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Job summary

Main area
Medical Examiner Service
Grade
Band 6
Contract
Permanent
Hours
Part time - 22.5 hours per week (Wednesday, Thursday and Friday)
Job ref
249-6429084
Employer
Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust
Employer type
NHS
Site
Great Western Hospital
Town
Swindon
Salary
£35,392 - £42,618 per annum pro rata
Salary period
Yearly
Closing
Today at 23:59

Employer heading

Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust logo

Medical Examiner Officer

Band 6

Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is a unique organisation, serving as the sole integrated provider in the Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon, and Wiltshire system. Our scope extends beyond boundaries as we oversee adult community services in Swindon and provide acute care from the Great Western Hospital. 

Our 5,500 staff have 1.2m patient contacts a year, with 13,000 operations carried out in our Theatres, around 4,000 babies born, and our emergency attendances are now well over 100,000 per year. Those numbers only tell part of our story about what an exciting time it is to join Great Western Hospitals.

We are cultivating a culture that fosters our ambitions, prioritising equality, diversion, inclusion, wellbeing, and leadership. We aim to create an environment where every member of our team can truly thrive.

The Trust is a Disability Confident Employer; all applicants who have a disability can opt to be considered under the guaranteed interview scheme, which means that, providing they meet the minimum essential criteria for the post, they will be offered an interview. We are also proudly accredited as a Veteran Aware organisation and have signed The Armed Forces Covenant.

If we receive a high volume of applications, we may close adverts prior to the published closing date. Therefore, we advise you to complete and submit your application as soon as possible.

Job overview

The Great Western Hospital is looking to recruit a Band 6 Medical Examiner Officer to join our team on a permanent basis. 

You will work closely with the lead Medical Examiner and the team of Medical Examiner clinicians to establish a robust service in line with this national mandate. You will support the Trusts Medical Examiners in their role to scrutinise the circumstances and causes of death. And be a point of contact and source of advice for relatives of deceased patients, healthcare professionals, HM coroner and registration services.

The successful candidate will be educated to Bachelor’s degree level, or have evidence of study/equivalent practical experience at an advanced level; including nursing and other clinical experience.

Main duties of the job

  1. To act as an intermediary between the bereaved and clinicians to establish and resolve any concerns relating to a patient’s death. 
  1.  Work with medical examiners to aid them in their responsibility for overseeing the death certification process for all deceased patients in the organisation. 
  1. Obtain and carry out a preliminary review of all relevant medical records (and additional details where required) to develop a case file setting out the circumstances of each death for the medical examiner. This will require them to work with the coroner’s office, registrars, bereavement services, complaints managers, legal services and cremation referees. 
  1. To assist in highlighting cases for assessment by the Structured Judgement Review team (SJR), Child Death Overview Panel (CDOP), Clinical Governance teams and the Learning Disability Review Teams (LeDeR). 
  1. To refer patients to the coroner for further investigation on approval by the medical examiner. 
  1. Maintain an awareness of the diverse needs of users of the medical examiner system to ensure equality to any particular group defined by sex, race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender reassignment or disability.

Working for our organisation

“Our STAR values – Service, Teamwork, Ambition and Respect – are a golden thread running through everything we do. These values serve as a guiding principle, driving us towards our vision of delivering great joined up services to our local community. Whether at home, in the community, or within the hospital, our goal is to empower individuals to lead independent and healthier lives.”

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

7. Provide training for Trust Staff and other interested parties as approved by Mortuary Manager and Senior  Medical Examiner

Please refer to the attached Job Description for full responsibilities.

 

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria
  • Educated to Batchelor’s degree level or equivalent working knowledge in related field.
  • A commitment to life-long learning and undertaking personal development opportunities.
  • The ability to communicate effectively with a wide range of stakeholders, including the recently bereaved.
  • Completed e-learning MEO core training modules prior to starting in the post.

Experience

Essential criteria
  • Experience of working in a healthcare setting with multi-disciplinary teams across organisational boundaries.
  • Experience of working with people in sensitive and emotional situations.

Skills

Essential criteria
  • Strong interpersonal skills demonstrating the ability to communicate in difficult and emotional situations with empathy and professionalism with all stakeholders.
  • General knowledge of clinical/medical terminology.
  • Ability to work as part of a team and organise fluctuating workload around competing priorities.
  • Competent in the use of IT software systems and handling sensitive personal identifiable data.
Desirable criteria
  • Knowledge of the special requirements of various faith groups and respect for equality and diversity of issues around formalities following a death.
  • Knowledge of the Coroner & Justice Act 2009 reference to the medical examiner system. Full understanding of the medical examiner system operational remit when incorporated within Bereavement Services.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

NHS Pastoral Care Quality AwardVeteran AwareApprenticeships logoNo smoking policyPositive about disabled peopleAge positiveDisability confident leaderInvestors in People: Goldhttps://www.gov.uk/government/publications/kickstart-scheme-employer-resources/kickstart-scheme-brand-guidelinesStonewall equality policy. Equality and justice for lesbians, gay men, bisexual and trans people.Step into healthArmed Forces Covenant

Documents to download

Apply online now

Further details / informal visits contact

Name
Samantha Cunningham
Job title
Medical Examiner Services Manager
Email address
[email protected]
Telephone number
01793 604392
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