Provide Reception Services free essay sample

Provide Reception Services The purpose of the receptionist role is to represent the trust and give the patients the first impression of the NHS as they are the first point of contact between the patient and the organization. It is vital to present a positive self-image and a good representation of the trust because we want people to come back and use the services again and give the trust a good name. We can display a positive self-image by being attentive, well dressed, having good body language, a friendly attitude, being helpful and always being polite. The structure and lines of communication in an organization starts with the board of directors, then line managers and heads of departments then the other workers. The structure in an organization affects lines of communication because we need people to take more responsibility of the organization and the line managers need to be in subjection to someone which is what the board of directors is for. We will write a custom essay sample on Provide Reception Services or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page Everybody who works for the trust is responsible for security in some way. We should never allow anyone to go through a secure area if they do not have a badge, we should always question who they are and if they do not have a staff badge we should make them use an intercom to pass through secure areas. Receptionists at times can issue visitor badges for people who are staying for a long period of time which will allow all other members of staff to know who they are and that they are there for an intended purpose. As well as security, confidentiality is one of the most important things within the organization. It is vital to build up trust between the organization and the patients, so we would never unnecessarily discuss a patients records or ever leave there confidential information out where anyone would see it. We also use confidential waste bags to get rid of confidential information, and all our pc’s are password protected so only specific users can access them. The purpose of health and safety procedures is to reduce the amount of risks and hazards in a reception area and to keep the patients and staff safe. To carry out health and safety procedures in a reception area we need to make sure that no fire exits are blocked and all members of staff need to know where the fire exits are and know the procedure in case there is a fire. The procedure if the fire alarm goes off is firstly check the panel to see where the fire is, check the room to confirm, ring 333 to confirm which room the fire is in, evacuate the building and then close the doors. If the fire is iscovered but there is no alarm sounding we should shout, then break the alarm glass, try to put the fire out and then try to contain the fire in the room by closing the doors. The receptionist’s role within these procedures is to calmly evacuate all the patients and report the fire, the patients should be our first priority. It is also our responsibility to report any hazards such as lights not working, any faulty equipment, and dangerous wires running across floors or anything at all that someone could trip over to estates. There can be many types of problems with aggressive visitors. Because of security we have to be careful as to who we are letting on the wards, therefore we might not allow a certain visitor to have access to the wards which could lead to them becoming abusive towards the receptionist. The visitors are much more likely to get aggressive if they have relatives who are staying in the hospital, and they could be very emotional about this especially if they think there relative is not getting the attention, or care that they need. In this kind of situation the receptionist should always remain calm, because getting angry or shouting at the visitor is only going to make them more aggressive. We need to make sure that we know what they are upset about and do our best to explain to them what is going on. If the visitor is in danger of becoming physically abusive the receptionist should make sure to keep at least an arms distance away from the person, or make sure there is some kind of barrier between them. If you are alone with the visitor, and they are becoming violent that is the appropriate time to alert security, or make sure you have another member of staff with you. We should always suggest appropriate ideas for improving the reception areas because it is the first place that the patients see. By improving the reception area the patients will have a positive view of the trust and are more likely to tell other people that we are a great organization and will choose to come back to this hospital. By carrying out additional duties that may not be in our job specification can benefit the trust greatly and add to our good image. For example if a patient’s appointment is delayed and they have been waiting for a while we could offer them a drink. Or if we see a visitor that looks lost we can ask them if they need any help, these types of extra duties are what the clients will remember the organization for. We will promote a friendly and helpful attitude and represent the organization highly.