PCN Clinical Pharmacist

Job responsibilities

MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

The focus of the post holder’s work will depend on the qualifications, skills and experience of the individual and the needs of the PCN Practice(s) which may develop over time and may include:

Patient facing long term condition clinics

See patients in multi‐morbidity clinics and in partnership with primary healthcare colleagues and implement improvements to patient’s medicines, including de-prescribing, managing own case load.

Patient facing clinical medication review and support

Undertake structured, clinical shared decision making medication reviews with patients and utilising your independent prescribing and order relevant monitoring with appropriate review.

Telephone medicines support

Provide a telephone support for patients with queries and concerns about their medicines.

Patient facing care home/residential clinical medication reviews

Manage own caseload of care home residents providing a structured medication review.

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

Patient facing domiciliary/home visits

Manage own caseload of vulnerable housebound patients at risk of hospital admission and harm from poor use of their medicines.

Attend and refer patients to multidisciplinary case conferences. Identifying key areas of need for vulnerable patients and formulating care plans.

Management of common/minor/self-limiting ailments

Manage own caseload for patients with common/minor/self-limiting ailments while working within a scope of practice and limits of competence, signposting as appropriate.

Triage/differentiated/undifferentiated diagnosis

Ensure that patients are referred to the appropriate clinician for the appropriate level of care within an appropriate period of time.

Medicine information to practice staff and patients

Answer all medicine‐related enquiries from GPs, other practice staff, other healthcare teams (e.g. community pharmacy) and patients with queries about medicines.

Unplanned hospital admissions

Implement practice searches to identify cohorts of patients most likely to be at risk of an unplanned admission/re-admission from medicines

Work with colleagues to manage medicines‐related risk for readmission and patient harm. Put in place changes to optimise prescribing of these medicines to high‐risk patient groups.

Management of medicines at discharge from hospital

Reconcile medicines following hospital discharge and upon admission to care homes, including identifying and rectifying unexplained changes manage these changes independently.

Work with hospital and community colleagues to proactively manage patients at high risk of medicine related problems before they are discharged to ensure continuity of care.

Repeat prescribing

Produce if necessary and implement a practice repeat prescribing policy, ensuring promoting cost effective use of medicines and minimising unnecessary waste. Manage the repeat prescribing reauthorisation process.

Delivery of Quality Improvement programmes

Support the delivery of local and national quality or cost effectiveness initiatives, identifying areas of prescribing for review.

Incorporate the objectives of medicines optimisation, where requested and required, into general practice.

Conduct clinical audits and quality improvement projects, presenting results and providing leadership on suggested changes.

Service development

Support new services that are built around new medicines, or medicines within NICE guidance or a local care pathway. Contribute to the achievement of KPI’s and PCN objectives.

Information management

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

Medicines safety and Risk Stratification

Identify cohorts of patients at high risk of harm from medicines following national and local drug safety alerts e.g. MHRA.

Responsibility for management of risk stratification tools on behalf of the practice. Working with patients and the primary care team to minimise risks through medicines optimisation.

Manage the process of implementing changes to medicines and guidance for practitioners.

Provide leadership for antibiotic stewardship.

Care Quality Commission

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

Undertake risk assessment and ensure the management of medicines in the Practice complies with medicines legislation.

Support Shared Care and Implementation of local and national guidelines and formulary recommendations where requested and required

Monitor practice prescribing against the local health economy’s RAG list for medicines that should be prescribed by hospital doctors (red drugs) or subject to shared care (amber drugs).

Liaise directly with hospital colleagues where prescribing needs to be returned to specialists.

Public health

Support public health campaigns.

Communication and collaborative working

The post-holder should recognise the importance of effective communication.

It is vital the post holder works collaboratively with their PCN clinical director;

• Recognises the roles of other colleagues within the network and their role to patient care

• Demonstrates use of appropriate communication to gain the co-operation of relevant stakeholders (including patients, senior and peer colleagues, and other professionals, other NHS/private organisations e.g. CCGs)

• Is able to recognise personal limitations and refer to more appropriate colleague(s) when necessary.

Leadership

Demonstrate understanding of the pharmacy role in governance and implements this appropriately within the workplace.

Demonstrate understanding of, and contributes to, the workplace vision.

Demonstrates ability to improve quality within limitations of service.

Management

Demonstrate understanding of the implications of local and national priorities and/or service and manage self through these changes.

Education and Training

Provide education and training to the, primary healthcare team and other health professionals’ e.g. nursing staff as required. Participate in a peer support network with fellow practice pharmacists.

Research and Evaluation

Demonstrates ability to critically evaluate and review literature, applying research evidence base into working place.

Understanding of principles of research governance.

Health & Safety

The post-holder will assist in promoting and maintaining their own and others’ health, safety and security as defined in the employing organisation’s Health & Safety Policy.

Equality and Diversity

The post-holder will support the equality, diversity and rights of patients, carers and colleagues.

Confidentiality

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 a 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’s policies and procedures, and the protection of personal and sensitive data.

Quality

The post-holder will strive to maintain quality 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

• work effectively with individuals in other agencies to meet patients’ needs

• effectively manage own time, workload and resources

Working Conditions

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

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

Motivation and Skills

Essential

• Ability to motivate self and other members of the team
• Drive and determination to promote and support the role of pharmacy staff in General Practice
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Demonstrates the ability to communicate complex and sensitive information in an understandable form to a variety of audiences
• Able to influence, motivate and persuade the audience to comply with the recommendations or agreed course of action where there may be significant barriers
• 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
• Produce timely and informative reports
• Work effectively independently and as a team member
• Demonstrates accountability for delivering professional expertise and direct service provision
• Ability to work flexibly
• Ability to recognize own limitations and act upon them appropriately;
• Willingness to learn new skills and to problem solve on a daily basis
• An understanding, acceptance and adherence to the need for strict confidentiality

Desirable

• Is able to plan, manage, monitor, advise and review general medicine issues in core areas for long term conditions
• Able to obtain and analyse complex technical information

Other

Essential

• Ability to travel and holds business car insurance
• Meets DBS reference standards and has a clear criminal record, in line with the law on spent convictions
• Immunisation status
• Understands the principles of equality and diversity
• Commitment to addressing health inequalities and patient empowerment

Desirable

• Hold up to date safeguarding adult and children level three training
• Hold up to date Information Governance training
• Hold up to date basic life support training

Qualifications

Essential

• Masters degree in pharmacy (MPharm)
• Mandatory registration with General Pharmaceutical Council
• Evidence of continuing professional development
• UK driving licence
• UK work permit (if required)

Desirable

• Clinical diploma or other post graduate qualification
• Independent prescriber or working towards qualification
• The post holder must either have completed the CPPE primary care pathway or be working towards it

Experience

Essential

• Appreciation of General Practice and working alongside General practice staff

Desirable

• An appreciation of the nature of primary care prescribing, concepts of rational prescribing and strategies for improving prescribing
• In depth therapeutic and clinical knowledge and understanding of the principles of evidence based healthcare including clinical audit

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).