Job summary
Balham Park Surgery is looking to recruit a Prescription Clerk to join its ever growing prescribing and admin team.
The role is full time and based at the practice, which is a stones throw from Balham station and underground lines and busy lively town centre.
We are a very friendly patient focused practice, well respected by our pateints and local colleagues.
Main duties of the job
Duties will include, supporting the prescribing team to rationalise prescription requests, processing paper and online prescription requests, advising patients of over or underuse of medication, liaising with the clinical team regarding any medication concerns or changes.
Liaising with local pharmacies to ensure patients are getting the correct medication and support in ordering and understanding their medication.
About us
We are a friendly, organised, innovative, surgery in Wandsworth,
with 19,500+ patients. Join a team of 20 GPs, 3 GP Registrars, 4
Practice Nurses, 2 Health Care Assistants, 1 Pharmacist, 1 Social Prescriber and efficient administrators. Our Partnership 5 GPs four of which are Trainers. We have an active patient group established for over 18 years. We are popular with patients and receive lots of positive feedback see NHS Choices. We have a cohesive supportive team, and believe we provide a lovely place to work.
Details
Date posted
04 September 2023
Pay scheme
Other
Salary
£23,302.50 to £24,983.43 a year
Contract
Permanent
Working pattern
Full-time, Flexible working
Reference number
A2204-23-0005
Job locations
236 Balham High Road
London
SW17 7AW
Job description
Job responsibilities
Job summary
To be responsible for the accurate and timely processing of prescription requests for the entitled population, liaising effectively with all relevant personnel.
Duties can include, but are not limited to, the processing of repeat prescriptions in electronic and hard copy format, including online requests. In addition, the post holder will be required to support the multidisciplinary team, ensuring the strategic objectives of the organisation are met.
Generic responsibilities
All staff at Balham Park Surgery have a duty to conform to the following:
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
A good attitude and positive action towards Equality Diversity & Inclusion (ED&I) creates an environment where all individuals can achieve their full potential. Creating such an environment is important for three reasons it improves operational effectiveness; it is morally the right thing to do and it is required by law.
Patients and their families have the right to be treated fairly and be routinely involved in decisions about their treatment and care. They can expect to be treated with dignity and respect and will not be discriminated against on any grounds including age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.
Patients have a responsibility to treat other patients and our staff with dignity and respect.
Staff have the right to be treated fairly in recruitment and career progression. Staff can expect to work in an environment where diversity is valued, and equality of opportunity is promoted. Staff will not be discriminated against on any grounds including age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation. Staff have a responsibility to ensure that they treat our patients and their colleagues with dignity and respect.
Safety, Health, Environment and Fire (SHEF)
This practice is committed to supporting and promoting opportunities for staff to maintain their health, wellbeing and safety.
The post holder is to manage and assess risk within the areas of responsibility, ensuring adequate measures are in place to protect staff and patients and monitor work areas and practices to ensure they are safe and free from hazards and conform to health, safety and security legislation, policies, procedures and guidelines.
All personnel have a duty to take reasonable care of health and safety at work for themselves, their team and others and to cooperate with employers to ensure compliance with health and safety requirements.
All personnel are to comply with the:
Health and Safety at Work Act 1974
Environmental Protection Act 1990
Environment Act 1995
Fire Precautions (workplace) Regulations 1999
Coronavirus Act 2020
Other statutory legislation which may be brought to the post holders attention.
Confidentiality
The organisation is committed to maintaining an outstanding confidential service. Patients entrust and permit us to collect and retain sensitive information relating to their health and other matters pertaining to their care. They do so in confidence and have a right to expect all staff will respect their privacy and maintain confidentiality.
It is essential that, if the legal requirements are to be met and the trust of our patients is to be retained, all staff must protect patient information and provide a confidential service.
Quality and Continuous Improvement (CI)
To preserve and improve the quality of organisation outputs, all personnel are required to think not only of what they do but how they achieve it. By continually re-examining our processes, we will be able to develop and improve the overall effectiveness of the way we work.
The responsibility for this rests with everyone working within the organisation and practices to look for opportunities to improve quality and share good practice and to discuss, highlight and work with the team to create opportunities to improve patient care.
Balham Park Surgery continually strives to improve work processes which deliver healthcare with improved results across all areas of our service provision. We promote a culture of continuous improvement where everyone counts, and staff are permitted to make suggestions and contributions to improve our service delivery and enhance patient care.
Staff should interpret national strategies and policies into local implementation strategies that are aligned to the values and culture of general practice.
All staff are to contribute to investigations and root cause analyses whilst participating in serious incident investigations and multidisciplinary case reviews.
Induction
At Balham Park Surgery you will be required to complete the induction programme and the practice management team will support you throughout the process.
Learning and development
The effective use of training and development is fundamental in ensuring that all staff are equipped with the appropriate skills, knowledge, attitude and competences to perform their role. All staff will be required to partake in and complete mandatory training as directed by their line manager. It is an expectation for this post holder to assess their own learning needs and undertake learning as appropriate
The post holder will undertake mentorship for team members and disseminate learning and information gained to other team members to share good practice and inform others about current and future developments (e.g., courses and conferences).
The post holder will provide an educational role to patients, carers, families and colleagues in an environment that facilitates learning.
Collaborative working
All staff are to recognise the significance of collaborative working and understand their own role and scope and identify how this may develop over time. Staff are to prioritise their own workload and ensure effective time-management strategies are embedded within the culture of the team.
Teamwork is essential in multidisciplinary environments and the post holder is to work as an effective and responsible team member, supporting others and exploring the mechanisms to develop new ways of working and work effectively with others to clearly define values, direction and policies impacting upon care delivery
Effective communication is essential and all staff must ensure they communicate in a manner which enables the sharing of information in an appropriate manner.
All staff should delegate clearly and appropriately, adopting the principles of safe practice and assessment of competence.
Plans and outcomes by which to measure success should be agreed.
Managing information
All staff should use technology and appropriate software as an aid to management in the planning, implementation and monitoring of care and presenting and communicating information.
Data should be reviewed and processed using accurate SNOMED/read codes to ensure easy and accurate information retrieval for monitoring and audit processes.
Service delivery
Staff will be given detailed information during the induction process regarding policy and procedure.
The post holder must adhere to the information contained within the organisations policies whilst ensuring protocols are always adhered to.
Security
The security of the organisation is the responsibility of all personnel. The post holder must ensure they always remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity immediately to their line manager.
Under no circumstances are staff to share the codes for the door locks with anyone and are to ensure that restricted areas remain effectively secured. Likewise, password controls are to be maintained and are not to be shared.
Professional conduct
All staff are required to dress appropriately for their role.
Primary key responsibilities
The following are the core responsibilities of the Prescription Clerk. There may be, on occasion, a requirement to carry out other tasks; this will be dependent upon factors such as workload and staffing levels:
a. Process repeat prescription requests received by phone, email, fax, post, slips and the online access system, in accordance with practice protocol
b. Produce prescriptions for the GP to sign in an acceptable timeframe
c. Ensure all prescription requests are processed and are ready for collection within a 48-hour timeframe
d. Generate requests for medication on behalf of the patient for non-repeat items
e. Actively encourage patients to reconcile medications to facilitate monthly collections
Discuss with patients their requirements, encouraging patients to order only what they require
g. Act upon compliance issues, liaising with the appropriate clinician
h. Ensure medication reviews are arranged by maintaining an accurate recall system
i. Effectively liaise with external services, i.e., district nurses, to ensure medicaments are arranged for housebound patients
j. Input data into the patients healthcare records as necessary
k. Deal with all prescription related enquiries in a timely manner
l. Record and report adverse effects accurately and appropriately, informing the practice manager immediately
m. Data input onto emis web/Docman
n. Carry out system searches as requested
o. Maintain a clean, tidy, effective working area at all times
Job description
Job responsibilities
Job summary
To be responsible for the accurate and timely processing of prescription requests for the entitled population, liaising effectively with all relevant personnel.
Duties can include, but are not limited to, the processing of repeat prescriptions in electronic and hard copy format, including online requests. In addition, the post holder will be required to support the multidisciplinary team, ensuring the strategic objectives of the organisation are met.
Generic responsibilities
All staff at Balham Park Surgery have a duty to conform to the following:
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
A good attitude and positive action towards Equality Diversity & Inclusion (ED&I) creates an environment where all individuals can achieve their full potential. Creating such an environment is important for three reasons it improves operational effectiveness; it is morally the right thing to do and it is required by law.
Patients and their families have the right to be treated fairly and be routinely involved in decisions about their treatment and care. They can expect to be treated with dignity and respect and will not be discriminated against on any grounds including age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.
Patients have a responsibility to treat other patients and our staff with dignity and respect.
Staff have the right to be treated fairly in recruitment and career progression. Staff can expect to work in an environment where diversity is valued, and equality of opportunity is promoted. Staff will not be discriminated against on any grounds including age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation. Staff have a responsibility to ensure that they treat our patients and their colleagues with dignity and respect.
Safety, Health, Environment and Fire (SHEF)
This practice is committed to supporting and promoting opportunities for staff to maintain their health, wellbeing and safety.
The post holder is to manage and assess risk within the areas of responsibility, ensuring adequate measures are in place to protect staff and patients and monitor work areas and practices to ensure they are safe and free from hazards and conform to health, safety and security legislation, policies, procedures and guidelines.
All personnel have a duty to take reasonable care of health and safety at work for themselves, their team and others and to cooperate with employers to ensure compliance with health and safety requirements.
All personnel are to comply with the:
Health and Safety at Work Act 1974
Environmental Protection Act 1990
Environment Act 1995
Fire Precautions (workplace) Regulations 1999
Coronavirus Act 2020
Other statutory legislation which may be brought to the post holders attention.
Confidentiality
The organisation is committed to maintaining an outstanding confidential service. Patients entrust and permit us to collect and retain sensitive information relating to their health and other matters pertaining to their care. They do so in confidence and have a right to expect all staff will respect their privacy and maintain confidentiality.
It is essential that, if the legal requirements are to be met and the trust of our patients is to be retained, all staff must protect patient information and provide a confidential service.
Quality and Continuous Improvement (CI)
To preserve and improve the quality of organisation outputs, all personnel are required to think not only of what they do but how they achieve it. By continually re-examining our processes, we will be able to develop and improve the overall effectiveness of the way we work.
The responsibility for this rests with everyone working within the organisation and practices to look for opportunities to improve quality and share good practice and to discuss, highlight and work with the team to create opportunities to improve patient care.
Balham Park Surgery continually strives to improve work processes which deliver healthcare with improved results across all areas of our service provision. We promote a culture of continuous improvement where everyone counts, and staff are permitted to make suggestions and contributions to improve our service delivery and enhance patient care.
Staff should interpret national strategies and policies into local implementation strategies that are aligned to the values and culture of general practice.
All staff are to contribute to investigations and root cause analyses whilst participating in serious incident investigations and multidisciplinary case reviews.
Induction
At Balham Park Surgery you will be required to complete the induction programme and the practice management team will support you throughout the process.
Learning and development
The effective use of training and development is fundamental in ensuring that all staff are equipped with the appropriate skills, knowledge, attitude and competences to perform their role. All staff will be required to partake in and complete mandatory training as directed by their line manager. It is an expectation for this post holder to assess their own learning needs and undertake learning as appropriate
The post holder will undertake mentorship for team members and disseminate learning and information gained to other team members to share good practice and inform others about current and future developments (e.g., courses and conferences).
The post holder will provide an educational role to patients, carers, families and colleagues in an environment that facilitates learning.
Collaborative working
All staff are to recognise the significance of collaborative working and understand their own role and scope and identify how this may develop over time. Staff are to prioritise their own workload and ensure effective time-management strategies are embedded within the culture of the team.
Teamwork is essential in multidisciplinary environments and the post holder is to work as an effective and responsible team member, supporting others and exploring the mechanisms to develop new ways of working and work effectively with others to clearly define values, direction and policies impacting upon care delivery
Effective communication is essential and all staff must ensure they communicate in a manner which enables the sharing of information in an appropriate manner.
All staff should delegate clearly and appropriately, adopting the principles of safe practice and assessment of competence.
Plans and outcomes by which to measure success should be agreed.
Managing information
All staff should use technology and appropriate software as an aid to management in the planning, implementation and monitoring of care and presenting and communicating information.
Data should be reviewed and processed using accurate SNOMED/read codes to ensure easy and accurate information retrieval for monitoring and audit processes.
Service delivery
Staff will be given detailed information during the induction process regarding policy and procedure.
The post holder must adhere to the information contained within the organisations policies whilst ensuring protocols are always adhered to.
Security
The security of the organisation is the responsibility of all personnel. The post holder must ensure they always remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity immediately to their line manager.
Under no circumstances are staff to share the codes for the door locks with anyone and are to ensure that restricted areas remain effectively secured. Likewise, password controls are to be maintained and are not to be shared.
Professional conduct
All staff are required to dress appropriately for their role.
Primary key responsibilities
The following are the core responsibilities of the Prescription Clerk. There may be, on occasion, a requirement to carry out other tasks; this will be dependent upon factors such as workload and staffing levels:
a. Process repeat prescription requests received by phone, email, fax, post, slips and the online access system, in accordance with practice protocol
b. Produce prescriptions for the GP to sign in an acceptable timeframe
c. Ensure all prescription requests are processed and are ready for collection within a 48-hour timeframe
d. Generate requests for medication on behalf of the patient for non-repeat items
e. Actively encourage patients to reconcile medications to facilitate monthly collections
Discuss with patients their requirements, encouraging patients to order only what they require
g. Act upon compliance issues, liaising with the appropriate clinician
h. Ensure medication reviews are arranged by maintaining an accurate recall system
i. Effectively liaise with external services, i.e., district nurses, to ensure medicaments are arranged for housebound patients
j. Input data into the patients healthcare records as necessary
k. Deal with all prescription related enquiries in a timely manner
l. Record and report adverse effects accurately and appropriately, informing the practice manager immediately
m. Data input onto emis web/Docman
n. Carry out system searches as requested
o. Maintain a clean, tidy, effective working area at all times
Person Specification
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working with the public
- Experience of working in a healthcare setting
Desirable
- Experience of working as a prescription clerk
Qualifications
Essential
- Educated to a GCSE level or equivalent
- GCSE Maths and English grade C or above
Desirable
- NVQ level 2 in relevant field
Skills
Essential
- Strong IT skills
- Clear, polite telephone manner
- Competent in the use of Office and Outlook
- Effective time management (planning and organising)
- Ability to work as a team member and autonomously
- Good interpersonal skills
- Problem solving and analytical skills
- Ability to follow policy and procedure
- EMIS/SystmOne/Vision user skills
Person Specification
Experience
Essential
- Experience of working with the public
- Experience of working in a healthcare setting
Desirable
- Experience of working as a prescription clerk
Qualifications
Essential
- Educated to a GCSE level or equivalent
- GCSE Maths and English grade C or above
Desirable
- NVQ level 2 in relevant field
Skills
Essential
- Strong IT skills
- Clear, polite telephone manner
- Competent in the use of Office and Outlook
- Effective time management (planning and organising)
- Ability to work as a team member and autonomously
- Good interpersonal skills
- Problem solving and analytical skills
- Ability to follow policy and procedure
- EMIS/SystmOne/Vision user skills
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.
Employer details
Employer name
Balham Park Surgery
Address
236 Balham High Road
London
SW17 7AW
Employer's website
Employer details
Employer name
Balham Park Surgery
Address
236 Balham High Road
London
SW17 7AW
Employer's website
Employer contact details
For questions about the job, contact:
Details
Date posted
04 September 2023
Pay scheme
Other
Salary
£23,302.50 to £24,983.43 a year
Contract
Permanent
Working pattern
Full-time, Flexible working
Reference number
A2204-23-0005
Job locations
236 Balham High Road
London
SW17 7AW