Unit Secretary

Brown Medicine•Cranston, RI

11d•$21 - $22•Onsite

About The Position

The Unit Secretary coordinates the flow of patient activity and information on a unit or clinic according to hospital-approved policies and procedures. As a member of the Health Care Team, under the direction of the Clinical Manager or designee, the role performs a variety of clerical duties that support quality patient care. Employees are expected to model Brown University Health’s values of Compassion, Accountability, Respect, and Excellence, and demonstrate the core Success Factors: Instill Trust and Value Differences; Patient and Community Focus and Collaborate.

Requirements

High school graduate or General Equivalency Diploma.
Effective interpersonal communication skills.
Ability to multitask and perform a variety of complex clerical duties.
Basic computer skills.
Ability to read, write legibly, and speak English.
Knowledge and skills to provide care to patients throughout the life span, considering aging processes, human development stages, and cultural patterns at each step of care.

Nice To Haves

Basic knowledge of medical terminology.
Experience is preferred; no specific amount or type is stated.

Responsibilities

Use medical terms and abbreviations appropriately.
Work with the team to identify cost-saving measures, resolve work-process problems, and develop new work methods.
Organize and prioritize workload according to patient and unit or clinic needs.
Assemble charts for admissions, disassemble charts for discharges, file reports accurately, and maintain medical records according to hospital guidelines.
Answer phones and intercoms using appropriate etiquette and notify the appropriate staff.
Use hospital computer systems to enter and verify orders, retrieve data, and generate reports; report computer and equipment malfunctions to the help desk.
Use Patient Links, Nurse Links, Bed Board, MAK MAR, Carevue, and other systems needed for the role.
Enter permitted verbal physician orders, including dietary, laboratory, diagnostic x-ray, admission status, transfer, change-of-doctor, and hospital-service orders.
Enter verbal nursing orders when based on a protocol or covered by a previously entered physician order.
Transcribe physicians’ handwritten orders; fax medication orders to the pharmacy and enter other orders with the appropriate departments; transcribe handwritten chemotherapy orders according to hospital protocol.
Arrange delivery of necessary equipment.
Follow up on ordered diagnostic tests and document scheduled tests, preparations, and required holds or NPO status in the computer.
Order stationery and office supplies and maintain and stock the A-Z file.
Fax completed authorization forms and other forms as needed; receive and file faxed information in the patient record.
Attend education sessions, access the Patient Services website, and maintain required competencies through annual checks and mandatory safety education.
Report unsafe situations to the Professional Nurse or Clinical Manager and promote unit safety.
Follow hospital and unit standards, policies, and procedures, including those for attendance, badging, mandatory education, fire and safety, infection control, credentialing, HIPAA, and confidentiality.
Page physicians and others using the hospital page system, computer alpha paging, and emergency operator for code pages.
Arrange follow-up appointments and document them on the patient’s Continuity of Care form.
Coordinate Continuity of Care form copies, fax them to Home Care Services when indicated, file copies in the medical record, and print copies from Life Links if necessary.
Obtain copies of medical records as indicated.
Accurately perform all aspects of the Unit Secretary role, including patient type and discharge disposition codes, observation and inpatient status, patient service charges, consult calls when indicated, and dietary rounds report updates.
Understand and perform appropriate information-systems downtime procedures.
Perform other duties as assigned.