Job responsibilities
Main duties and Responsibilities:
Work with patients and community pharmacists to ensure patients receive the medicines they need post discharge.
Design, develop and implement computer searches to identify cohorts of patients at high risk of harm from medicines.
Work with patients and the primary care team to minimise risks through medicines optimisation.
Review the use of medicines most commonly associated with unplanned hospital admissions and readmissions through audit and individual patient reviews.
Review patient requests for repeat prescriptions, review medicines reaching review dates.
Ensure patients are booked in for necessary monitoring tests where required and review and file test results.
Provide a telephone help line for patients with questions, queries and concerns about their medicines.
Hold clinics for patients requiring face to face medication reviews.
Oversee anticoagulation clinics.
Undertake risk assessment and management and ensure compliance with medicines legislation.
Analyse, interpret and present medicines data to highlight issues and risks to support decision making.
Chronic Disease Management (for example, managing Hypertension / Type 2 Diabetes / Asthma / COPD patients and polypharmacy review).
Focus on IIF Domains (for example, Structured medication reviews and medicines optimisation).
Ensure patients are switched to the most cost effective medication.
Answer all medicine related enquiries from GPs, other staff and patients.
Carry out dispensing review of use of medicines for dispensing patients.
The post holder will be expected to:
Be responsible for maintaining registration as a pharmacist and complying with appropriate professional codes.
Keep up to date with medical / therapeutic evidence and opinion, local and national services, legislation and policy developments.
Attend local, regional and national meetings and training courses of relevance.
Comply with all organisational and statutory requirements (e.g. health and safety, equal opportunities and diversity, confidentiality and clinical governance).
Confidentiality:
In the course of seeking treatment, patients entrust us with, or allow us to gather, sensitive information in relation to their health and other matters. They do so in confidence and have the right to expect that staff will respect their privacy and act appropriately.
In the performance of the duties outlined in this Job Description, the post-holder may have access to confidential information relating to patients and their carers, Practice staff and other healthcare workers. They may also have access to information relating to the Practice as a business organisation. All such information from any source is to be regarded as strictly confidential.
Information relating to patients, carers, colleagues, other healthcare workers or the business of the Practice may only be divulged to authorised persons in accordance with the Practice policies and procedures relating to confidentiality and the protection of personal and sensitive data.
Health & Safety:
The post-holder will assist in promoting and maintaining their own and others health, safety and security as defined in the Practice Health & Safety Policy, to include:
- Using personal security systems within the workplace according to Practice guidelines.
- Identifying the risks involved in work activities and undertaking such activities in a way that manages those risks.
- Making effective use of training to update knowledge and skills.
- Using appropriate infection control procedures, maintaining work areas in a tidy and safe way and free from hazards.
- Reporting potential risks identified.
Equality and Diversity:
The post-holder will support the equality, diversity and rights of patients, carers and colleagues, to include:
- Acting in a way that recognizes the importance of peoples rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with Practice procedures and policies, and current legislation.
- Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs and beliefs of patients, carers and colleagues.
- Behaving in a manner which is welcoming to and of the individual, is non-judgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings priorities and rights.
Personal/Professional Development:
The post-holder will participate in any training programme implemented by the Practice as part of this employment, such training to include:
- Participation in an annual individual performance review, including taking responsibility for maintaining a record of own personal and/or professional development.
- Taking responsibility for own development, learning and performance and demonstrating skills and activities to others who are undertaking similar work.
Quality:
The post-holder will strive to maintain quality within the Practice, and will:
- Alert other team members to issues of quality and risk.
- Assess own performance and take accountability for own actions, either directly or under supervision.
- Contribute to the effectiveness of the team by reflecting on own and team activities and making suggestions on ways to improve and enhance the teams performance.
- Work effectively with individuals in other agencies to meet patients needs.
- Effectively manage own time, workload and resources.
Communication:
The post-holder should recognize the importance of effective communication within the team and will strive to:
- Communicate effectively with other team members.
- Communicate effectively with patients and carers.
- Recognize peoples needs for alternative methods of communication and respond accordingly.
Contribution to the Implementation of Services:
The post-holder will:
- Apply Practice policies, standards and guidance.
- Discuss with other members of the team how the policies, standards and guidelines will affect own work.
- Participate in audit where appropriate.
This job description is intended as a guide to the main duties and responsibilities for the post and should not be considered an exhaustive list.
