Practice Standards Scheme Assessor

* The PSS is specifically looking for Assessors located in Scotland/ West Midlands and North-East England with experience in at least two species, including small animal, equine or farm*

* To apply for the role, please click apply and make sure to include your CV as well as a Cover letter (in the one document) outlining how your skills, experience and knowledge meets the essential criteria of the role *

Job Purpose

To take responsibility for actively assessing Veterinary Practices as agreed at various locations across the UK to ensure compliance with the Practice Standards Scheme (PSS) standards and to encourage continuous improvement in Veterinary Practice.

To proactively work with Veterinary Practice teams to ensure the PSS standards are understood and met.

To provide an excellent service to practices in the PSS and their employees (i.e the Practice team).

Key Responsibilities

AUDIT

• Monitor and assess Veterinary Practices as agreed by the PSS Team to ensure compliance with relevant law and external regulatory and inspecting bodies in line with the Practice Standards.

• To identify, record and widely share best practice with the practice in question and feed back to the PSS Team at RCVS for wider dissemination.
• Undertake the verification of equipment, premises and systems provided by the Practice team and provide advice, support and guidance to Practice team members in accordance with the requirements of the Scheme.
• Carry out formal assessment visits, including ‘Spot checks’, of Practices as required, producing written reports to the required standard and reporting to PSS Team and the Practice within agreed timescales.
• Make recommendations to practices for improvements to processes associated with the Practice Standards, including providing prompt, accurate and constructive feedback to all relevant parties using a positive and consultative approach.

Performance / Quality Control

• Maintain effective systems for performance, consistency and quality management within the assessment process.
• Adhere to RCVS policies, procedures and strategies as applicable with particular reference to the health and safety and diversity documents.
• Produce Practice Standards reports as required.
• Undertake mandatory and additional role specific training as and when required, or if identified as a training need.
• To adhere to RCVS CPD requirements in order to maintain professional registration with the RCVS.
• Information technology literacy, including the use of bespoke information systems.

Relationship / Customer Service

• Deliver an excellent customer experience by building and maintaining a strong customer focussed relationship with Practices and their teams by using a service orientated approach.
• Maintain prompt and regular contact with the practice throughout the assessment process, including arranging the assessment date to agreed timescales and responding to queries.
• To undertake any reasonable additional duties as instructed by the Lead assessor or PSS management team within the spirit of the role and/or aims and objectives of RCVS.

Person Specification

• Passionate about the RCVS Practice Standards Scheme (PSS) and reflects its aims, culture and values.
• Industrious, shows initiative and is innovative. Proactively demonstrates a strong commitment to equality and diversity and works in a manner that is inclusive.
• Open to learning and development for self and others and encourages a learning culture.
• Exemplary customer communication and management in line with RCVS culture and strategy.
• Excellent oral and written communication and presentational skills

• Able to effect outcomes and build and maintain relationships through a positive and influential approach
• Comfortable working autonomously and with little to no direction at times
• Responsive to change, with the ability to be flexible in evolving environments and situations
• Wants to achieve the best results for practices and the PSS
• An ability to stay focussed in the face of conflicting priorities which may arise, for example, between practices and the PSS
• The ability to uphold a professional manner at all times.

Key Requirements

• Customer focused with excellent attention to detail
• Holds both themselves and others to both a fair and high standard
• IT literate, including previous use of IT case management systems and Microsoft Office including Word, Excel and Outlook.
• Accommodating of flexibility outside normal working hours in accordance with the needs of the business including overnight stays and UK wide travel
• Full driving licence
• The ability to carry out a minimum number of assessment per month.
• Attending 4 days of induction training (as applicable) and attending approximately 4 days of team training per annum plus other annual training days as decided by PSS management, together with RCVS mandatory events, likely to be held at or near RCVS offices in London.

Essential Criteria

Essential skills, knowledge & experience

• 5 years registered with the RCVS as an MRCVS or RVN
• Worked in veterinary practice within the last 5 years (not applicable to existing PSS Assessors)
• A positive self- motivator experienced at leading and influencing professional teams.
• Experience team of leadership and/or management 
• Familiarity in working with the Practice Standards Scheme in practice
• Familiarity with different clinical settings (Desirable)
• Familiarity in working with a range of species of animals (Small Animal, Large animal and Equine) (Desirable)
• Experience of delivering high quality assurance/ assessment /audit activity (Desirable)