Appointments Co-ordinator

Job description

Job responsibilities

The post holder will be responsible for organising referrals, managing and selecting patients from the waiting list so that appointments are made within the required waiting time targets. Also co-ordinate rescheduling of appointments and setting up clinic template with agreed booking rules.

To deal with patients, relatives and other members of the public politely and efficiently, at the same time complying with Trust policies and procedures. Ensure confidentiality and security of patient information and Trust business.

Key Duties

To ensure that all referrals are managed/processed in a timely manner, appointments booked or patients added to the outpatient waiting list, highlighting any issues with delays in agreed timescales to the Booking Services management Team.

To ensure that patients receive an acknowledgement letter or are immediately appointed in line with agreed booking arrangements, administrative procedures and the patient access policy.

To effectively administer the waiting lists and ensure that the Directorate has an accurate position of patients still awaiting treatment/booking and their 18 week RTT status

To ensure that patients are selected from the waiting lists in chronological order and appointed according to the prioritisation given by the medical staff

To administer the waiting lists using the partial booking process, ensuring that all patients are invited, reminded and removed within the correct timescales

To ensure that any patients who request removal following validation are removed and the clinical staff informed

To ensure that the system in place to monitor utilisation of appointment slots is overseen and updated, raising any concerns regarding overbooking / underbooking with the relevant Directorate Manager or clinician.

In liaison with the Directorate managers and clinicians, ensure that clinic booking rules are up to date, communicated and adhered to when dealing with referrals and making new or follow up appointments.

To ensure that written and verbal requests for further appointments are actioned promptly in line with booking rules.

To action changes to individual appointments whilst ensuring that patients are seen within the agreed clinical priority and that written confirmation is immediately sent

Following Directorate and Booking Services Management approval, set up clinics for new consultants on PAS, ensuring that templates are designed according to any booking rules provided by the Directorate.

To ensure that the e-RS system reflects the clinic booking templates.

To ensure that the new templates checklist is completed so that all systems are up to date

To ensure that all requests via the cancelled clinic database for changes to clinics/rescheduling are actioned promptly. Where less than 6 weeks notice is given, ensure that the approval process is followed

To telephone patients, often at short notice, to offer them short notice appointments or cancel their appointments due to unplanned clinical leave or sickness absence

To escalate to the relevant managers when there is a capacity problem.

To complete the required waiting list analysis each week, from the PTL (patient tracking lists) and the PAS (patient administration system).

To calculate where there are likely to be potential breaches and ensure that Directorate Managers are informed of potential problems with long wait breaches.

To ensure that letter, telephone and face to face communication with patients, Colleagues and managers is professional, timely and in line with booking services policies and procedures.

To respond to any queries and complaints from patients, managers or clinicians regarding clinics, referrals, bookings and waiting times, ensuring that any serious issues are passed on to the appropriate manager

To liaise with GPs, Managers, Clinicians and administrative staff regarding referrals, bookings and waiting times.

To ensure that Xerox are provided with appropriate information regarding patients and clinics, in order to carry out their work effectively and safely.

To ensure that referrals are prepared ready for scanning into eZ notes (electronic case notes)

To provide information from PAS on a routine and adhoc basis to staff throughout the Trust, such as Outpatient listings, waiting for review lists, and vacancy summaries.

To set up and maintain a work schedule that ensures all work is prioritised and delivered within the required timescales each week, in particular during holiday periods when replacement cover is unlikely to be provided

To ensure that all patients recorded data in manual and computerised systems is dealt with in accordance with agreed policies and procedures.

To ensure that all policies and procedures are adhered to and training undertaken where new policies and procedures are implemented. In particular, those for Health Records, confidentiality and information security.

To ensure that general administrative work associated with referrals, appointments and waiting lists is undertaken according to booking service standards.

To provide cover/support for colleagues on site and any role within booking services team as and when required.

Carry out any other duties, within the grade, as requested by the Booking Services Management Team.

Person Specification

Personal Qualities

Essential

• Ability to manage own workload and work on own initiative
• Organised
• Team player
• Professional, approachable and friendly manner
• Ability to work flexibly/able to cover others for annual leave and sickness.
• Able to travel across sites for training or if required

Experience

Essential

• Experience in Waiting List Management
• Experience of working with general public
• Working within deadlines

Qualifications

Essential

• 5GCSE/OLevel in Maths & English or equivalent
• ECDL or Equivalent experience

Knowledge and Skills

Essential

• PAS System
• 18 week pathway
• Cancelled Clinic Database
• E-Referrals
• Patient Access Policy
• Inpatient Waiting list,
• Gained through experience and training
• Keyboard skills including excel, word and Microsoft outlook.

Internal Job Vacancy

Essential

• This vacancy is currently only open to internal applicants from Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust. Could you please confirm below that you work at Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust.

Employer details

Employer name

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust

Address

Kidderminster Hospital and Treatment Centre

Kidderminster

Worcestershire

DY11 6RJ

United Kingdom

Employer's website

https://www.worcsacute.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)