Job description

Job responsibilities

Long-Term Conditions

• Contribute to improved health outcomes in long term conditions for the practices.
• Support patients to manage their long-term conditions.
• Carry out clinical medication reviews for patients on multiple medications for long term conditions.
• Review if prescribing is appropriate in line with current guidance, cost-effective and safe; identify unmet need, stop unnecessary/ineffective medicines. Implement own prescribing changes as an independent prescriber.
• Review of pathology results for patients under their care.
• Contribute to achievement of QOF targets to improve health outcomes.
• Make appropriate recommendations to the wider clinical team including senior pharmacists, senior clinical practitioners and GPs.

Clinical Medication Reviews

• Undertake clinical medication reviews with patients
• Produce recommendations for senior clinical practitioner, GP etc. for ongoing prescribing and monitoring recommendations.
• To review medications for new patients, to ensure safe, cost-effective prescribing in line with practice/local prescribing policies.

Care Home Medication Reviews

• Undertake clinical medication review with patients and staff within the care home.
• Work with care home staff to improve safety of medication ordering and administration.

Domiciliary Reviews

• Undertake clinical medication reviews with patients and produce recommendations.
• Attend and refer patients (if needed) to the multidisciplinary team.
• Work with patients to educate about medication safety, storage and ordering within the home.

Risk Stratification

• Identification of patients at high risk of harm from medicines through computerised searches.
• Review all relevant safety alerts (e.g. MHRA) and ensure any action required is undertaken.
• Conduct medication reviews for patients identified as above.

Unplanned Hospital Admissions

• Review the use of medications most commonly associated with unplanned admissions and re-admission through audit and individual patient reviews.
• Put protocol and policies in place to implement changes to reduce the prescribing of these medicines to high-risk patient groups.

Management of common/minor/self-limiting ailments

• Managing caseload of patient with common/minor/self-limiting ailments whilst working within a scope of practice and limits of competence.
• Signposting to the community pharmacy and referring ro GPs and other healthcare professionals where appropriate.

Medicines Support and Information for practice staff and patients (patient facing or telephone)

• Answer medical information queries from GPs, Nurses, practice staff, patients and third-party providers.
• Provide education on medicines related topics to the clinical team.
• Provide advice on suitable alternative medications in the event of a medicine being unavailable.
• Provide education for the clinical team on new medicines.
• Provide specialist knowledge and advice on pharmaceutical matters.
• Provide regular education sessions for the clinicians at the practices to discuss audit results and agree an action plan for improving standards within clinical areas.
• To provide specialist knowledge on medication monitoring and ensure a system for implementation is in place.
• To answer queries from administration staff regarding medication requests where appropriate to save GP time.

Management of medicines at discharge from hospital

• To reconcile medicines following discharge from hospital/ intermediate care; 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 test, and 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).
• Reconcile medication from clinic appointment correspondence, identifying any unexplained changes and rectifying these by communication with the secondary care provider. Ensure patients are fully aware of any changes and that a plan for monitoring/dose titration is in place.

Signposting

• Ensure that patients are referred to the appropriate health professional and level of care within an appropriate timeframe.

Repeating Prescribing

• Produce and implement repeat prescribing policy within the surgery.
• To re-authorise medication for future repeat prescribing within scope of competence if an independent prescriber.
• Manage medication review dates and ensure that any clinical monitoring or reviews are actioned.
• To ensure the practice repeat prescribing system is safe, efficient and helps minimise waste.

Service Development

• Review NICE and other evidence-based guidance as it is issued, to evaluate any impact on medicines and prescribing.
• Undertake regular clinical audit to support implementation of clinical guidance across the practice.
• To take part in practice clinical meetings when appropriate.
• Encourage cost effective prescribing within the practice, including adherence to local formulary.
• Build good working relationships with local Medicines Management Team members.
• Improve communication about medication-related issues between the practice and both the patient and other care providers

Professional Development

• Work with your line manager to undertake continual personal and professional development, taking an active part in reviewing and developing the role and responsibilities
• Adhere to organisational policies and procedures including keeping up to date with mandatory training.
• Attend formal clinical supervision sessions for further development, case reviews and dealing with difficult issues.
• Attend annual appraisals
• Participate in the delivery of formal educational programmes.
• Demonstrate an understanding of current educational policies relevant to working areas of practice and keep up to date with relevant clinical practice.

Research and Evaluation

• Critically evaluate and review literature and implement into practice if appropriate.
• Identify where there is a gap in the evidence base to support practice.
• Generate evidence suitable for presentations at practice and local level.

Miscellaneous

• Work as part of the team to seek feedback, continually improve the service and contribute to the business planning.
• Undertake any tasks consistent with the level of the post and the scope of practice, ensuring that work, tasks and results are processed within a timely manner.
• Use effective communication skills to ensure appropriate and detailed information is effectively communicated whether that be a patient, member of the community, member of the multi-disciplinary team or a staff member.

Leadership and Management

• Be the first line manager for the prescribing team.
• Support new starters with induction, training and mentoring.
• Liaise with clinicians, managers and team leads.
• Deal with immediate responses to complaints relating to prescription requests, escalating as appropriate.
• Implement changes as per management instruction.
• Continually assess and evaluate the prescribing systems, recommend changes and improvements to the management team as appropriate.
• Participate in clinical meetings and manage prescribing team meetings.
• Identify team training needs.
• Help the team prioritise workload.

Administration

• Liaise with community pharmacists to ensure efficient and well managed repeat prescribing systems.
• Liaise with other prescribing leads within the PCN and the ICB.
• Liaise with Care Home managers ensuring they have a point of contact if they have any queries.

Policy and Service Development

• Liaise with ICB regarding local prescribing policies.
• Alongside others within the pharmacy and practice team, define and creat protocols and formularies for consultation with ICB medicines managements team.
• Work as prescribing clinical coordinator to ensure success of QOF and CQC inspections.

Minor Ailments Clinics

You will be responsible for conducting formal physical assessments encompassing a range of clinical measures, tailored to meet the diverse needs of patients with various health conditions.

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Minimum of 2 years post-qualification experience.
• Experience working in general practice.
• Experience in Chronic Disease Management / Long Term Conditions
• Experience of managing and leading a team.
• Be able to assess, evaluate, prescribing systems, recommend changes and improvements to the management team as appropriate.
• Experience in communication with community pharmacies to ensure efficient prescribing.

Desirable

• Understanding NHS strategy in relation to Primary Care
• Experience in liaising with stakeholders and other prescribing leads within the ICB.
• Experience in identifying training needs within the team.
• Be able to handle and respond to complaints within a timely manner.

Experience

Essential

• Ability to maintain a positive working environment
• To delegate appropriate tasks to the appropriate person.
• Act as a positive role-model
• Participate in planning and implementing changes within the surgery.
• Provide prescribing leadership to the practice executive team and help lead on areas including but not limited to QOF and CQC.
• Monitor the safety and effectiveness if your own clinical practice through quality assurance strategies such as the use of audit, supervisor feedback, case review and peer review.
• In depth therapeutic and clinical knowledge and understanding of the principles of evidenced based healthcare.
• Excellent communication, interpersonal, influencing and negotiating skills.
• Be able to plan, manage, monitor, advise and review general medicine optimisation issues in the core areas for Long Term Conditions.
• Be able to make appropriate clinical assessments when prescribing or re-prescribing acute or repeat medications.
• Recognises priorities when problem solving and identifies deviations from the normal patter and is able to refer to seniors or GPs when appropriate
• Able to demonstrate working within competencies, aware of professional boundaries and seeks assistance when appropriate.
• Able to manage, action and report on medical safety alerts from MHRA.
• Able to work under pressure and work within deadlines.
• Demonstrates accountability for developing professional expertise and direct service provision.
• Meets enhanced DBS standards comprising of a clear criminal record, in line with the law on spent convictions.
• Up to date with mandatory training including safeguarding.
• Up to date immunisation status
• Good IT skills
• Work effectively, independently and as part of a team.
• Self-motivated.
• Adaptable.
• Patient, tolerant, fair and compassionate.
• Able to manage conflict in a positive and supportive manner.

Desirable

• Working within community development initiatives.
• Contribute and participate in development of local guidelines, protocols and standards
• Produce timely and informative reports and able to confidently disseminate these within the clinical and management team.
• Able to run reports, audit, interpret and provide an action plan for effective medicines management.
• An appreciation in the leadership and management required within Primary Care and General Practice.
• An appreciation of the nature of primary care prescribing, concepts or rational prescribing and strategies for improving prescribing.

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

Sussex Primary Care

Address

The Avenue Surgery

1 The Avenue

Bevendean,

Brighton

BN2 4GF

United Kingdom

Employer's website

http://www.sussexprimarycare.co.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)

Job description

Job responsibilities

Job Title

Clinical Practice based Pharmacist

Salary / Grade

Dependent on experience

Hours per week

Full time - 37.5hours pere week

Reports to

Lead Clinical Pharmacist

Primary Location/ Base

The Avenue Surgery

Job Summary

The post holder is a pharmacist, who acts within their professional boundaries, supporting and working alongside the pharmacy team within the practice. In this role they will be supported by the senior GP partner prescribing lead.

The post holder will work as part of a multi-disciplinary team in a patient-facing role. The post holder will take responsibility for areas of chronic disease management within the practice and undertake clinical medication reviews to proactively manage patients with complex polypharmacy.

The post holder will provide primary support to general practice staff with regards to prescription and medication queries. They will help support the repeat prescription system, deal with acute prescription requests, and medicines reconciliation on transfer of care and systems for safer prescribing, providing expertise in clinical medicines advice while address in both public and social care needs of patients in the practice.

The post holder will provide clinical leadership on medicines optimisation and quality improvement and manage some aspects of the quality and outcomes framework and enhanced services.

The post holder will ensure that the practice integrates with community and hospital pharmacy to help utilise skill mix, improve patient outcomes, ensure better access to healthcare and help manage workload. The role is pivotal to improving the quality of care and operational efficiencies so requires motivation and passion to deliver excellent service within the practice.

The post holder will be supported to develop their role to become a non-medical prescriber.

PRIMARY DUTIES AND AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY

Patient facing long term condition clinics

See (where appropriate) patients with single or multiple medical problems where medicine optimisation is required.

Review the on-going need for each medicine, a review of monitoring needs and an opportunity to support patients with their medicines taking ensuring they get the best use of their medicines, making appropriate recommendations to GPs for medicine improvement including IIF/ QOF requirements.

Patient facing clinical medication review

Undertake clinical medication reviews with patients and produce recommendations for nurses and/or GP on prescribing and monitoring including IIF/ QOF requirements.

Patient facing care home medication

Undertake clinical medication reviews with patients and produce recommendations for the GP on prescribing and monitoring including IIF/QOF requirements.

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

Patient facing domiciliary clinical medication review

Undertake clinical medication reviews with patients and produce recommendations for the GP on prescribing and monitoring including IIF/QOF requirements.

Attend and refer patients to multidisciplinary meetings.

Management of common/ minor/self-limiting ailments.

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

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

Patient medicines support

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

Medicine information to practice staff and patients

Answer relevant medicine related enquiries from practice staff, other healthcare teams (community pharmacy).

Suggesting and recommending solutions.

Providing follow up for patients to monitor the effect of any changes.

Unplanned hospital admissions

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

Put in place 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 hospital, intermediate care and into care homes, including identifying and rectifying unexplained changes and working with patients and community pharmacists to ensure the patient receive the medicines they need post discharge.

Set up and manage systems to ensure continuity of medicines supply to high risk groups of patients.

Signposting

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

Repeat prescribing

Produce and implement a practice repeat prescribing policy.

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

Ensure patients have appropriate monitoring tests in place when required.

Risk stratification

Identification of cohorts of patients at high risk of harm from medicines through pre-prepared practice computer searches.

Service development

Contribute pharmaceutical advice for the development and implementation of new services that have medicinal components.

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.

Implementation of local and national guidelines and formulary recommendations

Monitor practice prescribing against the local health economys RAG list and make recommendations to GP.

Assist practice in seeing and maintaining a practice formulary that is hosted on the practice computer system.

Auditing practices compliance against NICE guidance.

Education and training

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

CQC

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

Public health

To support public health campaigns.

To provide specialist knowledge on all public health programmes available to practice patients.

HEALTH & SAFETY

• The post-holder will manage their own and others health & safety and infection control as defined in the Practices Health & Safety Policy, the Practice Health & Safety Manual, and the Practices Infection Control Policy and published procedures.
• Comply with Practice health and safety policies by following agreed safe working procedures.
• Awareness and compliance with national standards of infection control, hygiene, regulatory / contractual / professional requirements, and good practice guidelines.
• Correct personal use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and ensuring correct use of PPE by others, advising on appropriate circumstances for use by clinicians, staff and patients.
• Reporting incidents using the organisations Incident Reporting System.

CONFIDENTIALITY

• Maintain confidentiality of information, always acting within the terms of the Data Protection Act and Caldicott guidance on patient confidentiality.
• Maintain an awareness of the Freedom of Information Act.

EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY

• The post-holder will support, promote, and maintain the Practices Equality & Diversity Policy.
• No person whether they are staff, patient or visitor should receive less favourable treatment because of their gender, ethnic origin, age, disability, sexual orientation, religion etc.
• The jobholder must comply with all policies and procedures designed to ensure equality of employment and that services are delivered in ways that meet the individual needs of patients and their families.

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 Practice. 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 Practice.

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

• * Have experience and an awareness of common acute and long term conditions that are likely to be seen in general practice.
• * Experience at a high level of competency with computers.
• * Experience with working as part of a multi-disciplinary team.

Desirable

• * Has previous experience working within a GP environment.
• * Has working knowledge of TPP Systemone computer system.

Qualifications

Essential

• * Completion of an undergraduate degree in pharmacy and registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council.
• * Enroll and complete the CPPE PCPEP pathway.
• * Minimum of 2 years experience as a pharmacist, demonstrating within a practice portfolio.
• * May hold or be willing to work towards an independent prescribing qualification.

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

The Avenue Surgery

Address

14 The Avenue

Warminster

Wiltshire

BA12 9AA

United Kingdom

Employer's website

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

Job description

Job responsibilities

The following are the core responsibilities of the Clinical Pharmacist delivering health services.

1. Work as part of a multi-disciplinary team in a patient-facing role to clinically assess and treat patients using their expert knowledge of medicines for specific disease areas
2. Be a prescriber, or completing training to become a prescriber, and work with and alongside the general practice team
3. Be responsible for the care management of patients with chronic diseases and undertake clinical medication reviews to proactively manage people with complex polypharmacy, especially the elderly, people in care homes, those with multiple co-morbidities (in particular frailty, COPD and asthma) and people with learning disabilities or autism (through STOMP Stop Over Medication Programme)
4. Provide specialist expertise in the use of medicines whilst helping to address both the public health and social care needs of patients at the organisation and to help in tackling inequalities
5. Provide leadership on person-centred medicines optimisation (including ensuring prescribers in the practice conserve antibiotics in line with local antimicrobial stewardship guidance) and quality improvement, whilst contributing to the Quality and Outcomes Framework and enhanced services
6. Through structured medication reviews, support patients to take their medications to get the best from them, reduce waste and promote self-care
7. Have a leadership role in supporting further integration of general practice with the wider healthcare teams (including community and hospital pharmacy) to help to improve patient outcomes, ensure better access to healthcare and help to manage general practice workload
8. Develop relationships and work closely with other pharmacy professionals across the wider health and social care system
9. Take a central role in the clinical aspects of shared care protocols, clinical research with medicines, liaison with specialist pharmacists (including mental health and reduction of inappropriate antipsychotic use in people with learning difficulties), liaison with community pharmacists, and anticoagulation
10. Be part of a professional clinical network and have access to appropriate clinical supervision. Appropriate clinical supervision means:
11. o Each Clinical Pharmacist must receive a minimum of one supervision session per month by a senior clinical pharmacist
12. o The Senior Clinical Pharmacist must receive a minimum of one supervision session every three months by a GP clinical supervisor
13. o Each Clinical Pharmacist will have access to an assigned GP clinical supervisor for support and development
14. o A ratio of one Senior Clinical Pharmacist to no more than five junior Clinical Pharmacists, with appropriate peer support and supervision in place
15. Act as the point of contact for all medicine related matters, establishing positive working relationships
16. Consult patients within defined levels of competence and independently prescribe acute and repeat medication
17. Receive referrals and directed patients from triage services and other clinicians
18. Receive and resolve medicines queries from patients and other staff
19. Provide medication review services for patients in the practice and during domiciliary visits to the local nursing home
20. Manage a caseload of complex patients
21. Manage a therapeutic drug monitoring system and the recall of patients taking high risk drugs, i.e., anticoagulants, anticonvulsants and DMARDs, etc.
22. Deliver long term condition clinics and home visits, particularly for patients with complicated medication regimes, and prescribe accordingly
23. Provide pharmaceutical consultations to patients with long term conditions as an integral part of the multidisciplinary team
24. Review medications for newly registered patients
25. Improve patient and carer understanding of confidence in and compliance with their medication
26. Maintain accurate clinical records in conjunction with extant legislation
27. Encourage cost-effective prescribing throughout the organisation
28. Implement and embed a robust repeat prescribing system
29. Provide advice and answer medication related queries from patients and staff
30. Organise and oversee the organisations medicines optimisation systems, including the repeat prescribing and medication review systems
31. Improve the quality and effectiveness of prescribing through clinical audit and education, to improve performance against NICE standards and clinical and prescribing guidance.
32. Develop yourself and the role through participation in clinical supervision, training and service redesign activities
33. Ensure appropriate supervision of safe storage, rotation and disposal of vaccines and drugs. Apply infection-control measures within the practice according to local and national guidelines
34. Provide subject matter expertise on medication monitoring, implementing and embedding a system
35. Support clinicians with the management of patients suffering from drug and alcohol dependencies
36. Actively signpost patients to the correct healthcare professional
37. Manage a caseload of complex patients and potential care institutions and to provide advice for the GP management of more complex patients or areas such as addictive behaviours, severe mental illness or end of life care
38. Review the latest guidance, ensuring the organisation conforms to NICE, CQC etc.
39. Be aware of duties and responsibilities regarding current legislation and adhere to practice policies and procedures on Safeguarding Adults and Safeguarding Children
40. Provide targeted support and proactive reviews for vulnerable, complex patients and those at risk of admission and re-admission to secondary care
41. Handle prescription queries and requests directly
42. Provide proactive leadership on medicines and prescribing systems to the organisation, patients and their carers
43. Support in the delivery of enhanced services and other service requirements on behalf of the organisation
44. Participate in the management of patient complaints when requested to do so, and participate in the identification of any necessary learning brought about through clinical incidents and near-miss events
45. Undertake all mandatory training and induction programmes
46. Contribute to and embrace the spectrum of clinical governance
47. Attend a formal appraisal with your manager at least every 12 months. Once a performance/training objective has been set, progress will be reviewed on a regular basis so that new objectives can be agreed
48. Contribute to public health campaigns (e.g., COVID-19 or flu clinics) through advice or direct care
49. Maintain a clean, tidy, effective working area at all times

There may be, on occasion, a requirement to carry out other tasks, this will be dependent upon factors such as workload and staffing levels

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

• Please see attached Job Description & Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Please see attached Job Description & Person Specification

Other requirements/wider responsibilities

Essential

• Please see attached Job Description & Person Specification

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

Priory Medical Centre

Address

Priory Road

Warwick

Warwickshire

CV34 4NA

United Kingdom

Employer's website

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