This is an opportunity to take on a truly influential and rewarding leadership role within Livewell Southwest where your expertise will have a meaningful, organisation wide impact. As Lead Digital Pharmacist, you will shape the future of digital medicines systems, including the optimisation and use of Systm One, across a diverse and progressive health and care organisation, supporting services that span mental health, learning disability, neurorehabilitation and community care.
You will work in a collaborative, forward thinking environment that values innovation, clinical leadership and continuous improvement. We are committed to developing safe, effective and person centred digital solutions, and you will be at the heart of this transformation, influencing strategy, guiding decision making and driving improvements in medicines safety and clinical workflows.
LSW offers the autonomy and support to lead at a senior level while working alongside dedicated and experienced multidisciplinary teams. We are proud of our strong organisational values, inclusive culture and commitment to staff development, wellbeing and flexible working.
This role provides a unique platform to deliver lasting impact for both patients and services.
This role may not be eligible for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker route.
Please note that advert may close earlier than the specified deadline.
All staff are expected to be able and willing to work across a 7 day service.
Main duties of the job
The Lead Digital Pharmacist provides senior strategic leadership for digital medicines optimisation across the organisation, with overall responsibility for Electronic Prescribing and Medicines Administration and wider digital systems including Systm One. The role leads the development and delivery of digital medicines strategy, ensuring systems support safe, effective and legally compliant care while aligning with national policy and organisational priorities.
The post holder manages and develops a skilled multidisciplinary team, providing professional leadership, supervision and mentorship to pharmacy and digital specialists. They lead the design, implementation and governance of digital medicines systems, ensuring compliance with complex legal frameworks and promoting safe, standardised clinical workflows that reduce risk and variation.
Working at a senior level, the role influences organisational decision making, contributes to business planning and supports transformation programmes through expert advice, data analysis and performance insight. The Lead Digital Pharmacist also oversees medicines safety in digital systems, leading responses to incidents and driving continuous improvement.
The role builds strong relationships across clinical, operational and digital teams, as well as external partners, to support innovation, research and the adoption of best practice, ensuring high quality and person centred care is delivered through effective use of technology.
About us
Livewell Southwest is an independent, award‑winning social enterprise delivering integrated health and social care services across Plymouth, South Hams and West Devon, with specialist services in parts of Devon and Cornwall. Our teams work in community hospitals, GP practices, sports centres and health hubs.
As an organisation with a strong social conscience we are guided by our values, kindness, respect, inclusivity, ambition, responsibility and collaboration. We focus on transforming services to ensure sustainability, while empowering staff and those we serve.
We involve the people we care for, along with their families and carers, in shaping the care they receive, striving to deliver the right care at the right time and place. Centering our work on individual needs helps people lead healthy, independent lives.
We prioritise employees' development, offering protected CPD time, training pathways, leadership programmes and funding for qualifications such as the Care Certificate and Nurse Training Scholarships. Our induction and preceptorship programmes ensure a smooth transition into our organisation.
Job responsibilities
JOB DESCRIPTION FRONT COVER SHEET
DIRECTORATE: Medical
TEAM: Pharmacy
RESPONSIBLE TO: Medicines Safety Officer
LOCATION: Mount Gould Admin Building/Hybrid WFH
WORK PATTERN: Monday to Friday, Occasional on‑call evening and weekends.
JOB DETAILS
JOB TITLE:
BAND:
8B
JOB PURPOSE
The Lead Digital Pharmacist is a senior strategic clinical leader responsible for organisation wide leadership, design, implementation and optimisation of digital medicines systems, with particular accountability for Electronic Prescribing and Medicines Administration (EPMA).
The post holder provides expert professional, clinical and digital leadership across mental health, learning disability, neurorehabilitation and community services, ensuring that digital medicines systems enable safe, effective, legally compliant and person centred care. The role has an Organisation wide impact, shaping digital medicines strategy, influencing corporate decision making and ensuring alignment with national policy, regulatory requirements and transformation priorities.
Operating at a highly autonomous level, the post holder acts as the principal specialist authority for digital medicines optimisation, providing expert advice to the Clinical Director of Pharmacy, senior clinicians, managers and executives on complex, high‑risk and strategic issues relating to digital prescribing, medicines safety and clinical workflow design.
3. SCOPE AND RANGE
The Lead Digital Pharmacist operates at a strategic and corporate level, providing leadership across the full lifecycle of digital medicines systems, from strategy development and system architecture through to implementation, assurance, optimisation and continuous improvement.
The post holder:
* Acts as the organisation's senior clinical subject matter expert for digital prescribing, EPMA, interoperability and medicines related digital infrastructure.
* Leads complex, multi‑professional and multi‑directorate programmes of work that have a significant impact on clinical practice, patient safety, legal compliance and organisational risk.
* Exercises professional leadership across pharmacy, nursing, medical, digital and informatics teams, influencing practice without direct managerial authority where appropriate.
* Chairs or provides senior input into corporate governance and assurance structures, ensuring that digital medicines systems meet statutory, regulatory and clinical safety requirements.
* Requires advanced clinical judgement, strategic thinking and expert knowledge, particularly in relation to high risk medicines, complex prescribing regimens, mental health legislation and digitally enabled clinical pathways.
MAIN DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES
Strategic and Professional Leadership
Provide visible, organisation wide leadership for digital medicines optimisation, shaping strategic direction and supporting delivery of corporate priorities.
Act as the corporate lead pharmacist for EPMA and digital medicines systems, representing pharmacy at senior internal and external forums.
Provide expert, high level professional advice to the Clinical Director of Pharmacy, Medicines Safety Officer and executive colleagues on digital medicines strategy, risk and assurance.
Influence and negotiate change at a senior level across professional and organisational boundaries to deliver transformational improvement.
Responsibility for Managing People and Professional Practice
Provide line management and professional leadership to senior specialist roles within the digital medicines workstream, including the Lead EPMA Nurse.
Offer expert clinical supervision, mentorship and leadership to pharmacists, technicians and other professionals working in digital and medicines safety roles.
Act as a senior role model, promoting advanced professional practice, innovation and continuous improvement across pharmacy and multidisciplinary teams.
Contribute to workforce development, succession planning and capability building for digital medicines roles.
Responsibility for Service Development and Clinical Governance
Lead the development, implementation and ongoing review of organisation wide digital medicines policies, procedures and governance frameworks.
Ensure EPMA and related systems are configured to reflect complex legal frameworks including the Mental Health Act, Mental Capacity Act, consent to treatment processes and restrictive practice requirements.
Provide assurance that digital medicines systems support safe clinical workflows, reduce variation and manage medicines related risk.
Lead the response to medicines safety incidents and emerging risks related to digital prescribing systems, advising on mitigation and improvement actions.
Responsibility for Financial and Physical Resources
Provide strategic oversight of EPMA configuration and digital tools to ensure cost effective, evidence based and sustainable use of medicines.
Lead formulary governance within digital systems, balancing clinical effectiveness, safety and financial stewardship.
Use advanced data analysis and reporting to inform executive level decision making, identifying trends, risks and opportunities for improvement.
Contribute specialist expertise to business cases, investment decisions and digital transformation programmes affecting medicines management.
Responsibility for Information, Analysis and Complex Decision Making
Exercise advanced specialist judgement in situations involving clinical uncertainty, incomplete evidence, conflicting professional views or significant organisational risk.
Lead the development and interpretation of complex digital reports, analytics and dashboards to drive quality improvement and patient safety.
Ensure that decisions related to digital medicines systems are robust, defensible and capable of standing legal and regulatory scrutiny.
Clinical Practice (Specialist)
Where required, provide a highly specialist clinical pharmacy service to support complex digital, medicines safety or transformation priorities.
Maintain professional competence and credibility to support expert leadership, recognising that clinical delivery is not the primary focus of the role.
Research, Audit and Innovation
Lead and support strategic audit, evaluation and research activity in digital medicines and mental health prescribing practice.
Promote innovation, adoption of best practice and contribution to the wider professional evidence base through publication and dissemination of learning.
COMMUNICATIONS AND RELATIONSHIPS
Provide senior professional and strategic leadership to the EPMA programme, including chairing and facilitating key operational and governance forums to ensure delivery against organisational priorities and safety objectives.
Lead engagement with senior clinicians, professional leaders and operational teams to codesign, influence and embed EPMA and EPS systems, supporting complex organisational change and promoting adoption of safe, standardised digital prescribing practice.
Communicate highly complex and sensitive medicines-related information to people who use services, carers and families, ensuring information is accessible, legally compliant and supports informed shared decision making. This may include managing challenging conversations with individuals with mental health conditions or learning disabilities where there is significant clinical, emotional or behavioural complexity.
Provide authoritative expert advice on medicines and digital prescribing to prescribers and other healthcare professionals, including participation in senior multidisciplinary forums, delivery of strategic briefings and written guidance. This includes constructively challenging established clinical decisions where required to mitigate risk and ensure safe practice.
Work in close partnership with senior pharmacy technicians and specialist staff to develop, communicate and oversee implementation of EPMA related improvement actions, ensuring consistency and safety across the organisation.
Communicate organisational standards for safe and effective medicines use to medical and nursing staff through strategic engagement, audit feedback, presentations and formal governance structures, supporting the Medicines Safety Officer in fulfilling statutory and regulatory responsibilities.
Provide assurance through accurate, professional documentation of specialist clinical interventions, ensuring that medicines related decisions and actions are clearly recorded, communicated and auditable.
Develop and maintain strategic relationships with external healthcare organisations, commissioners and system partners to influence and improve digital medicines systems and pathways across organisational boundaries.
Communicate complex EPMA and digital medicines issues to multi‑professional and corporate groups, including digital transformation, informatics and operational teams, shaping system design and clinical workflows.
Act as the senior clinical interface between pharmacy and wider digital programmes, providing expert input into the development of integrated electronic patient record workflows, including systems such as Systm One EPR, and ensuring alignment with medicines optimisation and patient safety requirements.
Working Conditions
Predominantly office based with hybrid working arrangements.
Regular presence in clinical environments, including mental health inpatient and community settings, which may involve exposure to challenging conditions such as noise, distressed behaviour or contact with bodily fluids.
Person Specification
Knowledge
* Evidence of extensive post registration experience demonstrating highly specialist knowledge in clinical pharmacy practice.
* Expert understanding of national policy, strategy and regulatory frameworks affecting prescribing, medicines optimisation and digital healthcare.
* In depth knowledge of relevant health legislation, including Mental Health Act, Mental Capacity Act and medicines governance requirements, and their application within mental health and learning disability services.
* Advanced knowledge and practical experience of digital prescribing systems (EPMA) and their role in improving patient safety, quality and organisational performance.
* Willingness and ability to undertake further advanced or specialist development, aligned to organisational strategy and personal development planning.
* Knowledge of current and emerging national issues in digital medicines optimisation, interoperability and electronic patient records.
* Evidence of maintaining and developing specialist knowledge through continuous professional learning.
Additional requirements
* Highly developed digital literacy, including advanced use of Microsoft Office applications and electronic clinical systems.
* Experience of working with clinical databases, reporting tools or digital analytics platforms.
Experience
* Substantial experience working as a senior pharmacist within complex, multidisciplinary healthcare environments.
* Proven experience of leading large scale or complex change programmes with organisation wide impact.
* Experience of providing professional leadership, supervision or line management to pharmacy staff and other professionals.
* Demonstrated experience of successfully managing and embedding change in complex clinical or organisational settings.
* Experience of working under pressure at a senior level, managing competing priorities and strategic deadlines.
* Experience of leading or contributing to clinical audit, evaluation or service improvement activity.
* Experience of designing and delivering education or training programmes for clinical or multidisciplinary audiences.
Qualifications
* Current registration as a Pharmacist with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC).
* Evidence of advanced, sustained Continuing Professional Development, aligned to senior specialist or strategic leadership practice.
* Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Pharmacy / Therapeutics or demonstrable equivalent experience at an advanced specialist or strategic level.
* Postgraduate Certificate, Diploma or Masters degree in Psychiatric Pharmacy or equivalent advanced mental health experience.
* Independent Prescribing qualification (or working towards where appropriate to role).
* Membership or Fellowship of the College of Mental Health Pharmacy.
* Postgraduate qualification or significant experience in leadership, management or digital transformation.
Specific skills
* Highly developed communication and interpersonal skills, including the ability to influence, negotiate and present to senior clinical, managerial and executive audiences.
* Ability to lead, facilitate and influence change across professional and organisational boundaries.
* Advanced analytical, critical appraisal and problem solving skills, underpinned by evidence based practice.
* Ability to manage and resolve highly complex situations, including those involving uncertainty, professional challenge or organisational risk.
* Demonstrated ability to analyse and interpret complex data sets, including prescribing and performance data, to inform strategic decision making.
* Ability to communicate highly complex clinical and digital information effectively to a wide range of audiences, including service users and carers.
* Excellent planning, organisational and time management skills, including responsibility for long term service redesign and improvement.
* Ability to work with a high degree of autonomy, prioritising workload and managing competing demands.
* Logical, structured approach to unfamiliar or complex problems.
* Evidence of influencing system level or cross organisational practice or policy development.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Full-time, Part-time, Job share, Flexible working
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