Appointment Centre Coordinator

Transformationunitgm; Ashford; On-site; GBP 28,000 - 32,000; Part time

Job summary

A healthcare trust in the UK is seeking a Booking Coordinator to manage patient appointments and ensure adherence to booking targets. The ideal candidate will demonstrate excellent communication and customer service skills, with a strong background in an NHS setting. Responsibilities include managing waiting lists and liaising with internal teams to provide a high standard of care. This is a part-time position with a salary range of £28,860 - £31,671 per annum, and offers various NHS benefits.

Benefits

Excellent pension scheme

On-site Nurseries

On-site staff cafes

On-site parking

Salary Sacrifice schemes

Qualifications

• Working experience in an NHS setting.
• Strong analytical skills and able to provide customer-focused service.
• Ability to work autonomously and in a team.

Responsibilities

• Manage waiting lists and adhere to booking targets.
• Provide excellent customer service and handle appointments with empathy.
• Liaise with relevant stakeholders for patient bookings.

Skills

Effective communication

Customer service

Multi-tasking

Data protection awareness

Education

A level or Equivalent

Tools

Microsoft applications

NHS software and data systems

Job description

Main area Outpatients Grade NHS AfC: Band 4 Contract Permanent Hours Part time - 30 hours per week (Work from site at ASHFORD) Job ref 323-AC2434-ED

Employer Ashford and St. Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Ashford Hospital Town Ashford Salary £28,860 - £31,671 per annum inc. HCAS pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 31/12/2025 23:59

NHS AfC: Band 4

Job overview

As the Booking Coordinator, your responsibilities will include booking of new appointments and clinics for various specialties within local and national booking guidelines. You will be responsible for delivering an excellent customer service to patients whilst showing empathy and understanding to their situation. On a daily basis, you will be using your great communication skills by liaising with Specialities and other internal stakeholders in the hospital.

You will be able to work in a calm, logical and methodical way and be able to multi-task on a variety of different urgent queries. You will be familiar with the data protection act and responsible for maintaining patient confidentiality. The department works in line with a number of the government targets around patient waiting time and would suit someone who is familiar with challenging but rewarding targets.

The successful candidate will have clear, concise verbal and written communication skills honed from previous experience to enable accurate records and confidence in dealing with multi-disciplinary teams, patients and carers via telephone and using the database. Please review the person specification, which is attached to make sure you match to this role. You will be working within a larger team of appointment centre and feel comfortable working towards a rewarding goal that will help patients, the hospital and reduce pressure on the NHS.

Main duties of the job

To manage a variety of waiting lists (ERS - ASIs, RAS, Appointments for booking, PWL) booking clinics adhering to the RTT 18 week booking target, the department booking protocols.

Call patients who are cancelled on the day due to clinician sickness, rebooking/ adding to waiting list as necessary, to liaise with Clinical services requesting additional capacity to accommodate urgent and routine referrals.

Responsible for dealing with enquiries from patients via telephone/email) relatives, wards, GPs and various external agencies, providing information and taking appropriate action as required whilst ensuring patient confidentiality at all times.

Working as part of a team; assisting with the training of new staff, providing support & advice as appropriate, have the ability and commitment to work as a team member and be able to adhere to strict deadlines.

To support the department and organisation by carrying out any other duties that reasonably fit within the broad scope of a job of this grade and type of work, establish good levels of communication and liaison with other secretaries, medical staff and other departments, undertake all mandatory training as required by the Trust.

To use the Clinic Utilisation report to identify empty slots and ensure clinic utilisation is maximised and for ensuring copies of referral letters are available on Evolve for booked appointments.

Working for our organisation

Ashford and St. Peters Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust serves a population of more than 410,000 people living in North-West Surrey, parts of Hounslow and beyond.

Over 3,700 highly trained doctors, nurses, midwives, therapists, healthcare scientists and other support staff make up our workforce, providing a wide range of services across our two hospital sites, Ashford, Surrey and St Peter's, Chertsey, Surrey.

We also run many specialist clinics in the community and local community hospitals and other healthcare facilities.

Our vision is to be one of the best healthcare Trusts in the country. There has never been a better time to join us in the NHS at ASPH. We are committed to providing continuous professional development and flexibility to shape our workforce around our patient care.

We are expanding our theatres at Ashford Hospital and moving towards this becoming our dedicated elective centre. We want to create a state-of-the-art centre for excellence for planned surgical procedures.

We can offer you the full range of NHS benefits/discounts and in addition:

• Excellent pension scheme and annual leave entitlement
• On-site Nurseries
• On-site staff cafes
• On-site parking
• Salary Sacrifice schemes including wage stream, lease cars, Cycle to Work schemes and home electronics

Adverts may close early, so applicants are encouraged to submit an application as soon as possible.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

· Liaise with patients to book, cancel and reschedule appointments taking into consideration of 18-week targets. This may require using persuasive and negotiation skills in agreeing an appointment date to meeting RTT targets. Will need to demonstrate excellent customer service skills, using an understanding and reassuring manner when dealing with patients and their relatives.

· Ensure changes notified by patients are added accurately and immediately, in accordance with required Trust standards of work.

· To ensure any two-week rule patients who are cancelled or who do not attend (DNA) are offered new dates within the appropriate timeframes to avoid a cancer breach.

· As part of a team, provide secretarial/admin cover from Monday to Friday each week within the specialty.

· General office duties including post, filing, photocopying, scanning & answering the phones.

To use new working systems within the Clinical Office to promote an efficient service, i.e., Evolve, ERS, RTS, Envoy, PAS & the storage of appropriate information electronically on shared drives.

Responsible for dealing with enquiries from patients, (written and via telephone/email) relatives, wards, GPs and various external agencies, providing information and taking appropriate action as required whilst ensuring patient confidentiality at all times.

Demonstrate an understanding and reassuring manner when dealing with patients and their relatives.

Working as part of a team; assisting with the training of new and temporary staff providing support and advice as appropriate

Exercise independent judgement and initiative when problems arise, taking the necessary actions to resolve the problems or referring to the appropriate person.

To take an active part in Progress & Development Reviews and to maintain and update Personal Development Folder in accordance with Agenda for Change.

Participate in Trust training courses as appropriate to ensure skills and knowledge are maintained

o-operate fully in the introduction of new technology and new methods of working as appropriate to the work of the administrative team.

Have the ability and commitment to work as a team member and be able to adhere to strict deadlines.

To support the department and organisation by carrying out any other duties that reasonably fit within the broad scope of a job of this grade and type of work.

Establish good levels of communication and liaison with other secretaries, medical staff and other departments and hospitals.

Undertake all mandatory training as required by the Trust, inc RTT suite training.

To provide cover and support for all colleagues as requested, taking on responsibility for the quality of their work.

Person specification

Experience

• Working in a team and individually
• Use of Microsoft applications
• Experience of establishing efficient office systems and processes
• Ability to deal with non-routine situation and information and take appropriate decision
• Administrative experience within an NHS setting
• Experience / Knowledge of waiting list management and pathway
• Knowledge and experience of using NHS software and data systems
• EPR Millennium or Equivalent
• Understanding of medical termalogy

Knowledge

• Articulate, self starter with the ability to work automatously
• Develop and implement SOP
• Knowledge of NHS waiting list targets

Skills

• Able to provide a customer focused service
• Good analytical skills

Qualifications

• Educated to A level or Equivalent
• • Administrative medical specialty knowledge gained by education or relevant experience.

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.