1. Job
Identification
Title of Post:
Screening Coordinator
Assistant
Period/hours:
6 month Fixed period/
22.5 hrs/week
Grade:
AFC 4
Department:
Public Health Intelligence &
Information Services
Location:
Health Board Offices/ WIH IT
Dept.
Reports to:
Head of Public Health
Intelligence & Info. Services
2. Job Purpose
To support the coordination of screening programmes overseen by the Public
Health Division. This will principally involve support to the Cervical Screening
programme but also Breast, Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm and bowel screening
programmes.
This will involve support in the main for implementation of policies and local initiatives
relating to the cervical and breast and other screening programmes in the Western
Isles NHS.
3. Organisational Position
Head of Public HEalth Intelligence
& Info. Services
AAA Screening Lead
Bowel Screening Lead
(Interim Cervical/Breast Screening Coordinator)
THIS POST
4. Scope and Range
The Public Health Division is responsible for the implementation and smooth running
of a range of national screening programmes. These operate across the entire
Western Isles geographic area covering large and differing elligibile populations.
Cervical Screening = Over 6,000 women aged 20-60 within last 5 years (2564 from 2015)
Breast Screening = Over 4,500 women aged 50-70 in 3 year cycles.
Abdominal Aortic Aneuryism Screening = Over 400 men annually aged 65+
Bowel Screening = Over 5,000 men and women annually aged 50-74
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The screening programmes each have respective standards and key performance
indicators for ensuring a high quality of service is provided across all health boards in
Scotland.
5. Key Duties and Responsibilities
Main Duties/Responsibilities

Work as part of the Public Health multidisciplinary team to ensure the delivery of
high quality screening services.

Support the Screening Coordinator and Programme Leads to manage coordinate
and oversee all aspects of the screening programmes according to National/
Local Standards. This will involve planning and organising of committees/groups
involved in delivery of screening programmes and coordination of specific
initiatives eg. local seminars, campaigns relating to screening programmes.

Under the direction of the Screening Coordinator/Programme Leads assist in the
development of particular aspects of the programme

Process record and store data associated with the programmes which will require
use of range of software tools including spreadsheets and databases.

Work in partnership with others to support the delivery of the programme

Manage poor performance and practice in conjunction with the Screening
Coordinator/Programme Leads and in accordance with health board policies.
This will involve visits to GP Practices to present and share data and discuss
KPIs with screening leads.
Support the Screening Coordinator/Programme Leads to developing strategies to:
 Communicate with clinicians, screening staff, patients, members of the public and
other stakeholders relating to the screening programmes.

Keep the Clinical lead informed of activity and performance of the programme
identifying any difficulties arising and make suggestions for corrective action
when appropriate

Assist with awareness raising of the profile of the screening programmes.
Breast and Cervical Screening specific duties:
To support the coordination and administration of the process for ensuring that all
cervical sample takers in Western Isles GP practices (GPs and nurses) are
adequately trained. This will include:
 Ensuring that the training needs of sample takers new to Western Isles are
assessed
 Signposting sample takers to sources of training and access to update training
sessions
 Developing and maintaining a register of trained sample takers and mentors
 Liason with Call/Recall Office for assigning codes for sample takers.
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
Liaison with the cytology laboratory
To improve coverage of the breast and cervical screening programmes. This
includes:
 Identifying practices with low coverage and working with them and Public Health
Practitioner and Primary Care Manager to investigate the reasons and implement
actions to improve their coverage
 Identifying groups of the population with low coverage and working with others to
investigate the reasons and implement actions to improve their coverage
Support the Screening Coordinator in the efficient running of the Cervical Screening
Steering Group ensuring all action points are followed up in timely manner.
Assist the Screening Coordinator in the preparation of range of reports including
Annual Screening Programme report, regular performance reports and arising from
National Coordinator/Highland screening groups.
AAA Screening:
Support the Bowel screening lead in the management of the programme including
the reporting of national KPIs.
Bowel Screening:
Support the Bowel screening lead in the management of the programme including
the reporting of national KPIs.
Responsibilities for patient/client care
Assist patients/members of the public during occasional contacts relating to
screening programmes.
Assist with medical and patient enquiries as appropriate, and to bring to the attention
of the Lead Clinicians any patient whose condition warrants it which will involve
triaging of patient calls relating to screening issues.
Support the investigation and response to questions and complaints from members
of the public, outside bodies or organizations regarding screening programmes in
accordance with health board policy
Responsibilities for policy and service development implementation
Work with range of professionals to implement policies relating to the cervical and
breast screening programmes..
Work with others as appropriate to develop and implement initiatives to improve
coverage of the cervical and breast screening programmes. In particular, for groups
of the population with low coverage.
Assist and contribute to the development of the screening programmes.
Contribute to policy development in the post holder's areas of responsibility, in
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collaboration with colleagues in other departments of the health board and other
NHS organisations as required.
Responsibilities for financial and physical resources
Observe personal duty of care in relation to equipment and resources used in course
of work which will include personal computers, digital projectors and display material,
video-conferencing equipment, teleconferencing systems, electronic smartboards
and other routine office machinery eg. photocopiers, printers, etc..
Responsibilities for human resources / training and personal development
Provide support to staff working within the screening services
Assist with the training needs of professionals working within the cervical screening
programmes including:



Ensuring that the training needs of sample takers new to Western Isles are
assessed.
Signposting sample takers to sources of training and access to update training
sessions
Developing and maintaining a register of trained sample takers and mentors
Professional/ Personal




Maintaining professional development in line with guidelines and personal
development plan
Compliance with own professional Guidelines & Practice
Compliance with NHS Western Isles Policies and Procedures
Be aware of new advances and current research related to screening
programmes.
6. Communications and Relationships
Key Working Relationships include:
Cervical and Breast screening Coordinator
AAA screening lead
Bowel Screening lead
Public Health Administration Manager
Lead Colposcopist
GPs/Practice Managers and nurses
Call/Recall Officers
Clinical governance
Raigmore Hospital and Western Isles Hospital laboratories
Western Isles Cervical Screening Steering Group
Contraception and Sexual Health services
North of Scotland Breast Screening Programme
Provide verbal and written reports through immediate line manager in relation to
Screening Groups workplans.
Liaise with a range of staff groups and disciplines obtaining advice and/or providing
solutions on complex screening issues eg. advising on screening programme
algorithms for call/recall processes, presenting information on range of performance
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indicators inc. defaulter, eligibility & uptake rates, lab results reporting and agreeing
specification/arrangements for capture and reporting of cancer staging information.
Postholder may need to employ a range of communication techniques in handling
confrontational and/or sensitive subject enquiries.
Assist with raising awareness of screening programmes across population and
targeted groups eg. presenting awareness raising sessions on national programmes
and highlighting local issues with GP Practices and other professional groups.
Comply with NHS Western Isles Communication Strategy and Media Policy.
7. Knowledge, Training and Experience Required to do the Job
Knowledge, Training and Experience
Holds a relevant qualification to HND level or equivalent
experience.
Some experience of liasing with patients/public and/or
professionals on healthcare and clinical subject matter.
The post holder should have a broad experience of
working within healthcare and the ability to provide
direction in information matters within these areas.
Essential

Desirable


The postholder will have good knowledge of the national
screening programmes operating in NHS in Scotland.

Good informatics and IT Skills are required including
competence in the use of spreadsheets, databases, and
associated software.

The postholder will possess excellent team working,
interpersonal, presentation and analytical skills, and be an
innovative thinker

Experience of assisting with the development and delivery
of training for a range of potential users of Information
system and the reporting outputs.
√
Experience of audit and quality issues.

8.Information Resources/Systems
Develop and maintain a database register of trained sample takers.
Assist with data analysis and presentation to ensure the production of all monitoring
and performance reports relating to the Screening Programmes
Ensure appropriate information is available to support the planning and performance
function within the Screening Programmes
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Participate in benchmarking exercises and other tools to ensure the Screening
Programmes are delivering an efficient and effective service
Generate reports and statistics as requested by the Screening Coordinator/ Leads
Prepare reports, presentations, documents and publications
8. Physical, mental and emotional Demands and working conditions of the Job
Physical effort
There will be requirement for accurate and reasonably fast keyboard skills in the
support of various screening groups. Sitting in restricted position at computer based
activities or attendance at meetings is likely to comprise over three quarters of
postholders time. Driving skills will be needed for visiting GP practices on regular
periods. There may be a requirement to exert light physical effort for short periods.
Mental effort
Frequent requirement for concentration for extended periods of time during meetings
in note taking and in undertaking detailed pieces of work at computer. This is likely
to comprise over three quarters of postholders time in such computer based
activities.
Ability to cope with occasional unpredictable demands and manage conflicting
priorities.
Emotional effort
Occasional indirect exposure to distressing or emotional circumstances eg. from
patient enquiries relating to sensitive cancer screening issues.
Working conditions
Occasional requirement to travel to meetings.
Frequent requirement to use computer equipment.
Occasional evening meetings.
9. Decisions and Judgements
Postholder reports directly to the Head of PHIIS whereupon their workload will be
assigned by the Head of PHIIS in his capacity as interim Screening coordinator.
Additional work from leads within other screening programmes will arise which
postholder will prioritise as part of managing their own workload with recourse to
Head PHIIS as required.
Postholder will not be directly supervised and will be expected to use own initiative in
prioritising competing requirements of screening programmes, enquiries from
public/patients and organising the workplan of relevant screening groups.
The post holder plays a key supporting role in decisions relating to the day-to-day
management of the screening programmes and will actively manage the action plan
from relevant screening programme coordinating groups.
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In conjunction with Screening Coordinator/Programme Leads and Steering Group
members, define plans to support the implementation of screening programmes,
based on local/national guidelines and reviews of performance information which
may be complex in nature.
Post-holder must be able to prioritise end-user demands and manage project
priorities, as well as manage a diverse workload without reference to a line manager.
10. Most Challenging / Difficult Parts of the Job



Supporting range of complex screening programmes assisting with provision
of advice and guidance
Presenting complex information to a range of audiences relating to several
screening programmes.
Prioritisation of work to meet pressures and expectations from range of
programmes and respective screening leads.
11. Job Description Agreement
The job description will need to be signed off using the attached sheet by each post
holder to whom the job description applies.
JOB DESCRIPTION AND ESSENTIAL ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FORM – SIGNATURE
OF AGREEMENT
Post Title
Screening Coordinator Assistant
Reference Number
The attached job description and essential additional information will be used as part of the
Agenda for Change assimilation exercise and therefore the job matching panel may wish to
seek further clarification on any issues contained within the documents. Should this be
necessary please identify an appropriate Manager who can be contacted to provide
this clarification.
Responsible Manager
Martin Malcolm,Head PHIIS
Contact No.
01851708055
Signature:
Executive Director
Gordon Jamieson, Chief Executive
Signature:
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