Clinical Pharmacist

Job description

Job responsibilities

Patient facing - long-term condition clinics

Working within the practice based team to undertake medication reviews particularly in high risk groups such as:

- Frail elderly

- Poly-pharmacy

- Patients on high risk medicines

- Hospital admissions

Review the on-going need for medicines optimisation. Make appropriate recommendations for medicines improvement.

Patient facing Structured Medication Review

Undertake structured medication reviews with patients and produce recommendations for nurses and/or GPs on prescribing and monitoring.

This would be a level 3 clinical medication review looking at the patients full clinical condition, blood monitoring, interface care arrangements, social isolation etc. including reducing inappropriate polypharmacy and wasteful prescribing.

Care Home Medication Reviews

Undertake structured medication reviews and produce recommendations for nurses or GPs on prescribing and monitoring.

Work with care home staff to improve safety of medicines ordering and administration.

Management of common/minor/self-limiting ailments

Managing caseload of patients with common/minor/self-limiting ailments while working within a scope of practice and limits of competence.

Signposting to community pharmacy and referring to GPs or other healthcare professionals where appropriate.

Patient facing/Telephone medicines support

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

Medicine information to practice staff and patients

Answers relevant medicine-related enquiries from GPs, other practice staff, other healthcare teams (e.g. community pharmacy) and patients with queries about medicines. Suggesting solutions and providing follow up.

Unplanned hospital admissions

Review the use of medicines most commonly associated with unplanned hospital admissions and readmissions through audit and individual patient reviews.

Put in place changes to reduce the prescribing of these medicines to high-risk patient groups.

Management of medicines at discharge from hospital

To reconcile medicines following discharge from hospitals, intermediate care and into 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.

Medicines Optimisation

Deliver medicines optimisation outcomes against ICB workplan dealing with cost saving initiatives.

Interface

Interface with community and hospital pharmacy colleagues and develop referral processes between primary care professionals including the promotion of the repeat dispensing service

Repeat Prescribing

Participate in the repeat prescribing reauthorisation process by reviewing patient requests for repeat prescriptions and reviewing medicines reaching review dates and flagging up those needing a review.

Ensure appropriate monitoring tests in place when required.

Service Development

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

Information management

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

Medicines quality improvement

Undertake clinical audits of prescribing in areas directed by the GPs, feedback the results and implement changes in conjunction with the practice team.

Medicines safety

Implement changes to medicines that result from MHRA alerts, product withdrawal and other local and national guidance.Increase safe and effective prescribing through mechanisms such as audit. Improve quality in prescribing using Quality Improvement methodology including the use of Plan Do Study Act (PDSA) cycles.

Implementation of local and national guidelines and formulary recommendations

Monitor practice prescribing and make recommendations to GPs for medicines that should be prescribed by hospital doctors or subject to shared care.Auditing practices compliance against NICE guidelines.

Education and training

Provide education and training to primary healthcare team on therapeutics and medicines optimisation.

Care Quality Commission

Work with general practice team to ensure the practice is compliant with CQC standards where medicines are involved.

Collaborative Working Relationships

Recognises the roles of other colleagues within the organisation and their role in patient care.

Demonstrates use of appropriate communication to gain the co-operation of relevant stakeholders.

Demonstrates ability to work as a member of a team.

Able to recognise personal limitations and refer to more appropriate colleagues when necessary.

Actively works towards developing and maintaining effecting working relationships across the PCN.

Foster and maintain strong links with all services across locality.

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

Demonstrates ability to integrate general practice with community and hospital pharmacy teams.

Liaises with ICB colleagues including ICB Pharmacists on prescribing related matters to ensure consistency of patient care and benefit.

Liaises with ICB pharmacists and Heads of Medicines Management/Optimisation to benefit from peer support.

Knowledge, Skills and Experience Required

Completion of an undergraduate degree in pharmacy and registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council.

Have experience and an awareness of common acute and long-term conditions that are likely to be seen in General Practice.

May hold or be working towards an independent prescribing qualification.

Completion of or willing to complete an 18 month CPPE pathway course or approved equivalent

Recognises priorities when problem-solving and identifies deviations from normal pattern and is able to refer to seniors or GPs when appropriate.

Able to follow legal, ethical, professional and organisational policies/procedures and codes of conduct.

Involves patients in decisions about prescribed medicines and supporting adherence as per NICE guidelines.

Leadership

Demonstrate understanding of the pharmacy role in governance and is able to implement this appropriately within the workplace.

Demonstrate ability to motivate self to achieve goals.

Promotes diversity and equality in people management techniques and leads by example.

Management

Demonstrate understanding of the implications of national priorities for the team and/or the service.

Demonstrate understanding of, and conforms to, relevant standards of practice.

Demonstrates ability to identify and resolve risk management issues according to policy/protocol.

Follows professional and organisational policies/procedures relating to performance management.

Demonstrate ability to extend boundaries of service delivery within the team.

Education, Training and Development

Understands and demonstrates the characteristics of a role model to members in the team and/or service.

Demonstrates ability to conduct teaching and assessment effectively according to a learning plan with supervision from experienced colleagues.

Demonstrates self-development through continuous professional development activity; working alongside colleagues to identify areas to develop.

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

Ensures appropriate clinical supervision is in place to support development.

Enrolled into review and appraisal systems within the network.

Research and Evaluation

Demonstrates ability to critically evaluate and review literature.

Demonstrates ability to identify where there is a gap in the evidence base to support the practice.

Demonstrates ability to generate evidence suitable for presentations at practice and local level.

Demonstrates ability to apply research evidence base into working place.

Health and Safety/Risk Management

The post-holder must comply at all times with the Practices Health and Safety policies, in particular by following agreed safe working procedures and reporting incidents using the organisations Incident Reporting System.

The post holder will comply with the Data Protection Act (2018) and the Access to Health Records Act (1990).

Equality and Diversity

The post-holder must co-operate with all policies and procedures designed to ensure equality of employment. Co-workers, patients and visitors must be treated equally irrespective of gender, ethnic origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, religion etc.

Respect for Patient Confidentiality

The post-holder should respect patient confidentiality at all times and not divulge patient information unless sanctioned by the requirements of the role.

Special Working Conditions

The post-holder is required to travel independently between practice sites (where applicable), and to attend meetings etc. hosted by other agencies.

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

Job Description Agreement

This job description is intended to provide an outline of the key tasks and responsibilities only. There may be other duties required of the post-holder commensurate with the position. This description will be open to regular review and may be amended to take into account development within the network. All members of staff should be prepared to take on additional duties or relinquish existing duties in order to maintain the efficient running of the network.

This job description is intended as a basic guide to the scope and responsibilities of the post and is not exhaustive. It will be subject to regular review and amendment as necessary in consultation with the post-holder.

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

• - Minimum of two years post-qualification experience.
• - In depth therapeutic and clinical knowledge and understanding of the principles of evidence-based healthcare.
• - An appreciation of the nature of PCNs, 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
• - Good IT skills
• - Recognises priorities when problem solving and identifies deviations from the normal pattern and is able to refer to 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

• - Is able to plan, manage, monitor, advise and review general medicine optimisation issues in core areas for long term conditions
• - Ability and willingness to travel between the practice/PCN sites
• - Safeguarding adult and children level three
• - UK Work Permit (if required)

Qualifications

Essential

• - Masters degree in pharmacy (MPharm) (or equivalent)
• - Independent prescriber or working towards/intent of gaining independent prescribing qualification
• - CPPE primary care pathway training course or working towards / intent of completing

Desirable

• - Specialist knowledge acquired through postgraduate diploma level or equivalent training/experience

Professional Registration

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

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).

Employer details

Employer name

South Durham Health CIC

Address

The Surgery

Bevan Grove

Shotton Colliery

Durham

DH6 2LQ

Employer's website

https://www.southdurhamhealth.co.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)