Patient Services Coordinator

Fakenham Medical Practice; Fakenham; On-site; GBP 22,000 - 30,000; Full time

Job summary

Fakenham Medical Practice is seeking a Patient Services Coordinator to be the first point of contact for patients, carers and visitors. You will manage appointments, referrals and communications across clinical teams, ensuring a smooth care journey and timely follow-ups.

The role requires flexibility across reception and administrative tasks to support high-quality patient care. The position supports services within a busy practice serving around 15,900 patients, with extended hours and a focus

Qualifications

• Good standard of general education
• Experience in reception or front-of-house roles
• Experience working in healthcare or NHS environment
• Familiar with SystmOne or similar clinical systems
• Knowledge of NHS e-Referral Service (e-RS) would be advantageous
• Strong IT and data entry skills
• Excellent communication and interpersonal abilities
• Ability to work flexibly across reception and admin duties

Responsibilities

• Meet and greet patients and visitors in person, by phone, and online forms.
• Respond to queries with empathy and professionalism and help navigate services.
• Book, amend and cancel appointments across clinical teams and communicate follow-ups.
• Arrange referrals, tests and follow-up appointments, including NHS e-Referral Service.
• Process incoming correspondence and route items to clinicians.
• Coordinate with secondary care, social services and other providers.
• Identify complex needs and escalate appropriately.
• Explain services and procedures to new patients and temporary residents.

Skills

Customer service

Reception

Administrative support

SystmOne

NHS e-Referral Service

IT skills

Phone etiquette

Data entry

Medical terminology

Communication

Education

GCSE English

GCSE Maths

NVQ Level 2 in Customer Care

AMS PAR / medical terminology qualification

Tools

SystmOne

e-RS

MS Word

Outlook

Job description

To provide a positive, friendly and professional first point of contact for patients, carers and visitors, whether in person, by telephone or through the online system.

To support patients through their care journey within the practice, acting as a central point of contact and ensuring timely coordination of appointments, follow-ups and communication between clinical teams, external services and patients.

To support the clinical and administrative teams with a range of patient-related administrative tasks, working flexibly across reception and administration as the needs of the service require.

Main duties of the job

Meet and greet patients and visitors, providing a high-quality, patient-first service in person, by telephone and online forms.

Act as a first point of contact for patients, responding to queries with empathy and professionalism and helping them navigate practice services and the appropriate care pathway, in line with practice protocols.

Book, amend and cancel appointments across clinical teams to support continuity of care, ensuring follow-ups are booked and clearly communicated, and contacting patients to rearrange appointments where a clinical session changes.

Arrange referrals, tests and follow-up appointments, including booking referrals through the NHS e-Referral Service.

Process incoming clinical and administrative correspondence, prioritising and routing items for clinicians and teams to action, in line with practice workflow protocols.

Liaise with patients, secondary care, social services, community providers and other health professionals to resolve problems and answer queries.

Identify and elevate complex or vulnerable patient needs to the appropriate person.

Explain practice services and procedures to new patients and those registering as temporary residents ensuring all required registration documentation is completed.

Ensure death notifications are administered and communicated promptly in line with practice procedure.

Draft and send patient communications -letters, SMS messages, emails and online forms - as required.

See job description for full list of duties

About us

The Fakenham Medical Practice

The Fakenham Medical Practice (FMP) is an eleven-doctor dispensing practice providing care to around 15,900 patients in and around Fakenham in North Norfolk.

We work from modern, purpose-built premises. The partners and staff have a shared belief in the delivery of high-quality, patient-focused care. Patients' interests are kept very much to the fore and there is a strong commitment to develop patient services. To promote a multidisciplinary team approach, we share our premises with other providers including a pharmacy, adult social services and local community services, e.g. physiotherapy and midwifery.

The practice is part of the Norfolk and Suffolk Integrated Care Board (NSICB) and its local Primary Care Network (PCN), and has a branch surgery at Walsingham. We are a training practice for GP Trainees.

Job responsibilities

Job Description

Job title: Patient ServicesCoordinator

Hours: Minimum 37 hours per week

Reports to: Patient Experience& Quality Lead

Accountableto: Practice Manager

The Fakenham Medical Practice

The FakenhamMedical Practice (FMP) is an eleven-doctor dispensing practice providing careto around 15,900 patients in and around Fakenham in North Norfolk.

We work frommodern, purpose-built premises. The partners and staff have a shared belief inthe delivery of high-quality, patient-focused care. Patients' interests arekept very much to the fore and there is a strong commitment to develop patientservices. To promote a multidisciplinary team approach, we share our premiseswith other providers including a pharmacy, adult social services and localcommunity services, e.g. physiotherapy and midwifery.

The practice ispart of the Norfolk and Suffolk Integrated Care Board - NSICB, and its localPrimary Care Network - PCN, and has a branch surgery at Walsingham. We are atraining practice for GP Trainees.

Practice Mission Statement

FakenhamMedical Practice is committed to working with compassion and understanding toprovide all its patients with accessible, responsive and efficient servicesthat deliver good, safe and effective care.

Why this role exists

We are here toserve our patients and to keep the practice running smoothly. The PatientServices Coordinator is at the heart of both: making sure every patient whocontacts us is helped quickly, kindly and accurately, and supporting ourclinical and administrative teams so they can focus on delivering good care.

Main purpose of role

To provide a positive, friendly and professional firstpoint of contact for patients, carers and visitors, whether in person, bytelephone or through the online system.

To support patients through their care journey withinthe practice, acting as a central point of contact and ensuring timelycoordination of appointments, follow-ups and communication between clinicalteams, external services and patients.

To support the clinical and administrative teams with arange of patient-related administrative tasks, working flexibly acrossreception and administration as the needs of the service require.

Key relationships

Partners,salaried doctors, trainees, Chief Executive, Practice Manager, , PatientExperience & Quality Lead, Patient Services Lead, nursing and HCA teams,Patient Services colleagues, all other FMP staff, patients, carers, PatientParticipation Group members, secondary care, social services and othercommunity providers.

Job duties and responsibilities

Meet and greet patients and visitors, providing ahigh-quality, patient-first service in person, by telephone and via onlineforms.

Act as a first point of contact for patients,responding to queries with empathy and professionalism and helping themnavigate practice services and the appropriate care pathway, in line withpractice protocols.

Book, amend and cancel appointments across clinicalteams to support continuity of care, ensuring follow-ups are booked and clearlycommunicated, and contacting patients to rearrange appointments where aclinical session changes.

Arrange referrals, tests and follow-up appointments,including booking referrals through the NHS e-Referral Service.

Process incoming clinical and administrativecorrespondence, prioritising and routing items for clinicians and teams toaction, in line with practice workflow protocols.

Liaise with patients, secondary care, social services,community providers and other health professionals to resolve problems andanswer queries.

Identify and elevate complex or vulnerable patientneeds to the appropriate person.

Coordinate practice clinics and recalls, contactingidentified patients to offer appointments, and support national screening andimmunisation programmes by encouraging patient uptake.

Explain practice services and procedures to newpatients and those registering as temporary residents and ensure all requiredregistration documentation is completed.

Complete basic, non-opinion, forms and the coreelements of other forms, such as insurance, mortgage and benefits agency forms,for a clinician to review and sign.

Ensure death notifications are administered andcommunicated promptly in line with practice procedure.

Draft and send patient communications - letters, SMSmessages, emails and online forms, as required.

Record and monitor aspects of care coordination andservice delivery on SystmOne, supporting data collection, searches and audit.

Respond promptly and appropriately to patient needs inthe waiting area, e.g. queues, confusion or sudden illness, calling for helpwhen required.

Advise patients of charges for non-NHS services, takepayment and issue receipts.

Take messages and pass on information accurately and ina timely way.

Check and sign for deliveries, contacting otheragencies on site where deliveries are for them, and keep the reception areatidy and free from obstructions.

Open and close the surgery, following all associatedprocedures, when rota'd to do so.

Provide cover during core opening hours and extendedaccess hours, evenings and some Saturdays, on a rota basis, and covercolleagues during sickness and annual leave.

Working in the practice

Maintain accurate, up-to-date patient records onSystmOne in line with data protection requirements.

Communicate politely and effectively with patients,carers, colleagues and other contacts, recognizing people's needs foralternative methods of communication, e.g. translation services, and workingcollaboratively to support a seamless multidisciplinary service.

Flag safeguarding, clinical or operational concerns tothe appropriate lead without delay.

Report complaints, incidents, near misses, broken ordamaged equipment and health and safety risks to the Patient Experience &Quality Lead, or, in their absence, the Practice Manager, taking orrecommending corrective action where appropriate.

Support service improvement initiatives relating toaccess, patient experience and care coordination, and help maintain andcontinuously improve working practices.

Adhere at all times to practice policies, NHSguidelines and CQC requirements, including information governance,confidentiality, health and safety, infection prevention and control, andequality and diversity, and report any breach or suspected breach immediately.

Undertake regular training and development, keep apersonal development plan up to date and attend team and staff meetings.

Undertake any other activities that may reasonably berequested by the Patient Experience & Quality Lead, Practice Manager, ChiefExecutive or the Partners.

General

This jobdescription is not exhaustive. You are required to carry out all duties andobligations of which you have been advised, and to comply with any rules,instructions, directions, policies, protocols, and procedures as may from timeto time relate to your employment. You will also be given oral instructionsabout your duties and responsibilities, which you should follow to the best ofyour ability. If you do not understand what is required, or are unable tofulfil it, you should tell the person who gave the instruction or, if they areunavailable, your line manager.

Your job titleand job description may be amended from time to time, and you may be calledupon to carry out additional or other duties as may reasonably be required.There may also be times when you are asked to transfer to an alternative job,either on a temporary or permanent basis. You will not be assigned duties orrequired to perform services which you cannot reasonably be expected toperform.

The nature ofour business and the changing needs of the NHS mean that you must be flexiblein your approach to your work and in the duties you may be required toundertake in order to provide service to our patients. Your duties willinevitably vary and develop over time. You may occasionally be asked to supportservices across the Primary Care Network.

Person Specification

Qualifications

• Good standard of general education
• GCSE Mathematics and English at grade C / 4 or above (or equivalent)
• NVQ Level 2 in Customer Care or Business Administration (or equivalent)
• AMSPAR or other medical administration / medical terminology qualification

Skills

• * Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• * Good, confident IT skills (e.g. Microsoft Word, Outlook, email)
• * Clear, polite telephone manner
• * Time management and the ability to prioritise and work to deadlines
• * Accurate data entry and attention to detail
• * Problem-solving skills and good judgement
• * Good interpersonal skills
• * Understanding of basic medical terminology

Other Requirements

• * Able to work flexibly on a rota, including extended access hours (evenings and some Saturdays)
• * Able to work at the Walsingham branch surgery when required

Experience

• Experience of working with the public, both face to face and on the telephone
• Reception or front-of-house experience
• Experience of working in a healthcare setting
• Working knowledge of SystmOne or an equivalent clinical system
• Experience of the NHS e-Referral Service (e-RS)

Behaviours

• * Smart, polite and confident
• * Honest and reliable, with good timekeeping
• * Calm, professional and compassionate, including under pressure
• * Strong organisational and administrative abilities
• * Uses initiative and judgement: knows when to ask for help and *when to hand over to someone more experienced or qualified
• *Works as part of a team and is supportive of colleagues
• *Keen to learn and willing to develop skills across both reception and administration
• *Flexible and adaptable to changes in role, rota and ways of working
• Self-motivated; meets agreed objectives
• * Maintains confidentiality at all times

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

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.