The Care Navigator plays a vital role in ensuring the patient accesses the right care at the right time and given the mostappropriate appointment or advice to meet their needs.
As the first point ofcontact in General Practice, they support our Total Triage model by helping the patient navigate healthcare services efficiently and appropriately. Total triage is a General Practice workflow,whereby every patient contacting the practice first provides some informationon the reasons for contact, the request is triaged by an experienced clinicianbefore an appointment is allocated.
In line with our Total Triage model, and to ensure thepractice communicates with the patient in a timely way, Care Navigators gather keyinformation from the patient via phone, online, or in person. Using clearprotocols, they direct patients to the most suitable clinician, service, orself-care resource, which may include GPs, nurses, pharmacists, socialprescribers, or external services.
Their role helps reduce unnecessary GP appointments, supportsclinical decision-making, improve access, and enhances patient satisfaction.Care Navigators also assist with administrative tasks, referrals, andfollow-ups, contributing to a smooth and responsive patient journey.
Strong communication skills, empathy, discretion, and anability to work under pressure are essential for this role.
Main duties of the job
* To assist the smooth day to dayrunning of the Total Triage Hub, you will be integral in the support of thisteam
* Signpost patients to theappropriate healthcare professional, service or self-care resource to meettheir needs.
* Develop and maintain a detailed knowledge of local community and voluntary sector services to enable signposting of people at risk of loss of independence.
* Develop relationships for the benefit of the practice population with community groups / organisations and health and social care bodies.
* To act as Learning Disability Champion for the practice and proactively manage and support patients in undertaking their learning disability reviews within the practice.
* Maintain accurate patient records,including data entry, coding, scanning, and system updates (EMIS and Accurx).
* Provide general administrativesupport to clinical and non-clinical teams.
* Participate in audits, meetings,and mandatory training.
* Provide cover during staff absencesand work collaboratively with colleagues to ensure smooth service delivery.
Key Responsibilities
* Signpostpatients to the appropriate healthcare professional, service, or self-careresource based on clinical protocols.
* Processand manage all in-person, telephone, and online appointmentrequests.
* Respond togeneral patient queries, offering appropriate advice or redirecting as needed.
* Ensure allpatient interactions are documented accurately and confidentially.
About us
Riverside Medical Practice is a busy town centre practice, with a strong ethos to providing excellent care to our practice population (circa 12,000 patients) and a supportive and caring environment for our hardworking and valued practice team.
Job responsibilities
CareNavigator (GP Practice)
The Care Navigator plays a vital role inensuring the patient accesses the right care at the right time and given the mostappropriate appointment or advice to meet their needs. As the first point ofcontact in General Practice, they support our Total Triage model by helping the patient navigate healthcare services efficiently and appropriately. Total triage is a General Practice workflow,whereby every patient contacting the practice first provides some informationon the reasons for contact, the request is triaged by an experienced clinicianbefore an appointment is allocated.
In line with our Total Triage model, and to ensure thepractice communicates with patients in a timely way, Care Navigators gather keyinformation from patients via phone, online, or in person. Using clearprotocols, they direct patients to the most suitable clinician, service, orself-care resource, which may include GPs, nurses, pharmacists, socialprescribers, or external services.
Their role reduces unnecessary GP appointments, supportsclinical decision-making, improve access, and enhances patient satisfaction.Care Navigators also assist with administrative tasks, referrals, andfollow-ups, contributing to a smooth and responsive patient journey.
Strong communication skills, empathy, discretion, and anability to work under pressure are essential for this role.
Mainduties of the Care Navigator
* Signpost patients to theappropriate healthcare professional, service or self-care resource to meettheir needs.
* Manage appointments and monitoronline consultations (e.g., Accurx).
* Develop and maintain a detailed knowledge of local community and voluntary sector services to enable signposting of people at risk of loss of independence.
* To provide an ambassadorial function for the practice in its relationships with the voluntary sector, volunteer networks, community groups and all relevant statutory agencies.
* Develop relationships for the benefit of the practice population with community groups / organisations and health and social care bodies.
* To act as Learning Disability Champion for the practice and proactively manage and support patients in undertaking their learning disability reviews within the practice.
* Handle incoming calls, emails, andface-to-face queries professionally.
* Maintain accurate patient records,including data entry, coding, scanning, and system updates on EMIS &Accurx.
* Provide general administrativesupport to clinical and non-clinical teams.
* Participate in audits, meetings,and mandatory training.
* Contribute to practice initiatives,such as flu clinics and patient participation groups.
* Provide cover during staff absencesand work collaboratively with colleagues to ensure smooth service delivery.
Quality Checks
Check the clinical rooms as required daily / weekly to ensure fully equipped and any issues escalated for immediate resolution.
In addition, the Care Navigator provides comprehensiveadministrative support to ensure smooth day-to-day practice operations.
Key Responsibilities
The following are the core duties of the Care Navigator.Duties may vary depending on workload, staffing levels, and individualtraining.
* Assist the smooth day to day runningof the Total Triage Hub
* Signpostpatients to the appropriate healthcare professional, service, or self-careresource based on clinical protocols.
* Processand manage all in-person, telephone, and online appointmentrequests.
* Respond togeneral patient queries, offering appropriate advice or redirecting as needed.
* Supportthe Total Triage process by gathering relevant information and navigatingaccordingly.
* Ensure allpatient interactions are documented accurately and confidentially.
Administrative& Clerical Duties
* Monitor the appointment system,assessing demand and availability daily.
* Handle incoming and outgoingcorrespondence, including emails and mail.
* Input and code clinical data anddocumentation onto EMIS and Accurx.
* Scan and upload patient documents,ensuring correct clinical coding.
* Perform general clerical tasks asrequired.
* Carry out system searches andsupport audit activities.
* Initiate and respond tocommunication from patients, staff, and external agencies.
* Liaise effectively with clinicalstaff, the Patient Services Team, and external services (e.g., hospitals,community teams).
* Attend staff meetings, contributeideas, and take meeting minutes when required.
* Provide cover for colleagues duringabsences and assist in rota planning for breaks and out-of-hours.
Training& Development
* Undertake all mandatory trainingand practice induction programmes.
* Keep training up to date and attendrefresher courses as required.
* Participate in annual appraisalsand regular one-to-one reviews with management.
* Support new staff and participatein peer training when appropriate.
Person Specification
Qualifications
* Good standard of education, to GCSE Level or equivalent.
* Recent, relevant experience in administration, secretarial, reception or customer service role.
* Educated to academic Level 2 (i.e., GCSE Grade A-C, NVQ2) or considerable recent NHS administrative experience. Customer Services Qualification level 2 or above (or relevant experience)
Personal Qualities
* Friendly, empathetic, and professional
* Calm under pressure and adaptable
* Clear, polite, and professional telephone manner
* Motivated and proactive
* Reliable and trustworthy
* Willing to learn and open to feedback
* Polite, professional, and confident manner
* Flexible, cooperative, and adaptable
* Self-motivated and proactive
* Forward-thinking and keen to improve service delivery
* Trustworthy, with high levels of integrity and loyalty
* Sensitive and empathetic, particularly in distressing situations
* Resilient and able to perform under pressure
* Committed to providing outstanding care and service to patients
Experience
* Excellent communication skills (written and oral)
* IT-literate with good knowledge of Microsoft Office and email systems
* Strong organisational and time management skills
* Team-oriented with the ability to work independently
* Problem solving & analytical skills
* Ability to follow policies, protocols, and maintain confidentiality
* Experience of working with clinical systems for example, EMIS, AccuRx and Docman.
* Experience of working in a general practice setting
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
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