Telephony Supervisor

Introduction:

The hospital switch room operates on a 24/7 basis handling all incoming and outgoing calls of which 60 % of the calls are out of hours.   The switch room is the first point of contact that patients, visitors, relatives and other hospitals engage with when communicating with the hospital and in particular following direct communication from the hospital on appointments/waiting lists/validation exercises. All TSD alarms are currently managed by the switch board together with MIP call out system, fire call out system and cardiac arrest.   There is a critical need to guarantee a staffed service for this front-line service and ensuring all calls are managed in a timely and efficient manner.  Furthermore, all urgent calls to the Hospital of a clinical need are handled and if not can potentially lead to a clinical risk for patients. 

Job Summary:

This post will provide support to the Telephony Manager in delivering a high quality service to patients, staff and external stakeholders.  In the absence of the Telephony Manager the post holder will deputise on behalf of the Telephony Manager to ensure the smooth running of the telephony department and the management of all telephony staff assigned to the Department. The post holder will provide leadership to the telephony staff employed by Beaumont Hospital, ensuring that policies/ procedures and service level agreements are adhered to and in so doing ensuring a quality service to patients and service users by ensuring all calls are managed in a timely and efficient manner which will also include   a working telephony role.   

The Telephony Supervisor in conjunction with the Telephony Manager will be expected to contribute to the overall running and development of the department, keep senior management updated on all issues that affect the department or the hospital in general.

Key Duties & Responsibilities:

Operational Duties

• Undertake normal duties and responsibilities of a telephonist in addition to a number of other duties
• Operate the switchboard and paging system in accordance with the standard procedures laid down by the hospital
• Answer and direct all internal and external calls to the Hospital in a timely manner
• Provide on the job training to all telephony staff and provide refresher training on the role of the hospital telephonist when required
• Responsible for initiating responses to internal incidents and plan which involves contacting the fire services and activating the rapid response teams
• Responsible for initiating responses to the hospital’s Major Incident Plan by validating the incident with the Emergency Department’s staff on duty and subsequently activating the Major Incident Plan
• Identify and immediately respond to the various daily emergency calls, and follow the associated hospital procedures, for example: Cardiac Arrest and FAST protocols
• Responsible for the monitoring of alarms i.e. medical gases, fire alarms, building management alarms and lift malfunctions etc
• In the absence of the Telephony Manager, deputise for the Telephony Manager as directed to ensure the operational responsibility for the switch board services
• Ensuring the availability of batteries for dect phones and bleep services
• Ensure all staff are aware of the internal and external emergency systems and their role in same and participating in the active testing of these systems
• Ensure an efficient service is provided at all times
• Ensure medical on-call lists are available to staff in conjunction with the Medical Manpower Department
• In conjunction with the Telephony Manager review and prepare staff rosters in a timely manner to ensure service requirements for the hospital and ensure staff have adequate notice of shifts
• In conjunction with the Telephony Manager review and approval of annual leave requests based on service provision and adequate staffing levels
• In conjunction with the Telephony Manager submit fortnightly and monthly payroll returns to the Payroll Department within the timelines laid down and are within guidelines for unsocial hours/ bank holidays etc.
• In conjunction with the Telephony Manager submit fortnightly and monthly absenteeism returns to the Human Resources Department within the timelines laid down
• Update all internal phone lines in conjunction with the IT Department and service providers
• Liaise with the infrastructure service providers as necessary to ensure all faults / repairs are logged and rectified in a timely manner

Staff Supervisory Management

• Key role is ensuring the training of all new staff on the role of the hospital telephonist and refresher training when required
• Responsibility for the management and supervision of all telephony staff
• Responsibility for the telephony staff within the department and monitor performance of same
• Ensure that all Human Resources Policies and Procedures are adhered to, including managing attendance
• Ensure all hospital Policies and Procedures are adhered to
• Work as part of the telephony team in ensuring an efficient and quality service to patients, staff and public.

General Duties:

• As a member of the General Services Division support other services when required through cross cover/ mentoring/ deputising as required.
• In conjunction with the Deputy General Services Manager respond to complaints/ PQ’s/ FOI requests in a timely manner.
• In conjunction with the Telephony Manager review existing Standard Operating Procedures and the devising of new SOP’s were required
• Co-operation and keep abreast of new equipment, technology, methods and techniques for the implementation and provision of an enhanced service.
• Monitoring the quality of the telephone and voice communication service with a view to introducing improvements where possible.
• Undertake other administrative work when required consistent with the grading of the post.
• To perform such other duties appropriate to the office as may from time to time be required by the Beaumont Hospital Board

The job description is an outline of the post as it is currently perceived by the hospital and will be subject to review and amendment. This job description will therefore be subject to change in light of the various strategies for the hospital and the development of the Clinical Directorate model and any future developments that arise and will evolve and change over time.

Selection Criteria: 

Selection criteria outline the qualifications, skills, knowledge and/or experience that the successful candidate would need to demonstrate for successful discharge of the responsibilities of the post. 

Applications will be assessed on the basis of how well candidates satisfy these criteria.

Mandatory:

1. Professional Qualifications, Experience, etc

(a) Eligible applicants will be those who on the closing date for the competition:

(i) Have satisfactory experience as a Clerical Officer in the HSE, TUSLA, other statutory

health agencies, or a body which provides services on behalf of the HSE under Section

38 of the Health Act 2004.

Or

(ii) Have obtained a pass (Grade D) in at least five subjects from the approved list of subjects

in the Department of Education Leaving Certificate Examination, including

Mathematics and English or Irish1. Candidates should have obtained at least Grade C on higher level papers in three subjects in that examination.

Or

(iii) Have completed a relevant examination at a comparable standard in any equivalent

examination in another jurisdiction

Or

(iv) Hold a comparable and relevant third level qualification of at least level 6 on the

National Qualifications Framework maintained by Qualifications and Quality Ireland,

(QQI).

Note1:

Candidates must achieve a pass in Ordinary or Higher level papers. A pass in a foundation level paper is not acceptable.

Candidates must have achieved these grades on the Leaving Certificate Established programme or the Leaving Certificate Vocational programme.

The Leaving Certification Applied Programme does not fulfil the eligibility criteria.

and

(b) Candidates must possess the requisite knowledge and ability, including a high standard of suitability, for the proper discharge of the office.

Desirable / Role Specific Requirements:

• Computer Skills
• Telephonist experience in operating a busy switchboard and paging system in an acute hospital setting
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
• Strong organisational and time management skills
• Possess sufficient administrative capacity to discharge the functions of the grade
• Experience in the supervision and management of staff is desirable

If an appointee has previously been employed in the Civil or Public Service and that appointee is entitled to or in receipt of a pension from the Civil or Public Service or where a Civil/ Public Service pension comes into payment during the appointee’s re-employment that pension will be subject to abatement in accordance with Section 52 of the Public Service Pensions (Single Scheme and other Provisions) Act 2012.

Please note: In applying for this position you are acknowledging that you understand that the abatement provisions, where relevant, will apply. It is not envisaged that the employing Department/ Office/ Body will support an application for an abatement waiver in respect of appointments to this position.

Please be aware that Beaumont Hospital will never ask candidates to pay money at any stage of the recruitment process. Any requests for payment, bank details, or financial information in connection with a job application should be treated as fraudulent. If you receive such a request claiming to be from Beaumont Hospital, please do not respond and report to the recruitment department immediately

Informal Enquiries ONLY to: (Please note NO APPLICATIONS will be accepted via the Informal Email)