Anatomical Pathology Technologist: Sponsorship Available

Job Summary

To work as part of a team providing support to mortuary and postmortem service which provides a facility to both the hospital and local community following current local policies and procedures.

Provide general and / or technical assistance to other levels of technical staff, visiting Pathologists, Coroners officers, Relatives and Funeral Directors.

Support the bereavement and Coroners service by, preparing the deceased for viewings / identifications; maintain good professional and empathetic communication with bereaved families.

The team works together to deliver a service which enables high standards of care to be met all times this includes maintaining good working relationships with all other users of the service on a daily basis or during the out of hours service provided

Main duties of the job

To work as a key member of the mortuary team by supporting the Mortuary Manager and Senior Anatomical Pathology Technologist in providing an efficient effective mortuary and bereavement service to both WWL and the local borough community.

About us

Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust are the proud providers of acute hospital and community services to the people of the Wigan Borough and surrounding areas. At WWL, we value our staff believing that ‘happy staff, makes for happy patients’. We have a recognised track record in staff engagement, and living our values ‘the WWL Way’.

WWL are committed to placing the patient at the heart of everything we do, and in the provision of safe, effective care that acknowledges and ensures dignity. With this in mind we are seeking to recruit people who share our values and beliefs.

Job description

Job responsibilities

Planning and Organisational Duties

• To assist with the technical aspects of the mortuary service ensuring excellent standards are achieved and maintained at all times.
• To assist with admissions, storage and discharges of all deceased patients ensuring that dignity and respect is maintained at all times.
• Maintain deceased patient records and the completion of any associated documentation in line with current trust and departmental policies.
• Ensure all deceased have been appropriately identified following current mortuary and HTA procedures until discharge from the mortuary.
• Ensure awareness and compliance of data protection and patient confidentiality
• Under the supervision of the Pathologist carry out surgical evisceration in the postmortem suite for both routine and high risk postmortems, have the ability to deal with disfigured / trauma and putrefied deceased and carry out routine procedures
• Ensure that patient reconstruction is appropriately followed in accordance with mortuary policies and HTA compliance to enable identification and viewing of the deceased afterwards
• Act as a circulator in advanced/ high risk postmortems when required
• To partake in viewing and identification processes by relatives, including preparation of the deceased is able to demonstrate awareness of any religious requirements and maintain the area for viewing and identification.
• Prepares specimens for preservation and documentation for further examination e.g. Histology, microbiology, toxicology etc. in accordance with standard protocols and Coroners instruction
• Care of disfigured bodies of deceased patients arriving from the community. Seeking advice and authority from the coroner or police officer in charge when needed and ensuring safe care of custody procedures are followed to protect tissues and any forensic evidence.
• Participate in the organisation of body release and or viewing appointments
• Collaborates with all other users of the mortuaries to ensure all Health and Safety regulations are complied with.
• Participation in the out of hours service for Local Authorities, Coroner and Police.

Communications and Key Working Relationships

• Has working partnerships with Consultant Pathologists, Clinicians, HM Coroner, the Police, Funeral Directors and other Healthcare professionals across the Trust, Including the Bereavement officer and Medical Examiner Service by assisting them to carry out their role or duties with regards to the deceased in the mortuary.
• To liaise with other departments within the Trust to ensure effective and efficient service provision.
• Liaise with NHSBT and provide assistance to visiting tissue bank teams when attending to harvest tissues
• To liaise with recognised authorities for the removal and transportation of human tissues to specialist diagnostic centres.
• Provide advice to nurses, doctors or funeral directors etc. when handling a deceased with a known or suspected infection etc.
• Use various methods of communication, written, email, telephone, scanning to facilitate service provision
• Process routine / non routine requests confidently and confidentially, requiring the post holder to use their own judgement and initiative where needed
• Report any process or system failures through to the line manager
• Ensure the accurate recording of patient information and related data onto the Ulysses database & CSC system
• Gather information for the reception of deceased from wards and community, preparing relevant information required for entry onto the Ulysses database
• Recording information for technicians and pathologists in preparation for PM reports.
• Any other duties appropriate to the grade.
• To ensure that relatives are supported during the viewing process, offered advice if requested, and treated with courtesy and consideration at all times

Responsibility for Finance

• As a team maintain equipment in accordance with policies and procedures and manufacturers guidelines.
• To monitor and store consumables and reagents.
• Use departmental resources in a cost-effective manner.
• Shares responsibility for the safekeeping of patient valuables whilst present in the mortuary.

Responsibility for Human Resources

• To comply with all personnel and other official and operational policies of the Mortuary Department and of the Trust.
• To participate in the Trust Individual Performance Review or appraisal schemes
• Keep up to date with relevant scientific information, trends and developments to assist in the maintenance and updates of mortuary procedures.
• Named Designated Person for the HTA Licence To be compliant with all mandatory training

Responsibility for Health & Safety

• Compliance with the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974 the post holder is required to fulfil a proactive role towards the management of risk in all of their actions. This entails the risk assessment of all situations, the taking of appropriate actions and reporting of all incidents, near misses and hazards, and a statutory duty of care for their own personal safety and that of others who may be affected by their acts or omissions.
• Report any item of mortuary equipment for repair to appropriate department or senior staff
• To comply with all Health and Safety issues taking a proactive role by managing the health and safety of themselves and others at all times where practicably possible.
• Moving and handling of deceased using appropriate manual handling techniques and equipment.
• To take individual responsibility for managing risks within own working environment, complying with Trust regulations around reporting and managing risk reduction strategies
• Report any hazards, accidents, damages or potential risks to line manager
• Participates in full cleaning programme of mortuary and post-mortem facilities
• Ensure suitable protective clothing and equipment is available for all staff and visitors

Responsibility for Teaching

• To be involved in any job-related training in order to maintain quality standards including e-mandatory training.
• To have a good understanding of the Hospital information system and other Trust Information systems.
• To maintain personal administration competency and professionalism by following recognised professional routes and attend educational and training courses and gain CPD credits as appropriate to the role
• You will be openly expected to share knowledge and experience with colleagues.

Work Circumstances & on-call

• Working in a highly emotive and distressing environment, with periods of high demanding work of an unpleasant nature i.e. deaths due to disfigurement / poor preservation, suicides, accidents etc.
• Necessity to deal with highly emotive bereaved relatives when attending the mortuary to identify of view deceased loved ones.
• Participates in the out of hours service for H.M.Coroner and Local Authority.
• Across site working to deliver the mortuary service outside core hours this entails contracted participation on a rotational basis in the departments on call roster