Lead Pharmacist for Frailty and Older Adults

Job description

Job responsibilities

Post Title: Lead Pharmacist for Frailty and Older Adults (with Advanced Clinical Practitioner Opportunity)

Grade: 8A

Department: Pharmacy

Site: QEH

Responsible to: Principal Pharmacist for Medicine

Responsible for: STEP Pharmacists

Band 7 Senior Clinical Pharmacists

Plus indirectly all staff within Medicine rotations

Accountable to: Clinical Director of Pharmacy

Hours: 37.5 per week plus rotational weekends

Job Summary:

1. To be responsible for the coordination and delivery of a responsive, proactive, patient-focused clinical pharmacy service to clinical Divisions across the Trust within defined area. This includes the promotion of safe, effective and cost effective drug use to facilitate patient admission and enhance continuity of care across the primary and secondary care interface. To provide support and direction to the band 7s in Medicine cross site.
2. To act as a role model and provide a consistently high standard of pharmaceutical service to patients in line with the Trust and Departmental objectives.
3. To be the main pharmacy contact for Frailty and Older People Medicine within the clinical divisions.
4. To support Frailty and Older People Medicine in managing their drugs budget. Support service development that involves medicines or pharmacy services in these directorates.
5. To provide operational and clinical support to the pharmacy department as dictated by the needs of the clinical pharmacy service across the Trust. This includes supervision, training and support to junior pharmacists, pre-registration pharmacists and other pharmacy staff as necessary.
6. To deputise for the Principal Pharmacist for the respective site.

Key Result Areas & Performance:

Clinical Services and Patient Care

1. To participate in the front-line provision of Pharmacy Services as appropriate and when To act as a clinical pharmacist in an appropriate area and participate in consultant ward rounds as required.
2. To be registered with the General Pharmaceutical Council as a pharmacist independent prescriber.
3. To practice as a pharmacist independent prescriber, where appropriate to improve patient care and safety, and to continue to develop the role of pharmacist independent prescriber within the specialty.
4. To act as a clinical role model for other pharmacists within the team and demonstrate the ability to provide service that ensures the safe, clinically effective and cost-efficient use of drugs and the ability to check clinically screened dispensed prescriptions.
5. To provide a safe and patient-focused clinical pharmacy service to wards. This includes undertaking medicines reconciliation, assessing pharmaceutical needs, assessing and facilitating the use of patients own drugs, ensuring appropriate drug supply, maintaining both the one stop dispensing system and ward based dispensing service by pharmacy
6. To participate in consultant post-take ward rounds to identify and resolve pharmaceutical care needs of patients and ensure that any follow up plans are shared with the ward based pharmacy team and medical staff as
7. To lead the training program for pharmacists providing service to wards within general medicine and post-take ward rounds to ensure efficient and safe provision of the clinical pharmacy
8. To support the investigation of medication related incidents and formulation/delivery of action plans to address any problems identified within Medicine.
9. To contribute to the development and implementation of strategies to improve safe medicines use across the
10. To liaise with primary care colleagues to gather and disseminate patient medication issues to other healthcare

Leadership & Service Development

1. To lead and develop the clinical pharmacy service to Frailty and Older People Medicine across the Trust. This includes setting and monitoring quality standards for clinical pharmacy services and the provision of feedback to the Principal Pharmacist for Medicine.
2. To provide the Director of Pharmacy with details of output, performance and activity at specified time intervals in a format agreed with the Director of Pharmacy.
3. To identify resources required to improve pharmacy services within the specified directorates.
4. To support the development, implementation and adherence to local and national guidelines/policies to ensure cost-effective and safe prescribing within the division.
5. To collaborate in the development of Integrated Care Pathways, Standard Operating Procedures and Patient Group Directions within the division as necessary.
6. To liaise with other senior pharmacy staff to ensure the effective provision of Pharmacy Services.

Division support

1. To actively contribute to the management of the drug budget for Frailty and Older People Medicine through drug expenditure monitoring, forecasting, drug use audits and feedback to the service and general managers to ensure the most effective use of resources.
2. To identify areas of potential cost-savings within the areas, and to implement systems to realise savings and contain prescribing costs.
3. To educate healthcare professionals on the costs associated with drug therapy and promote the use of evidence-based, cost-effective prescribing within the division.
4. To participate in the preparation of business cases to support service developments within Pharmacy and clinical areas as necessary.
5. To actively participate in divisional meetings, if required.

Staff Management and Training

1. To manage the induction and development of pharmacy staff, according to their identified needs and the development and funding frameworks of the department in liaison with the Lead Pharmacist for Education and Training.
2. To undertake regular performance reviews of all staff managed according to Trust procedures:
   • Appraisals and objective setting
   • Sickness absence
   • Disciplinary and grievance matters
   • Recruitment and selection
   • Personal development
   • Departmental workload allocations
3. To support the education and training of other healthcare professionals, including medical staff, nursing staff and allied health professionals.
4. To participate and contribute to clinical training programmes at a local and national level e.g. summer students, pharmacy undergraduates.
5. To evaluate and develop own management and professional knowledge competencies by attendance to in house/external training programmes, self-education and practice research.
6. To undertake CPD to ensure that knowledge is continually updated.
7. To arrange and/or deliver relevant departmental meetings across the Trust that will enable staff to be brought up to date on current issues and to address staff development needs for Frailty and Older People Medicine.
8. To be a postgraduate tutor (pre-registration, diploma or MSc) for pharmacy staff as appropriate and required.

Research & Development

1. To lead in audit and practice research to investigate, and where appropriate, improve the quality of service for patients in the Trust.
2. To encourage research conducted to be published or presented at local, national or international meetings.
3. To develop working relationship and research links with academic units to promote collaboration in pharmacy practice and risk management research.

Person Specification

Qualifications and Training

Essential

• B. Pharm / M. Pharm / BSc (Pharmacy) or equivalent.
• Professional registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC).
• Postgraduate Diploma in either Clinical Pharmacy or General Pharmacy Practice (or equivalent).
• Mandatory CPD to maintain fitness to practice.

Desirable

• Other postgraduate qualifications i.e. Independent Prescribing
• Management/Leadership courses i.e. Edward Jenner, Mary Seacole

Experience

Essential

• Substantial post registration experience in hospital clinical pharmacy or equivalent relevant area of practice.
• Demonstrable experience in supervising others.
• Demonstrable experience of managing staff/ teams.
• Demonstrable experience of co- ordinating and leading on clinical audit.
• Demonstrable experience of protocol/ guideline development.

Desirable

• Demonstrable experience in the delivery of formal education and training at postgraduate level.

Knowledge & Skills

Essential

• Knowledge of relevant local and national standards associated with medicines optimisation and integrated care
• Ability to work on own initiative and effectively as part of a team both within pharmacy and a multidisciplinary environment
• Ability to think strategically.
• Applies sound professional judgement to legal and ethical issues.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate complex information effectively using clear written and spoken English and overcome barriers to understanding.
• Ability to provide highly complex information on Pharmacy Services issues and impart knowledge to all levels of healthcare professionals (up to and including senior consultants/professor/executive director level).
• Ability to work positively and calmly under pressure.

Desirable

• Ability to manage difficult and complex issues or refer appropriately.
• Ability to prioritise and plan work effectively alone and for a team including the ability to delegate appropriately.

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.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

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

Lewisham and Greenwich NHS Trust

Address

Queen Elizabeth Hospital

Stadium Road

London

SE18 4QH

Employer's website

https://www.lewishamandgreenwich.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)