Job overview

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Medical Examiner Officer to join the Medical Examiner service at The Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust (SaTH). We are progressing the expansion of our service to include review of deaths from the non-acute sector of our health community as the Medical Examiner Service will become statutory from 9th September 2024.

You will be assisting Medical Examiners in carrying out their duty of independent scrutiny of deceased patient's medical records to review the patient's care and ascertain a cause of death.  You are a point of contact and source of advice and support for relatives of deceased patients, healthcare professionals and coroner and registration services.

The nature of the job is such that it demands high standards of integrity. It is essential that you have good interpersonal skills with the ability to show empathy and deal sensitively with bereaved families in highly emotive situations, whilst maintaining professional standards.

We have two vacancies, one post is based at The Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and one post is based at the Princess Royal Hospital in Telford.  However applicants will be required to work from either of our hospital sites as and when required to meet the needs of the service and should have reliable transport plans in place to facilitate this.

Previous applicants need not apply. 

Main duties of the job

To establish the circumstances of individual patient deaths by performing a preliminary review of medical records to identify clinical and circumstantial information, sourcing additional details where required, for scrutiny by the medical examiner. Assist in highlighting cases that require referral to the Coroner and discuss with bereaved relatives why this might be necessary.

To assist in highlighting cases for assessment by the Structured Judgement Review team (SJR), Clinical Governance teams and the Learning Disability Review Teams (LeDeR).

To discuss likely content of medical certificate of cause of death with relatives of deceased and in all cases, collect additional information. This may include the need to communicate sensitive information and offer explanations but would be fully supported by the Medical Examiner of the day and the lead MEO.

To ensure any concerns raised by the relatives are dealt with in a timely manner and forwarded to the appropriate support service such as Patient Safety or Patient Experience for further investigation or input.

The nature of our work means you can be exposed to distressing and upsetting detail. The role of the MEO can be demanding with a sizable workload and requires an applicant with resilience and the ability to cope under pressure amongst their skill set.

Working for our organisation

The Medical Examiner Office is a team of knowledgeable & dedicated staff who are committed to helping and supporting family members following the death of a patient. You will benefit from joining a small and friendly team who look out for each another and due to the nature of our work we ensure our colleagues are supported in their roles. We work with staff at all levels and with various internal and external stakeholders and in doing so, you will build a rapport with interdependent departments and services which will expand your knowledge base, skills and experience.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

For full duties and responsibilities please refer to the attached document entitled Job Description.