Main duties of the job
As a key registered healthcare professional, you will:
* Lead medicines and consumables management across multiple sites and clinical vehicles
* Drive patient safety, clinical governance, and prescribing quality initiatives
* Oversee controlled drugs compliance, ensuring safe and effective processes
* Deliver and support audit programmes and quality improvement work
* Manage procurement to ensure cost‑effective and efficient use of resources
* Support CQC compliance and inspection readiness
* Provide training and development to clinical teams on medicines management
* Build strong relationships across primary care, community pharmacy, and acute services
Job responsibilities
Role Summary:
The Pharmacy Technician is a key registered healthcare professional within NHUC, responsible for leading safe, efficient, and high‑quality medicines management across primary and urgent care services. The role extends beyond stock control to encompass clinical governance, quality improvement, prescribing safety, and workforce development.
Main Duties and Responsibilities:
* Lead the end‑to‑end management of medicines and consumables across all NHUC sites and vehicles.
* Ensure safe, efficient, and responsive stock management systems are in place to support 24/7 urgent care delivery, including emergency medicines.
* Implement robust processes to monitor stock levels, manage expiries, reduce wastage, and ensure timely replenishment aligned to fluctuating service demand.
* Provide oversight of medicines storage and transportation.
2. Clinical Governance, Patient Safety & PSIRF
* Support NHUC’s clinical governance framework, ensuring medicines management is embedded within wider patient safety systems.
* Lead or contribute to incident reporting, investigation, and learning, including medicines‑related errors, near misses, and controlled drug discrepancies.
* Align all practices with PSIRF principles, focusing on systems‑based learning, just culture, and continuous service improvement.
* Escalate risks appropriately and contribute to organisational learning forums, safety huddles, and governance meetings.
3. Audit, Quality Improvement & Prescribing Safety
* Design and deliver audit programmes across NHUC services to monitor compliance with medicines policies and best practice.
* Lead quality improvement initiatives, relating to medicines optimisation and safety.
* Analyse data trends (e.g. prescribing patterns, incidents, stock usage) to identify risks and implement corrective actions.
4. Controlled Drugs (CD) Governance
* Act as a lead for Controlled Drugs governance across NHUC services, ensuring full compliance with the Misuse of Drugs Regulations.
* Oversee secure storage, transport, and record‑keeping of CDs across sites and clinical vehicles.
* Maintain and audit CD registers, investigate discrepancies, and coordinate safe and compliant destruction processes.
* Liaise with Accountable Officers, community pharmacy partners, and regulatory bodies as required.
* Lead on the procurement of medicines, equipment, and consumables, ensuring services are sustainably supplied while maintaining clinical safety.
* Identify and implement cost‑saving initiatives and efficiency opportunities without compromising patient care.
* Monitor usage trends to support demand planning in urgent care environments.
6. CQC Compliance & Regulatory Readiness
* Ensure systems and processes meet Care Quality Commission (CQC) standards for medicines management within urgent care services.
* Maintain, review, and implement Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) that reflect best practice and regulatory requirements.
* Support inspection readiness, including document control, evidence gathering, and staff preparedness.
* Contribute to internal assurance processes and continuous quality monitoring.
7. Health & Safety (Medicines‑Related)
* Lead on health and safety compliance related to medicines, including COSHH assessments and safe handling procedures.
* Ensure appropriate risk assessments are in place for hazardous medicines, sharps, oxygen, and clinical waste.
* Promote a safe working environment across static and mobile services, ensuring staff are aware of and adhere to relevant policies.
8. Workforce Development, Training & Competency
* Deliver and coordinate onboarding, training, and ongoing education for NHUC staff on medicines management and governance.
* Support competency frameworks for non‑medical prescribers, paramedics, nurses, and support staff.
* Provide expert advice and guidance to clinical teams, fostering continuous professional development and safe practice.
* Ensure staff maintain compliance with updates in medicines‑related policies.
9. System Working & Partnerships
* Build and maintain effective working relationships across the urgent and emergency care system, including:
* Primary care networks (PCNs)
* Community pharmacies
* Integrated Care Boards (ICBs)
* Support integrated pathways and collaborative approaches to medicines optimisation across the health economy.
10. Digital Systems, Data & Reporting
* Lead the use and optimisation of digital systems for stock management, prescribing oversight, and governance reporting.
* Produce and interpret regular reports on medicines usage, incidents, audit outcomes, and performance metrics.
* Use data analytics to drive service improvement, support decision‑making, and enhance patient safety.
* Contribute to digital innovation and system improvements aligned with NHUC and wider NHS priorities.
Role Development & Clinical Practice
This role is primarily operational and governance‑focused, with opportunities to maintain clinical skills through clinical exposure, decision support, and CPD. Flexible models may be considered to support professional development.
Key Performance Indicators
* Stock accuracy and waste reduction
* Compliance with medicines legislation and CQC standards
* Timely response to safety alerts
* Delivery of audit and QI outcomes
* Staff training compliance and engagement
Person Specification
Experience
* Experience in medicines management or pharmacy setting
* Experience with Controlled drugs management, including regulatory compliance, record‑keeping, storage and destruction processes.
* Experience in community or urgent care settings
* Experience in audit, quality improvement methodologies and driving continuous improvement
Qualifications
* NVQ Level 3 in Pharmacy Services (or equivalent) with maintained GPhC registration
Knowledge, Communications, Interpersonal and Personal Skills
* Knowledge of medicines optimisation, stock control, and cost effective procurement
* Knowledge of health & safety, COSHH and risk assessment processes related to medicines management
* Proficient in using standard office software (e.g., Microsoft Office, email, databases) and role‑specific systems or platforms.
* Flexible in approach to the needs of the service and responsive to change
* Understands and supports principles of equality, diversity, and inclusion in the workplace.
* Self‑motivated, able to work independently, organising and prioritising own workload to changing and often tight deadlines
* Works effectively as part of a team, supports colleagues, and contributes to shared goals.
* Excellent verbal and written communication skills. Ability to work collaboratively, manage time effectively, and maintain professionalism.
* Ability to build effective working relationships, demonstrate professionalism, and maintain confidentiality. Shows initiative, reliability, and adaptability.
* Able to work autonomously and use initiative to ask for help where required
* Ability to travel across all NHUC sites as required (own business insurance is essential, mileage can be claimed)
* Knowledge of clinical governance, patient safety and incident management
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.
NHUC is a Disability Confident registered organisation and is proud to support the Armed Forces community as a signatory to the Armed Forces Covenant.
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