Job summary
To optimise medicines management processes and achieve
highly effective, safe, patient-centred prescribing within a defined locality
across a number of surgeries. The Practice Pharmacist will be expected to work
autonomously, but with the support of the multi-professional primary care team.
Within the team the Practice Pharmacist will focus on
developing medicines optimisation services across the locality. This involves
running processes for repeat prescription reauthorisation, management of
medicines on transfer of care and developing systems for safer prescribing. The
Practice Pharmacist will carry out medication reviews for patients with
polypharmacy - especially for older people, people resident in care homes and
those with multiple co-morbidities/long-term conditions.
The Practice Pharmacist will provide leadership on quality
improvement and clinical audit, as well as managing some aspects of the Quality
and Outcomes Framework. By working across surgeries, there is the opportunity
to share ideas and examples of good practice. Time will be split
proportionately, depending on the surgerys list size, and work will vary
depending on the needs of the practice.
Main duties of the job
-
To maintain
registration as a pharmacist and comply with appropriate professional codes
-
To plan and
organise own workload, including audit, project work, and provide training
sessions for other members of the multi-disciplinary team.
-
Maintain and
develop professional competence and expertise, keep up to date with
medical/therapeutic evidence and opinion, and local and national service,
legislation and policy developments
-
To develop and
facilitate good working relationships with community pharmacists and other
stakeholders
-
Attend local,
regional and national meetings of relevance
-
Undertake any
other duties commensurate with the post holders grade as agreed with the
locality and/or practice lead GPs
-
All employees
should understand that it is their personal responsibility to comply with all
organisational and statutory requirements (e.g. health and safety, equal
treatment and diversity, confidentiality and clinical governance).
About us
Primary Care Networks (PCNs) build on the core work of current primary care services and enable greater provision of proactive, personalised, coordinated and more integrated health and social care for our communities.
When developed, PCNs will include:
- GP services
- Pharmacies
- Community health services
- Mental health services
- Adult social care
- Voluntary organisations
Vision
We share a vision that surgeries will become the focal point for community services. They will deliver the best care for our population in purpose-built premises. We aim to achieve this by having teams that work well together. They know and respect each others roles, providing a happy and healthy workplace.
Values
Our values will drive the creation of the type of organisation that will allow us to provide great care to our patients.
Internal Values:
- Respect and Dignity
- Honesty
- Compassion
- Communication
External Values to achieve the above:
- Patients will always come first.
- Choice
- Privacy and Confidentiality of information.
- Individuality and Identity.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Key Duties
Management of medicines
after discharge from hospital
To reconcile
medicines following discharge from hospitals, intermediate care and into care
homes, identify and rectify unexplained changes, manage these changes without
referral to the GP, perform a clinical medication review, produce a
post-discharge medicines care plan including dose titration and booking of
follow-up tests. Work 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.
Work in partnership with hospital colleagues e.g. care of the elderly doctors
and clinical pharmacists to proactively manage patients at high risk of
medicine-related problems before they are discharged to ensure continuity of
care
Risk stratification
Design, develop and implement
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. Implement local and national guidelines and formulary
recommendations. Monitor practice prescribing against the local health
economys Red/Amber/Green/Grey lists for medicines that should be prescribed by
hospital doctors or subject to shared care. Liaise directly with hospital
colleagues where prescribing needs to be returned to specialists. Suggest and
develop computer decision support tools to help remind prescribers about the
agreed formulary choice and local recommendations. Audit practices compliance
with NICE guidance. Proactively provide practice communications on important
prescribing messages to improve prescribers knowledge and work with the team
to develop and implement other techniques known to influence implementation of
evidence.
Unplanned hospital
admissions
Devise and implement practice
searches to identify cohorts of patients most likely to be at risk of an
unplanned admission and readmissions from medicines. Work with
multi-professional colleagues to manage medicines-related risk for readmission
and patient harm. Put in place changes to reduce the prescribing of these
medicines to high-risk patient groups
Repeat prescribing
Review,
update and implement a practice repeat prescribing policy. Manage the repeat
prescribing reauthorisation process by reviewing patient requests for repeat
prescriptions and reviewing medicines reaching review dates.
Patient facing medicines
support
Provide a telephone help line
for patients with questions, queries and concerns about their medicines. Hold
clinics for patients requiring face-to-face clinical medication reviews, CMRs i.e. a review of the ongoing need for each medicine, a review of monitoring
needs and an opportunity to support patients with their medicine taking.
Identify people at risk of hospital admission and harm from poor use of
medicines. Attend and refer patients to multidisciplinary team meetings.
Care home medication reviews
Manage caseload of care home
residents, if required by the practice. Undertake clinical medication reviews
with patients with multimorbidity and polypharmacy. Work with care home staff
to improve safety of medicines ordering and administration.
Long term condition clinics
See patients in
multi-morbidity clinics and in partnership with primary healthcare colleagues
and implement improvements to patients medicines, including de-prescribing.
Service development
Develop and manage new services
that are built around new medicines or NICE guidance, where new
medicine/recommendations allow the development of a new care pathway e.g. new
oral anticoagulants for stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation.
Care Quality Commission
Provide
leadership to the practice manager and GPs to ensure the practice is compliant
with CQC standards where medicines are involved
Cost saving programmes
Make recommendations for,
support and supervise practice prescribing clerks. Make changes to medicines
designed to save on medicine costs where a medicine or product with lower
acquisition cost is now available
Medicine information to
practice staff and patients
Answer all medicine related
enquiries from GPs, practice staff and patients. Provide follow ups for
patients to monitor the effect of any changes
Medicines quality
improvement
Identify and provide leadership
on areas of prescribing requiring improvement. Either conduct own audits and
improvement projects or work with colleagues such as GP registrars. Present
results and provide leadership on suggested change. Contribute to national and
local research initiatives
Training & Shared
Learning
Provide
education and training to primary healthcare team on therapeutics and medicines
optimisation. Provide training to visiting medical students. Facilitate shared
learning across the practices on medication related issues, offering
professional support and leadership.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Key Duties
Management of medicines
after discharge from hospital
To reconcile
medicines following discharge from hospitals, intermediate care and into care
homes, identify and rectify unexplained changes, manage these changes without
referral to the GP, perform a clinical medication review, produce a
post-discharge medicines care plan including dose titration and booking of
follow-up tests. Work 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.
Work in partnership with hospital colleagues e.g. care of the elderly doctors
and clinical pharmacists to proactively manage patients at high risk of
medicine-related problems before they are discharged to ensure continuity of
care
Risk stratification
Design, develop and implement
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. Implement local and national guidelines and formulary
recommendations. Monitor practice prescribing against the local health
economys Red/Amber/Green/Grey lists for medicines that should be prescribed by
hospital doctors or subject to shared care. Liaise directly with hospital
colleagues where prescribing needs to be returned to specialists. Suggest and
develop computer decision support tools to help remind prescribers about the
agreed formulary choice and local recommendations. Audit practices compliance
with NICE guidance. Proactively provide practice communications on important
prescribing messages to improve prescribers knowledge and work with the team
to develop and implement other techniques known to influence implementation of
evidence.
Unplanned hospital
admissions
Devise and implement practice
searches to identify cohorts of patients most likely to be at risk of an
unplanned admission and readmissions from medicines. Work with
multi-professional colleagues to manage medicines-related risk for readmission
and patient harm. Put in place changes to reduce the prescribing of these
medicines to high-risk patient groups
Repeat prescribing
Review,
update and implement a practice repeat prescribing policy. Manage the repeat
prescribing reauthorisation process by reviewing patient requests for repeat
prescriptions and reviewing medicines reaching review dates.
Patient facing medicines
support
Provide a telephone help line
for patients with questions, queries and concerns about their medicines. Hold
clinics for patients requiring face-to-face clinical medication reviews, CMRs i.e. a review of the ongoing need for each medicine, a review of monitoring
needs and an opportunity to support patients with their medicine taking.
Identify people at risk of hospital admission and harm from poor use of
medicines. Attend and refer patients to multidisciplinary team meetings.
Care home medication reviews
Manage caseload of care home
residents, if required by the practice. Undertake clinical medication reviews
with patients with multimorbidity and polypharmacy. Work with care home staff
to improve safety of medicines ordering and administration.
Long term condition clinics
See patients in
multi-morbidity clinics and in partnership with primary healthcare colleagues
and implement improvements to patients medicines, including de-prescribing.
Service development
Develop and manage new services
that are built around new medicines or NICE guidance, where new
medicine/recommendations allow the development of a new care pathway e.g. new
oral anticoagulants for stroke prevention in atrial fibrillation.
Care Quality Commission
Provide
leadership to the practice manager and GPs to ensure the practice is compliant
with CQC standards where medicines are involved
Cost saving programmes
Make recommendations for,
support and supervise practice prescribing clerks. Make changes to medicines
designed to save on medicine costs where a medicine or product with lower
acquisition cost is now available
Medicine information to
practice staff and patients
Answer all medicine related
enquiries from GPs, practice staff and patients. Provide follow ups for
patients to monitor the effect of any changes
Medicines quality
improvement
Identify and provide leadership
on areas of prescribing requiring improvement. Either conduct own audits and
improvement projects or work with colleagues such as GP registrars. Present
results and provide leadership on suggested change. Contribute to national and
local research initiatives
Training & Shared
Learning
Provide
education and training to primary healthcare team on therapeutics and medicines
optimisation. Provide training to visiting medical students. Facilitate shared
learning across the practices on medication related issues, offering
professional support and leadership.
Person Specification
Other
Essential
- Self-motivation & Initiative
- Adaptable
Desirable
- Full driving licence & access to car to travel
Qualifications
Essential
- Mandatory registration with General Pharmaceutical Council
Desirable
- Membership of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society
- A member of or working towards Faculty membership of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society
- Masters degree in pharmacy (MPharm)
- Clinical diploma
- Clinical assessment skills
- Independent prescriber
Experience
Essential
- In depth therapeutic and clinical knowledge and understanding of the principles of evidence-based healthcare.
- An appreciation of the nature of GPs and general practices
- An appreciation of the nature of primary care prescribing, concepts of rational prescribing and strategies for improving prescribing
- Excellent interpersonal, influencing and negotiating skills
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Demonstrate the ability to communicate complex and sensitive information in an understandable form to a variety of audiences e.g. patients
- Is able to plan, manage, monitor, advise and review general medicine optimisation issues in core areas for long term conditions.
- Good Microsoft Office skills
- Able to obtain and analyse complex technical
- Recognises priorities when problem solving and identifies deviations from the seniors or GPs when appropriate
- Able to work under pressure and to meet deadlines
- Gain acceptance for recommendations and influence/ motivate/ persuade the audience to comply with the recommendations/ agreed course of action where there may be significant barriers
- Work effectively independently and as a team member
- Demonstrates accountability for delivering professional expertise and direct service provision
Desirable
Person Specification
Other
Essential
- Self-motivation & Initiative
- Adaptable
Desirable
- Full driving licence & access to car to travel
Qualifications
Essential
- Mandatory registration with General Pharmaceutical Council
Desirable
- Membership of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society
- A member of or working towards Faculty membership of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society
- Masters degree in pharmacy (MPharm)
- Clinical diploma
- Clinical assessment skills
- Independent prescriber
Experience
Essential
- In depth therapeutic and clinical knowledge and understanding of the principles of evidence-based healthcare.
- An appreciation of the nature of GPs and general practices
- An appreciation of the nature of primary care prescribing, concepts of rational prescribing and strategies for improving prescribing
- Excellent interpersonal, influencing and negotiating skills
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Demonstrate the ability to communicate complex and sensitive information in an understandable form to a variety of audiences e.g. patients
- Is able to plan, manage, monitor, advise and review general medicine optimisation issues in core areas for long term conditions.
- Good Microsoft Office skills
- Able to obtain and analyse complex technical
- Recognises priorities when problem solving and identifies deviations from the seniors or GPs when appropriate
- Able to work under pressure and to meet deadlines
- Gain acceptance for recommendations and influence/ motivate/ persuade the audience to comply with the recommendations/ agreed course of action where there may be significant barriers
- Work effectively independently and as a team member
- Demonstrates accountability for delivering professional expertise and direct service provision
Desirable
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).
Additional information
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).
