Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The duties and responsibilities listed below are representative of the Patient Pathway Coordinator role and its purpose within the service; they are not exhaustive and the post holder may be required to undertake additional or alternative administrative and managerial duties and responsibilities commensurate with the level of the post, to support the smooth running of the department.

Operational
•    Monitor and review patient care and/or treatment progress using the Patient Tracking List in line with Trust and local policies.
•    Identify from the Tracking List the next steps in the patient care pathway in line with clinical need (peer review).
•    Receive patient referrals and administer in line with timings and requirements as set out in Trust and National policies.
•    Co-ordinate and provide administrative support to the relevant teams to ensure that all the relevant paperwork and clinical information is available.
•    Update on all enquiries regarding patients’ care and/or treatment on a pathway from external Trusts and General Practitioners in a timely manner.
•    Develop an understanding of the milestones of the allocated pathway for patients within a designated group.
•    Plan and organise multi-disciplinary team meetings.
•    Attend relevant meetings and complete actions regarding the care of patients within the designated pathway.
•    Participate in national audits and collect data as required in relevant meetings, allowing the Trust to identify and improve treatment in patient cohorts.
•    Identify and suggest improvements that can be made to the patient care pathway and/or the patient pathway tracking process.
•    Monitor patients on their pathway and proactively find resolutions to improve the speed of treatment by working directly with clinicians and managers. 
•    Action day-to-day issues, ensuring resolution and escalating serious issues to management as appropriate.
•    Escalate any issues and breaches of the Waiting Times standards to the relevant management in line with agreed escalation procedures.
•    Ensure the timely and efficient transfer of patients and information between trusts/other organisations involved in the patient pathway, adhering to agreed communication pathways and protocols. 
•    Work within a multi-disciplinary team in developing the service in line with departmental plans and Trust corporate objectives.
•    Ensure that all health records are appropriately tracked and securely stored whilst in the department according to Health Records Policy.

Communication
•    Develop working relationships with a wide range of clinical and managerial staff.

Data collection and analysis:
•    Responsible for collecting and updating patient information on the relevant databases in line with local policy, to ensure efficient pathway progress. This includes maintaining the accuracy of data at all times.
•    Working with the Team to analyse target breaches and report issues to management.

Policy development
•    Review and support development and implementation of Standard Operating Procedures.
•    Review and support development and implementation of internal targets.

Staff Management
•    Provide day-to-day supervision and oversight of duties for the departments administrators. 
•    Ensure the administrators complete preparation for each Multi-Disciplinary Team.
•    Providing support for day to day queries from administrators.
•    Ensure administrators are fully adhering to the appropriate Trust policies and protocols. 
•    Identify training and development needs of staff, taking these forward where appropriate.

Other
•    Undertake any administrative tasks commensurate with the grade required to support the delivery of high quality patient care.
•    Actively participate in department development as appropriate and participate in departmental meetings
•    Undertake any other duties commensurate with the grade, required to ensure the smooth and efficient running of the department.
•    Undertake any training as required to complete the tasks associated with the job role.

The post holder is required to follow Trust policies and procedures which are regularly updated including:

Confidentiality / Data Protection / Freedom of Information
Post holders must maintain the confidentiality of information about patients, staff and other health service business in accordance with the Data Protection Act of 1998. Post holders must not, without prior permission, disclose any information regarding patients or staff.   If any member of staff has communicated any such information to an unauthorised person those staff will 

be liable to dismissal.   Moreover, the Data Protection Act 1998 also renders an individual liable for prosecution in the event of unauthorised disclosure of information. 

Following the Freedom of Information Act (FOI) 2005, post holders must apply the Trust’s FOI procedure if they receive a written request for information.  

Information Governance
All staff must comply with information governance requirements. These includes statutory responsibilities (such as compliance with the Data Protection Act), following national guidance (such as the NHS Confidentiality Code of Practice) and compliance with local policies and procedures (such as the Trust's Confidentiality policy). Staff are responsible for any personal information (belonging to staff or patients) that they access and must ensure it is stored, processed and forwarded in a secure and appropriate manner.

Equal Opportunities
Post holders must at all times fulfil their responsibilities with regard to the Trust’s Equal Opportunities Policy and equality laws.

Health and Safety
All post holders have a responsibility, under the Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) and subsequently published regulations, to ensure that the Trust’s health and safety policies and procedures are complied with to maintain a safe working environment for patients, visitors and employees.

Infection Control
All post holders have a personal obligation to act to reduce healthcare-associated infections (HCAIs). They must attend mandatory training in Infection Control and be compliant with all measures required by the Trust to reduce HCAIs.  All post holders must comply with Trust infection screening and immunisation policies as well as be familiar with the Trust’s Infection Control Policies, including those that apply to their duties, such as Hand Decontamination Policy, Personal Protective Equipment Policy, safe procedures for using aseptic techniques and safe disposal of sharps. 

Risk Management
All post holders have a responsibility to report risks such as clinical and non-clinical accidents or incidents promptly. They are expected to be familiar with the Trust’s use of risk assessments to predict and control risk, as well as the incident reporting system for learning from mistakes and near misses in order to improve services. Post holders must also attend training identified by their manager, or stated by the Trust to be mandatory. 

Flexible Working
As an organisation we are committed to developing our services in ways that best suit the needs of our patients. This means that some staff groups will increasingly be asked to work a more flexible shift pattern so that we can offer services in the evenings or at weekends.

Safeguarding children and vulnerable adults
Post holders have a general responsibility for safeguarding children and vulnerable adults in the course of their daily duties and for ensuring that they are aware of the specific duties relating to their role.

Sustainability
It is the responsibility of all staff to minimise the Trust’s environmental impact by recycling wherever possible, switching off lights, computers monitors and equipment when not in use, minimising water usage and reporting faults promptly.

Smoking Policy
The Trust is committed to providing a healthy and safe environment for staff, patients and visitors. Staff are therefore not permitted to smoke on Trust property or in Trust vehicles

Review of this Job Description
This job description is intended as an outline of the general areas of activity and will be amended in the light of the changing needs of the organisation.   To be reviewed in conjunction with the post holder.