Point of Care Testing Associate Practitioner

We have three main hospitals providing acute services to around 330,000 local residents. The organisation also provides specialist tertiary care for cardiac and haematology services, delivers community health services to over 445,000 residents including those in North Lancashire and hosts the National Artificial Eye Service across England. Plus, we provide urgent and emergency care services to an estimated 18 million people who visit the seaside resort each year. We employ over 7000 people from 68 different countries.
We welcome and encourage application from anyone with protected characteristics, as well as supporting reservists and Veterans who are looking for a rewarding and challenging career within the NHS.
Blackpool Teaching Hospitals encourages flexible working in all our roles to support staff in maintaining healthy home-life balance. Working patterns such as: part time working, self-rostering, compressed hours, annualised hours, term time, reverse term time and flexitime working can be explored., The main duties for this role will be to provide training for POCT operators and to audit POCT equipment Trust wide.
Other duties will include analyses of quality control and quality assurance samples, reviewing stock of consumables and facilitating the administration of the quality assurance programmes (collation and recording of results) and data management systems.
The post holders will be required to handle and test patient samples as and when required during their routine duties.

Working for our organisation
The principal duty of the post holder will be to support the provision of a quality POCT service throughout Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (BTHFT). This support includes supporting the implementation of equipment, maintenance of equipment and data management systems, training and quality.
The post holder will work as part of the Point of Care Testing (POCT) Team maintaining good lines of communication and promoting a strong commitment to the department., + To be a member of the BTHFT Trust POCT Team, working across all Trust sites as required.
+ To facilitate safe POCT practice by educating and promoting end-user compliance with POCT Standard Operating Procedures.
+ To monitor performance of POCT devices and facilitate correct functioning by undertaking minor maintenance and troubleshooting procedures.
+ To support the implementation of the policies and procedures authorised and ratified by the Trust POCT Group and the Medical Devices Steering Committee.
+ To promote POCT quality and safety regulations and directives enabling the Trust to meet the requirements of: MHRA guidelines, ISO 22870:2006 standards and relevant CQC and NHSLA standards.
Please refer to attached job description.

An opportunity has arisen for an enthusiastic and motivated individual to join the Point of Care Testing (POCT) team within Blackpool NHS Foundation Trust. Although this post is primarily based at Blackpool Victoria Hospital the successful candidate may be expected to carry out work at other Trust sites when required.
This is an exciting opportunity to take on a role that has been developed as part of the ongoing Trust POCT improvement initiative. We are looking for an individual on a full time basis who has extensive experience working within a Pathology Laboratory or working with POCT devices and methods in a Healthcare setting.
Suitable candidates will require a foundation degree in Healthcare Science or an equivalent qualification or significant experience working in a Healthcare Science laboratory.

Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is situated on the west coast of Lancashire, with services covering the local authority areas of Blackpool, Fylde and Wyre. The Trust is part of the Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care System (ICS) supporting a population of around 1.6 million people.

If the role you have applied for requires a Disclosure and Barring Services (DBS) check we will administer this as part of your pre-employment checks. Please note, you will be required to repay the cost on appointment. This will be collected via a salary deduction. You can choose whether to pay this over 1-3 months from your salary or as a one-off payment on commencement in post. The level of check required depends on the role that you have been offered. Currently the charges are - Basic DBS check £25.50, Standard DBS check £25.50 and Enhanced DBS check £53.50.
You are encouraged where possible, to register for the DBS update service. This is an annual registration fee of £16. By registering for the update service you will not have the additional cost of repeated disclosures.
Should you withdraw your application, you may be required to reimburse the cost of the DBS check.
DBS checks remain free of charge for volunteer positions.
By submitting an application for this vacancy you are confirming your agreement to the above in the event you are successfully appointed.
The DBS Code of Practice can be accessed here.
Please ensure that you read the Person Specification attached below as your application will be judged against this.
Please note that every effort will be made to keep the vacancy live until published closing date, though there may be instances where such interest is generated, that for administrative reasons the post may close earlier.
Please note that in line with national NHS guidelines this Trust operates a strict non-smoking policy. Members of staff are not permitted to smoke on Trust premises or grounds at any time nor take breaks during working hours for the purposes of smoking.
The Trust does not offer interview expenses to shortlisted candidates unless indicated in the advert.