Clinical Pharmacist

Job responsibilities

The post holder will work within their clinical competencies as part of a multi-disciplinary team to support practices within the network:

Provide expertise in clinical medicines management

Provide face to face structured medication reviews especially for patients with polypharmacy; people in residential care homes and those with multiple co-morbidities

Management of medicines on transfer of care and systems for safer prescribing

Manage repeat prescription authorisations and reauthorisation

Acute prescription requests

Manage long term conditions

Provide leadership on quality improvement and clinical audit

Contributing to achievement of the Quality and Outcomes Framework and local quality improvement schemes

Addressing both the public health and social care needs of patients in the GP practice(s) that make up the PCN.

The post holder will be supported to develop their role to become a non-medical prescriber, if that qualification is not already held, and will be required to enrol on the Primary Care Pharmacy Education Pathway from CPPE, unless an equivalent qualification is already held or exemption is agreed by CPPE.

KEY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The duties listed are not exhaustive, which options are deployed will be decided by the individual practices within the PCN, in conjunction with the clinical pharmacist. It is however mandated by NHS England that this role is patient facing in nature.

1. Patient facing Clinical Medication Review

Undertake clinical medication reviews with patients and work within your scope of practice as an independent prescriber to implement any necessary changes (or produce recommendations for/refer to other prescribing pharmacists, nurses and/or GPs to implement if outside your scope). These reviews could be cohort based, in care homes, polypharmacy or any other area required by the PCN, within the pharmacists competence. Home visits may be required.

2. Medicines quality improvement

Undertake clinical audits of prescribing in areas identified by yourself and agreed by the PCN or as directed by the PCN, feedback the results and implement changes in conjunction with the relevant practice team.

Identify cohorts of patients at high risk of harm from medicines through computer searches. This might include risks that are patient related, medicine related, or both. Put in place changes to reduce the prescribing of these medicines to high-risk patient groups.

3. Medicines safety

Implement changes to medicines that result from MHRA alerts, product withdrawal and other local and national guidance.

4. Leadership

You will be expected to contribute to the leadership of medicines-related issues for the PCN

5. Patient facing medicines support

Provide patient facing clinics for those with questions, queries and concerns about their medicines in the practice.

6. Telephone medicines support

Provide a telephone help line for patients with questions, queries and concerns about their medicines.

7. Management of medicines at change of care setting

Reconcile medicines following discharge from hospital or admission to intermediate care or care homes, including identifying and rectifying unexplained changes and working with patients and community pharmacists to ensure patients receive the medicines they need post discharge. Set up and manage systems to ensure continuity of medicines supply to high-risk groups of patients (e.g. those with medicine compliance aids or those in Care Homes).

8. Medicine information to practice staff and patients

Answer relevant medicine-related enquiries from GPs, other network staff, other healthcare teams (e.g. community pharmacy) and patients with queries about medicines. Suggest and recommend solutions. Provide follow up for patients to monitor the effect of any changes.

9. Drug monitoring

Ensure robust systems are in place for drug monitoring at each practice across the PCN, streamlining these where possible.

10. Signposting

Ensure that patients are referred to the appropriate healthcare professional for the appropriate level of care within an appropriate period of time e.g. pathology results, common/minor ailments, acute conditions, long term condition reviews etc.

11. Repeat prescribing

Ensure each practice in the PCN has a robust repeat prescribing policy, and streamline these across the PCN where possible. You may be asked to contribute to the repeat prescribing reauthorisation process by reviewing patient requests for repeat prescriptions and reviewing medicines reaching review dates. Ensure patients have appropriate monitoring in place when required. Support implementation of electronic repeat prescribing where appropriate.

12. Service development

Contribute pharmaceutical advice for the implementation and delivery of new services that have medicinal components (e.g. advice on treatment pathways and patient information leaflets).

13. Information management

Analyse, interpret and present medicines data to highlight issues and risks to support decision making.

14. Education and Training

Understand and demonstrate the characteristics of a role model to members in the team and/or service

Demonstrate understanding of the mentorship process

Demonstrate ability to conduct teaching and assessment effectively according to a learning plan with supervision from more experience colleague

Demonstrate self-development through continuous professional development activity

Participate in the delivery of formal education programmes

Demonstrate an understanding of current educational policies relevant to working areas of practice and keeps up to date with relevant clinical practice

15. Care Quality Commission

Work with the general practice teams to ensure the practices are compliant with CQC standards where medicines are involved.

16. Public health

Support public health campaigns. Provide specialist knowledge on all public health programmes available to the general public.

17. Special working conditions

The post holder is required to travel independently between work sites and to attend meetings as required

The post-holder will have contact with body fluids, i.e. wound exudates, urine while in clinical practice.

The post-holder is likely to need to visit patients in their own home.

Work collaboratively with their PCN Clinical Director

Participate in the PCN MDT.

Liaise with Clinical Director of Pharmacy to access professional support and access training and development opportunities

Liaise with ICB Medicines Commissioning colleagues on prescribing related matters to ensure consistency of patient care and benefit

Engage with other GP-employed pharmacists for peer support.

Foster and maintain strong links with all services across the PCN and neighbouring networks.

Explores the potential for collaborative working and takes opportunities to initiate and sustain such relationships.

Liaises with other stakeholders as needed for the collective benefit of patients, including but not limited to:

o Patients and their representatives

o GP, nurses and other practice staff

o Social prescribers, first contact physiotherapists, physicians associates and paramedics.

o Community pharmacists and support staff

o Locality Pharmaceutical Committee and Community Pharmacy PCN leads

o Locality / GP prescribing lead

o Locality managers

o Community nurses and other allied health professionals

o Hospital staff with responsibilities for prescribing and medicines optimisation

Qualifications

Essential

• Qualified Pharmacist

Desirable

• Independent Prescribing Qualification
• Completed CPPE Primary Care Pharmacy Education Pathway

INFORMATION GOVERNANCE

Essential

• The Wyre Forest NIP PCN requires its staff to comply with Information Governance related standards and policies at all times when dealing with confidential information, which includes any information relating to the business of the company and its service users and employees.
• All PCN employees are bound by a duty of confidentiality and must conduct their duties in line with the NHS Confidentiality Code of Practice, Data Protection Act and Freedom of information Act.
• Post-holders must maintain high standards of quality in corporate and clinical record keeping ensuring information is always recorded accurately and kept up to date. The post-holder must only access information, whether paper, electronic or in other media, which is authorised to them as part of their duties.
• All Information obtained or held during the post-holders period of employment that relates to the business of the company and its service users and employees will remain the property of the Wyre Forest NIP PCN. Information may be subject to disclosure under legislation at the Companys discretion and in line with national rules on exemption.
• Any breach of confidentiality or computer misuse could lead to disciplinary action, and in serious cases could result in dismissal. Breaches after the post-holders employment has ended could result in the Company taking legal action against them.

PERSONAL & PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT

Essential

• Work with your line manager to undertake continual personal and professional development, taking an active part in reviewing and developing the role and responsibilities.
• To attend mandatory training and fire lectures regularly and assist with fire policy/evacuation procedure when necessary.
• To keep up to date with and attend training on revisions to information systems or changes in protocols for the inputting of data in the light of Local and national initiatives.
• To adhere to agreed protocols at all times.
• Adhere to organisational policies and procedures, including confidentiality, safeguarding, lone working, information governance, and health and safety.
• Work with your line manager to access regular clinical supervision, to enable you to deal effectively with the difficult issues that people present.
• Review yearly progress and develop clear plans to achieve results within priorities set by others. Participate in the delivery of formal education programmes.
• Demonstrate an understanding of current educational policies relevant to working areas of practice and keep up to date with relevant clinical practice

CLINICAL GOVERNANCE AND QUALITY ASSURANCE

Essential

• To realise the importance of confidentiality when dealing with patients and staff, particularly when giving or receiving information over the telephone in accordance with the Data Protection Act.
• Maintain the high standards of the service by contributing towards individual, team and service objectives and acting at all times in the best interest of patients.
• To accurately collect, collate and input data to Information Systems as required by procedures to ensure that patient database records are up to date and accurate.
• To participate in Individual Performance Review and Personal Development plans on an annual basis and to undertake training and development as identified within these discussions and as indicated by the requirements of the post.

Research

Essential

• Critically evaluate and review literature.
• Identify where there is a gap in the evidence base to support practice.
• Generate evidence suitable for presentations at practice and local level.
• Apply research evidence base into the workplace.

Health & Safety

Essential

• To have responsibility for health, safety and welfare of self and others at work. This includes being conversant with Trust Health & Safety policies and procedures and ensuring incidents, accidents and near misses are reported; taking part in the risk management process and carrying out tasks/using equipment only when competent to do so.
• Be responsible for ensuring the general environment is clear of all hazards.
• All staff have a responsibility to apprise themselves of how the prevention of the spread of infection relates to their role. They have a responsibility to ensure they are aware of Company policies and procedures in relation to infection prevention and control, and ensure that they comply with them in fulfilling their role.

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.

UK Registration

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).