Access Booking Officer | Mersey and West Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

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 outpatient 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. 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.

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.
• 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 re‑booked 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 elevate 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.
• 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.
• Monitor waiting lists proactively, identifying and resolving issues that may lead to breaches of access targets.
• Analyse waiting‑list data regularly and elevate capacity concerns promptly.
• Guarantee 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.
• Work flexibly to support colleagues during periods of leave or increased…