Podiatry Administration Assistant/ Receptionist in Plymouth

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a hard-working and enthusiastic individual to join the Podiatry Service. The Podiatry Administration team has adopted hybrid-working, and as such there will be an opportunity to work from home, however the successful candidate will also be expected to work from the Beauchamp Centre, at Mount Gould Hospital and other locations when required by the service.

Whilst working at Mount Gould Hospital, you will be responsible for handling front office reception and administration duties, including face-to-face meet and greet of all patients and visitors to the Podiatry Service. You will work on your own initiative acting as first point of contact for all patients and professionals. Your duties will include answering face-to-face and telephone enquiries, arranging patient appointments and home visits, processing referrals and assisting in the management of service waiting lists. You will have very good organisational, keyboard and IT skills and have an excellent telephone manner. You will be a team player with excellent verbal and written communication skills. The role is busy and varied so you will need the ability to prioritise your workload.

You will work as part of the administration team, in support of the Community Service Support Manager, as well as providing comprehensive clerical support to senior service managers and clinical staff. Previous experience in SystmOne would be advantageous. All staff are expected to be able and willing to work across a 7 day service.

Livewell Southwest values diversity and encourages applications from all sections of the community, including those with armed forces experience, lived experience of mental health, neuro-diverse conditions and learning disabilities.

Please note that this role is not eligible for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker route.

The podiatry service provides a range of specialist podiatry services to the commissioned areas of Plymouth and South Hams and West Devon. You will work from the Beauchamp Centre, Mount Gould Hospital to assist in the provision of comprehensive administrative, reception and office services for the Podiatry Service.

You will undertake reception duties for the podiatry clinics at the Beauchamp Centre, Mount Gould Hospital and will utilise the waiting lists on SystmOne to book appointments for both MSK and specialist clinics within local guidelines regarding expected waiting times. You will act as first point of both face-to-face and telephone contact for patients and other service users.

You will be required to complete daily tasks relating to appointments such as data entry, processing onward referrals and arranging new and follow-up appointments as necessary. The postholder will also be required to order stock when necessary and to assist with the processing of orthotic orders. The job description and person specification are an outline of the tasks, responsibilities and outcomes required of the role. The job holder will need to be flexible to carry out any other duties as may be reasonably required by their line manager.

• Assist the Community Service Support Manager in the provision of administrative and secretarial support for the whole service.
• Act as first point of contact for patients who attend for their podiatry appointment at the local care centre. Complete all associated data entry on SystmOne.
• Act as first point of contact, via telephone, dealing with general enquiries, compliments and complaints. Refer these enquiries to more senior staff when necessary.
• Provide verbal non-clinical advice to patients, their carers and relatives, referring matters to clinical staff when necessary.
• Assist in the administration of all podiatry clinics and domiciliary visit service. This includes entering referrals, scanning documents into SystmOne, making appointments, and completing outcome forms in a timely manner.
• Check clinics on a regular basis for any cancellations that would be suitable for new patients or those on cancellation lists and work to ensure these are filled to avoid any wasted appointments.
• Monitor data quality on both the new and follow-up waiting lists on SystmOne and utilise it effectively to ensure patients are booked in a timely fashion in accordance with local guidance on expected waiting times.
• Monitor the letters sent for appointment waiting lists ensuring that any patient who has not contacted within 14 days is removed and closed down as appropriate, ensuring letters are sent to the referrer to inform them of the outcome.
• Monitor the domiciliary patients currently in hospital to ensure we are aware when they return home and place them back on the appropriate waiting list for a visit.
• Process incoming correspondence in a timely manner, scanning all new referrals into SystmOne and allocating them to the Pending Triage waiting list, and ensuring referrals are placed on the correct treatment pathway following triage. Ensure outgoing correspondence is posted regularly.
• Accurately enter data into SystmOne and other service systems, and support others in using these systems.
• Type letters, emails and other documents as required using Microsoft Word, Excel and Outlook, ensuring the correct format and font is used in accordance with local guidelines.
• Monitor and complete any tasks sent to the Admin group on SystmOne.
• Order stock as required and assist with the orthotics ordering function of the department.
• Scan in any documents as requested into SystmOne to form part of the patient record.
• Actively contribute to the development of office procedures encouraging maximum efficiency and accuracy.
• Have a thorough understanding of service processes, and be able to pass this information on to patients and other service users.
• Communicate effectively with the clinical staff within the service, relaying information and messages to them when necessary.
• Provide clerical assistance and support as required to service managers.
• Carry out any other duties as required by the service, commensurate with the level/grade of the post.

• GCSE (or equivalent) in English and Maths grade C or above
• NVQ3 Business and Administration or equivalent
• RSA 2 or equivalent in keyboard skills.
• ECDL

• Team working, working in a reception and/or office environment, dealing effectively with public enquiries and complaints via telephone and face-to-face.
• Monitoring waiting lists
• Supervising other staff members
• Training new staff

• Able to work on own initiative
• Effective as part of a team
• Multi-task
• Excellent high-speed keyboard skills, ensuring accuracy
• Organised, efficient and accurate
• Prioritise own workload
• Analyse problems and find solutions
• Work without direct supervision
• Adaptable / Flexible
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Pleasant, helpful, friendly and able to remain calm under pressure
• Caring and compassionate
• Confident and polite
• Apply tact and sensitivity to establish trust and support
• Informal minute taking

• Ability to frequently travel independently and in a timely manner between Livewell Southwest sites and community locations including areas not served by public transport.

• Understanding of confidentiality and data protection
• Microsoft Office package
• Secretarial procedures
• Build effective working relationships with service users and staff
• Current NHS issues
• Use of SystmOne
• Knowledge of equality and diversity issues
• Understanding of the Referral to Treatment Pathway

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.