Medical Laboratory Assistant

The role is to undertake general laboratory reception duties to include the sorting, labelling and racking of specimens and patient data entry onto the laboratory computer system and also the processing of these specimens, in the busy Microbiology Department.

Applicants should be methodical, flexible and be able to work 7 days a week on rotation with their colleagues. Weekend, early and late shifts are rostered, working up to 10pm on a late shift, with the laboratory being open and operational 24/7.

The post holder is expected to work as part of a team in the Microbiology laboratory, both within sample reception and the main laboratory. After training they will be required to carry out basic laboratory procedures, accepting receipt and processing diagnostic specimens. Concentration and attention to detail are essential to these processes and form the greater part of the working day.

The post holder will offer a helpful and professional service to all visitors and telephone callers and will assist the Department of Microbiology in the provision of a highly quality service.

The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust is one of the largest NHS trusts in the West Midlands providing primary, acute and community services and we are incredibly proud of the diversity of both our staff and the communities we serve. We are building a workforce that can help us to fulfil our values, improve quality of care for patients, and solve the health care problems of tomorrow.

We re passionate about the value that diversity of thinking and lived experience brings in enabling us to become a learning organisation and leader in delivering compassionate care for our patients.

We are delighted that we have been rated as "Good" by CQC. We have achieved numerous awards;
The Nursing Times Best Diversity and Inclusion Practice and Best UK Employer of the Year for Nursing Staff in 2020.The Trust is a supportive working environment committed to creating flexible working arrangements that suit your needs and as such will consider all requests from applicants who wish to work flexibly.

Provide practical training in procedures within own area for new staff.

Undertake laboratory specimen reception duties; sorting specimens and request forms in an orderly and efficient manner.

Cleaning and disinfection of laboratory materials and equipment.

Replenishing stocks of laboratory consumables.

Safe disposal of laboratory waste.

Operation of automated sample-processing and sterilization equipment requiring regular physical effort.

Maintenance of certain laboratory instruments and updating quality control records and referring any inconsistencies to supervisors e.g. Biomedical Scientists.

To accept and unload deliveries from suppliers.

Other duties as required by Microbiology sections.

To see full list of duties and main responsibilities, please refer to the full job description attached to the vacancy on the Trust website.

• Experience of dealing with pathology samples
• Experience of working in a Microbiology Laboratory
• IT Literate
• Able to work in a busy environment and concentrate on your own work
• Evidence of excellent written and verbal english.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.