Access Booking Officer | Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

Posting date:	19 March 2026
Salary:	Not specified
Additional salary information:	£24,937 - £26,598 Per Annum
Hours:	Full time
Closing date:	18 April 2026
Location:	Ormskirk, L39 2AZ
Company:	St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
Job type:	Permanent
Job reference:	7885800/409-7727317-A

Summary

We are seeking a motivated and well‑organised individual to join our Access Centre team as an Access Booking Officer. This is a key administrative role where you will play an essential part in ensuring patients are booked promptly, accurately, and appropriately for Inpatient appointments and diagnostic procedures across Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.

Based at Ormskirk District General Hospital, you will work closely with team leaders, clinical staff, and administrative colleagues to coordinate daily outpatient bookings in line with clinical priorities, national waiting‑time standards, and service requirements. You will be responsible for managing patient pathways from referral through to appointment, ensuring that all bookings are handled with accuracy, professionalism, and a strong focus on patient experience.

Interview date to be confirmed.

Previous applicants need not apply.

The role requires excellent communication skills, strong attention to detail, and the ability to manage a busy and varied workload independently. You will often be the first point of contact for patients and their families, providing clear information, reassurance, and support to help them navigate their care journey.

This position offers the opportunity to make a meaningful and visible contribution to patient care. Your work will directly support the Trust’s commitment to delivering Five Star Patient Care to a population of more than 600,000 people across Merseyside, West Lancashire, and the surrounding areas. As part of a supportive and dedicated team, you will play a vital role in ensuring patients receive timely access to the services they need.

Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust serves a population of over 600,000 with a workforce of over 9000 dedicated and skilled staff across 21 sites.

We strongly believe that the communities we serve should all have access to Five Star Patient Care.

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, freeing up space for more unwell patients. 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

Patient Access & Coordination
• Deliver a comprehensive inpatient and outpatient booking service, rotating across all areas of the Access Office to ensure full service coverage.
• Act as a named point of contact for patients, relatives, carers, and clinical teams, providing clear and timely communication in person, by phone, in writing, or electronically.
• Add patients accurately to waiting lists, ensuring all relevant clinical and administrative notes are recorded.
• Provide patients with guidance relating to their admission, including pre‑ and post‑operative information and updates on their waiting‑list position.
• Liaise with Bed Management teams regarding stand‑by patients or cancellations due to capacity issues.

Theatre & Procedure List Management
• Plan multiple theatre and procedure lists up to six weeks in advance, using clinical knowledge and medical terminology to support 18‑week RTT, diagnostic, cancer, and 28‑day rescheduling targets.
• Ensure theatre lists are fully and efficiently utilised, taking into account patient needs, cancellations, short‑notice changes, and clinical requirements.
• Communicate all updates relating to elective admissions, theatre lists, kit requirements, and anaesthetic needs to relevant staff across the Trust.
• Confirm appropriate funding is in place before admission where required.
• Enter all confirmed bookings onto the theatre system (Galaxy) promptly and ensure finalised lists are circulated to secretaries within required timescales.

Outpatient Booking & Referral Management
• Manage all outpatient waiting lists and appoint patients from PTLs in line with Trust performance standards.
• Register referral letters and ensure all referrals (including ERS) are directed to the correct consultant or clinic.
• Book new and follow‑up appointments in accordance with departmental procedures and agreed timescales.
• Manage clinic cancellations or reductions on PAS and ERS, ensuring patients are rebooked appropriately.
• Maintain and update clinic templates in line with changes to medical rotas.
• Oversee ERS appointments, including patient‑initiated cancellations, ASIs, and capacity escalations.
• Manage partial booking lists and escalate issues to operational teams when required.
• Process ward forms to ensure follow‑up appointments are arranged or escalated.
• Record attendances retrospectively when patients are seen outside of clinic.

Communication & Patient Support
• Handle patient enquiries with empathy, professionalism, and confidence, offering reassurance and clear information.
• Support patients who may face communication barriers due to language, cultural differences, age, or additional needs, using tact and negotiation to agree suitable appointment or procedure dates.
• Communicate sensitive or unpleasant information in a compassionate and supportive manner.

Performance, Compliance & Data Quality
• Monitor waiting lists proactively, identifying and resolving issues that may lead to breaches of access targets.
• Analyse waiting‑list data regularly and escalate capacity concerns promptly.
• Ensure full compliance with two‑week‑wait standards for suspected cancer referrals.
• Maintain high standards of data quality when inputting, extracting, and producing information across Trust systems.
• Work within established policies, procedures, and escalation processes to support efficient, patient‑centred service delivery.

Teamwork, Training & Service Support
• Work flexibly to support colleagues during periods of leave or increased service demand.
• Assist with the training and induction of new staff, offering ongoing support with workload coordination.
• Contribute to departmental meetings, providing updates on consultant activity and waiting‑time reductions.
• Use Trust resources responsibly, ensuring minimal waste and cost‑effective working.
• Attend weekly operational meetings to discuss capacity, provide updates, and support problem‑solving.
• Generate and send all relevant letters and information leaflets for both paper and electronic referrals.
• Manage shared email inboxes and main telephone lines on a rotational basis.

Professional Development
• Maintain up‑to‑date mandatory training.
• Participate in annual appraisal and agree a personal development plan aligned with Trust objectives.
• Seek support from supervisors if challenges arise in meeting development goals.
• Engage with opportunities for learning and development provided by the Trust


This advert closes on Thursday 2 Apr 2026

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