University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust (279)

DES Failsafe & Administration Assistant

The closing date is 14 October 2025

Job summary

We are delighted to offer an exciting opportunity for the right candidate(s) to join the West Sussex Diabetic Eye Screening Programme. Our service operates across 8 outreach screening locations and supports a population of over 37,000 patients living with diabetes.

This is a rewarding role within a dynamic and evolving environment, where you will play a vital part in helping individuals with diabetes access their regular screening appointments. These screenings are essential for detecting early signs of diabetic eye disease, which, if left untreated, could lead to sight loss.

As a key member of the team, you will be:

  • Adaptable and responsive to a continually changing healthcare landscape
  • Committed to delivering high-quality, patient-centred care
  • An excellent communicator, with strong interpersonal skills
  • Experienced in working with the public, ideally within a healthcare or community setting

If you're enthusiastic, proactive, and passionate about making a difference in people's lives, we'd love to hear from you.

Main duties of the job

As a Failsafe & Administration Assistant you would be responsible for

  • Maintaining patient data lists within the specialised database as directed by the Failsafe & Administration Co-ordinator
  • Identifying patients who may have become lost to follow up and implementing corrective procedures
  • ensure concerns identified during failsafe checks are raised in the correct way and incidents reported as necessary
  • the validation of the central list with GP practices including processing GP2DRS data returns and taking appropriate action
  • Ensure results are accurately recorded and sent to the patient, the General Practitioner and other authorised healthcare providers in a timely fashion.
  • Provide support and cover as required for all Failsafe & Administration functions. This will involve dealing with telephone enquiries from all sources, assisting with booking patients for screening and Ophthalmology appointments. Validating patient data and ensuring each patient status is correct
  • Monitor Post Office returns, and refer back to the General Practice when invitations or other screening communications are returned, and ensure that effective protocols are in place to ensure that records are maintained
  • identify own learning needs and jointly plan training requirements with your line manager

About us

At UHSussex, diversity is our strength, and we want you to feel included to help us always put the Patient First. Your uniqueness and experiences will be part of our creative and innovative community where everyone is encouraged to succeed. We have a range of Staff Networks to help break down barriers, and can offer a buddy to help new members settle in. We're proud to be a Disability Confident Employer (Level 2) and a Veteran Aware Trust.

We treat our patients and staff with the same compassion and empathy we expect for ourselves. We're here for them when they need us, and we go above and beyond to meet their needs. This can be seen in ourWellbeing Programme for staff which is extensive and designed to support you when you need it, including where possible, flexible working to support work life balance - because we know that to look after others we must first look after ourselves.

As a university trust and a leader in healthcare research, we value learning, teaching and training so that we can be the best that we can be. From the moment you start with us and throughout your career we will help you to grow and develop. We hope that in choosing UHSussex you are choosing a long and happy career where you will be able to see the difference you make and feel valued for all that you do.

We look forward to receiving your application and the start of your journey with UHSussex.

Candidate Information Pack: https://www.uhsussex.nhs.uk/resources/candidate-information-pack/

Details

Date posted

30 September 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 3

Salary

£24,937 to £26,598 a year Per Annum, pro rata

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time, Part-time, Job share, Flexible working

Reference number

279-7239270-SEP25

Job locations

DES Administration Office, Worthing Hospital

Homefield Road

Worthing

BN11 2DH


Job description

Job responsibilities

As a Failsafe & Administration Assistant you would be responsible for

  • Maintaining patient data lists within the specialised database as directed by the Failsafe & Administration Co-ordinator
  • Identifying patients who may have become lost to follow up and implementing corrective procedures
  • ensure concerns identified during failsafe checks are raised in the correct way and incidents reported as necessary
  • the validation of the central list with GP practices including processing GP2DRS data returns and taking appropriate action
  • Ensure results are accurately recorded and sent to the patient, the General Practitioner and other authorised healthcare providers in a timely fashion.
  • Provide support and cover as required for all Failsafe & Administration functions. This will involve dealing with telephone enquiries from all sources, assisting with booking patients for screening and Ophthalmology appointments. Validating patient data and ensuring each patient status is correct
  • Monitor Post Office returns, and refer back to the General Practice when invitations or other screening communications are returned, and ensure that effective protocols are in place to ensure that records are maintained
  • identify own learning needs and jointly plan training requirements with your line manager

Communication

  • Communicate in a sensitive manner with patients who may be distressed after the delivery of bad new
  • To liaise with software suppliers to rectify any issues and implement any changes
  • Manage and deal with confidential information
  • Provide reception cover for clinics, if necessary, which will include greeting patients dealing with face-to-face enquiries
  • Participate in team meetings, including booking rooms and circulating associated documents, as required
  • To liaise with medical secretaries, medical records team, and screening administration where appropriate.
  • To deal with telephone calls with calmness, discretion and compassion ensuring strict confidentiality at all times
  • To contact GP surgeries as required to assist with enquiries and patient queries
  • To maintain an excellent working relationship with Health Care Professional enquiries and patient queries
  • To maintain an excellent working relationship with all service stakeholders
  • Imparts complex information to patients and employs influencing skills to help to persuade patients to attend clinics

Service Delivery and Improvement

  • Maintaining patient data lists within the OptoMize database as directed by the Failsafe & Administration Co-ordinator
  • Identifying patients who may have become lost to follow up and implementing corrective procedures
  • Tracking patients referred through the Ophthalmology process and auditing their care, ensuring those patients who require treatment following referral from the Retinal Screening Unit have this arranged
  • Identifying conflicting outcomes between Ophthalmology and Diabetic Eye Screening and advising the Failsafe Officer accordingly.
  • Assist with the presentation of information for the purpose of reporting, discussing and presenting retinal screening data to internal/external parties
  • Maintain compliance with all Trust and WSDEPS policies and procedures
  • To ensure concerns identified during failsafe checks are raised in the correct way and incidents reported as necessary
  • To ensure an excellent level of customer service is maintained at all times
  • Validation of the central list with GP practices including processing GP2DRS data returns and taking appropriate action
  • Ensure results are accurately recorded and sent to the patient, the General Practitioner and other authorised healthcare providers in a timely fashion and under the guidance of the WSDESP policy Ensure all invitation and result letters are sent by following the WSDESP protocol
  • Ensure that any new and amended National Screening Committee Failsafe & Administration Policies are read and understood and any revised processes are adopted
  • To ensure that the weekly returns of patient activity in Ophthalmology are actioned in accordance with the WSDESP protocol
  • To validate patient check reports provided by the Failsafe & Administration Co-ordinator
  • Ensure outcomes from Ophthalmology consultations are entered onto the screening programme database
  • Ensure that all information entered onto the database is completed in a timely and accurate manner

People Management and Development

  • To be responsible for own personal development
  • To be able to provide advice, or demonstrate own activities or workplace routines to a new or less experienced member of staff in own work
  • Participate in the Trust appraisal process

Patient Care Delivery

  • Provide support and cover as required for all Failsafe & Administration functions. This will involve dealing with telephone enquiries from all sources, assisting with booking patients for screening and Ophthalmology appointments. Validating patient data and ensuring each patient status is correct
  • Monitor Post Office returns, and refer back to the General Practice when invitations or other screening communications are returned, and ensure that effective protocols are in place to ensure that records are maintained and periodic reviews take place when new addresses are not immediately identified
  • Ensuring all Opt Outs are dealt with by following the WSDESP guidance
  • Ensure that the processes for notifying the programme about patients treated outside of the screening programme catchment area are followed

Learning and Development

  • Attend mandatory training updates as required
  • Undertake training as necessary in line with the development of the post and as agreed with the line manager as part of the personal development process.
  • Achieve and demonstrate agreed standards of personal and professional development within agreed timescales.
  • Identify own learning needs and jointly plan training requirements with your line manager
  • Participate in the Trusts appraisal process to discuss how your role will help deliver the best possible care to our patients and help to deliver any changes in service.

This job description is an outline of the role and responsibilities. From time to time due to the needs of the service, we may ask you to flexibly undertake other duties that are consistent with your role and banding, including project work, internal job rotation and absence cover.

The job description and person specification may be reviewed on an ongoing basis in accordance with the changing needs of the department and the organisation.

Job description

Job responsibilities

As a Failsafe & Administration Assistant you would be responsible for

  • Maintaining patient data lists within the specialised database as directed by the Failsafe & Administration Co-ordinator
  • Identifying patients who may have become lost to follow up and implementing corrective procedures
  • ensure concerns identified during failsafe checks are raised in the correct way and incidents reported as necessary
  • the validation of the central list with GP practices including processing GP2DRS data returns and taking appropriate action
  • Ensure results are accurately recorded and sent to the patient, the General Practitioner and other authorised healthcare providers in a timely fashion.
  • Provide support and cover as required for all Failsafe & Administration functions. This will involve dealing with telephone enquiries from all sources, assisting with booking patients for screening and Ophthalmology appointments. Validating patient data and ensuring each patient status is correct
  • Monitor Post Office returns, and refer back to the General Practice when invitations or other screening communications are returned, and ensure that effective protocols are in place to ensure that records are maintained
  • identify own learning needs and jointly plan training requirements with your line manager

Communication

  • Communicate in a sensitive manner with patients who may be distressed after the delivery of bad new
  • To liaise with software suppliers to rectify any issues and implement any changes
  • Manage and deal with confidential information
  • Provide reception cover for clinics, if necessary, which will include greeting patients dealing with face-to-face enquiries
  • Participate in team meetings, including booking rooms and circulating associated documents, as required
  • To liaise with medical secretaries, medical records team, and screening administration where appropriate.
  • To deal with telephone calls with calmness, discretion and compassion ensuring strict confidentiality at all times
  • To contact GP surgeries as required to assist with enquiries and patient queries
  • To maintain an excellent working relationship with Health Care Professional enquiries and patient queries
  • To maintain an excellent working relationship with all service stakeholders
  • Imparts complex information to patients and employs influencing skills to help to persuade patients to attend clinics

Service Delivery and Improvement

  • Maintaining patient data lists within the OptoMize database as directed by the Failsafe & Administration Co-ordinator
  • Identifying patients who may have become lost to follow up and implementing corrective procedures
  • Tracking patients referred through the Ophthalmology process and auditing their care, ensuring those patients who require treatment following referral from the Retinal Screening Unit have this arranged
  • Identifying conflicting outcomes between Ophthalmology and Diabetic Eye Screening and advising the Failsafe Officer accordingly.
  • Assist with the presentation of information for the purpose of reporting, discussing and presenting retinal screening data to internal/external parties
  • Maintain compliance with all Trust and WSDEPS policies and procedures
  • To ensure concerns identified during failsafe checks are raised in the correct way and incidents reported as necessary
  • To ensure an excellent level of customer service is maintained at all times
  • Validation of the central list with GP practices including processing GP2DRS data returns and taking appropriate action
  • Ensure results are accurately recorded and sent to the patient, the General Practitioner and other authorised healthcare providers in a timely fashion and under the guidance of the WSDESP policy Ensure all invitation and result letters are sent by following the WSDESP protocol
  • Ensure that any new and amended National Screening Committee Failsafe & Administration Policies are read and understood and any revised processes are adopted
  • To ensure that the weekly returns of patient activity in Ophthalmology are actioned in accordance with the WSDESP protocol
  • To validate patient check reports provided by the Failsafe & Administration Co-ordinator
  • Ensure outcomes from Ophthalmology consultations are entered onto the screening programme database
  • Ensure that all information entered onto the database is completed in a timely and accurate manner

People Management and Development

  • To be responsible for own personal development
  • To be able to provide advice, or demonstrate own activities or workplace routines to a new or less experienced member of staff in own work
  • Participate in the Trust appraisal process

Patient Care Delivery

  • Provide support and cover as required for all Failsafe & Administration functions. This will involve dealing with telephone enquiries from all sources, assisting with booking patients for screening and Ophthalmology appointments. Validating patient data and ensuring each patient status is correct
  • Monitor Post Office returns, and refer back to the General Practice when invitations or other screening communications are returned, and ensure that effective protocols are in place to ensure that records are maintained and periodic reviews take place when new addresses are not immediately identified
  • Ensuring all Opt Outs are dealt with by following the WSDESP guidance
  • Ensure that the processes for notifying the programme about patients treated outside of the screening programme catchment area are followed

Learning and Development

  • Attend mandatory training updates as required
  • Undertake training as necessary in line with the development of the post and as agreed with the line manager as part of the personal development process.
  • Achieve and demonstrate agreed standards of personal and professional development within agreed timescales.
  • Identify own learning needs and jointly plan training requirements with your line manager
  • Participate in the Trusts appraisal process to discuss how your role will help deliver the best possible care to our patients and help to deliver any changes in service.

This job description is an outline of the role and responsibilities. From time to time due to the needs of the service, we may ask you to flexibly undertake other duties that are consistent with your role and banding, including project work, internal job rotation and absence cover.

The job description and person specification may be reviewed on an ongoing basis in accordance with the changing needs of the department and the organisation.

Person Specification

Experience/Qualifications

Essential

  • 5 GCSE / O level grade C or above to include Maths and English (or equivalent experience)
  • Computer literacy skills to RSA 2 or equivalent
  • Previous experience of working in an administrative role
  • Previous experience of dealing with the public both on the telephone and face-to-face in a reception environment
  • Knowledge of computerised databases
  • Able to maintain accurate records and documentation

Desirable

  • Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Certificate
  • BARS Administration Certificate
  • Understanding of the principles involved in failsafe and how they are used in screening including the English National Diabetic Eye Screening Programme guidelines for inclusion and exclusion criteria, timelines for appointments and referral timeseness and understanding of NHS culture
  • Experience of working in a Diabetic Eye Screening Programme
  • Experience of assisting in the development of policy and procedural documentation
  • Experience of stock taking

Skills

Essential

  • Effective written and verbal communication skills
  • Pleasant and efficient telephone manner with the ability to deal with high volumes of calls from both internal and external sources
  • Maintain an excellent working relationship with all service stakeholders
  • Able to deal with complex issues in a demanding and busy environment
  • Ability to problem solve
  • Able to organise own workload to ensure daily/weekly/monthly tasks are completed
  • Standard keyboard skills
  • Excellent attention to detail

People Management and Development

Essential

  • Able to manage conflicting deadlines
  • Proven team working skills Able to identify and prioritise complex, often time-restricted workload and projects to specified deadlines
  • To identify own training and development needs
  • Able to provide advice, or demonstrate own activities or workplace routines to a new or less experienced member of staff in own work

Desirable

  • Experience of working on research and development projects
  • Ability to assist the Programme Manager or Clinical Lead with research opportunities

Specific Requirements

Essential

  • Able to remain calm in stressful situations
  • Willingness to work occasional weekends
  • Able to work within a team environment and share the workload of a busy and demanding service
  • Able to work with minimal supervision and keen to learn new skills

Freedom to Act

Essential

  • Able to work autonomously and make decisions but know when to escalate
  • Responsible for adhering to standard procedures within own area.

Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion

Essential

  • Evidence of having championed diversity in previous roles (as appropriate to role).
  • Evidence of having undertaken own development to improve understanding of equalities issues.
Person Specification

Experience/Qualifications

Essential

  • 5 GCSE / O level grade C or above to include Maths and English (or equivalent experience)
  • Computer literacy skills to RSA 2 or equivalent
  • Previous experience of working in an administrative role
  • Previous experience of dealing with the public both on the telephone and face-to-face in a reception environment
  • Knowledge of computerised databases
  • Able to maintain accurate records and documentation

Desirable

  • Diabetic Retinopathy Screening Certificate
  • BARS Administration Certificate
  • Understanding of the principles involved in failsafe and how they are used in screening including the English National Diabetic Eye Screening Programme guidelines for inclusion and exclusion criteria, timelines for appointments and referral timeseness and understanding of NHS culture
  • Experience of working in a Diabetic Eye Screening Programme
  • Experience of assisting in the development of policy and procedural documentation
  • Experience of stock taking

Skills

Essential

  • Effective written and verbal communication skills
  • Pleasant and efficient telephone manner with the ability to deal with high volumes of calls from both internal and external sources
  • Maintain an excellent working relationship with all service stakeholders
  • Able to deal with complex issues in a demanding and busy environment
  • Ability to problem solve
  • Able to organise own workload to ensure daily/weekly/monthly tasks are completed
  • Standard keyboard skills
  • Excellent attention to detail

People Management and Development

Essential

  • Able to manage conflicting deadlines
  • Proven team working skills Able to identify and prioritise complex, often time-restricted workload and projects to specified deadlines
  • To identify own training and development needs
  • Able to provide advice, or demonstrate own activities or workplace routines to a new or less experienced member of staff in own work

Desirable

  • Experience of working on research and development projects
  • Ability to assist the Programme Manager or Clinical Lead with research opportunities

Specific Requirements

Essential

  • Able to remain calm in stressful situations
  • Willingness to work occasional weekends
  • Able to work within a team environment and share the workload of a busy and demanding service
  • Able to work with minimal supervision and keen to learn new skills

Freedom to Act

Essential

  • Able to work autonomously and make decisions but know when to escalate
  • Responsible for adhering to standard procedures within own area.

Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion

Essential

  • Evidence of having championed diversity in previous roles (as appropriate to role).
  • Evidence of having undertaken own development to improve understanding of equalities issues.

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.

Employer details

Employer name

University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust (279)

Address

DES Administration Office, Worthing Hospital

Homefield Road

Worthing

BN11 2DH


Employer's website

https://www.uhsussex.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)


Employer details

Employer name

University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust (279)

Address

DES Administration Office, Worthing Hospital

Homefield Road

Worthing

BN11 2DH


Employer's website

https://www.uhsussex.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)


Employer contact details

For questions about the job, contact:

DESP Failsafe & Administration Co-ordinator

Rebecca Hill

rebecca.hill26@nhs.net

01903285222

Details

Date posted

30 September 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 3

Salary

£24,937 to £26,598 a year Per Annum, pro rata

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Full-time, Part-time, Job share, Flexible working

Reference number

279-7239270-SEP25

Job locations

DES Administration Office, Worthing Hospital

Homefield Road

Worthing

BN11 2DH


Supporting documents

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