Medical Secretary

County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust; Tees Valley; On-site; GBP 20,000 - 30,000; Full time

Job summary

A healthcare organization in Tees Valley is seeking a full-time Medical Secretary to provide essential administrative support within the Ophthalmology Department. This role involves secretarial duties, managing communication, and maintaining patient records. Candidates should have a good educational background, experience in medical terminology, and proficiency in Microsoft Excel. The position offers flexible working options post-training and is ideal for a motivated team player who enjoys a busy, supportive environment.

Qualifications

• Good standard of general education.
• Keyboarding/typing qualification equivalent to RSA 3/OCR Advanced text/word processing.
• Educated to at least NVQ Level 3 in Business Administration.
• Understanding of medical terminology.
• Experience of Bespoke/Therapeutic clinic management.
• Advanced knowledge of Microsoft excel spreadsheets.
• Experience of Microsoft Publisher.
• Knowledge of Data Protection and Caldicott Principles.

Responsibilities

• Provide a full range of confidential secretarial/administrative support.
• Undertake typing and distribution of clinical correspondence.
• Be the point of contact for staff, patients and others.
• Book investigations and follow-up appointments.
• Maintain accurate patient and GP details.
• Manage electronic diaries and support arrangement of on-call rotas.
• Organise meetings and take minutes.
• Operate efficient and up-to-date administrative systems.

Job description

Medical Secretary

County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust

The closing date is 22 January 2026

An exciting opportunity hasarisen for a highly motivated, calm and methodical team player to become a medical secretary and provide essential administration within the Department of Ophthalmology which is part of the Surgical Directorate. We are currently recruiting for a full-time (37.5hrs) Medical Secretary to work in Ophthalmology for which the nominal base will be Darlington Memorial Hospital and working days can be determined at interview; offering both agile and flexible working following a period of training.

Working in a friendly team, our Medical secretaries are an excellent resource, ensuring Consultants, Nurse Specialists have all the administrative support they require.

The Department of Ophthalmology is a friendly, supportive, busy but a welcoming Directorate.

Main duties of the job

• FullRange of secretarial duties to the Ophthalmology Team
• First point of contact to the patients
• Track & trace investigations in order to meet 18 week pathway requirements

Responsibilities

• To provide a full range of confidential secretarial/administrative support to supporting clinical staff, working with minimal supervision
• To undertake typing and distribution of clinical and other patient-related and general correspondence, dictated by Consultants and supporting clinical staff, to achieve Trust standards of accuracy and timeliness
• To be the point of contact for staff, patients and others within and outside the organisation, responding to external and internal telephone enquiries, taking appropriate and timely action required, including making appointments, giving non-clinical advice, onward referral to relevant department etc
• To receive and respond to internal and external correspondence, taking appropriate and timely action as required, in accordance with Trust and/or departmental standards and processes
• To book investigations and any necessary follow-up appointments, as directed by clinical staff, ensuring test results are presented to medical staff on receipt, where these are not available electronically
• To maintain accurate patient and GP details on the Trusts central and local Patient Administration and Clinical Systems, as required
• To ensure patient information is bar‑coded correctly for scanning into the electronic clinical document management system (ECDMS)
• To manage electronic diaries, as required
• To support arrangement of on‑call rotas, as required
• To organise meetings, including arranging venues, preparing agendas, collating and issuing papers and attending for taking and production of minutes, as required
• To operate efficient and up‑to‑date administrative systems and processes for all office tasks
• To maintain accurate and timely data entry to databases to meet service requirements
• To prioritise own workload to meet the needs of the patients and Consultants and ensure all deadlines are met
• To support new and/or less experienced staff, as directed by line manager/head of service
• To provide cover as required during absence of colleagues

You must be able to produce ALL certificates stated essential in the person specification or you will not be able to complete pre‑employment checks.

Qualifications

• Good standard of general education
• Keyboarding/typing qualification equivalent to RSA 3/OCR Advanced text/word processing or equivalent proven typing skills to a high standard (or working towards/equivalent experience)
• Educated to at least NVQ Level 3 in Business Administration (or working towards /equivalent experience)
• Understanding of medical terminology
• Experience of Bespoke/Therapeutic clinic management
• Advanced knowledge of Microsoft excel spreadsheets

Special Requirements

• Ability to travel independently across the County to fulfil the requirements of the post.

Special Skills & Knowledge

• Experience of Microsoft Publisher
• Knowledge of Data Protection and Caldicott Principles and understanding of the need to maintain strict confidentiality
• Ability to use email and maintain and update paper and electronic diaries
• Excellent written communication skills, with the ability to deal with and prepare routine written correspondence.
• Excellent verbal communication skills, with the ability to obtain information and pass on comprehensive and confidential messages.
• Ability to organise and prioritise workload in order to meet deadlines
• Ability to use own initiative and work with minimal supervision
• Good interpersonal skills

Experience

• Experience of a secretarial/administrative role providing general provision of secretarial/administrative duties in a challenging and constantly changing environment
• Demonstrate Experience of using Microsoft Word
• Experience in setting up and maintaining office filing systems
• Experience of maintaining and setting up databases
• Experience in planning and organising meetings and taking minutes

We particularly welcome applications from disabled and Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) candidates as BAME and disabled people are currently under-represented.

County Durham & Darlington NHS Foundation Trust