Medical Secretary

The Methodist Church in Britain; Chester-le-Street; On-site; GBP 21,000 - 27,000; Full time

Job summary

Cestria Health Centre in Chester-le-Street is seeking a capable medical secretary to provide secretarial support to both sites, including Coxhoe Medical Practice. The role covers typing, transcription, referrals and maintaining waiting lists and records using SystmOne.

You will liaise with clinicians and external services, transcribe GPSI letters, attend meetings and help with policy updates. GCSE level education and primary care experience are essential, with flexibility to cover both sites

Qualifications

• GCSE level or equivalent.
• Experience in primary care.
• Experience as a medical secretary.
• Advanced medical terminology.
• Strong written and spoken communication.
• Ability to work flexibly across two sites.

Responsibilities

• Provide medical secretarial support for both sites and the multidisciplinary team.
• Type letters, minutes and other documentation; maintain accurate records.
• Liaise with clinicians, hospitals and external services on referrals using NHS e-Referral Service.
• Transcribe GPSI letters; manage clinic referrals and follow-ups.
• Attend meetings; transcribe and circulate minutes and agendas.
• Maintain SystmOne templates; import referrals; code clinically; file documents.
• Provide flexible secretarial cover and leadership during leave periods.

Skills

Medical terminology

Grammar & spelling

Organisational skills

Interpersonal skills

Time management

Attention to detail

Discretion

Initiative

Education

GCSE level or equivalent

Tools

SystmOne

Job description

The post sits in the administrative team at Cestria Health Centre, providing secretarial support mainly to the clinical and admin teams at its sister practice, Coxhoe Medical Practice. Work covers medical typing, transcription of letters, minutes, referral handling through the NHS e-Referral Service and maintenance of waiting lists and records. Both sites run on SystmOne, and the holder covers either site during annual leave and sickness, with a leadership role under the Team Leader at those times. Primary care experience and work as a medical secretary are essential.

What the job involves

• Medical secretarial, typing and general administrative work supporting the multidisciplinary team at both sites
• Processing correspondence and medical documentation, electronic and hard copy, and keeping accurate records
• Liaising with clinicians, hospitals, community services and other external organisations on referrals, using the NHS e-Referral Service
• Transcribing GPSI letters into the correct template and acting on dictated instructions such as clinic referrals, follow-ups and scheduled tasks
• Attending meetings, transcribing and circulating minutes and agendas
• Maintaining an overview of GPSI appointments and waiting lists, and liaising with the rota master on clinic capacity
• Creating and amending SystmOne templates, importing referral proformas, clinical coding, and scanning and filing patient documents
• Creating policies from new information, circulating them to staff and adding agreed policies to Teamnet
• Providing flexible secretarial cover at both sites during annual leave, sickness and other absence, including directing other team members
• Supporting the Team Leader with day-to-day running of the department and taking a leadership role during leave periods
• Answering incoming calls, managing enquiries and actioning incoming email
• Handling all information confidentially and complying with information governance requirements and practice policies

What’s required

Qualifications

• Educated to GCSE level or equivalent

Experience

• Working in primary care
• Working as a medical secretary

Skills & knowledge

• Advanced medical terminology
• Advanced grammar and spelling, including medical acronyms
• Excellent organisational, communication and interpersonal skills
• Managing a varied workload, meeting deadlines and prioritising
• Working confidently under pressure in a changing environment
• Accuracy, discretion and attention to detail

Other

• Flexibility to cover both sites
• Using own initiative, working independently and contributing as part of a team

Nice to have

• AMSPAR qualification
• Leadership qualification