Medical Secretary

Principal Duties and Responsibilities Professional Duties and Responsibilities:

• Maintain throughout the Hospital awareness of the primacy of the patient in relation to all Hospital activities.
• Demonstrate behavior consistent with the Values of the Hospital.
• Be responsible for the provision of administrative support services to their designated area. High volume Dictaphone typing is core function of medical secretary.
• Report to the relevant Head of Department or their deputy.
• Liaise with other members of the Team to ensure smooth overall running and efficiency of the Department.

Provide the following administrative functions:

• Provide efficient general administrative and secretarial support to the designated area.
• Liaise with Consultants and their Multidisciplinary Teams on an ongoing basis.
• Ensure correspondence with GP’s/other Hospital’s is dealt within the appropriate timeframes.
• Providing excellent customer service to patients, parents and other service users
• Managing queries via phone, email and in-person from patients, parents, clinicians, centre staff and other stakeholders
• Arrange meetings and take minutes as required
• Maintain efficient general office procedures as appropriate to the post.
• Type, pull and file all general correspondence, charts, photographs, reports and documentation in relation to the work of the department.
• Liaise with staff in other departments, the public and outside agencies in a confidential, courteous and professional manner.
• Cross cover for phone calls and reception desk when required.
• Enter and maintain Patient details on the relevant patient administration systems.
• Collection and delivery of internal and external mail to/from the hospital mailroom as required.
• Maintaining patient confidentiality on all aspects of patient care
• Participate in training, as required
• Ordering of supplies for the Department as required.
• To perform such other duties appropriate to the post as may be assigned by the Head of the Department or their nominee.

The above is not intended to be a comprehensive list of all duties involved and consequently, the post holder may be required to perform other duties as appropriate to the post which may be assigned to them from time to time and to contribute to the development of the post while in office. Eligibility criteria, qualifications and experience Essential Criteria:

• Leaving Certificate Standard or equivalent.
• Experience of general office procedures is essential.
• Have a minimum of 1 year’s administration/secretarial experience.
• Experience in Dictaphone typing essential: Candidates will be required to sit a medical typing test at interview stage
• Experience in using Medical Terminology

Desirable Criteria:

• Level 5 QQI Medical Administration or equivalent secretarial course.
• Relevant experience working in an acute Hospital setting.
• Experience with iPMS patient information system or similar hospital systems

Working Week

Working week for your relevant post will be detailed on the job description and contract for the post. HSE Circular 003-2009 “Matching Working Patterns to Service Needs (Extended Working Day/Week Arrangements); Framework for Implementation of Clause 30.4 of Towards 2016” applies. Under the terms of this circular, all new entrants and staff appointed to promotional posts from Dec 16th 2008 will be required to work agreed roster/on call arrangements as advised by their line manager. Contracted hours of work are liable to change between the hours of 8am-8pm over seven days to meet the requirements for extended day services in accordance with the terms of the Framework Agreement (Implementation of Clause 30.4 of Towards 2016). Probation All employees will be subject to a probationary period as per the probation policy. This policy applies to all employees irrespective of the type of contract under which they have been employed. A period of 6 months’ probation will be served: • On commencement of employment. • Fixed term to permanent contract. • Permanent employees commencing in promotional posts will also undertake a probationary period relating to their new post. Pension Employees of Children’s Health Ireland are required to be members of the Hospitals Superannuation Scheme. Deductions at the appropriate rate will be made from your salary payment. If you are being rehired after drawing down a public service pension your attention is drawn to Section 52 of the Public Services Pension (Single and Other Provisions) Act 2012. The 2012 Act extends the principle of abatement to retired public servants in receipt of a public service pension who secure another public service appointment in any public service body.

Age

Age restrictions shall only apply to a candidate where he/she is not classified as a new entrant (within the meaning of the Public Service Superannuation Act, 2004). A candidate who is not classified as a new entrant must be under 65 years of age.

Maternity Leave Maternity leave is granted in accordance with the terms of the Maternity Protection Acts 1994 and 2001.

Payment of sick leave The Children’s Health Ireland sick pay scheme is operated in accordance with The Public Service Management (Sick Leave) Regulations 2014 (as amended by the Public Service Management (Sick Leave) (Amendment) Regulations 2015. You are required to abide by the rules of sickness absence policy and procedures as outlined in the employee handbook available on the intranet. The sick pay scheme will be in accordance with the Department of Health regulations and will be compliant with all relevant employment laws in the State, including The Sick Leave Act 2022.

Pre Employment Health Assessment Prior to commencing in this role, a person will be required to complete a form declaring their health status which is reviewed by the hospital’s Occupational Health Service and if required, undergo a medical assessment with this department. Any person employed by Children’s Health Ireland must be fully competent and capable of undertaking the duties attached to the office and be in a state of health such as would indicate a reasonable prospect of ability to render regular and efficient service. Validation of Qualifications & Experience Any credit given to a candidate at interview, in respect of claims to qualifications, training and experience is provisional and is subject to verification. The recommendation of the interview board is liable to revision if the claimed qualification, training or experience is not proven.

References

Children’s Health Ireland will seek up to three written references from current and previous employers, educational institutions or any other organisations with which the candidate has been associated. The hospital also reserves the right to determine the merit, appropriateness and relevance of such references and referees.

Garda Vetting

Children’s Health Ireland will carry out Garda vetting on all new employees. An employee will not take up employment with the hospital until the Garda Vetting process has been completed and the hospital is satisfied that such an appointment does not pose a risk to clients, service users and employees.

One Start Date Per Month CHI has transitioned to a process of a one commencement day per month for all new employees, CHI internal transfers and Secondments. This update to our Onboarding process is aligned to changes in our monthly/fortnightly payroll and with the launch of our new corporate induction program. This process enhancement ensures that we can thoroughly prepare for your arrival and facilitate a smooth transition in your onboarding journey. So that the Onboarding team can confirm your start date, you will need to ensure that your mandatory training is completed at least 7 days prior to your commencement date. It is important for you to note that if you do not have your pre-employments and mandatory training completed in time, your commencement date will be deferred to the next available date.

Below, you’ll find the list of commencement dates for 2025. • June 9th • July 7th • July 14th • August 11th • September 1st • September 15th • October 13th • November 10th • December 15th

Panel

A panel may be created from which permanent, fixed term and specified purpose vacancies of a full or part time duration, may be filled across the five Children’s Health Ireland locations. The tenure of these panels will be indicated at offer stage. Salary: €35,256 - €54,370 per year