Associate Practitioner

Here at East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust,

Our mission is:
Providing high-quality, compassionate care for our communities

Our vision to 2030 is:
To be trusted to provide consistently outstanding care and exemplary service

Job overview

We are recruiting for an Associate Practitioner who shares our vision to be trusted to provide consistently outstanding care and exemplary service to our patients.

The Lister Pathology Blood Sciences department are looking for an experienced individual to work in the pathology services at East and North Hertfordshire Trust.

Duties will include receipting of samples, supporting the Biomedical Scientists in routine operation, maintenance of the various analysers across Biochemistry, Haematology and Blood Transfusion and the Covid Lab.

Come join our organisation and play a vital part in the growth and development of our service and in return, we will provide an environment that values its staff and offers excellent personal development and career opportunities.

Our Values are Include, Respect and Improve. It is important that you understand and refer to our values during your recruitment process and beyond

Main duties of the job

You will perform a number of healthcare science clinical/technical/scientific activities under supervision, e.g., performs standard biochemical/haematological tests.

Maintain clinical records in relation to activities carried out; may input/interrogate test results of others.

May be required to supervise, organise, and allocate work and/or train less experienced staff in own area.

To work flexibly in reflection of service needs which may include an extended working day and/or participation in delivery of a 24 hour, 7 days per week service.

The work of the service brings staff into constant contact with human body fluids, tissues, and hazardous chemicals. This may include blood, pus, urine, faeces, and respiratory secretions.

Maintain and promote professional image of the Partnership.

Working for our organisation

At East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust, we are proud of the range of general & specialist services we provide & our 6,000 or so dedicated staff ensure our patients get the best care. Our ability to be flexible & innovative in the way in which we work and deliver our services to our catchment has never been more important than it is now.

We run the following hospitals:

• The Lister Hospital, Stevenage
• New Queen Elizabeth II (New QEII), Welwyn Garden City
• Hertford County, Hertford

We have ambitious plans to become an outstanding, patient-led Trust where dedicated staff provide high-quality, compassionate care to our patients. We continue to undergo significant transformation; our staff & patients are at the heart of delivering this ambitious agenda.

We understand that finding and starting a new job is an important life decision. If you need reasonable adjustments for a disability, or a life event, such as menopause - so that we can consider your application fairly & to get the best out of you during the selection process, please let us know.

We are committed to a positive work life balance for our employees. Employees are entitled to seek to work flexible working patterns & we are committed to listen and consider all requests. Such requests, of course, have to be made & considered formally, & will need to be balanced against service needs, but our starting point will always be to find ways to support making them happen.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see the attached Job Description and Person Specification applicant pack for further detailed information regarding this role.

Person specification Qualifications/Training

• Appropriate NVQ 3/diploma or equivalent
• Additional theoretical or applied training to diploma equivalent level
• Working towards Foundation degree or equivalent

Previous Experience

• Demonstrable knowledge of a range of routine and non-routine healthcare science duties
• Practical experience of working in a Biomedical Science laboratory
• Previous relevant experience of working in the NHS
• European Computer Driving Licence or equivalent

Skills

• Willingness to undertake cross training to extend skill set to deliver role
• Demonstrable interpersonal skills - can work as part of a team or independently
• Ability to supervise less experienced staff, including supporting the training of staff
• Ability to organise and allocate work to less experience staff to meet needs of the service
• Ability to concentrate for prolonged periods of time
• High degree of manual dexterity to perform standard laboratory techniques

Knowledge

• Demonstrable knowledge of a range of routine and non-routine healthcare science duties
• Knowledge of Pathology IT systems
• Knowledge of Quality Management Systems
• Knowledge/performance of Risk Assessments

Other requirements

• Ability to be flexible and respond to the needs of the service
• Ability to work under pressure and meet deadlines where there are competing demands
• Able to work with body fluids and hazardous materials

Our values

We want our staff to believe in, demonstrate and live our values in everything we do.

Include
We value the diversity and experience of our community colleagues and partners, creating relationships and climates that provide an opportunity to share, collaborate and grow together.

Respect
We create a safe environment where we are curious of the lived experience of others, seek out best practice and are open to listening and hearing new ideas.

Improve
We are committed to consistently delivering excellent services and continuously looking to improve through a creative workforce that feels empowered to act in service of our shared purpose.

Committed to our Community

East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion for all job applicants, staff, patients and the wider community. We want to create a workforce which represents the communities we serve. We are on a journey to become a more inclusive organisation and we welcome applications from everyone regardless of their background. In particular we encourage applications from candidates with disabilities, and candidates from Black, Asian and Minority ethnic (BAME) backgrounds who are currently under-represented in various parts of our workforce .

We understand the importance of balancing work and home life. We are committed to support flexible working for our staff wherever possible and all our employees are given the opportunity to discuss potential for flexible working.

We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer and achieved our status in 2019.

We will remove barriers that prospective candidates might face at any stage of our recruitment process. If you have a disability and would like the advert in an alternative format, or would like to talk about how we can adjust the interview process to best support you, please contact us by emailing

We are also proud to support our UK armed forces by supporting Reservists, Cadet Instructors, Veterans and military spouses/partners into employment and offering supportive policies that value their contribution to the community and to our Trust.

We are committed to being a carer-friendly environment, addressing the complex needs of families with caring responsibilities. In partnership with Carers in Hertfordshire, all our working carers have access to support from recruitment. We are also a member of Carers UK, providing resources to make balancing work and caring easier. Our approach is inclusive, recognizing diverse challenges and creating a supportive environment where carers feel valued.

When you apply...

Please note that vacancies may close prior to the advertised closing date in certain circumstances. Please ensure that you make your application as soon as possible.

All correspondence relating to vacancies will be via the e-mail address you have provided on your application form. Some servers automatically send e-mails to your junk mail so please check as well as your inbox.

As a publicly funded employer, we need to ensure we utilise our funds responsibly, this may mean we are unable to support sponsorship required to gain the right to work for particular positions. We strongly advise you to contact the line manager or a member of the Resourcing Team before applying to confirm if we will be able to support with sponsorship for that post.

Prince's Trust Support

If you're aged between 16 and 30 years-old, you can get FREE employability support from The Prince's Trust. The Prince's Trust will help build your CV and cover letter, offer advice and top tips for future interviews and support you with research about working in the NHS. Please contact Enquiries.H&- for support.

Secondments/Fixed term

Where a vacancy is advertised as a temporary position, the duration will be specified in the advert. If the vacancy becomes permanent towards the end of the specified duration, the successful applicant may not be required to re-apply and can be slotted into the role on a permanent basis if appropriate.

If you are an internal applicant applying for a temporary working arrangement, please see the attached notes on secondments

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