PCN Pharmacy Technician

Job description

Job responsibilities

Summary

The role is to support the practice-based Clinical Pharmacist to ensure the delivery of safe, effective and efficient systems for repeat prescribing, medicines optimisation, reducing medicines waste and maximising patient outcomes.

The post holder will work as part of a multi-disciplinary team and support all practice and PCN staff to develop and improve processes. Innovative ideas are welcomed, and excellent communication skills, enthusiasm and motivation are essential skills for a successful candidate.

A key part of the role will be dealing with daily medication requests and queries and communicating with patients and Community Pharmacies.

In addition, the post holder will be responsible for encouraging the development of better understanding of the principles of medicines optimisation through out the practice teams and promoting good practice in line with therapeutic developments. This will involve assisting the practices in achieving national requirements, NICE implementation and utilisation of medicines optimisation initiatives.

You will work at two/three different practices.

Contribute towards improvement of prescribing processes in general practice

Promote electronic repeat dispensing and online ordering

Carry out housekeeping whilst in patient records e.g. dose optimisation and medicines synchronisation

Use and maintain information systems and databases relevant to the position including incident reporting, medicines optimisation, prescribing data, cost savings and patient outcomes

Handle information which may be sensitive, complex or confidential and appropriately recording, transferring and/or coordinating such information in accordance with the Data Protection Act; Caldicott Guidelines and the Confidentiality Code of Conduct

Utilise GP practice clinical systems to conduct prescribing audits

Undertake, participate and share the outcomes of clinical audits to facilitate improvement and changes in practice

Support the role of the Clinical Pharmacist in the delivery of primary care funding mechanism indicators (DES, GP specification, QOF etc.)

Where applicable, contribute/participate in practice meetings, patient participation groups, and other meetings to improve engagement of the role of pharmacy technician and to promote issues relevant to prescribing and medicines optimisation

Be responsible for the organisation and planning of own workload to meet set deadlines

Undertake learning and development to maintain the required knowledge and skills for practice based work

Carry out other duties which are appropriate to the skills and competencies of the postholder and grade of the post as the priorities of the service change

General 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 practice may only be divulged to authorised persons in accordance with practice policies and procedures relating to confidentiality and the protection of personal and sensitive data

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.

Health&Safety:

The post-holder will assist in promoting and maintaining their own and others' health, safety and security as defined in the Health & Safety Policy, to include:

Using personal security systems within the work place according to 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 to the relevant Manager

The post-holder will comply with the Data Protection Act(1984) and the Access to Health Records Act (1990)

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 relevant 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.

SpecialWorkingConditions

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

Personal/Professional Development:

The post-holder will participate in any training programme implemented 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 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 recognise the importance of effective communication within the team and will strive to:

Communicate effectively with other team members

Communicate effectively with patients and carers

Recognise peoples' needs for alternative methods of communication and respond accordingly

Communicate with other NHS bodies

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Professional registration with GPhC
• CPPE completed
• BTEC/NVQ level 3 or equivalent in pharmaceutical sciences
• Evidence of continued professional development (CPD)
• Experience of working as a qualified, registered pharmacy technician in primary care
• Knowledge of GP clinical system: EMIS
• Demonstrated ability to influence and persuade partners and stakeholders of the respective merits of different options, innovations, new opportunities and challenges
• An appreciation of the NHS agenda and government targets
• Awareness of systems to support management of patients in a primary care setting, delivering pharmaceutical input and support in the context of pathways of care and the business of the Practice(s)
• Good clinical pharmacy knowledge including terminology
• Knowledge and understanding of pharmacy law and ethics and current legislation
• An excellent understanding of data protection and confidentiality issues
• Computer literate with an ability to use the Microsoft office packages
• Understand the aims of current healthcare policy
• Has attention to detail, able to work accurately, identifying errors quickly and easily
• Has a planned and organised approach with an ability to prioritise their own workload to meet strict deadlines
• Able to think analytically; anticipating obstacles and thinking ahead; using analytical techniques to draw logical solutions to problems
• Excellent communication skills, verbal and written, with the ability to adjust communication style and content to suit the audience
• Works effectively, both independently and as a member of a team
• Flexible approach to meet service needs and ensure a patient focused response
• Self-motivated and proactive
• Continued commitment to improve skills and ability in new areas of work
• Able to undertake the demands of the post with reasonable adjustments if required
• Independently mobile to be able to work across several sites
• Adaptability, flexibility and ability to cope with uncertainty and change
• Demonstrate ability to work in a busy environment
• Excellent time keeping and prioritisation skills

Desirable

• Relevant advanced theoretical and practical knowledge of general
• practice and evidence-based medicine
• An appreciation of the implications of healthcare policy for General Practice.
• Influencing and negotiating skills
• Able to analyse and interpret prescribing data

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

Anfield and Everton Primary Care Network

Address

Townsend Medical Centre

98 Townsend Lane

Anfield

Liverpool

L6 0BB

Employer's website

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