Pathology Quality and Governance Officer

Transformation Unit; Ashford; Hybrid; GBP 28,000 - 31,000; Full time

Job summary

East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust is seeking a Pathology Quality and Governance Officer (Band 4) to maintain and enhance the Quality Management System within Pathology across EKHUFT. You will support audits, incident management, and data retrieval from Q-Pulse, DATIX and 4-Risk to prepare reports.

You will train staff on QMS, manage governance processes, and work with multiple disciplines to sustain high-quality, safe operations.

Qualifications

• Experience of working within a Quality Management System based on ISO 9001 standards.
• Experience of auditing.
• Experience of working in Pathology.
• Excellent interpersonal and written communication skills.
• Ability to plan ahead, prioritise and manage large amounts of information.

Responsibilities

• Provide support on the maintenance and implementation of the Quality Management System (QMS) and governance processes within EKHUFT to the Pathology Quality team.
• Support the Quality team in management of incidents, complaints, user enquiries and quality improvements.
• Support management of the pan-pathology quality documentation and audit programme.
• Support management of risk management by sourcing updates for the Pathology Risk Register.
• Support training in basic quality management processes, audit and CA/PA.
• Maintain quality standards and support the department with external assessment preparation, primarily UKAS.

Skills

Analytical skills

Minute taking

Microsoft Office

Motivate others

Plan ahead / prioritize

Communication skills

Customer care

Auditing

Change control processes

Quality Management System (QMS)

Auditing

Pathology experience

Report compiling

External assessments (MHRA/UKAS/HTA/UK

Education

GCSE English and Maths

A-levels or equivalent

NVQ Level 4 or equivalent professional experience

Tools

Q-Pulse

DATIX

4-Risk

Microsoft Office

Job description

Employer East Kent Hospitals University NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site William Harvey Hospital Town Ashford Salary £28,392 - £31,157 per annum Salary period Yearly Closing 28/10/2026 23:59

Pathology Quality and Governance Officer

Band 4

Job overview

We are looking for an enthusiastic team player as our Pathology Quality and Governance Officer. As a Quality Officer (QO) you will contribute positively towards the maintenance and management of the Quality Management System (QMS) within Pathology by providing support to the Quality team. The Quality team comprises of leads in the following disciplines: Cellular Pathology, Mortuary, Clinical Biochemistry and Immunology, Haematology & Blood Transfusion, Haemophilia, Microbiology and Point of Care.

The ideal candidate will work both as part of a team and independently, be able to prioritise and adapt easily to different tasks. This will include undertaking a wide variety of duties such as auditing, administrative tasks, training pathology staff on the QMS, supporting internal and external assessments and retrieving data from systems such as Q-Pulse, DATIX and 4-Risk for report compilation. Training and support will be provided by the Pathology Quality team in use of systems and the QMS.

You will have excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to multitask. In addition to this you will be expected to work with a variety of different staff and operate in sometimes challenging situations in order to maintain a safe, responsive and high-quality operations response to modern demand.

Main duties of the job

Provide support on the maintenance and implementation of the Quality Management System (QMS) and governance processes within EKHUFT to the Pathology Quality team.

Support the Quality team in management of incidents, complaints, user enquiries and quality improvements.

Support management of the pan-pathology quality documentation and audit programme.

Support management of risk management by sourcing updates for the Pathology Risk Register.

Support training in basic quality management processes, audit and CA/PA.

Maintain quality standards and support the department with external assessment preparation, primarily UKAS.

Working for our organisation

We are one of the largest hospital trusts in England, with five hospitals and community clinics serving a local population of around 800,000 people. Our vision is 'great healthcare from great people'. Everything we do is guided by our values: 'People feel cared for, safe, respected and confident that we are making a difference’. We have a new way of working at East Kent Hospitals, called 'We care'. It's about empowering frontline staff to lead improvements day-to-day. We're looking for compassionate people to be part of our improvement journey for the patients, families and carers we care for every day.

Kent and Medway Pathology Network

Kent and Medway Pathology Network is a formal partnership of seven laboratories across three pathology services in four acute Trusts. Our 1000 colleagues provide services across the health and care sector to a population of nearly 2 million.

We are at an exciting point of our network development with a recommendation to form a joint venture across the four Trusts leading transformation. Our projects including single IT solutions, procurement and digital projects, to ensure our services are able to meet growing demand for our service users, patients and communities.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Kent and Medway Pathology Network

You will have a fantastic opportunity to grow your career in KMPN. We are developing a network academy, a platform for all network education and training from apprenticeships to advanced clinical and scientific qualifications with a single faculty making best use of our talented educators and trainers. You will not be expected to work at sites outside of EKHUFT. However, there will be opportunities for collaborative working within the network.

If you have further queries please don’t hesitate to contact the line manager using the contact details below.

Kindly note that visa sponsorship is not available for this role. Please note that if you require a Certificate of Sponsorship to work in the UK you must declare this on your application form, even if you currently have a certificate of sponsorship or a work permit for another role and are already working in the country. Please note we are only able to sponsor candidates on a Skilled Worker Visa applying for BMS roles Band 6 and above.

Name Naomi Rogers Job title Head of Quality, Governance, Risk Management,Audit Email address [e-mail] Telephone number 01233 616213

Person specification

Qualifications and training

• GCSE’S A-C in English and Maths
• A-levels or equivalent
• Educated to NVQ Level 4 or equivalent relevant professional experience

Skills and Experience

• Experience of filing systems and general clerical duties
• Well-developed analytical skills
• Minute taking skills
• Proficient in use of Microsoft Office programs
• Ability to motivate others
• Ability to plan ahead, prioritise and manage large amounts of information
• Sound judgement, initiative and organisational ability
• Ability to understand own work remit and decision making
• Good oral and written communication skills
• Good customer care skills
• Be able to drive and travel to different acute sites across East Kent efficiently
• Experience of working within a Quality Management System based on ISO 9001 standards
• Experience of working in Pathology
• Experience of compiling reports
• Experience of external assessments e.g. MHRA, UKAS, HTA, UKHSA and CQC
• Experience of auditing
• Deal with complex and or sensitive information
• Experience in change control processes

Governance

• Knowledge and understanding of complex diary management
• Knowledge of quality management system software
• Knowledge of audit process
• Knowledge of IT software including Microsoft office
• Knowledge of ISO 15189:2022, BSQR, and/ or HTA post mortem standards