Deputy Mortuary Lead Anatomical Pathology Technician NHS AfC: Band 6

Job overview

An opportunity has arisen at St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals for a qualified Anatomical Pathology Technologist (APT), with substantial experience of working in a mortuary.

The successful applicant will undertake the role of an APT for the purpose of receiving, storing, undertaking an autopsy on and releasing the deceased in line with policy, best practice and the Human Tissue Act, and in support of the Coroner, Pathologists and Police.

In support of, and deputising for, the lead APT and in addition to pathology activities, some of the successful candidates time will be spent on the improvement of the working practice at the site, including the development of the procedures and associated equipment and training. The role also includes stock management and equipment maintenance.

The successful candidate will have significant experience working as an Anatomical Pathology Technologist within a mortuary, will hold the Anatomical Pathology Technology qualification and will have a strong track record of continued professional development. A good understanding of the Human Tissue Act is essential.

Participation in an on call rota is mandatory, for which overtime will be paid.

Interview will be held W/C 18th April 2022

Main duties of the job

The post holder will be responsible for assisting the mortuary section lead with the smooth day-to-day running of the mortuaries within both trusts (SOHT and STHK), to ensure that the workflow and turnaround of all post mortem work is maintained in a timely manner. To carry out routine and advanced post mortem procedures. Prepare deceased for viewing, occasionally reconstruction is necessary and good communication with bereaved families essential. Deceased are received from the Trust and the community and checking the validity of all patients’ details is necessary. APT’s perform, under the auspices of the Coroner and medical staff, a post mortem service delivering high standards of care, maintaining good working relations with all service users, promoting effective team working and the professional image of the Anatomical Pathology service within the Trust.

The role fits into the Pathology team as shown in the table below:

Working for our organisation

St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is the only acute Trust in Cheshire and Merseyside, and one of the few in the entire country, to achieve the title of OUTSTANDING, rated by the Care Quality Commission.

We provide a full range of acute adult services to our local population of circa 360,000 and provide tertiary services across a much wider area in the North West, North Wales and Isle of Man. We are a Major Trauma Unit and the Mersey Regional Burns Unit.

Our ’5 Star Patient Care’ strategy is at the heart of all that we do; supporting our vision to provide world class services for all our patients by getting it right for every patient, every time.

Our latest achievements include:

• Acute Trust of the Year – HSJ Awards November 2019
• Trust rates Outstanding by the CQC – Inspection August 2018
• Top 100 places to work in the NHS (NHS Employers and Health Service Journal)
• Best acute Trust in England for quality of care for the 3rd year running (NHS Staff Survey)

In the NHS Staff Survey 2020 the Trust scored the highest marks in the following areas;

• Quality of care
• Staff engagement
• Support from managers

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

TECHNICAL DUTIES

• Ensure all duties are carried out in compliance with the Human tissue authority (HTA) codes of practice.
• To supervise receipt, storage and release of the deceased completing associated documentation in compliance with current policies.
• Ensure awareness and compliance of patient confidentiality in all grades of staff.
• Ensure all unidentified deceased are appropriately identifiable once identity has been established
• Liaise with the Trust Bereavement Officers, assisting them in the functions of the service dealing with bereaved families.
• Assist, the Coroners Officers and carry out their instructions with regards to all deceased bodies in their remit.
• To assist with hospital post mortems on the instruction of the Consultant Histopathologists or other medical staff.
• To assist with post mortems carried out at the instruction of H M Coroner under the arrangements made with St. Helens & Knowsley Hospitals NHS Trust and Southport and Ormskirk Trust.
• To perform, under supervision of the Consultant Pathologist, relevant post mortem procedures on patients which are in an advanced state of mechanical disruption or decomposition/infestation.
• To prepare the deceased for viewing in a sensitive and respectful manner demonstrating awareness of religious requirements subject to individual risk assessment
• Carry out surgical evisceration, and patient reconstruction processes in the post mortem suite in accordance with mortuary policies to enable identification for Police, viewings for relatives and dignified collection from funeral directors
• Carry out routine and advanced post mortem procedures including specialist techniques e.g. removal of spinal cord, middle ear & pituitary where requested by a consultant histopathologist
• Ensure effective reconstruction and cosmetic presentation of bodies following extreme trauma e.g. Road traffic accident, suicide and persons hit by trains etc.
• Perform invisceration of organs and suturing of bodies at the request of the Consultant Histopathologist or other medical staff on hospital and Coroners post mortems
• Ensure that all tissues taken during post mortem for histological diagnosis are taken according to consent information provided by the coroner
• Remove cardiac implants when required by the hospital and clean them prior to disposal.
• Liaise with the tissue bank teams and assist in the harvest of tissues in line with current Trust agreements, protocols and consent.
• Liaise with the Bereavement Office and funeral directors in respect of sensitive disposal of fetal remains in line with departmental and Trust policies
• To assist in the system for the receipt, handling, and disposal of Products of Conception from the Gynae and Midwifery Services.
• Ensure that high standards of cleanliness and tidiness are maintained in the department at all times in accordance with departmental SOPs and HSE guidelines.
• To maintain equipment on a day-to-day basis in accordance with policies/procedures and in accordance with manufacturer’s guidelines
• Report equipment fault or incidents to the Mortuary manager or in his/her absence the Cellular Pathology manager
• Maintain and control adequate supplies of instruments, stores, linen and consumables.
• To ensure that suitable personal protective clothing and equipment is available for staff and visitors
• Keep up to date with relevant scientific information, trends and developments to assist in the maintenance and development of mortuary procedures
• Maintain an ongoing Professional Portfolio and an up to date Professional Development Plan.
• Provide advice upon the handling of bodies contaminated by way of infection, infestation or radiation
• Assist the Mortuary Section Lead with the writing, implementing and reviewing departmental policies, procedures and protocols
• Work with the Mortuary Section Lead to achieve and maintain full accreditation status with the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) and compliance with the Human Tissue Authority (HTA) ensuring all required documentation relating to equipment, maintenance, training and test procedures are in place
• Assist the Mortuary Section Lead in maintaining a safe and secure mortuary environment by monitoring access to the mortuary in accordance with departmental policy and current Health & Safety Legislation Guidance.

OUT OF HOURS

Take an active role in the out of hours service of the department, duties:

• Home Office post mortems
• Removal of tissues for transplant
• Viewing of bodies which have a high risk of infection
• Restoring bodies badly traumatised in preparation for viewing
• Release of bodies on religious grounds and under exceptional circumstances
• Monitor and organise transfers of bodies to offsite storage facilities and outside mortuaries when necessary, completing all necessary documentation
• Assist in the identification with the Police of the BIDs, ensuring all correct documentation is completed
• Any duties that may be required by the Trust, Home Office or H M Coroner
• The post holder will be required to participate in the delivery of the mortuary service outside core hours. This entails contracted participation on a rotational basis in the department’s ‘on-call’ roster

CLINICAL & PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES

• Maintain and foster the highest possible standards of technical work complying with ISO15189:2012 (UKAS), HTA and Health & Safety standards and regulations.
• Adhere to standards and Code of Practice expected by the Academy of Healthcare Science (AHCS) and Association of Anatomical Pathology Technology (AAPT)
• Keep up to date with relevant scientific information, trends and developments to assist in the maintenance and development of mortuary procedures
• Maintain an on-going Professional Portfolio and an up to date Professional Development Plan.

ADMINISTRATIVE RESPONSIBILITIES

• To ensure that records are kept up to date and stored safely for compliance with

the requirements of UKAS and the HTA.

• To comply with good mortuary practice required for the standards of required for the standards of ISO15189:201 (UKAS), HTA and Health & Safety guidelines
• Assist in the collation of statistics for finance on the total number of bodies within the department with special reference to each Coroner
• Take an active role in departmental annual appraisal, keeping records and amending job roles where necessary
• Participate in audit within the department and collate the statistics from the mortuary database
• Assist in the maintenance of all equipment and instruments, recording on the maintenance logs details of maintenance visits
• Ensure that adequate stocks of consumables and instruments are available and appropriately stored at all times
• Deputise for the Mortuary Lead in their absence

TEACHING & TRAINING RESPONSBILITIES

• Participate in training any current Trainee APTs in accordance with departmental policies and SOPs.
• Assist Trainee APTs in the completion of the Royal Institutes Anatomical Pathology Logbook
• Assist APTs in further training within the department for the Diploma in Anatomical Pathology
• Report identified training need to the Mortuary Section Lead
• Assist the mortuary Section lead in ensuring that all mortuary staff is adequately trained in the use of chemicals, equipment and bio-hazardous materials.
• To attend educational and training courses as required by the departmental manager.

LINE MANAGEMENT/SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Take an active role in departmental annual appraisal, keeping records and amending job roles where necessary with staff appraised.
• Involvement in the recruitment of staff, participating in the selection and interview process.
• Management of Mortuary Standard Operating Procedures using the EQMS system.
• Maintain stocks of reagents and consumables, undertaking monthly checks and placing orders as required.
• Assist, in liaison with the Service Lead and medical lead, all organ retention issues.
• Assist with the management of the Foetal Disposal Policy, ensuring that all correct documentation is completed in liaison with the mortuary and bereavement, including a training schedule for all APT staff.
• Assist with the update and review the departmental COSHH assessments and undertake risk assessments where appropriate following current guidelines.
• Assist with the interpretation of complex information and provide advice and information to service users regarding patient/sample handling, including information on collection conditions for all samples types.
• In the absence of the mortuary lead, adopt a supervisory role within the department, organising the workload in order to deliver the daily workload of the department, meeting and complying with all departmental standards.
• Assist with the coordination of the rotas for all area of the department.
• In the absence of the mortuary lead, allocate work in an appropriate fashion so as to facilitate the most effective and efficient use of resources.

COMMUNICATION AND LEADERSHIP

• Designated named person on the HTA licence
• Nominated HTA co-ordinator between Coroner and families
• Participate in taking consent for post mortem procedure in accordance with the HTA
• Has working partnerships with Consultant Pathologists, Clinicians, Forensic Pathologists, HM Coroner, Police, Funeral Directors and other Healthcare professionals across the trust

FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

• Participate in the department end of year stock take
• To audit, monitor and be responsible for stock control
• Assist with the management of the departments resources in an effective manner so as to achieve a cost-neutral budget
• Shares responsibility for the safekeeping of patient valuables whilst present in the mortuary

RESEARCH & AUDIT

• To participate in research and development, as directed by departmental management

FREEDOM TO ACT

• Manages the operation of the mortuary service when deputizing for the mortuary section Lead
• Recommends changes to standard operating procedures
• Guided by National and Departmental policies, procedures and legal obligations