Overview
NHS Scotland is committed to encouraging equality and diversity among our workforce and eliminating unlawful discrimination. The aim is for our workforce to be truly representative and for each employee to feel respected and able to give their best. NHS Scotland welcomes applications from all sections of society.
This is an exciting opportunity to join a progressive department situated in one of the most beautiful areas of Scotland. The Microbiology department is situated at Raigmore Hospital and offers a comprehensive Microbiology service to clinicians throughout the NHS Highland area.
The Department
* Culture (bacterial culture, antibiotic sensitivity, antigen detection), Molecular (bacteria and virus)
* Serology (bacterial and viral serology) and Immunology (allergy and immunity testing)
* The Scottish Toxoplasma Reference Laboratory (STRL)
* The Scottish Lyme Disease and Tick-borne infections Reference Laboratory (SLDTRL) are also situated within the department.
Role and responsibilities
You will work alongside Biomedical Scientists and other support staff to support delivery of the Microbiology service. The post is fixed in the Specimen Reception area and involves handling specimens for all sections. Once trained you will join the rota for weekends and public holidays (and an extended working day if the service requires it) as required by the department.
The key purpose of the role is to receive, sort and book-in patients’ specimens and enter patients’ demographic and test details into the laboratory computer system. For requests sent to other laboratories you will be responsible for preparing, packaging and sending away samples. You will be the first point of contact with laboratory users both by telephone and in person. Other duties will involve collecting and processing laboratory waste, collecting stock from the stores department, maintenance of the stock control system and issuing stock items to laboratory users. In this busy department, the successful candidate must be able to work quickly and with a high degree of accuracy as mistakes may cause incorrect results to be reported.
The role also includes other general laboratory duties according to departmental Standard Operating Procedures. In-house training will be provided in all activities.
Qualifications and requirements
Applicants should have a good general education together with good knowledge of data processing and computer packages. You must be able to work quickly and accurately. Previous experience in a medical laboratory and knowledge of medical terminology is an advantage but is not essential.
Additional information for candidates
* Effective from 1st April 2026, the Agenda for Change full-time working week will be reduced from 37 to 36 hours. Part-time hours will be adjusted on a pro-rata basis. There will be an increase in the hourly rate to ensure that pay remains unaffected.
* Applications are welcome from Gaelic speakers. / Tha fàilte air tagraidhean bho luchdlabhairt na Gàidhlig.
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NHS Highland is geographically the largest of the 14 regional boards of NHS Scotland, covering an area of 12,500 square miles, across Highland and Argyll & Bute. We employ over 10,700 people, making us one of the biggest employers in the area. As an organisation, we make a very significant contribution to the local economy.
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