Job summary
Medical Receptionist
Sunderland GP Alliance Medical Practice (New Silksworth Medical Practice)
Employer: Sunderland GP Alliance
Salary: £24,734.43 per annum pro rata
Hours: 16 hours per week
Location: Sunderland, Tyne and Wear
Main duties of the job
We are currently seeking to recruit a Medical Receptionist to provide a comprehensive reception service to achieve an efficient and effective service in providing the best possible care to patients.
The post holder may be required to work flexibly across all SGPA practices as required. As well as greeting patients and carrying out general reception duties you will also be expected to process prescriptions and fully utilise EMISWeb and other IT systems.
Applicants must have experience of working in a NHS setting and have a working knowledge of medical reception duties.
About us
For a second year in a row, Sunderland GP Alliance has been listed in The Sunday Times Best Places to Work and Better Health At Work - Gold Award, offering 33 days annual leave plus many other benefits
Sunderland GP Alliance is owned by the GP Practices of Sunderland and helps GPs work collaboratively for the benefit of patients and staff. We are a not-for-profit organisation, ensuring any surplus is reinvested back into better services for patients.
Sunderland GP Alliance runs three medical practices at New Silksworth Medical Practice, South Hylton Surgery and Monument Surgeries.
Job Purpose
To provide a comprehensive reception service to achieve an efficient and effective service in providing the best possible care to patients.
Receptionists will:
* Greet people in a professional and courteous manner
* Pass on relevant information and answer queries
* Assist people to access the services they need
* Undertake a variety of reception duties to assist in the smooth running of the Practice
Main Duties & Responsibilities
Answer the telephone as a priority
Book/cancel appointments
Take messages accurately and pass on in a timely manner
Organise home visit requests
Deal with general enquiries and complaints
To forward any queries relating to prescriptions to the Pharmacy Technicians
Give out pathology results
Register new patients and temporary residents and make up paper records
Process deducted patients and send records to Primary Care Services Agency
Greet and direct patients and visitors
Organise translators
Respond to the needs of GPs and Nurses to enable efficient clinics
Input and extract information from the Practice computer system
Update the clinical system with information eg smoking, ethnicity
Action change of address notification
Any other filing, record keeping and distribution of documents as appropriate
Effectively liaise with Practice, Primary Care Organisations, patients and other external organisations to assist promptly with the resolution and administration of queries
Fully utilise EMISWeb and other IT systems
Monitor and check tasks and work flows
Communicate effectively with the reception team to ensure policies and procedures are kept up to date
Keep directories and data bases up to date to ensure an efficient work flow
Demonstrate duties to new or less experienced staff
Resolve job related issues, including patient documentation and help resolve minor problems
Photocopying
Dealing with mail internal and external
Attend meetings when required
To work safely at all times in accordance with legislation and Practice policies and procedures
Be flexible both in the availability and being able to cover for colleagues absent from work due to annual leave or sickness
Any other reasonable duties requested by the Practice Manager or GP
This list is not exhaustive
In addition to the above, the post holder will show respect and courtesy to patients and colleagues, maintain confidentiality of patient and other Practice information at all times. Working occasional extra hours may be required.
The job description is not exhaustive and may be adjusted periodically after review and consultation. You will be expected to carry out reasonable duties which may be requested from time to time.
Working Relationships
General Practitioners
Practice Manager and Team Leader
Other members of secretarial team
Members of the Practice/community nursing team
Other members of the Primary Health Care Team
Patients
Outside agencies eg Secondary Care Trusts, Community Services
All members of staff may be asked to attend periodic Staff Meetings, which may be held outside their normal working hours. They may also be required to work extra hours covering for holidays and sickness. This may include Saturday mornings and possibly weekend work in future on a rota basis.
Review
The post and the job description reflect the current requirements and objectives of the post. As the duties of the post develop and change, the post holder may be required to carry out other responsibilities.
Whilst there will be consultation on such issues, employees should understand that, if agreement cannot be reached, then the employer reserves the right to make changes to job descriptions where it considers such changes necessary.
Confidentiality
In the performance of the duties outlined in this job description, the post-holder may have access to confidential information relating to patients and their carers, Practice staff and other healthcare workers. All such information from any source is to be regarded as strictly confidential.
Information relating to patients, carers, colleagues, other healthcare workers or the business of the Alliance may only be divulged to authorized persons in accordance with the Alliances policies and procedures relating to confidentiality, and the protection of personal and sensitive data.
Health & Safety
The post-holder will assist in promoting and maintaining their own and others health, safety and security as defined in the Alliances Health & Safety Policy to include:
Identifying the risk involved in work activities and undertaking such activities in a way that manages those risks.
Ensuring that all accidents or dangerous accidents are reported and investigated and follow up action taken where necessary.
Equality and Diversity
The post-holder will support the quality, diversity and rights of patients, carers and colleagues to include:
Acting in a way that recognizes the importance of peoples rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with current legislation.
Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs and beliefs of patients, carers and colleagues.
Behaving in a manner which is welcoming to and of the individual, is non-judgemental and respects their circumstances, feelings, priorities and rights.
Quality
The post-holder will strive to maintain quality within the Alliance, and will:
Alert other team members to issues of quality and risk.
Assess own performance and take accountability for own actions, either directly or under supervision.
Contribute to the effectiveness of the team by reflecting on own and team activities and making suggestions on ways to improve and enhanced the teams performance.
Work effectively with individuals in other agencies to meet patients needs.
Effectively manage own time, workload and resources.
Communication
The post-holder should recognize the importance of effective communication within the team and will strive to:
Communicate effectively with other team members.
Communicate effectively with patients and carers.
Recognise peoples needs for alternative methods of communication and respond accordingly.
Job Types: Part-time, Permanent
Pay: £24,734.43 per year
Benefits:
* Company pension
* Cycle to work scheme
* Employee discount
* Free parking
* On-site parking
* Sick pay
* Store discount
Application question(s):
* Do you have experience of working in a NHS setting and have a working knowledge of medical reception duties? Please note we will not be able to consider your application if you do not.
Work Location: In person
Application deadline: 15/10/2025