Hospital Discharge Team – Discharge Facilitator

Job overview

Join our Hospital Discharge Team based at Royal Berkshire Hospital and play a vital role in helping patients move safely and smoothly from hospital to the next stage of their care. As a Discharge Facilitator, you will work alongside hospital and community partners to coordinate timely discharges and improve patient flow across the system.

We are looking for a proactive and organised individual with excellent communication, relationship-building, and problem-solving skills. You will thrive in a fast-paced environment, confidently manage competing priorities, and work autonomously to overcome barriers to discharge while maintaining high standards of patient care and safety.

This is a rewarding opportunity to make a real difference to patient outcomes, work across organisational boundaries, and contribute to continual innovative Quality Improvement initiatives that support people to recover in the most appropriate setting.

Main duties of the job

This is a fixed term role for 12 months. External secondments will be considered with the approval of the substantive employer. This role is based at Royal Berkshire Hospital; the Discharge Facilitator will support patients through the transition from hospital care to the next stage of their recovery or ongoing support. The role involves working closely with clinical teams, discharge colleagues and community partners to coordinate arrangements for patients who are ready to leave hospital, ensuring plans are progressed efficiently and in line with service standards. The post holder will monitor discharge activity, facilitate effective communication with system partners, and ensure all relevant information is accurately recorded including maintaining an up-to-date Discharge Ready List and providing performance reports.

The successful candidate will take a proactive approach to overcoming delays, coordinating actions across multiple agencies and helping to ensure patients receive the right support in the most appropriate setting. Working independently and as part of a wider multidisciplinary team, they will balance competing priorities, respond to changing operational pressures and contribute to service Quality Improvement initiatives aimed at enhancing patient flow across the health and care system. The role includes participation in Saturday working as part of the service rota.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The “must haves” for this role:

• Educated to degree level or equivalent experience with relevant experience in a health or social care environment
• Evidence of continuing professional development
• Experience of working in a community services setting
• Ability to effectively challenge stakeholders while maintaining effective relationships
• Knowledge of hospital discharge process
• Ability to work autonomously with individuals
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with an ability to network and build relationships at all levels
• Time management skills
• Ability to pay attention to detail where accuracy is vitally important
• Demonstrates ability to work effectively within a team
• IT skills
• Evidence of excellent planning and organisational skills - and ability to prioritise workload.

For further information about the role, please see attached job description and person specification. Your application is your opportunity to demonstrate to us how you meet the requirements of the role. We recognise that AI tools can support accessibility, equity and confidence for applicants. However, it’s important that examples and responses given in your supporting statement genuinely reflect your own experience and abilities, as these will be explored further during the selection process. AI must not be used to provide misleading or false information during any stage of the application journey.

In addition to explaining how you meet the person specification, you must complete your employment history for at least the last five years. Any experience, skills or responsibilities referenced in your supporting statement should be evidenced within your employment history. Applications that do not include sufficient employment history to support the experience claimed may not be shortlisted.

We’re committed to equal opportunities and welcome applications from all sections of the community. Our commitment to inclusion is reflected in our accreditations: Stonewall Proud Employer, Race Equality Matters Silver Trailblazer, Neurodiversity in Business Corporate Member, Disability Confident Leader, Carer Confident Level 2, and the Armed Forces Covenant Gold Award. Reasonable adjustments will be provided to candidates as needed.

We welcome a conversation about flexibility and any other questions you may have. Please don’t hesitate to call: Annette Emery on 0118 9047150 or email Annette.emery@berkshire.nhs.uk who’ll be delighted to help.

Please note, if we receive a high number of applications, we may close this role earlier than the advertised closing date, so please submit your application as soon as possible.

Applicant requirements

The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.