Job description: Healthcare assistant

This job description is a template. It should be used as a guide and edited according to the specific needs of the practice and the duties required of the post.

Job summary and scope

The healthcare assistant is responsible for assisting the clinical staff with patient care, general clinical support and administration, within the boundaries of the role.

This will include but is not limited to direct patient-facing tasks, supporting nursing staff in consultations, ensuring the clinical environment and work areas are safe, infection control tasks, supplies management and maintaining equipment.

The healthcare assistant will work collaboratively with the practice team, performing tasks as required by the practice nurse and clinical team, within the practice’s policy and procedures, and to a defined set of competencies.

Key responsibilities – clinical

Caring for patients

• Conduct new patient health checks
• Carry out testing/screening, including (but not limited to):
  • Urine testing/analysis
  • Blood pressure measurement/monitoring
  • ECG
  • Height, weight measurement
  • Audio testing
  • Spirometry
• Support the practice nurse with setting up for and observing (where appropriate):
• Minor surgery procedures, including joint injections
• Uncomplicated wound dressings
• IUD insertion and removal
• Implanon insertion and removal
• Cervical smear screening
• Medicals
• On the basis of a patient-specific direction and with signed authorisation, administer vaccinations and injections, including:
  • Pertussis immunisation for pregnant women
  • Flu immunisation
  • Pneumococcal immunisation
  • Vitamin B injections
• Provide information and advice to support patients to adopt healthy lifestyles
• Chaperoning
• Perform other clinical duties as required and in line with the healthcare assistant’s competencies

Communication with patients and colleagues

• Ensure patients and carers are aware of and acknowledge the healthcare assistant role, including its scope and limits
• Advise and process referrals for patients who need to be seen by a nurse, GP or other appropriate member of the clinical team
• Raise issues relating to patient registration and clinical concerns, and any matters of uncertainty, with the practice nurse or clinical team in a timely manner
• Use communication that is appropriate to the situation, including:
  • Communicating sensitively with patients and carers who have received bad news
• Adopt appropriate communication methods to suit patients’ and carers’ level of understanding, cultural/language needs, and preferred communication method
• Recognise and overcome barriers to communication, and seek support from other staff members where necessary

Key responsibilities – non-clinical

Administrative and practice-related duties

• Accurate record-keeping, including (but not limited to):
  • Making and maintaining accurate, contemporaneous records of encounters with patients
  • Supporting the nursing team to keep and maintain accurate records, such as clinical, administrative, and health and safety
• Use the patient appointment system and update/maintain skills as required
• Maintain a safe working environment in accordance with health and safety protocol, including (but not limited to):
  • Helping to keep clinical and non-clinical working areas tidy and free of hazards, minimising the risk to everyone in the practice
  • Adhering to policies relating to infection control, cold chain, spillages, decontamination, and handling/disposal of sharps, clinical waste and specimens, etc
  • Identifying and reporting hazards and risks, and supporting staff to implement control measures
  • Using protective equipment and clothing in accordance with policy
  • Maintaining up-to-date knowledge on health and safety protocol, including attending training when required
• Perform other non-clinical duties as required, in line with the healthcare assistant’s competencies.
• Ensure sufficient supplies of all cleansing and infection control materials
• Maintenance of stock and supplies, including clinical supplies, vaccines, health information literature etc, and provide timely and accurate purchasing records to the practice manager
• Maintenance of clinical equipment, including contributing to the care and calibration of equipment, managing repairs and regular maintenance, and ensuring accurate record-keeping
• Perform other non-clinical duties as required, within the scope of the practice nurse’s competencies and training

Stock and equipment management

• Manage clinical supplies and stock levels, including (but not limited to):
  • Checking and maintaining a record of stock levels in clinical rooms
  • Ordering replacement and new stock items, including restocking clinical rooms and maintaining stock rotation
  • Maintaining stock of health information literature and keeping displays up to date
  • Maintaining accurate stock and ordering records, and providing documentation to the practice manager for invoice checking
• Support clinical staff in equipment maintenance, including (but not limited to):
  • Cleaning and maintaining equipment in accordance with infection control policy
  • Organising repairs, maintenance and calibration of equipment, and keeping corresponding records
  • Keeping clinical fridges clean, recording temperatures and reporting variations in required temperature ranges

Personal and professional development

• Prioritise own workload and collaborate effectively with others to prioritise team and practice workload
• Undertake training as required to ensure competencies for delivering all responsibilities, including attending and contributing to in-house training
• Take responsibility for own development, including contributing to appraisals, giving and receiving feedback, and performance management under the supervision of the practice nurse and other appropriately qualified staff
• Undertake regular mandatory training, such as relating to emergency life support, manual lifting and handling, safeguarding vulnerable patients, child protection, etc

Other important aspects of the role

Maintaining confidentiality

The healthcare assistant will, as an integral part of and in the course of carrying out his/her role, have access to confidential and sometimes sensitive information relating to patients, carers and family members, as well as similar information about colleagues. The healthcare assistant might also have access to confidential commercial information about the practice and its business.

All such information, in whatever format and howsoever made available, must be treated with the strictest confidence. All such information held both within and outside of the practice will be shared only as necessary, and in accordance with the practice’s confidentiality/data-sharing policies, and in line with data protection legislation and the Freedom of Information Act.

Equality and diversity

The healthcare assistant will comply with the practice’s own equality and diversity policy, and legislation relating to equality and diversity, including (but not limited to):

• Recognising the rights of patients, carers, family members and colleagues, and respecting their needs, beliefs, privacy and dignity
• Not discriminating against patients, carers, family members or colleagues on the grounds of any of the protected characteristics in the Equality Act 2010 (or its amendments or later legislation)
• Supporting people who need help understanding and exercising their rights
• Acting as a role model in relation to promoting equality, diversity and non-discriminatory practices
• Identifying discriminatory practices and patterns of discrimination, taking appropriate action to tackle it, and instead promoting equality
• Complying with, promoting and evaluating chaperoning policies
• Recognising and promoting the right of patients to choose their care provider, and to participate in or refuse care

Key relationships and contacts

Looking to fill a vacancy at your practice? Contact the Pulse Practice Jobs team on 020 7214 0570, or email [email protected]