Employer Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site RBH Main Site Town Reading Salary £38,682 - £46,580 per annum, pro rata - addition of £4k per year pro rata Salary period Yearly Closing 11/11/2025 23:59
Clinical Coding Specialty Lead
NHS AfC: Band 6
At the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust we put our patients at the heart of every element of health and care that we provide. The Trust works together as a community to deliver its vision which is “Working together to provide outstanding care for our community.”
Royal Berkshire Hospital are pleased to announce that following our CQC inspection we have been rated ‘Good’ with inspectors reporting that we have made significant improvements. The Trust’s overall rating has also improved to ‘good’.
We are C compassionate in our thoughts, words and actions
We are A aspirational and have a true desire to be dynamic and to innovate
We are R resourceful and responsible in the way we work and live
We are E excellent in our development, fairness and sharing best practice
At the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, we value candidates who bring their unique personalities, skills, and experiences to the Trust. When completing your application, we encourage you to highlight your individual achievements and strengths, showing us how they align with the requirements outlined in the job description and person specification. While we recognise that some applicants may use AI tools during the process, please be mindful that AI-generated responses can often lack the personal detail and relevance needed to demonstrate your suitability for the role. AI generated content is discouraged by the Trust and may diminish the candidates chances of success.
Amazing things happen at the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust; delivered by amazing people so why don’t you come and join us. We offer a range of learning and development for all employees may you be clinical or non-clinical.
Job overview
We are currently looking to recruit a Clinical Coding Specialty Lead (ACC) to join our centralised Clinical Coding Team, committed to providing accurate and timely coded data, for use by the Trust and secondary users. As a key member of the department you will be responsible for ensuring high standards of coding accuracy, efficiency and compliance with national guidelines. This is a fixed term, 22.5 hours per week fixed term contract, hybrid clinical coding role.
Main duties of the job
* Hold the NCCQ (National Clinical Coding Qualification) and demonstrate extensive expert knowledge of complex clinical coding across all specialities.
* Have extensive experience in all aspects of clinical coding practice.
* Conduct clinical coding across all specialities in accordance with all local and national policies, conventions and guidelines.
* Conduct clinical engagement in conjunction with senior clinicians, service leads and other trust staff.
* Become a subject matter expert for your given clinical speciality and act as first point of contact for coding queries for that speciality for the coding department.
* Liaise with clinicians regarding the quality of, and interpretation of complex clinical documents via the electronic clinical record.
* Validate complex clinical and coded data with senior clinicians in order to ensure accurate PbR reimbursement for the trust and robust data quality.
* Attend regular clinical governance and clinical validation meetings with appropriate clinicians.
Working for our organisation
Diversity is what makes us interesting… Inclusion is what will make us outstanding.
Inequality exists and the journey to eliminate it is not easy. Every step we take will be a purposeful step forward to deliver a truly inclusive culture where all our people are enabled to deliver outstanding care, where background is no barrier, and where everyone can be their authentic self and we truly represent our patient community.
We are committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from all sections of the community, regardless of any protected characteristics. Reasonable adjustments will be made for disabled applicants where possible. All applicants who have a disability and meet the minimum criteria for the post can opt for a guaranteed interview.
If you need additional help with your application please get in touch by calling the recruitment team on 0118 322 6997 or 0118 322 5342.
Our primary method of communication will be via email. However, if you would prefer to be contacted through a different method, please inform the recruitment team.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Internally the post holder will develop effective working relationships with:
* Head of Clinical Coding Services
* Clinical Coding Service Managers
* Clinical Coding Team Leaders
* All members of the Clinical Coding team
* Consultants and other clinical & non staff
ROLE RESPONSIBILITIES
Management and Support of the Clinical Coding Department:
* Line Management: Lead and manage clinical coding staff within the department, ensuring efficient operation and delivery of strategic objectives.
* Training and Development: Assist in developing and implementing training programs to improve the quality and accuracy of clinical coding.
* Audits and Quality Assurance: Participate in conducting internal and external audits, performing quality checks on clinical coding data.
* Clinical Coding: Code clinical data to a high standard and work closely with consultants and clinicians to resolve coding-related issues.
* Appraisals: Conduct staff appraisals in line with the Trust’s appraisal system, providing feedback and guidance for professional development.
* Staff Relations and Discipline: Maintain positive staff relations and discipline within the department, following Trust policies and procedures.
* Leave and Sickness Management: Oversee and maintain records of annual leave and sickness for clinical coding staff, as requested by the Head of Department.
Clinical Coding Speciality Leads
Financial and Physical Resources:
* Time Sheet Authorisation: Authorise agency staff time sheets when required.
* Resource Accountability: Take responsibility for equipment and resources within the department, reporting any issues to the Head of Department.
* Stationery and Supplies: Manage office supplies and stationery, using appropriate budget codes and adhering to Trust policies.
* Training Budget: Hold and manage the delegated budget for clinical coding training as required by the Head of Clinical Coding.
Meeting Deadlines for Clinical Coding:
* Staff Coverage: Ensure efficient processes and manage workloads to maintain staff coverage across the Trust, ensuring local, national, and contractual deadlines for clinical coding are met.
* Performance Reporting: Regularly update management on the performance and status of uncoded cases, providing proactive solutions.
* IT Issues Management: Manage IT issues and downtime procedures to resolve them within set deadlines, escalating to management as needed.
* Knowledge of National Policies: Stay informed on national policy changes, particularly those affecting Secondary User Services (SUS) deadlines.
Enhancing Accuracy and Engagement:
* Audit Assurance: Support the Audit Assurance Program, ensuring deadlines are met and reports are ready for sign-off and distribution.
* Clinician Engagement: Facilitate a programme for clinicians to validate data, ensuring compliance with national clinical coding standards.
* Quality Checks: Perform routine quality checks and reviews to ensure high-quality clinical coding and resolve any issues identified.
* Collaboration: Engage with clinicians and other departments (e.g., IT and Finance) to improve coding processes and resolve issues.
* Process Improvement: Promote a cohesive team environment, encouraging innovation and service improvement within the clinical coding function.
Policy and Service Development:
* Policy Implementation: Implement national clinical coding policies and develop Trust-specific policies.
* Complex Query Resolution: Resolve complicated coding queries in collaboration with clinicians and coders, understanding the impact on Trust data and finances.
* Standards Update: Ensure updates to UK National Clinical Coding Standards are interpreted and implemented correctly.
* Policy Manual Maintenance: Help maintain the Clinical Coding Policy and Procedures manual, ensuring version control.
* Standards Register: Establish and maintain a Trust-wide clinical coding standards register to ensure consistency in coding decisions.
Person specification
* ACC Qualification
* Knowledge of HRG and Coding Data submissions
* 5 years of coding experience
* Knowledge of medical terminology, anatomical and physiological terms
* Knowledge of Cerner Millenium and Medicode
We are an approved sponsoring organisation. Applications will be considered from applicants requiring sponsorship alongside all other applications. Please be aware, not all roles are eligible for sponsorship. You can review the list of eligible role and requirements on the government website.
* Flexible working opportunities and a strong emphasis on your work, life balance
* Annual leave – 27 days for new starters, plus bank holidays. Increasing to 29 days after 5 years and 33 days after 10 years NHS service. Pro rata for part time staff
* Employee Assistance Programme
* Money Advice Service
* Generous maternity, paternity and adoption leave for eligible staff
* On-site nursery (based at RBH)
* Full educational library services
* Cycle to work scheme, lockable storage for cycles
* Bus to work scheme
* Excellent rail and bus links
* A huge range of Health Service Discounts at hundreds of big brands from holidays to gadgets and restaurants to retail.
After applying via NHS Jobs, your submitted application will be imported into our preferred Third party recruitment system (TRAC). All subsequent information regarding your application will be generated from apps.trac.jobs. You will not be able to track the progress of your application or receive messages through the NHS Jobs website, and furthermore, that as an employer, we will not be able to respond to any e-mails sent to us via the NHS Jobs website.
By applying for this post you are agreeing to Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are appointed to a post information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.
Appointment to any position is conditional on the satisfactory completion of the core NHS Employment Checks Standards. Information disclosed in your application will be checked and any offer of appointment may be withdrawn if you knowingly withhold information or provide false or misleading information. All new appointments to the Trust, with the exception of executive positions, are subject to a 6 month probationary period.
The Trust may close any vacancy prior to the advertised closing date due to the high level of responses we receive for some of our vacancies.
Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust is committed to improving the health of its staff, patients and the wider community by providing a smoke free environment. A smoke free policy is in operation and smoking is not permitted on any of the Trust’s sites.
The Trust is also committed to safeguarding children, young people and vulnerable adults and requires all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We follow safe recruitment practices to protect children, young people and vulnerable adults.
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