The PRSB was set up in April 2013 as a unique collaboration of groups representing those who receive and provide health and social care across the UK, as well as those providing the IT systems that support care. Our aim is to develop high quality, consistent care records and promote their use. Our membership includes all the major medical colleges and key organisations representing patients and allied professions, across the whole of the UK.

Working closely with our member organisations and patient groups, the PRSB defines the standards needed for good care records in order to improve the safety and quality of health and social care. This is achieved through a series of workshops, consultations and surveys in order to achieve a clinical, professional and patient user consensus on the content of health and care records.

We are also driving the implementation of care record standards across the UK and are supporting local health and care systems to introduce shared electronic records. There are significant benefits for the whole health and social care system to be gained from better care records and we need to ensure a comprehensive picture of care information about a person can be accessed by anyone where and when they need it. For more about the PRSB go to www.theprsb.co.uk.

Patient, public and professional engagement activities are fundamental to developing and implementing standards at the PRSB. Engagement activities include events, workshops/consultations and surveys as well as member meetings. Communications is also fundamental to raising awareness of the work of the PRSB and promoting its reputation for high quality solutions in order to support digitisation of health and social care with all the personal, professional, safety and quality benefits this transformation will create.  The communications officer/copy writer will work to the director of strategy, communications and engagement and member organisations’ designiated leads to develop and deliver communications and related engagement activities targeted to the specific needs of their audiences to build support for implementation of the PRSB standards.  The nature of the role means that there will be a requirement for occasional out of normal office hours work for participation in engagement events.

Job Summary

Work with the director of strategy, communications and engagement, the communications and marketing manager and the engagement manager to implement the engagement and communications plan for the PRSB. This includes working in partnership with stakeholders, member organisations and others including clinicians and professionals, patient representative groups, vendors and patient representatives and the wider public to deliver PRSB projects.

Main Duties and Responsibilities

Communications

• Write and deliver communication materials aimed at a range of audiences including clinicians, professionals, patients/public. Formats will include videos, podcasts, blogging, website content, e-newsletters and flyers, board briefings, presentations and include increasingly development of case studies. Content will include both engagement and communications activities and wider publicity.
• Manage the PRSB communications planner, seeking input from the relevant team members and wider PRSB board and Advisory Board; ensure it is produced in an accessible format on a monthly basis.
• Help web manager manage content on the website as requested, ensuring that it remains up to date. This includes supporting development of online networks for clinicians, professionals and patients/citizens, carers and so forth.
• Manage social media and content for channels such as Twitter, Linked In, WhatsApp groups and Facebook to promote the work of the PRSB.
• Develop blogs, podcasts, video scripts for a range of PRSB activities for events, the website and so forth.
• Produce slides and briefings for events for PRSB senior team, Board members and others as requested.
• Produce report for monthly Board and meetings of the Advisory Board updating them on communications performance using metrics via google analytics, mailchimp analystics, Twitter etc. Make decisions to identify and prioritise information to be disseminated.
• Participate in developing new and innovative approaches to communicating PRSB messages effectively in different formats and styles to different audiences.

Networking

• Build and maximise links with relevant stakeholders such as patient representative groups, community groups and the wider public, with a focus on increasing diversity and accessibility of engagement activities. Use targeted publicity to achieve these aims.
• Engage with member organisations’ and delivery partners’ staff to develop a shared understanding of the range, diversity and value of our engagement and communications activities.
• Liaise with member communications colleagues to ensure that activities are coordinated

Engagement

• Organise and support meetings and events working in partnership with the directors/chairs and partner organisation. Prepare agendas/presentations, papers/materials and follow up actions for engagement events.
• Support planning and delivery of the patient network and patient committee including revising recruitment and induction processes, patient/citizen input into project initiation and deliverables, supporting patient.
• Citizen engagement in projects including producing materials and events to facilitate engagement etc.
• Represent the PRSB in internal and external meetings and activities.
• Contribute to decision making.
• Oversee the performance management of engagement activities, problem solving and resolving any issues that arise.
• Support the PRSB team and partners to develop innovative engagement methods and techniques

Project support

• Work with director of communications and engagement to plan and maintain a list of events and activities associated with developing and implementing standards. Explore opportunities to expand outreach of engagement activities.
• Ensure that activities are delivered within budget.
• Monitor activity against planned timelines, identify issues that may affect delivery, and identify and implement solutions.
• Gather, analyse and report on evaluation data from engagement events.
• Be responsible for ongoing development and reporting on activity to appropriate groups and committees. This will include the executive team, Advisory Board and Board of the PRSB.

Relationships

• Reports to project manager for engagement and director of strategy, communications and engagement.
• Works closely with chief executive, director of delivery and development, clinical director of health and social care, project coordinator, business manager, member organisations Advisory Board members, members’ and partners’ communications and engagement teams.

Person Specification

Essential

• Educated to degree level in a relevant subject area or equivalent experience
• Excellent and effective writing skills including writing public-facing materials as well as material for more technical subject matter experts.
• Excellent verbal communication skills with evidence of an ability to engage with people from a variety of backgrounds and facilitate communication between groups.
• Experience of developing audiences and influencing debate on social media – Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and other relevant social media sites.
• Experience of the evaluation of the impact of activities using quantitative and qualitative metrics and analysis of data.
• Aptitude for developing networks and working in successful collaborative partnerships across multiple and diverse agencies and stakeholders.
• Experience of organising and managing events.
• Demonstrate experience of delivering effective engagement activities within a health and care environment or evidence aptitude for developing engagement skills.
• Excellent negotiating, diplomacy and influencing skills.
• Effective team player who is able to deliver individual projects with guidance from manager from planning to successful completion..
• Experience and ability to participate constructively in meetings and decision-making processes, and ability to think strategically.
• Evidence of an ability to work independently, use own initiative, organise and prioritise work and handle problems efficiently and effectively.
• Computer literacy including Word, Excel, Powerpoint, and Outlook.
• Ability to work flexibly for out of hours events.

Desirable

• Experience of producing, designing and publishing newsletters and web content.
• Awareness of the challenges of ensuring diversity and equality in engagement activities.
• Familiarity with NHS and social care systems and structures, particularly an interest and knowledge of the digital transformation agenda in the NHS and social care digital.

Email helene.feger@theprsb.org with a CV and covering letter by 28 May if you’re interested in applying. Please mention Journo Resources when applying, it really helps out.