Band 3 Ward Administrator

The ward administrator is responsible for providing a front-line reception service to the Respiratory ward and for delivering a high standard of customer care to a wide range of client groups, including the ward’s multi-disciplinary team, patients, relatives and their carers.

The post-holder must play a proactive role in collecting, investigating, verifying and recording a high standard of patient demographic and treatment data. The post holder must accurately and in a timely manner enter such information on the computerised patient information system to ensure that the trust receives the appropriate level of income for patient activity, avoids the potential clinical risks inherent with inaccurate patient records and is compliant with national NHS targets (e.g. on data quality and length of patient wait).

The post-holder must undertake effective forward planning to ensure that the administrative needs of the service are met and must carry out a range of effective administration processes to support the delivery of high quality patient care.

These duties do not require direct supervision on a day-to-day basis. The ward administrator is responsible for the management and prioritisation of their own workload.

Please see attached job description for more information about this role and working at Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust

GENERAL RESPONSIBILITIES
Infection Control
Infection control is everyone’s responsibility. All staff, both clinical and non clinical, are required to adhere to the Trust’s Infection Prevention and Control policies and procedures and the Health Act (2006) Code of Practice for the prevention and control healthcare associated infections and make every effort to maintain high standards of infection control at all times thereby reducing the risk of Healthcare Associated infections.
It is the duty of every member of staff to take personal responsibility for the prevention and control of infection, as laid down in the Trust’s polices and procedures which reflect the statutory requirements of the Hygiene Code.
- To work in close collaboration with the Infection Control Team.
- To ensure that monitoring of clinical practice is undertaken at the agreed frequency.
- To ensure that the ward environments are cleaned and maintained to the highest standards; ensuring that shortfalls are rectified, or escalate as necessary.
- To ensure that all relevant monitoring data and issues are provided to the Directorate’s Governance structures.
- To ensure that all staff are released to attend infection control-related educational sessions and staff with specialist roles, e.g. link practitioners, are released to undertake their duties.

Health and Safety at Work

**Post holder must**:

- Provide a proactive, high quality front-line reception service to the ward. Use their customer service skills to help resolve queries and to achieve a high standard of customer satisfaction.
- Operate security entry system to the ward as required.
- Demonstrate sensitivity, tact and diplomacy where appropriate, for example when acting as a first point of contact to distressed or anxious relatives.
- Deliver a proactive and high quality customer service to a wide range of client groups, including (but not limited to) patients, relatives, carers, nurses, ward managers, matrons, patient pathway co-ordinators, therapists, clinicians, other healthcare professionals, staff from other departments.
- Suggest to the urgent care ward administration supervisor & other ward stakeholders ward manager any changes to local working practices that may benefit customer care and/or improve the administrative and reception service on the ward/unit.
- Deal with telephone enquiries (such as informing patients of follow up appointments) or if of clinical nature refer to the relevant person, whilst ensuring that accuracy, clarity, confidentiality professionalism and courtesy are prioritised at all times.
- Send every patient’s discharge letter to their GP within two working day of their discharge from the ward in order to facilitate continuity of care once the patient is back in the community.
- Represent the trust in a professional manner at all times.
- Informing nurse in charge of any patients admitted with a pending outpatient appointment during current inpatient admission so that action can be taken.

Data quality / patient information
- Update the trust’s computerised patient information system by: a. Recording in real time all ward admissions, discharges, transfers and deaths, in order to achieve and maintain a “live” bed board.

b. Recording with accuracy all sources of admission, methods of discharge and specialty/consultant details.
c. Recording with accuracy patients estimated discharge date liaising with the nurse in charge when the EDD (Estimated Discharge Date) is not clear, reporting to urgent care ward administration supervisor if there are queries and gaps in data collection.d. Ensuring that the patient de