Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

Assistant Discharge Co-ordinator

The closing date is 05 January 2026

Job summary

The Assistant Discharge Co-ordinator plays an integral role in the ward MDT.

They are a part of the daily board round feeding in the social needs of each patient.

They meet with all patients and their families to ascertain their requirements for discharge and then play a pivotal role in ensuring this is completed and is ready for when they are medically fit for discharge.

They escalate any concerns through the Hospital Discharge Team.

Main duties of the job

They will be expected to communicate effectively and professionally with patients, carers, members of the MDT and external agencies.

They will receive and provide complex and sensitive information, and due to the patient groups, they are dealing with, multi stranded discussions due to patient co-morbidities.

They will liaise with ward staff and ensure the discharge plans are up to date and plans are communicated clearly.

Planning and liaising with HDT staff, relatives, carers and external agencies to plan, organise, implement and evaluate safe discharge planning.

The post holder will provide basic clinical advice and information to patients from the MDT output in order to facilitate a safe discharge and how to access services once discharged. They will ensure that patients who have been discharged by medical staff have appointments and follow up arranged and that patients and their carers are informed of these arrangements.

About us

Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust serves a population of over 600,000 with a workforce of over 10,500 dedicated and skilled staff across 21 sites.

Our services:

Acute Care

Providing emergency and maternity services at Whiston, Southport and Ormskirk hospitals, and medical and surgical specialties across all our sites.

Primary Care

Providing primary care services at Marshalls Cross Medical Centre situated in St Helens Hospital.

Community Services

Providing adult community services for St Helens and a wheelchair service in Chorley, South Ribble, and West Lancashire. Our inpatient unit at Newton Community Hospital is where patients needing acute hospital beds can continue rehabilitation. We also provide urgent care at our Urgent Treatment Centre located in St Helens town centre.

Specialist Regional Services

We provide the Mersey Regional Burns & Plastic Surgery Unit at Whiston Hospital and the Spinal Injuries Unit at Southport Hospital to more than 4 million people across the whole of Merseyside, West Lancashire, Cheshire, Isle of Man and North Wales.

Achievements:

Rated Outstanding by CQC Inspection August 2018
Top 100 places to work in the NHS (NHS Employers & Health Service Journal)
National Preceptorship Accreditation (2023) for Nursing & AHP Preceptorship Programme.

You will be expected to undertake the Trusts' commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults.

Date posted

19 December 2025

Pay scheme

Agenda for change

Band

Band 4

Salary

£27,485 to £30,162 a year per annum, pro rata

Contract

Permanent

Working pattern

Part-time

Reference number

409-7666226

Job locations

Whiston Hospital

Warrington Road

Prescot

L35 5DR

Job description

Job responsibilities

Job description attached in documents.

Will participate in an annual performance review to identify the post-holders personal development needs.

Will present an appearance which gives a poitive image of the Trust and a manner that is appropriate and inspires confidence.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Job description attached in documents.

Will participate in an annual performance review to identify the post-holders personal development needs.

Will present an appearance which gives a poitive image of the Trust and a manner that is appropriate and inspires confidence.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

NVQ level 4 or above in Health and Social care or Similar qualification or relevant experience

Desirable

NVQ assessors certificate

Knowledge and Experience

Essential

Clear knowledge of the discharge process
Awareness of key national and local policies and their impact on practice
Understanding and support of the benefits of clinical supervision and reflective practice

Desirable

Experience in an acute/community setting
Experience in an urgent care setting
Knowledge of nursing assessments and how to perform

Skills

Essential

Ability to communicate both verbal and written
Excellent numeracy and literacy skills
Excellent interpersonal skills
Ability to work both autonomously and as part of a team
Ability to care for patient workload and manage their needs with supervision from registered discharge co-ordinator
Ability to undertake nursing assessments and document clearly
Ability to communicate patient needs to be supporting registered nurse and escalate concerns
Flexible approach to the workplace
Good knowledge of IT systems such as patient databases and Microsoft office suite
Ability to handle sensitive or complex situations and resolve conflict
Excellent negotiation and influencing skills

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

NVQ level 4 or above in Health and Social care or Similar qualification or relevant experience

Desirable

NVQ assessors certificate

Knowledge and Experience

Essential

Clear knowledge of the discharge process
Awareness of key national and local policies and their impact on practice
Understanding and support of the benefits of clinical supervision and reflective practice

Desirable

Experience in an acute/community setting
Experience in an urgent care setting
Knowledge of nursing assessments and how to perform

Skills

Essential

Ability to communicate both verbal and written
Excellent numeracy and literacy skills
Excellent interpersonal skills
Ability to work both autonomously and as part of a team
Ability to care for patient workload and manage their needs with supervision from registered discharge co-ordinator
Ability to undertake nursing assessments and document clearly
Ability to communicate patient needs to be supporting registered nurse and escalate concerns
Flexible approach to the workplace
Good knowledge of IT systems such as patient databases and Microsoft office suite
Ability to handle sensitive or complex situations and resolve conflict
Excellent negotiation and influencing skills

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

Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

Address

Whiston Hospital

Warrington Road

Prescot

L35 5DR

Employer's website

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

Employer details

Employer name

Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

Address

Whiston Hospital

Warrington Road

Prescot

L35 5DR

Employer's website

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