Biomedical Support worker

Job Description

An opportunity has arisen for a polite, friendly and motivated Biomedical Support Worker, who is good with people, to join the Andrology laboratory in the Department of Reproductive Medicine at Saint Mary’s Hospital in Manchester.The Andrology laboratory undertakes a range of fertility investigations and also provides a semen banking service for oncology patients as well as infertility patients and donors. The Department of Reproductive Medicine has a fully NHS funded programme for IVF/ICSI treatments. The UK NEQAS Reproductive Science scheme (National External Quality Assurance Scheme) is run from the Andrology laboratory and currently provides external quality assurance materials to over 300 laboratories worldwide.The Andrology Laboratories have full ISO 15189 accreditation and the Department has been accredited as a training centre by the European Academy of Andrology. With the NHS continuing to change and become more efficient, there is more harmonisation of Andrology services. We are working towards centralising the entire Andrology service to cover the whole of the North West.A Biomedical Support Worker in Andrology is a responsible role where your input will have a direct impact on the team. When working on reception, you will be an important representative of the department as you are the first person that patients, visitors, members of staff from other departments and deliveries come into contact with. You should be friendly and approachable and able to deal with people sensitively, not least as patients may be embarrassed or poorly.Good verbal and written communication skills are essential as you will be required to send appointments out to patients and take referrals from other hospitals for patients to bank sperm. You will be required to explain the procedure to patients, for passing semen samples. Confidentiality of sensitive patient information must be maintained at all times.You will need to be a team player who knows how to co-operate effectively with members of staff from all areas of the department. As part of this role you will collect testicular tissue samples from theatre to bring back to Reproductive Medicine for the Embryology staff to process.We are looking for someone who pays great attention to detail in order to avoid errors, particularly with reference to samples and identification of patients. The ability to closely follow procedures to ensure all specimens meet our sample acceptance policy is also vital and, because you’ll be booking in specimens on the computer, proficiency using IT systems and standard software packages is essential.Another vital part of this role is supporting the laboratory staff in ensuring the smooth and efficient running of the service. You will ensure that consumables are available at all times, reusable equipment is disinfected and cleaned in a timely fashion and the laboratory is kept clean and tidy. You will ensure that the liquid nitrogen tanks are filled regularly. You will assist in internal quality control by logging daily equipment readings and reporting any out of range results to senior staff.The successful applicant will be part of a very friendly team that works closely together to help people achieve the chance of having a baby and gives cancer patients the hope of having a family in the future. For further details / informal visits contact:NameGenette LloydJob titleChief Biomedical ScientistEmail addressgenette.lloyd@mft.nhs.ukTelephone numberAdditional contact informationGenette Lloyd - or genette.lloyd@mft.nhs.uk