Job summary
We arelooking for a motivated and forward-thinking clinical pharmacist to join our GPpractices across the network. The Clinical Pharmacist will be a patient facingrole with plenty of opportunity to utilise your clinical skills to improve thehealth of the local community; this will include managing long-term conditions,supporting hospital discharge prescribing arrangements, providing specificadvice for those on multiple medications, clinical audits to improve patientcare, and supporting the GP practices involved to develop the clinical pharmacistrole.
Clinicalsupervision and mentorship will be provided. We are looking for candidates whoare enthusiastic and adaptable to change, with excellent clinical skills and agood level of competence in use of Candidates should exhibit good organisationalskills and ability to communicate effectively with a wide range of healthcareprofessionals and other stakeholders including patients, families and carers.
Main duties of the job
Clinical Pharmacist in a general practice organisation has the following key responsibilities in relation to delivering health services. These key responsibilities are based on those outlined in the Network Contract Direct Enhanced Service Contract Specification 2023/24 PCN Requirements.
There may be, on occasion, a requirement to carry out other tasks; this will be dependent upon factors such as workload and staffing levels:
1. Work as part of a multi-disciplinary team in a patient facing role to clinically assess and treat patients using their expert knowledge of medicines for specific disease areas
2. Be a prescriber, or completing training to become a prescriber, and work with and alongside the general practice team
3. Be responsible for the care management of patients with chronic diseases and undertake clinical medication reviews to proactively manage people with complex polypharmacy, especially the elderly, people in care homes, those with multiple co-morbidities (in particular frailty, COPD and asthma) and people with learning disabilities or autism (through STOMP Stop Over Medication Programme)
4. Provide specialist expertise in the use of medicines whilst helping to address both the public health and social care needs of patients at organisation and to help in tackling inequalities
5. Provide leadership on person-centred medicines optimisation and quality improvement, whilst contributing to the quality and outcomes framework and enhanced services
6. Other duties may be included in role
About us
There is a really nice atmosphere at Hungerford Surgery. We have a brilliant Pharmacy team who are there to support a Clinical Pharmacist in their role. There are huge amounts of support and mentorship within the practice, and also help from others in the same role across the PCN (Primary Care Network). Everyone wants you to succeed.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Other duties within the role include:
7. Through structured medication reviews, support patients to take their medications to get the best from them, reduce waste and promote self-care
8. Have a leadership role in supporting further integration of general practice with the wider healthcare teams (including community and hospital pharmacy) to help improve patient outcomes, ensure better access to healthcare and help manage general practice workload
9. Develop relationships and work closely with other pharmacy professionals across the wider health and social care system
10. Take a central role in the clinical aspects of shared care protocols, clinical research with medicines, liaison with specialist pharmacists (including mental health and reduction of inappropriate antipsychotic use in people with learning difficulties), liaison with community pharmacists and anticoagulation
11. Be part of a professional clinical network and have access to appropriate clinical supervision. Appropriate clinical supervision means:
a) Each clinical pharmacist must receive a minimum of one supervision session per month by a senior clinical pharmacist
b) The senior clinical pharmacist must receive a minimum of one supervision session every three months by a GP clinical supervisor
c) Each clinical pharmacist will have access to an assigned GP clinical supervisor for support and development
d) A ratio of one senior clinical pharmacist to no more than five junior clinical pharmacists, with appropriate peer support and supervision in place
12. To act as the point of contact for all medicine related matters, establishing positive working relationships
13. To consult patients within defined levels of competence and independently prescribe acute and repeat medication
14. To receive referrals and directed patients from triage services and other clinicians
15. To receive and resolve medicines queries from patients and other staff
16. To provide medication review services for patients in the practice and during domiciliary visits to the local nursing home
17. To manage a caseload of complex patients
18. To manage a therapeutic drug monitoring system and the recall of patients taking high risk drugs,, anticoagulants, anticonvulsants and DMARDs etc.
19. To deliver long term conditions clinics and home visits particularly for patients with complicated medication regimes and prescribe accordingly
20. To provide pharmaceutical consultations to patients with long term conditions as an integral part of the multidisciplinary team
21. To review medications for newly registered patients
22. To improve patient and carer understanding of confidence in and compliance with their medication
23. To encourage cost-effective prescribing throughout the organisation
24. To implement and embed a robust repeat prescribing system
25. To provide advice and answer medication related queries from patients and staff
26. To organise and oversee the organisations medicines optimisation systems including the repeat prescribing and medication review systems
27. To improve the quality and effectiveness of prescribing through clinical audit and education to improve performance against NICE standards and clinical and prescribing guidance.
28. To develop yourself and the role through participation in clinical supervision, training and service redesign activities
29. To ensure appropriate supervision of safe storage, rotation and disposal of vaccines and drugs. To apply infection-control measures within the practice according to local and national guidelines
30. To provide subject matter expertise on medication monitoring, implementing and embedding a system
31. To support clinicians with the management of patients suffering from drug and alcohol dependencies
32. To actively signpost patients to the correct healthcare professional
33. To manage a caseload of complex patients and potential care institutions and to provide advice for the GP management of more complex patients or areas such as addictive behaviours, severe mental illness or end of life care
34. To review the latest guidance ensuring the organisation conforms to NICE, CQC etc.
35. To provide targeted support and proactive reviews for vulnerable, complex patients and those at risk of admission and re-admission to secondary care
36. To handle prescription queries and requests directly
37. To provide proactive leadership on medicines and prescribing systems to the organisation, patients and their carers
38. To support in the delivery of enhanced services and other service requirements on behalf of the organisation
39. To participate in the management of patient complaints when requested to do so and participate in the identification of any necessary learning brought about through clinical incidents and near-miss events
40. To undertake all mandatory training and induction programmes
41. To contribute to and embrace the spectrum of clinical governance
42. To attend a formal appraisal with your manager at least every 12 months. Once a performance/training objective has been set, progress will be reviewed on a regular basis so that new objectives can be agreed
43. To contribute to public health campaigns (, COVID-19 or flu clinics) through advice or direct care
44. To maintain a clean, tidy, effective working area at all times.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
45. Masters Degree in Pharmacy (MPharm) or equivalent
46. Registered with GPhC
47. Member of RPS
48. Specialist knowledge through a Postgraduate Diploma and qualifications ( clinical, community, therapeutics) or equivalent
49. Evidence of recent and relevant Continuing Professional Development
50. Independent prescriber status or a commitment to undertake the course
Experience
Essential
51. Experience in Clinical Pharmacy for 1 year (required).
52. Experience in General Practice.