PRIMARY DUTIES & AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY

SUPPORTING KNOWLEDGE FOR HEALTHCARE AND NATIONAL STRATEGY

• Supports the workstreams of Knowledge for Healthcare: getting the right team, resources and services in place, mobilising evidence and knowledge, enabling resource discovery, assuring the quality of knowledge services, improving health literacy, developing the knowledge and library services workforce
• Applies knowledge of Library Quality Outcomes Framework to service provision to contribute to service quality and quality submissions.

ACQUISITIONS AND STOCK MANAGEMENT

• Selects and orders book and journal stock in an appropriate format (print / online), maintaining the balance of the collections across professions, subject areas and organisations.  Ensures best value for money and that suppliers meet T&Cs offered.
• Catalogues, classifies and indexes library collections according to best practice, to ensure effective retrieval by library users.  This includes print and electronic resources to be catalogued onto a number of systems at an appropriate level of subject specificity and using the most appropriate techniques.
• Consults with library users on stock revision to ensure that collections reflect developments in medical and health care practice and changing patterns of health education.

·        Contributes to the development of policy on cataloguing and classification at regional level on behalf of local libraries, updates library staff on current practice and gives advice to other librarians / library staff on best practice.

• Oversees the systems of loans / stock circulation and document supply and provides technical assistance to the library and clerical assistants.

ENQUIRIES AND INFORMATION CONSULTANCY

• Provides professional cover for the enquiries service; handles complex enquiries and requests for information from library users. Evaluates such literature using the principles of evidence based practice, ensuring that what is provided is appropriate for its purpose and user (e.g. for a consultant for patient care, clinical audit, legal evidence, or research which is to be published; for a manager for service development; for a nurse for an educational project, or a research overview for junior doctors' exam revision etc). This is a key result area as the information provided will be used in patient care.
• Keeps up to date with the latest research and best practice in information retrieval techniques and “finding the evidence”.
• Assists users with searches on an individual basis, carrying out searches with library users or on their behalf, refining results to provide an evidence based response to their questions.

CURRENT AWARENESS AND PUBLICITY

• Generates general and individualised current awareness and publicity to promote new evidence, services and resources to all library users in a variety of formats as appropriate: print, email, social media, website / wiki.

STAFF MANAGEMENT

• Supervises workflows and the work of the library / clerical assistants.

GENERAL

• Works as one of a team liaising with other professional library staff to ensure that enquiries, cataloguing tasks and the user education programme are all carried out in an appropriate, timely fashion and adhere to the quality standards laid down in the library service specification.
• Engages in a programme of continuous professional development, liaising with regional and national  groups for own development and that of other library staff.

EDUCATION & TRAINING

·        Delivers and evaluates teaching sessions in the use of bibliographic databases and internet  sources and assists library users as required, promoting an evidence based approach at all times and introducing the concepts of critical appraisal.

·        Delivers and evaluates teaching sessions and assists library users as required in the use of quality assessment of information sources, physical and electronic, promoting an evidence based approach at all times.

• Ensures that teaching and training delivered meets set learning objectives.
• Participates in regional training and education groups, sharing best practice, and keeps teaching qualifications current.

INFORMATION RESOURCES

·        Designs and maintains appropriate retrieval and access routes to facilitate effective use of information resources, e.g. library website / wiki, library systems, catalogues and link resolver, and exploits existing tools from resource suppliers.

·        Ensures appropriate guidance is available for all library users on effective use of information resources, in a wide variety of formats, e.g. printed guides, website help, elearning objects.

COMMUNICATIONS & WORKING RELATIONSHIPS

Effective communication with library users at all levels of the organisations served is key to the delivery of services.  Communication may be face to face, telephone or written.

·        Communicates with staff and students at all levels of the organisations to ensure that their information needs are understood and met.

·        Liaises with other members of department staff to ensure that workflows are adequately covered and jobs are not overlooked.

·        Establishes effective communications with other departments in the organisation to facilitate the maintenance of services, e.g. IT, Estates.

·        Maintains good working relationships with other libraries in the NHS, HE and local authorities to ensure that the co-operative services are maintained for the benefit of library users.

·        Liaises with regional and national groups on a range of professional issues and disseminates information to all library staff.

·        Represents the library at local / regional / national level as required

OTHER

·        Staffed library hours are 08.30 – 17.30 Monday-Friday.  Core hours will be established but some flexibility may be required to cover other staff as a result of leave or absence.

·        The library operates as part of the SWRLIN co-operative of health libraries and local library networks; occasional attendance at events at other locations or in other parts of the south west may be required.

All Job Holders are required to… 

• Work to the Trust values - Put patients first, Take ownership, Respect others, Be positive, Listen, learn and improve.

• Adhere to Trust policies and procedures, e.g. Health and Safety at Work, Equal Opportunities etc.

• Maintain personal and professional development to meet the changing demands of the job, participate in appropriate training activities and encourage and support staff development and training.

• Attend statutory, essential and mandatory training.  

• Respect the confidentiality of all matters relating to their employment and other members of staff. All members of staff are required to comply with the requirements of the Data Protection Act 1998.

• Comply with the Corporate Governance structure in keeping with the principles and standards set out by the Trust.

• Comply with the codes of professional conduct set out by the professional body of which registration is required for the post.

• Ensure they are familiar with the Risk Management Framework, follow policies, procedures and safe systems of work, make known any hazards or risks that they identify and take all necessary actions to reduce risk. 

• Ensure the welfare and safety of children within their care. This includes staff who come into contact with children and families in the course of their work as well as those staff who have a specific role with children and families.

• Ensure they attend Child Protection training at the appropriate level within the specified time frame.

• Staff must comply with Safeguarding Policies and Procedures in order to promote safeguarding and prevent abuse to vulnerable people using Trust services.

• Maintain the prevention and control of infection and fully comply with all current Trust Infection Control policies and procedures.

• Take responsibility for any records that they create or use in the course of their duties, in line with the Public Records Act and be aware that any records created by an employee of the NHS are public records and may be subject to both legal and professional obligations.

All Managers are responsible for…

·       Assessing risks and implementing the necessary actions to minimise these risks within their sphere of responsibility.  They must also enable staff to attend the relevant statutory and essential training.

·       Managing attendance in accordance with the Trusts Attendance Management Policy.

All Heads of Departments are responsible for…

·       Ensuring all necessary risk assessments are carried out within their division, Service Line or department in liaison with relevant sources of specialist support and expertise within the Trust.  They must also ensure that the risk management process is completed appropriately.

Note

This job description is neither definitive nor exhaustive and is not intended to be totally comprehensive. It may be reviewed in the light of changing circumstances following consultation with the post holder. This job description is to be read in conjunction with all current Plymouth Hospitals NHS Trust policies, procedures & guidelines.