Job summary
An exciting opportunity is available at University Hospital Sussex (UHSx) NHS Foundation Trust to cover a part time Medical Examiners Officer (MEO) post for Maternity cover for 6 months and join our team to work cross site between St Richards hospital and Worthing Hospital. After successful implementation of the statutory role of the Medical Examiner (ME) Service in our acute hospitals and covering the Community and Primary Care Settings in the West Sussex.
We are looking for enthusiastic, motivated, and compassionate Medical Examiner Officers (MEO) to join our team, to help support the continued delivery of the Acute ME Service across our hospital sites and within the community. You will be key in supporting the Medical Examiner process, the Trust's mortality process and provide support to a range of staff within the Trust around mortality and the ME Service.
It will be vital the applicant can manage their own workload and work well within the team managing a high volume of referrals in a timely manner, putting the bereaved at the centre of the role, with excellent communication skills.
Secondment opportunities will be considered. We are advertising 30 hours per week to cover maternity leave . All flexible working will be considered. Friday cover is essential.
Main duties of the job
We are an independent service where senior doctors review deaths, confirm the cause, and offer families understanding and a chance to ask questions about care, working alongside bereavement services to ensure accuracy in death certification and improve patient safety.
This role will incorporate clinical and administrative skills in ensuring necessary paperwork is accurate and complete, but also excellent communication skills during liaison with doctors, nurses, families, and where appropriate, the Coroners' services. Part of the day to day work will also involve investigation work and perusal of patient notes so a good working knowledge of medical terminology is important together with relevant clinical experience in an acute/community setting.
The Medical Examiners scrutinise every applicable death in the Trust as well as developing the service to take on the responsibility of reviewing the circumstances of all community deaths in West Sussex as the statutory national programme rolled out in September 2024. To do this, we have aimed to develop a responsive and fluid service which is adaptable to the needs of the Trust, our patients, community and our workforce. An element of cross site working between Worthing and St Richards Hospitals is expected.
Successful applicants will be expected to complete formal training appropriate to the role when in post, online training produced by the Royal College of Pathologists should be completed prior to commencement of the post.
About us
Working for our organisation
At UHSussex, diversity is our strength, and we want you to feel included to help us always deliver Excellent Care Everywhere, as shown in our Outstanding for Caring CQC rating. 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 abuddy to help new members settle in. We're proud to be a Disability Confident Employer (Level 3) and a Veteran Aware Trust.
Candidate Pack
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please note: This role does not meet the minimum criteria for visa sponsorship under the current UK immigration rules, which set specific salary and skill thresholds. As such, we are unable to provide sponsorship for this post. Applicants will therefore need to already have the right to work in the UK to be considered. We include this information at the outset to provide clarity and avoid unnecessary inconvenience for applicants.
Please note that if you currently work for another NHS Trust or UHSussex and you are applying to accept this position as a secondment opportunity, before applying you must seek agreement and authorisation from your current Trust/Manager. Secondments cant be agreed without this approval. If you are unable to gain approval, you should refrain from applying unless you wish to take this role as a fixed term position.
- Effective verbal, non-verbal, and written communication with all members of the multidisciplinary team within own department and relevant departments and both internal and external to the Trust is essential.
- Complete prescrutiny of cases for for the Medical Examiner to complete their review. Utilising their own clinical knowledge, checking medication, observations, appropriate treatment, highlighting any safeguarding concerns. To discuss content of medical certificate of cause of death (MCCD) with relatives of deceased and in all cases, collect additional information. This may include the needto communicate sensitive information and offer explanations about the treatment provided and the cause of death. Communicate via all mediums with families, carers, clinical teams, in relation tomedical examiner scrutiny and the outcomes of any discussions
- Checking and sending off MCCds tot he registrars
- as delegated to by MEs provide feedback to relevant teams for patient safety and learning
- Discuss NOK feedback with ME and forward to relevant teams for learning.
- Supportive, empathetic call to NOK providing clear information and signposting where necessary to bereavement support.
Please see Job Description and Person Specification for full details.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Please note: This role does not meet the minimum criteria for visa sponsorship under the current UK immigration rules, which set specific salary and skill thresholds. As such, we are unable to provide sponsorship for this post. Applicants will therefore need to already have the right to work in the UK to be considered. We include this information at the outset to provide clarity and avoid unnecessary inconvenience for applicants.
Please note that if you currently work for another NHS Trust or UHSussex and you are applying to accept this position as a secondment opportunity, before applying you must seek agreement and authorisation from your current Trust/Manager. Secondments cant be agreed without this approval. If you are unable to gain approval, you should refrain from applying unless you wish to take this role as a fixed term position.
- Effective verbal, non-verbal, and written communication with all members of the multidisciplinary team within own department and relevant departments and both internal and external to the Trust is essential.
- Complete prescrutiny of cases for for the Medical Examiner to complete their review. Utilising their own clinical knowledge, checking medication, observations, appropriate treatment, highlighting any safeguarding concerns. To discuss content of medical certificate of cause of death (MCCD) with relatives of deceased and in all cases, collect additional information. This may include the needto communicate sensitive information and offer explanations about the treatment provided and the cause of death. Communicate via all mediums with families, carers, clinical teams, in relation tomedical examiner scrutiny and the outcomes of any discussions
- Checking and sending off MCCds tot he registrars
- as delegated to by MEs provide feedback to relevant teams for patient safety and learning
- Discuss NOK feedback with ME and forward to relevant teams for learning.
- Supportive, empathetic call to NOK providing clear information and signposting where necessary to bereavement support.
Please see Job Description and Person Specification for full details.
Person Specification
Experience/Qualifications
Essential
- oRegistered Nurse/Allied Health profession or equivalent professional qualification/experience
- oExperience of working in a healthcare or related setting with multi-disciplinary teams and of working across organisational boundaries
- oTo have an understanding of medical terminology that enables informed discussions about causes/circumstances of death with bereaved families, clinicians, coroner and registration service staff
- oExcellent communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to engage at all levels including senior clinicians/coroners etc about sensitive issues
- oComputer literate to use multiple IT software for recording personal identifiable data and producing statistical information for the National Medical Examiner's office and Public Health surveillance. To include Access, Word, Excel
- oQualifications/skills in day- to-day operational/process management of a customer- facing service where users may have unpredictable and emotionally charged needs
Desirable
- oExperience as Medical Examiners Officer
- ocompletion of the Royal college of Pathologists Medical examiners Officers e-Learning
- oAware of the National Quality Board Learning from deaths framework and the Structured Judgement Review methodology
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
- oRegistered Nurse/Allied Health profession or equivalent professional qualification/experience
- oExperience of working in a healthcare or related setting with multi-disciplinary teams and of working across organisational boundaries
- oTo have an understanding of medical terminology that enables informed discussions about causes/circumstances of death with bereaved families, clinicians, coroner and registration service staff
- oExcellent communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to engage at all levels including senior clinicians/coroners etc about sensitive issues
- oComputer literate to use multiple IT software for recording personal identifiable data and producing statistical information for the National Medical Examiner's office and Public Health surveillance. To include Access, Word, Excel
- oQualifications/skills in day- to-day operational/process management of a customer- facing service where users may have unpredictable and emotionally charged needs
Desirable
- oExperience as Medical Examiners Officer
- ocompletion of the Royal college of Pathologists Medical examiners Officers e-Learning
- oAware of the National Quality Board Learning from deaths framework and the Structured Judgement Review methodology
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.
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
Additional information
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.
UK Registration
Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see
NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).
