Personal Secretary - Obs & Gynae Band 4

Job details

• Branch: Daisy Hill Hospital, Newry (SHSCT)
• Location: Daisy Hill Hosp-Main Building
• Directorate: Children & Young People's Services
• Salary: Band 4 (£27,485 - £30,162)
• Contract Type: Permanent
• Opening Date: 25/08/26
• Closes: Tue, 08 September 2026 @ 5:30 PM
• Interview Dates: TBC

Notes

If you are submitting a manual application, please post it to: Recruitment Shared Services, Rosewood Villa, Longstone Hospital Site, 73 Loughgall Road, Armagh, BT61 7PR. Applications received after the advertised closing date/time cannot be considered, so please allow enough time for postage. A waiting list may be created for similar posts that may arise while the waiting list is live, this may include temporary or part-time posts. This will be managed in line with the updated HSC waiting list principles effective from 1 April 2026 Where a part-time waiting list is required, one part-time waiting list will be created- regardless of any specific hours advertised, this waiting list will cover all future vacancies where part-time posts arise. A part-time post is defined as any post that has less than 37.5 hours per week Please remember to save or print a copy of the job description before submitting your application, as it will not be accessible afterwards. Flexible Working We welcome flexible working requests from day one. All HSC organisations offer a range of flexible working options. The options available for this post will depend on the requirements of the role. Find out more about flexible working options on our website.

JOB DESCRIPTION

JOB TITLE

Personal Secretary – Obs & Gynae

BAND

DIRECTORATE

LOCATION

4

Children, Young People and Women’s Services

Daisy Hill Hospital

REPORTS TO

Service Administrator

ACCOUNTABLE TO

Operational Support Lead

JOB SUMMARY

The post-holder will provide secretarial support to a Consultant/s, and their team, supporting the day-to-day clinical activities associated with the Specialty within the Acute Services Directorate.

KEY DUTIES / RESPONSIBILITIES

Prioritise and manage workload on a daily basis, escalating areas of concern to the Line Manager as appropriate. Exercise judgement and use own initiative to provide non-clinical advice, information and guidance directly to patients, relatives and carers, requiring an intermediate level of medical terminology and procedures.

2. Management of waiting lists which includes providing timely reports for consultants, eg, ensuring all patients receive treatment within Integrated Elective Access Policy targets (IEAP) and other Regional and internal milestones.

3. Responsible for compiling admission and theatre lists following guidance given by the consultant(s), which includes allocating/replacing patients for theatre slots and ensuring theatre sessions are used to full capacity.

4. Ensure patients are given correct guidance in relation to medication prior to surgery, eg Warfarin, Aspirin, contraceptive pill as per clinical standards agreed by the Trust and advice from Consultant(s)

5. Word processing letters from Digital Dictation in a timely manner. Record and update information on the EPIC or other computerised information systems. Escalating any concerns with backlogs/missing dictations to Line Manager.

6. Take initial receipt of all incoming correspondence – telephone, written and enquiries. Using initiative, prioritise urgency of response required and bring to the attention of consultant where necessary.

7. Prioritise and manage effectively results from x-ray and laboratory systems, ensuring all examinations and investigations have been received and brought to the attention of medical staff without delay.

8. Validation of data quality reports & other reports associated with the Service e.g. Epic Workqueues.

9. Provide figures to Management on a regular basis to help with the management & distribution of workload i.e. Backlog Reports.

10. Supervise and support new secretaries and audio-typists and actively participate in the induction and training of new staff within the directorate.

11. Application of diagnostic coding for out-patient episodes and procedure codes for waiting lists.

12. Operate all IT tools available to provide the most efficient use of time and most effective use of service, eg, Microsoft Outlook and Epic, ensuring the data contained on the system is accurate and up-to-date.

13. Monitor the typing workload within the office and allocate to audio-typists where appropriate and monitor quality of performance, escalating areas of concern to the Directorate/Service Administrator.

14. Manage the consultants dairy/schedule informing appropriate staff of changes to work schedule which affects theatre and out-patient scheduling. Co-ordinate the consultant(s) personal dairy for internal and external meetings.

15. Any other duties as may be assigned from time to time by Line Manager.

RAISING CONCERNS - RESPONSIBILITIES

The post holder will promote and support effective team working, fostering a culture of openness and transparency.

The post holder will ensure that they take all concerns raised with them seriously and act in accordance with the Trust’s ‘Your Right to Raise a Concern (Whistleblowing)’ policy and their professional code of conduct, where applicable.

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS

The post holder will be required to

Assist the organisation in fulfilling its statutory duties under Section 75 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 to promote equality of opportunity and good relations and under the Disability Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Order 2006. Staff are also required to support the organisation in complying with its obligations under Human Rights Legislation.

Ensure the Organisation’s policy on equality of opportunity is promoted through his/her own actions and those of any staff for whom he/she has responsibility.

Co-operate fully with the implementation of The Organisation's Health and Safety arrangements, reporting any accidents/incidents/equipment defects to his/her manager, and maintaining a clean, uncluttered and safe environment for patients/clients, members of the public and staff.

Adhere at all times to all Trust policies/codes of conduct, including for example

Smoke Free policy

IT Security Policy and Code of Conduct

standards of attendance, appearance and behaviour

Contribute to ensuring the highest standards of environmental cleanliness within your designated area of work.

Co-operate fully with regard to Trust policies and procedures relating to infection prevention and control.

Take responsibility to minimise the Trust’s environmental impact wherever possible. This will include recycling, switching off lights, computers, monitors and equipment when not in use. Helping to reduce paper waste by minimising printing/copying and reducing water usage, reporting faults and heating/cooling concerns promptly and minimising travel.

All employees of the Organisation are legally responsible for all records held, created or used as part of their business within the [org name] including patients/clients, corporate and administrative records whether paper-based or electronic and also including emails. All such records are public records and are accessible to the general public, with limited exceptions, under the Freedom of Information act 2000 the Environmental Information Regulations 2004, the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018. Employees are required to be conversant with the [org name] policy and procedures on records management and to seek advice if in doubt.

Take responsibility for his/her own ongoing learning and development, in order to maximise his/her potential and continue to meet the demands of the post.

Represent The Organisation’s commitment to providing the highest possible standard of service to patients/clients and members of the public, by treating all those with whom he/she comes into contact in the course of work, in a pleasant, courteous and respectful manner.

This Job Description will be subject to review in the light of changing circumstances and is not intended to be rigid and inflexible but should be regarded as providing guidelines within which the individual works. Other duties of a similar nature and appropriate to the grade may be assigned from time to time.

It is a standard condition that all Trust staff may be required to serve at any location within The Organisation's area, as needs of the service demand.

February 2026

PERSONNEL SPECIFICATION

JOB TITLE AND BAND

Personal Secretary – Obs & Gynae Band 4

DEPARTMENT / DIRECTORATE

HOURS

Full-time

ESSENTIAL CRITERIA

SECTION 1: The following are ESSENTIAL criteria which will initially be measured at shortlisting stage although may also be further explored during the interview/selection stage. You should therefore make it clear on your application form whether or not you meet these criteria. Failure to do so may result in you not being shortlisted. The stage in the process when the criteria will be measured is stated below.

Factor

Essential Criteria

Number

Criteria

Method of Assessment

Qualifications/ Registration

E1

HNC/HND or equivalent/higher qualification and 1 years experience in a clerical/administrative role within a Clinical Setting*

OR

4 GCSEs at Grades A-C including English Language or equivalent / higher qualifications and 2 years experience in a clerical / administrative role in a Clinical Setting*

3 Years experience in a clerical / administrative role within a Clinical Setting*.

*Clinical setting will be defined as working in an area that supports Medical/Nursing/AHP professions in a hospital/GP setting

Shortlisting by Application Form

E2

Experience in the use of Microsoft office products including Word, Excel, Powerpoint

A minimum of 1 year’s word processing experience

SECTION 2: The following are ESSENTIAL criteria which will be measured during the interview/ selection stage:

Skills / Abilities

Excellent oral and written communication skills

Ability to compile and collate statistical information

Ability to plan and organise work

Ability to work accurately

Ability to work on own initiative

Experience of working to deadlines and achieving targets

Flexible with regard to working arrangements

Responsible attitude to confidentiality

Acceptable attendance record

Interview / Test

Knowledge

Knowledge of medical terminology

Knowledge of IT Systems

DESIRABLE CRITERIA

SECTION 3: these will ONLY be used where it is necessary to introduce additional job related criteria to ensure files are manageable. You should therefore make it clear on your application form how you meet these criteria. Failure to do so may result in you not being shortlisted

Desirable Criteria Number

Experience

D 1

Audio typing experience

Working experience of computerised information systems eg EPIC

Notes to applicants

You must clearly demonstrate on your application form under each question, how you meet the required criteria as failure to do so may result in you not being shortlisted. You should clearly demonstrate this for both the essential and desirable criteria.

Shortlisting will be carried out on the basis of the essential criteria set out in Section 1 below, using the information provided by you on your application form. Please note The Organisation reserves the right to use any desirable criteria outlined in Section 3 at shortlisting. You must clearly demonstrate on your application form how you meet the desirable criteria.

Proof of qualifications and/or professional registration will be required if an offer of employment is made – if you are unable to provide this, the offer may be withdrawn.

As part of the Recruitment & Selection process it may be necessary for The Organisation to carry out an Enhanced Disclosure Check through Access NI before any appointment to this post can be confirmed.

THE ORGANISATION IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES EMPLOYER

Successful applicants

may be required to attend for a Health Assessment

can expect to be placed at the minimum point of the pay scale, although a higher starting salary, within the range of the pay band may be available if the person appointed has experience relevant & equivalent to the post. If the successful candidate is an existing HSC employee moving to a higher band, AfC Pay on Promotion will apply.

are able to request Flexible Working from the 1st day of their employment. A number of flexible working provisions are offered by all HSC Organisations including Full-time working, Fixed working patterns, Part-time working, Flexi-time, Compressed/elongated hours, Average hours working patterns, Term-time working, Job-share or Homeworking for some or all of the working pattern, depending on the role being undertaken. Successful applicants are encouraged to discuss with their manager what Flexible Working provisions may be available in the role they are taking up, prior to commencing employment, to help them achieve a positive Work/Life Balance.

All staff are expected to display the HSC Values at all times