Senior Service Manager

Job summary

The Senior Service Manager has responsibility for managing all aspects of operational delivery within the relevant clinical specialty (Maternity and Gynaecology at the Bedford Site) to agreed quality standards and within the resource and income base available.

Main duties of the job

To ensure that service delivery standards are achieved (for instance, wait time milestones)

Work collaboratively with the General Manager, Clinical Leads, Matron, other Clinical Services, and other colleagues to ensure that service delivery and improvement plans are developed, implemented and reviewed

Ensure that financial controls are established and maintained within the scope of the clinical specialty

Act as a champion for patient safety, operational effectiveness and quality

Work in partnership with colleagues across the Trust to drive the achievement of the Trust's corporate goals and business plan, including the achievement of all the relevant clinical specialties performance standards incorporating quality, safety, contractual, financial and people

Lead by example and act at all times as an ambassador for the Trust, championing the Trust's values and upholding the highest standards of behaviour and compassion for colleagues

About us

Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust provides hospital services to a growing population of around 700,000 people living across Bedfordshire and the surrounding areas across two busy hospital sites in Bedford and Luton. Both hospital sites offer key services such as A&E, Obstetrics-led Maternity and Paediatrics. You will be joining a friendly, high performing Trust committed to ensuring the health and wellbeing of staff. As one of the largest NHS Trusts in our region you will have access to a programme of high quality training and development to help you grow your career. The Trust continues to be committed to delivering the best patient care using the best clinical knowledge and technology.

Our Values

We not only recruit based on qualifications and experience - we recruit individuals who demonstrate the behaviours which underpin our Trusts core values. We achieve this by using values based recruitment. We are dedicated to making our recruitment practices as inclusive as possible for everyone, we are committed to promoting equality and diversity, and creating a culture that values differences.

Please note that vacancies may close prior to the advertised closing date when sufficient number of applications have been received. All new staff will be subject to a probationary period covering first 6 months in post. Travel between hospital sites may be required. Please review all documents attached to ensure you familiarise yourself with all requirements of the job.

Job responsibilities

Key Responsibilities:

Leadership

Provide visible operational leadership to the relevant clinical specialty and promote continual improvement in quality, performance and delivery of Trust objectives

Lead the establishment of accountability structures within the relevant clinical speciality ensuring that responsibility is delegated appropriately so that decisions can be taken as close to service provision as possible

Lead, manage and motivate staff within the relevant clinical speciality to deliver and improve services so meeting the needs of patients

In Conjunction with the General Manager Develop the business and planning processes throughout the relevant clinical specialty to deliver services to required standards and within the available resource base

Develop processes in collaboration with other Operations Managers for the Clinical Service to jointly manage the business, delivery and development of services

Work collaboratively with Business partners to ensure effective financial, quality and workforce planning that meets the needs of both current and future service developments

Ensure that all staff receive appropriate education and training opportunities which supports the workforce strategy and therefore, the strategic aims of the Trust

Service Delivery and Improvement

Ensure the efficient organisation of clinical and non-clinical services within Clinical Specialty, making best use of capacity to deliver activity within the terms of the Trust Service Level Agreements (SLAs) and with cost effective utilisation of staff and non-pay resources

Review national and local policies and assess local service delivery against these in collaboration with the General Manager - where necessary, develop and implement action plans with the clinical service providers to ensure service models meet recommendations and standards (e.g. National Service Frameworks, NICE guidance, Improving Outcomes Guidance etc)

Continually analyses service performance data against regional and national data and taking into account potentially conflicting information develop service improve plans.

Implement patient pathways with clinical staff and colleagues, which deliver best practice and make progress towards achievement of wait time standards and milestones required

Leading the delivery of complex and sometimes competing demand and capacity targets for the Clinical Specialty

To undertake annual business planning and develop long term plans for the Clinical Specialty

Operate as the champion for service modernisation and change sharing best practice, successes and learning across the Group.

Required to keep up to date with research developments in relation to designated service group to ensure the delivery of excellent clinical services

Financial and Performance Management

Operate as accountable budget holder for the relevant clinical specialty budget and be accountable for all pay and non-pay expenditure

Ensure that budgets are managed in accordance with the Trusts Standing Financial Instructions, working collaboratively with the Finance lead, taking action where necessary to prevent or address variance in performance, and to incorporate recommendations of internal and external audit

Ensure the clinical specialty meets the required performance standards

Share and communicate performance indicators and level of performance throughout the relevant clinical specialties, taking action where required to address variance from the standard/milestone

Ensure that unplanned variation in service delivery (activity, income, expenditure, capacity, performance) is identified and appropriate, timely action taken

Communicate the terms of the SLA throughout the relevant clinical speciality as required for proactive and sound financial management

Work collaboratively with the General Manager to lead the relevant clinical specialty in the development of cost improvement plans and their implementation as part of financial recovery processes

Create formal reports on service delivery performance and improvement to be shared trust wide and with external partners

Develop capital and/or revenue business cases for submission to the General Manager for the Programme Investment Group

The Clinical Service Manager will lead on the development, implementation, establishment and review of performance management systems within the relevant clinical specialty it is critical that this is done collaboratively with other clinical specialties within the Group.

Risk Management and Governance

Lead a culture within Clinical Specialty that ensures that all medical, clinical and

operational employees comply with Trust Infection Control policies and clinical guidelines

Support the Head of Nursing and General Manager, Matron and Clinical Lead in the

delivery of the governance plan for Clinical Specialty and performance management systems are in place

Work collaboratively with colleagues to ensure that all risks are identified and included as appropriate on the organisational risk register and are progressed appropriately to reduce the risk profile

Work collaboratively with colleagues to address complaints and incidents appropriately lead the learning from such events to ensure that learning is achieved across Clinical Specialty

Application of Knowledge

At all times the post holder should use their professional management knowledge and experience to assess, plan, evaluate and judge the appropriate interventions

The post holder should maintain their knowledge of changes in the NHS and in wider industry to enable and direct services to respond to changing requirements and securing best practice.

Aspire to expand the application of service improvement techniques within the clinical service lines, including QSAR, process analysis and project management discipline.

Ensure a good knowledge of the key operational and quality policies and procedures to maintain compliance with these at all times and contribute to development of policies and procedures as needed.

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Educated to Degree level or equivalent experience supplemented by diploma level specialist training
• oManagement/leadership qualification or equivalent experience at post graduate level

Desirable

• Project Management Qualification

Experience

Essential

• Proven experience of working in a management/leadership role
• Experience of managing , leading and motivating a team
• Leading service changes to improve performance

Knowedge

Essential

• oFinancial procedures including budget setting and working knowledge of financial processes
• Risk management and governance

Desirable

• NHS IT system experience

Personal Skills

Essential

• Good analytical and problem solving skills --ability to analyse highly complex data/information and make judgements/draw conclusions -- including ability to respond to unexpected demands
• Strong communication skills both written and verbal
• Ability to organise and prioritise own workload and direct the work others and adjust plans as required both in the short and long term