Integration Support Engineer

At the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust we put our patients at the heart of every element of health and care that we provide. The Trust works together as a community to deliver its vision which is "Working together to provide outstanding care for our community."

Royal Berkshire Hospital are pleased to announce that following our CQC inspection we have been rated 'Good' with inspectors reporting that we have made significant improvements. The Trust's overall rating has also improved to 'good'.

We are Compassionate in our thoughts, words and actions

We are Aspirational and have a true desire to be dynamic and to innovate

We are Resourceful and responsible in the way we work and live

We are Excellent in our development, fairness and sharing best practice

At the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, we value candidates who bring their unique personalities, skills, and experiences to the Trust. When completing your application, we encourage you to highlight your individual achievements and strengths, showing us how they align with the requirements outlined in the job description and person specification. While we recognise that some applicants may use AI tools during the process, please be mindful that AI-generated responses can often lack the personal detail and relevance needed to demonstrate your suitability for the role. AI generated content is discouraged by the Trust and may diminish the candidates chances of success.

Amazing things happen at the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust; delivered by amazing people so why don't you come and join us. We offer a range of learning and development for all employees may you be clinical or non-clinical., The Integration Support Engineer sits within the Digital Data & Technology (DDaT) team, adding value for our patients through improving and developing digital services across the Trust and wider health and care system.

This role is pivotal in ensuring seamless interoperability between various healthcare systems, enhancing the quality and efficiency of patient care. The postholder will work with HL7 and FHIR standards, APIs, and various healthcare applications to support, develop, and troubleshoot integration processes within the NHS's digital infrastructure aligned with the trust's vision.

The postholder will work closely with clinical, technical, and third-party stakeholders to ensure that all integrations align with the Trust's strategic goals, comply with data security standards, and deliver measurable improvements in digital health services. As the Trust evolves, the Integration Support Engineer will play an active role in transforming and improving healthcare interoperability across the wider health and care system.

The postholder will support the Integration Developer and wider Interoperability team in ensuring the Trust can safely integrate and make use of shared information and services, regardless of the systems in use, and who supplied them., Development & Maintenance of Interfaces: Support the design, development, implementation, and management of interfaces using the Trust Integration Engine (TIE) Rhapsody, to enable seamless data exchange between various clinical and operational systems.

Technical Troubleshooting: Resolve issues related to data exchange, such as message formatting errors, connectivity problems, and data mapping conflicts between systems, ensuring minimal disruption to clinical services.

Compliance with Industry Standards: Ensure adherence to industry interoperability standards, including HL7, FHIR, and DICOM, to guarantee secure and efficient data flow between internal and external systems.

Data Transformation: Manage complex data transformation processes to ensure consistent and accurate data exchange across healthcare systems, safeguarding data integrity., Development & Maintenance of Interfaces: Support the design, development, implementation, and management of interfaces using the Trust Integration Engine (TIE), such as Rhapsody or Mirth, to enable seamless data exchange between various clinical and operational systems.

Technical Troubleshooting: Resolve issues related to data exchange, such as message formatting errors, connectivity problems, and data mapping conflicts between systems, ensuring minimal disruption to clinical services.

Compliance with Industry Standards: Ensure adherence to industry interoperability standards, including HL7, FHIR, and DICOM, to guarantee secure and efficient data flow between internal and external systems.

Data Transformation: Manage complex data transformation processes to ensure consistent and accurate data exchange across healthcare systems, safeguarding data integrity.

2. Vendor & Supplier Management:

Vendor Collaboration: Liaise with third-party software providers and vendors to ensure that system integrations, software patches, and updates are implemented smoothly and in line with Trust standards. Integration Support Engineer

Contract & SLA Management: Monitor and manage Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with software providers to ensure timely support and issue resolution. Escalate critical issues to vendors when necessary, ensuring they meet agreed service expectations.

Vendor Evaluation & Procurement: Assist in the evaluation of software and integration platforms, contributing technical expertise to procurement decisions. Ensure that chosen solutions meet the Trust's needs for scalability, security, and interoperability.

Software Upgrades & Patches: Coordinate the deployment of software upgrades, patches, and new integration features in collaboration with vendors, ensuring minimal disruption to live systems.

3. Stakeholder Management & Communication:

Stakeholder Collaboration: Work closely with clinical and operational teams to understand data exchange requirements and ensure integration solutions meet both clinical and technical needs.

Communication of Technical Concepts: Provide clear, non-technical explanations to stakeholders regarding integration processes, system limitations, and potential solutions. Act as a key point of contact between IT teams, clinical staff, and vendors.

Regular Status Reporting: Keep internal teams and stakeholders informed of integration status, project progress, and any identified risks. Provide regular updates on system performance, planned upgrades, and vendor-led improvements.

Training & Documentation: Develop user guides and training materials for clinical and administrative teams, ensuring they understand new or updated systems. Provide ongoing support for stakeholders navigating new integrations.

4. API Management & Development:

API Integration: Design, deploy, and manage RESTful APIs to enable secure data exchange between the Trust's systems and external partners. Ensure API integrity, security, and performance.

API Monitoring & Optimization: Monitor the performance of deployed APIs, identifying and resolving issues to maintain high availability and speed. Collaborate with vendors to optimize API functionality when necessary.

API Collaboration: Work with software vendors and internal teams to ensure the Trust's API strategy aligns with operational requirements.

Facilitate the integration of external APIs with Trust systems.

5. Data Interoperability & Compliance:

Standards Adherence: Ensure all data exchanges are compliant with NHS, national, and international standards (HL7, FHIR, GDPR, etc.) to maintain system interoperability and data security.

Data Security & Integrity: Safeguard patient and operational data throughout the integration lifecycle by adhering to stringent security protocols and data protection laws. Integration Support Engineer

Cross-team Collaboration: Partner with clinical, operational, and IT teams to define data requirements, ensuring that all systems communicate efficiently and meet clinical objectives.

6. Project Involvement & Implementation:

Project Participation: Take part in integration projects, including requirements gathering, system design, testing, and final implementation.

Collaborate with project managers and clinical staff to ensure successful and timely project delivery.

Testing & Quality Assurance: Coordinate the testing and validation of new interfaces and integrations, working closely with stakeholders to ensure that systems meet functional and security requirements before going live.

Project Documentation: Maintain detailed records of integration design, workflows, testing results, and troubleshooting guides to ensure transparency and facilitate future system audits.

7. Continuous Improvement & Innovation:

Process Optimization: Identify opportunities to enhance the efficiency and performance of current integration processes.

Propose and implement process improvements to increase reliability, reduce downtime, and improve user satisfaction.

Innovation & Best Practices: Stay updated on emerging technologies, interoperability standards, and digital health trends.

Incorporate new developments into the Trust's integration strategies, driving continuous improvement in digital services.

Feedback Implementation: Gather and analyse user feedback on current systems and integrations, working with vendors and internal teams to implement enhancements based on real-world clinical needs.

8. Business Change & Transformation Support:

Supporting Change Management: Collaborate with the Trust's Improvement Programme Board to ensure that integration strategies support larger organisational change initiatives. Facilitate business transformation through technology-driven solutions.

Staff Training & Knowledge Transfer: Ensure that the Integration and Interoperability team is equipped with the skills needed to manage and implement technology-based change.

Lead training sessions to upskill staff in integration methodologies and tools.

9. Governance & Compliance:

Compliance Oversight: Ensure that all integration activities comply with Trust governance frameworks, NHS digital guidelines, and relevant legal standards. Integration Support Engineer

Maintain compliance with cybersecurity protocols and information governance regulations.

Audit Support: Prepare detailed logs and records of integration activities to support internal and external audits, ensuring transparency and accountability in all integration-related processes.

Essential criteria

• At least 3 years of experience developing interfaces to EPR systems

Desirable criteria

• Oracle (Cerner) experience is desirable
• Experience working within a hospital environment, * Experience developing and troubleshooting HL7 and FHIR interfaces
• Experience working with interface engines such as Rhapsody

Desirable criteria

• Qualifications in NHS interfacing standards such as HL7, FHIR, * Educated to degree level or equivalent experience

We are an approved sponsoring organisation. Applications will be considered from applicants requiring sponsorship alongside all other applications. Please be aware, not all roles are eligible for sponsorship. You can review the list of eligible role and requirements on the government website.

Staff Benefits

• Flexible working opportunities and a strong emphasis on your work, life balance
• Annual leave - 27 days for new starters, plus bank holidays. Increasing to 29 days after 5 years and 33 days after 10 years NHS service. Pro rata for part time staff
• NHS pension scheme
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Money Advice Service
• Generous maternity, paternity and adoption leave for eligible staff
• On-site nursery (based at RBH)
• Full educational library services
• Cycle to work scheme, lockable storage for cycles
• Bus to work scheme
• Excellent rail and bus links
• A huge range of Health Service Discounts at hundreds of big brands from holidays to gadgets and restaurants to retail.

By applying for this post you are agreeing to Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are appointed to a post information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system. Appointment to any position is conditional on the satisfactory completion of the core NHS Employment Checks Standards. Information disclosed in your application will be checked and any offer of appointment may be withdrawn if you knowingly withhold information or provide false or misleading information. All new appointments to the Trust, with the exception of executive positions, are subject to a 6 month probationary period. The Trust may close any vacancy prior to the advertised closing date due to the high level of responses we receive for some of our vacancies. Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust is committed to improving the health of its staff, patients and the wider community by providing a smoke free environment. A smoke free policy is in operation and smoking is not permitted on any of the Trust's sites., The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.