Are you looking for a rewarding role where you can make a real difference to people's lives every day?
As the first point of contact for patients, our reception team plays a vital role in ensuring that every patient receives a positive experience when accessing healthcare. This is a varied and challenging position that would suit someone who is:
- Friendly, professional, and approachable
- Empathetic and understanding when dealing with patients
- Calm and resilient in a busy environment
- A confident problem solver
- Organised and able to prioritise tasks effectively
- Reliable, motivated, and committed to delivering excellent customer service
- A team player with a positive outlook
Previous reception or customer service experience is desirable, and experience within a healthcare setting would be an advantage, although full training will be provided for the right candidate.
In return, we offer the opportunity to work within a close-knit, supportive team where your contribution is valued and where you can make a genuine difference to the health and wellbeing of our patients.
If you would like to join a practice that takes pride in caring for both its patients and staff, we would love to hear from you.
Main duties of the job
- Greeting patients and visitors in a professional, friendly and helpful manner.
- Answering telephone calls and responding to patient enquiries.
- Booking, amending and cancelling appointments.
- Signposting patients to the most appropriate service or healthcare professional.
- Processing prescription requests in line with practice procedures.
- Managing incoming and outgoing correspondence, including emails, letters and clinical documents.
- Registering new patients and maintaining accurate patient records.
- Scanning, coding and filing patient information using clinical computer systems.
- Liaising with GPs, nurses, hospitals and other healthcare providers.
- Supporting the smooth day-to-day running of the practice.
- Maintaining patient confidentiality and complying with information governance requirements.
- Undertaking other administrative tasks as required by the practice.
About us
We are a small, friendly family GP surgery located near Huddersfield town centre and are seeking a Medical Receptionist to join our team. This vacancy has arisen as a valued member of staff is relocating, creating an opportunity for a motivated and reliable individual to become part of our practice family.
We are proud to be a low-turnover practice, with four members of our team having worked with us for over 20 years. We believe this reflects the supportive, respectful, and welcoming environment we have created for both staff and patients.
We are consistently rated as in the top 3 practices in Huddersfield by the National Patient Survey and pride ourselves on the excellent service our team work hard to provide to our patients.
Job responsibilities
General Reception Duties
- A1. To work at the Reception Desk, greetingpatients on arrival in a polite, welcoming manner.
- A2. To handle patient request forappointments and medication in a helpful, efficient way.
- A3. To answer the telephone promptly with asuitable greeting.
- A4. To deal with difficult, demandingpatients on the phone in an appropriate manner and record telephone calls asappropriate when issues arise.
- A5. To ensure all messages are dealt withefficiently and appropriately making sure a contact telephone number is takenand then passed on to the relevant person(s) in an efficient and timely manner.
- A6. To ensure phone calls are transferredappropriately and efficiently to relevant members of staff ensuring thatclinicians are free before doing so.
- A7. To ensuring requests from other parties (solicitors,other NHS agencies etc) are carried out within the confidentiality guidelinesof the Data Protection Act (Information Governance Training will be givenappropriately) and accurate records are kept of such communications asnecessary.
- A8. To ensure online consultations requestsare responded to and processed in a timely fashion
- A9. To advise patients of relevant chargesfor non-NHS and private services, accept payment and issue receipts for thesame.
- A10. To inform the Practice Manager if a patientraises a concern or complaint with written details of the incident.
- A11. To complete patients request for repeatprescription items accurately and send through to the GP to sign.
- A12. To ensure that any items requested from thepatient or patients carer that are not on the repeated items screen must requestedfrom the Pharmacist Group detailing items requested and why they are requestingmedication.
- A13. To deal with requests from the cliniciansfor patient contact or recall in an efficient timely manner.
- A14. To take requests from members of the publicwishing to become patients issuing the appropriate information and applicationform and advising them of the new patient application process adopted here.
- A15. To ensure that all temporary patients andrequests for immediate necessary treatment complete the required forms and areregistered onto the system before their appointment.
- A16. To ensure that all New Baby registrationsrequests have the relevant forms completed and registered onto the system in atimely fashion.
- A17. To take responsibility that the signedprescription box is not accessible to the general public if ever the receptiondesk is left unmanned.
- A18. To ensure that any paper prescriptions areonly collected by patients, authorised family members or pharmacies.
- A19. To take responsibility for all patientsamples handed over the reception desk, ensuring that they have the patientsdetails and that they are correct and are passed on to the appropriate nurse orentered into the colour coded plastic bags ready to be taken to the path labsat HRI.
- A20. To receive internal and external mail anddeal with it appropriately, distributed to relevant trays or scanning onto thesystem and forwarded electronically. No items marked Private and Confidentialshould be opened by anyone but the intended recipient or their delegate ie, thePractice Manager will open this for the for GP when he is on leave.
- A21. Allincoming post must be dealt with in an efficient and timely manner.
- A22. To input data as directed by GP, accuratelyand in a timely fashion onto the patients electronic record, relevant to shiftworked.
- A23. To ensure relevant information is passed onas required for the next shift.
Sharedduties
These duties are performed by the receptionists as a team and therefore you should be able to take the initiativeand perform these duties as and when required.
- B1. Depending on rota, to open up the surgerypremises at the start of day, resetting alarm and make all necessarypreparations to receive patients.
- B2. Depending on rota, secure the surgerypremises at end of day, ensuring all fires/heaters are switched off, all doors andwindows are closed & locked, surgery is totally secured, internal lightsoff and alarm activated.
- B3. To ensure external mail is posted ortaken to the post office in a timely fashion.
- B4. To partake in the performing of processingreferral letters/medical reports/supporting letters.
- B5. To partake in photocopying relevant tooffice duties (Solicitors requests from patient files, X-ray forms and anyother forms required as hand outs).
- B6. To ensure that the appropriate detailsare taken and noted accurately on the visit screen when a home visit is requested.A brief summary printout and blank prescription should also be attached andplaced in the visit box in a timely manner.
- B7. To ensure reception and waiting areas arekept neat, tidy and safe.
- B8. To ensure that, after use, the patientnotes are accurately filed in the correct filing system, ie alphabetical orderSurname, First Name.
- B9. To ensure all paper waste which maycontain confidential information, no longer needed, relating to the surgery ora patient is put in the shredding bins as a means of disposal.
- B10. To take responsibility/sign for any itemsdeliver to the practice, ensuring that they are passed onto the intendedrecipient or placed in the intended area, i.e. fridge immediately.
- B11. To receive internal and external mail anddeal with it appropriately, distributed to relevant trays or scanning onto thesystem and forwarded electronically. No items marked Private and Confidentialshould be opened by anyone but the intended recipient or their delegate ie, thePractice Manager will open this for the for GP when he is on leave.
- B12. To act as a chaperone when requested by aclinician for an examination and ensure a record is made of your presence onthe patients record.
- B13. Review and process incoming emails and voicemailsreceived in the generic email inbox.
Miscellaneous
- C1. To be prepared to offer assistance as andwhen necessary due to staff shortages or to an increased workload.
- C2. To make every effort to attend practicemeetings and training arranged by the practice even if this is outside thenormal hours of work. Appropriate notice will be given and time in lieuawarded.
- C3. To ensure an active part is taken withthe general duties of maintaining running a smooth office environment.
- C4. To be proactive in seeking to acquire newskills which will be to the benefit of the Practice and the role employed bythe practice, such as any training courses, reading etc.
- C5. To follow any guidance given and adhereto the Practice Protocols written by the Doctor, Nurse and Practice Manager.
- C6. To take responsibility at all times forthe health and safety of oneself, fellow employees and patients.
- C7. To be aware and comply with the practicesHealth & Safety Policies
- C8. To be aware of fire procedures, how toraise the alarm, fire fighting equipment and its use, the fire evacuationprocedure and your responsibilities in an emergency situation to both patientsand fellow staff members.
- C9. To be aware of the Practice First Aidprocedures and ensure the accident book is appropriately completed asnecessary.
- C10. To be aware of the constraints ofconfidentiality and in particular the Data Protection Act 2018 and itsrelevance to you both in, and outside of work.
- C11. To be aware of the Good PracticeGuidelines for General Practice Electronic Records and the informationcontained relevant to your role.
- C12. To be aware of the contents of the PracticeIT policies and Procedures File comply with their direction regarding the useof IT within the practice.
- C13. To be aware of the contents of the PracticeHR policies and comply with their direction.
- C14. To always act within the best interest ofthe practice, patients and employees.
- C15. To support the GPs, Practice Nurses,Practice Manager and all fellow employees at all times.
- C16. To ensure that any other (appropriate)tasks are performed as requested by the Doctor or Practice Manager takingcapacity and training into consideration.
Person Specification
