Mohammod Alom - Booking coordinator in the Proton Beam Therapy Unit

What does a booking coordinator do?

I work in the Proton Beam Therapy (PBT) unit at UCLH. PBT is a type of radiotherapy to treat certain cancers. There are only two NHS PBT units in the country – one in Manchester and one at UCLH, so our patients often come from quite far away. When patients are referred for PBT, the bookings team makes the arrangements needed for each patient to get their treatment started.

What does your job involve day to day?

There are five of us in the booking team and we each look after individual patients from the start to the end of their treatment. Every day is quite busy, as I pull together all the information our clinical team needs before treatment starts. This involves lots of phone calls to other hospitals to obtain scans and blood results. I also talk to patients and their families to book their accommodation and treatment slots. Patients usually receive PBT every weekday for around six weeks, so there are lots of appointments to book. Some of our patients have never visited London before, so they can be a bit apprehensive. I provide reassurance and answer any questions they have.

How did you become a booking coordinator and admin team leader?

I joined UCLH five years ago as a receptionist in the Elizabeth Garrett Anderson wing and then worked in the Macmillan Cancer Centre. I joined the PBT admin team two years ago when the service was first set up. My sister is a nurse and my brother is a radiographer and I’d always wanted to work in the NHS. Over the last five years here, I’ve been able to progress and push myself to develop new skills.

Best part of the job?

The best part of my job is all the different, fantastic people I get to work with across UCLH – radiographers, doctors, nurses, play specialists, administrators and the people who run our patient accommodation. I also really like supporting patients and their families from the start to the end of their treatment. Although I work in the ‘back office’ I often pop out to say hello to the patients and families I’ve been helping. It’s nice to put a face to someone on the other end of the phone.

What skills do you need?

Being able to juggle a busy workload and be organised is really important, as I’m always working with multiple people and other hospitals. Good communication skills are also important when dealing with families as this can be a really stressful time and I want to make it as easy as possible for them.

Work with us!

We’re looking for people who live our values to help us make a difference to the thousands of patients who come to us for treatment every year. We believe that every member of staff plays an important part in our vision, whatever their role.