Senior Cancer Pathway Navigator

QVH; East Grinstead; Remote; GBP 42,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Foundation Trust in East Grinstead is seeking a Senior Cancer Pathway Navigator to oversee cancer pathways, ensuring timely diagnosis and treatment across services. You will lead the Oncology Booking Hub, coordinate MDT communications and drive improvements in patient flow.

The role requires leadership, pathway oversight and robust knowledge of NHS cancer services, with a focus on achieving waiting time standards and patient safety.

Qualifications

• Diploma level qualification or able to demonstrate specialist knowledge within this field through practical experience
• Experience working within a multidisciplinary NHS environment is desirable

Responsibilities

• Provide hands-on support to consultants, nurses and patients in Head and Neck outpatient clinics, arranging investigations and booking follow-ups
• Oversee and manage the Head and Neck Cancer PTL, monitoring pathway activities and milestones in line with national and local pathways
• Coordinate information flow from diagnostic teams to patients, primary care and MDT teams when investigations are required for suspected cancer staging
• Lead day-to-day management of the Oncology Booking Hub team, including recruitment, appraisals, training and attendance management

Education

Diploma level qualification or specialist knowledge through practical experience

Tools

Administrative systems

Healthcare software

Job description

Welcome to Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and thank you for your interest.

In addition to receiving tertiary referrals from across the South East of England, we have a network of ‘spoke’ sites at district general hospitals enabling our consultants to offer their expertise with routine treatments and consultations as close to patients’ homes as is possible. With the recent addition of video led ‘virtual’ consultations we also enable patients who have some distance to travel to avoid the additional stress and worry of a long journey.

Working at QVH combines the excitement, challenge and career opportunities of many larger organisations with the satisfaction of delivering excellent patient care that really does re-build our patients’ lives.

We also offer attractive benefits such as

• tailored personal development to support career aspirations, including accredited clinical and management development programmes
• flexible working arrangements for a work-life balance that suits you and your needs
• a dedicated reward programme, offering a range of national and local discounts, cashback and tax relief schemes

The Trust is committed to offering a range of flexibleworking options to support employees to balance work and personal commitments, and the delivery of high quality and cost effective services.

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Sustainability

At Queen Victoria Hospital we want to be the first Net Zero Hospital in England, and to achieve that wants every member of staff to be a green champion. The way in which the Trust works has a significant impact on the organisation’s carbon footprint and that of our patients. From the heat, light and power supplies within the hospital to avoiding unnecessary patient journeys, the Trust is empowering all staff to create a sustainable health and care environment for future generations. The Trust expects all staff to reuse and recycle more, to use energy and water efficiently, to walk or cycle to work if you can, and to have a focus on sustainability in the workplace.

The Senior Cancer Pathway Navigator is a key leadership role within the Cancer Services Team, responsible for overseeing the effective coordination and management of patients across cancer pathways to ensure timely diagnosis, treatment and compliance with national cancer waiting time standards. The post holder provides expert pathway management, proactively identifying and resolving delays, escalating risks, and working collaboratively with clinicians, MDTs, diagnostic services and operational teams to support the delivery of safe, high-quality cancer care.

The role also provides day-to-day management and oversight of the Oncology Booking Hub, ensuring first outpatient appointment are coordinated efficiently and patients receive timely access to care. The post holder will lead and support the team; driving service improvements, maintaining data quality, and ensuring patients receive clear communication and a seamless experience throughout their cancer journey.

Through effective leadership, pathway oversight and performance management, the Senior Cancer Pathway Navigator plays a critical role in supporting patient safety, improving patient experience, achieving cancer waiting time standards, and delivering the Trust's cancer performance and strategic objectives.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will support the clinical team in implementing early diagnostic pathways for patients with a suspected head & neck cancer to achieve definitive diagnosis by day 28.

The post holder will improve patient experience by providing an accessible, friendly non-clinical contact for patients and their families. You will provide support and information throughout the diagnostic patient journey, thus reducing anxiety and providing reassurance. You will provide information on interventions/tests, ensuring the patient arrives fully prepared.

The role provides day-to-day management and leadership of the Oncology Booking Hub, ensuring services are delivered efficiently and consistently. This includes overseeing the appointment booking processes, managing workload allocation, supporting staff development, and ensuring appropriate administrative systems and processes are in place to meet service demands.

Working for our organisation

Rated GOOD overall with outstanding care by the CQC. A specialist NHS hospital providing life-changing reconstructive surgery, burns care and rehabilitation services across the South of England and beyond.

We specialise in conditions of the eyes (corneoplastics), hands, head and neck cancer and skin cancer, reconstructive breast surgery, maxillofacial surgery and prosthetics, providing regional and national services in these areas of clinical expertise.Our world-leading clinical teams also treat more common conditions of the eyes, hands, skin, and teeth for the people of East Grinstead and the surrounding areas. In addition, QVH provides a minor injuries unit, expert therapies, a sleep service, and a growing portfolio of community-based services.Patients consistently rate QVH amongst the top hospitals in the country for quality of care.

Our success is underpinned by the skills and enthusiasm of our staff and a strong culture of partnership. We are fully committed to training and development of the workforce with support for continuing education and learning.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• On a daily basis to provide hands on support to consultants, nurses and patients in all Head and Neck outpatient clinics, this will involve arranging investigations with patients, potentially same day investigations, explaining the pathway to patients, and ensuring the patient is booked a follow-up appointment
• To oversee and have responsibility of the Head and Neck Cancer PTL, ensuring it is appropriately monitored and managed proactively; pathway activities and milestones are booking in line with the national and locally agreed pathways. This will require effective and regular communication with the MDT Coordinating Team
• Co-ordinate information flow from diagnostic teams to patients, primary care and MDT teams when investigations are required for suspected cancer staging
• To be responsible for the day-to-day management of the Oncology Booking Hub team, including recruitment processes, production and review of appraisals, training and managing attendance.

Person specification

Qualifications

• Diploma level qualification or able to demonstrate specialist knowledge within this field through practical experience

Experience

• Extensive and demonstrable knowledge and experience of the full range of administrative systems, software programmes
• Experience line managing staff
• Previous experience of working within a multidisciplinary environment
• Experience of cancer services within the NHS

Knowledge

• Knowledge of service improvement methodology including simple tools, techniques, and measurement for improvement

Skills

• Ability to work autonomously and as part of a team

Employer certification / accreditation badges

The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.