropriate and necessary by the practice management team.

Confidentiality

• In the course of seeking treatment, patients entrust us with sensitive information regarding 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 carers, practice staff and other healthcare workers.
• All such information from any source is to be regarded as strictly confidential.
• Information relating to patients, carers, colleagues, other healthcare workers or the business of the practice may only be divulged to authorised persons in accordance with the practice policies and procedures relating to confidentiality and the protection of personal and sensitive data.

Health and Safety

• The post-holder will assist in promoting and maintaining their own and others' health, safety and security as defined in the practice Health & Safety Policy.
• 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 risks.
• Ensuring job holders across the practice adhere to their individual responsibilities for infection control and health and safety.
• Maintaining an up-to-date knowledge of health and safety and infection control statutory and best practice guidelines and ensuring implementation across the business.
• Actively identifying, reporting, and correcting health and safety hazards and infection hazards immediately when recognised.
• Using appropriate infection control procedures, maintaining work areas in a tidy and safe way and free from hazards.
• Reporting potential risks identified.
• Making effective use of training to update knowledge and skills, and initiate and manage the training of others.
• Keeping own work areas and general/patient areas clean, identifying issues and hazards/risks in relation to other work areas within the business.
• Undertaking periodic infection control training (minimum annually).

Routine management of own team and maintenance of work space standards

• The post-holder will support the equality, diversity and rights of patients, carers and colleagues.
• Acting in a way that recognises the importance of people's rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with practice procedures and policies, and current legislation.
• Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs and beliefs of patients, carers and colleagues.
• Behaving in a manner which is welcoming to individuals, is non-judgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings, priorities and rights.

The post-holder will strive to maintain quality within the practice and will:

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

Communication:

• The post-holder should recognise the importance of effective communication within the team and will strive to communicate effectively with other team members.
• Communicate effectively with patients and carers.
• Recognise people's needs for alternative methods of communication and respond accordingly.