Main area Corporate - Pharmacy Grade NHS AfC: Band 3 Contract Permanent Hours
* Full time
* Flexible working
37.5 hours per week (37.5 hours a week including shift patterns, weekend and bank holiday requirement) Job ref 381-CO-7505593
Employer Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust Employer type NHS Site SWB NHS Trust Town Birmingham Salary £24,937 - £26,598 per annum Salary period Yearly Closing 12/11/2025 23:59
Senior Assistant Technical Officer - Aseptic Services
NHS AfC: Band 3
Here at Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust we’re committed to recruiting and supporting a diverse workforce and we welcome applications from all parts of the community. We are committed to having a team that is made up of diverse skills, experiences and abilities whilst employing people to our organisation who meet our Trust values of ambition, respect and compassion. With the opening of our new hospital, Midland Metropolitan University Hospital, it’s the coming together of expertise from every corner of our organisation and a show of our commitment to provide better healthcare and create more jobs and so much more. We at the Trust actively encourage Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) and disabled applicants, as well as members of the armed forces community and value the positive impact that difference has on our teams. We are committed to equality and diversity within our workforce.
Job overview
Due to the expanding needs of the service we are looking for an enthusiastic, motivated person with good manual dexterity and attention to detail to join our Technical Services Team as a Senior Assistant Technical Officer (SATO) in the Aseptic Unit within the Pharmacy Department at Sandwell Hospital. Working closely within a small team you will work primarily as a clean room operator preparing chemotherapy medication for our patients.
Previous experience working within a regulated environment, in Pharmacy cleanrooms or laboratories is desirable but, as all training will be given in-house, it is not essential.
If you are enthusiastic about pharmacy, able to work as part of a busy team and follow procedures, we look forward to hearing from you.
Main duties of the job
The successful applicant will undertake in house training to become a competent cleanroom operator who is also able to undertake a wide range of other day to day activities in the aseptic unit. In-house specialist training in GMP principles will be provided. Other duties include cleaning and maintaining the aseptic unit and its associated equipment to the required standards, setting up work trays and liaising with other departments /wards to co-ordinate timely supply and delivery of treatments. You will participate in weekend and bank holiday rotas as required.
Applicants must ideally hold a NVQ Level 2 Dispensary Assistant qualification, a Community Pharmacy Dispensing qualification or be willing to work toward acheiving this.
Working for our organisation
Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust (SWB) serves Birmingham and the Black Country – one of the country’s most culturally diverse areas. It’s a friendly and welcoming place – a place where you can belong, and a place where you can grow.
We care for our patients, we care about our population, and we care about our people.
Our values – Ambition, Respect and Compassion – are at the heart of who we are. They guide us every step of the way; how we work with each other, and how we look after our patients and their families; how we respect and value the rich diversity of our team and our community.
Our Trust has always aspired to be more than a hospital, more than a healthcare provider. Our purpose is “Improve the Life Chances and Health Outcomes of our Population.” It is what inspires, drives, and unites us every day. It’s what makes us unique.
We want working at SWB to feel like more than just a job. We want our Trust to be a place where you can feel you belong. A place where you feel happy, safe, and rewarded. A place where you can develop your career in whatever way you choose. When we say we’re ‘with you all the way’ we want you to know that we mean it. Visit the SWB website to find out more about our ambitions and people plans.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please see attached Job Description and Person Specification for details on the main duties and responsibilities.
Early/late rotas, weekends and bank holidays will be part of the working week, as will working across all sites of our Trust.
For more information please read the documents linked to this advert. Or to arrange an informal chat or visit, please contact
Denise Turner, dturner5@nhs.net (Lead Pharmacy Technician, Aseptics) or Leanne Betham, leanne.betham@nhs.net (Senior Pharmacy Technician, ChemoCare/ Aseptics).
Person specification
Qualifications
* GCSE in Maths and Science
* NVQ2 in Pharmaceutical Science or willing to work toward
* Evidence of CPD.
Experience
* Working knowledge of a broad range of medicines and their safety issues
* Experience of working within a pharmaceutical team
* To be able to handle safely and competently pharmaceutical equipment and medicines used in the dispensing process
* Experience of working as an ATO
* Be responsible for complying with your agreed personal development programme to meet set knowledge and competencies
* Understanding of clinical governance and its implications for service including quality and audit
* Experience of data input with regard to invoice/credit note information
* Experience of efficient filing systems
* Experience of stores/warehouse duties.
* Self motivated, Able to work within a team
* Follows procedures
* Experience of reception duties
* Experience of working as an ATO in an Aseptic Unit
* Experience of working in a Hospital setting
Aseptic experience
* Previous experience of working in an Aseptic Unit, laboratory based employment
better, faster and safer care to the population of the Black Country and beyond.
To support this vision, we are (where appropriate and safe to do so) actively looking at new models of care which:
• Better protect elective / planned care service delivery across the system by organising on a 'hot and cold' arrangement
• Consider the optimal use of resources through consolidation and specialisation, and
• Seek to reduce unwarranted variance, level up / standardise care through a 'Networked Service Solution' approach across the four sites
Against this context, although this post is hosted by Sandwell & West Birmingham NHS Trust, there may be an expectation to work flexibly across the four partner Trusts to better meet patient and service needs.
As a major employer in the Black Country and West Birmingham region we are committed to supporting all employees to achieve a healthy work life balance. We want the Black Country and West Birmingham region to be the best place to work and as such will consider all requests to work flexibly taking into account personal and individual circumstances alongside the needs of the service. We encourage all prospective applicants to discuss their individual circumstances with the Recruiting Manager as part of the on-boarding process.
Employer certification / accreditation badges
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.
Name: Denise Turner, Job title: Lead Pharmacy Technician, Aseptics, Email: dturner5@nhs.net, Telephone: 0121 507 3384. Additional information: Denise Turner available 8:00-16:00 Monday to Friday.
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