Clinical Pharmacist

Job responsibilities

This role aims to pro-actively transfer workload relating to medicines to improve patient care, safety and free up practice staff. To work as part of a multi-disciplinary team to manage medicines on transfer of care and systems for safer prescribing, providing expertise in clinical medicines management while addressing both the public health and social care needs of patients in the GP practices.

The post holder will perform remote and in-person medication review of patients with problematic polypharmacy especially for older people, people in residential care homes and those with multiple co-morbidities. The following sets out the key role responsibilities for a clinical pharmacist:

• Deliver patient facing services and clinics which improve patient outcomes, reflect the needs of the population and shift workload from other disciplines
• Deliver high quality medication reviews and develop bespoke medicines treatment plans for patients (particularly the elderly, complex patients, those at high risk of admission and people with learning disabilities or autism)
• Support the link with community and hospital pharmacy teams and other stakeholders in the medicines supply chain to improve patient experience, handle queries and manage supply problems
• Deliver training and guidance to other clinicians, staff, students and trainees on medicines issues
• Improve patient and carer understanding of, confidence in and compliance with their medicines
• Provide pharmaceutical consultations and home visits to patients with long term conditions as an integral part of the multidisciplinary team
• Provide pro-active leadership on medicines and prescribing systems to the practice multidisciplinary team, patients and their carers within the Canterbury locality.
• Action medicines and prescribing queries from patients and staff
• Support the Medicines Optimisation Scheme (MOS) and other Primary Care Network schemes.
• Improve the quality and effectiveness of prescribing through clinical audit and education to improve performance against NICE standards, prescribing guidance and other clinical standards
• Develop yourself and the role through participation in clinical supervision, training and service quality improvement activities
• Improve the safety and quality of prescribing following hospital admissions and attendance by conducting discharge medicines reconciliation activities.
• Contribute to patient safety culture through reporting and investigation of medicines-related incidents
• To support systems for the collection and monitoring of the key performance indicators (KPIs) and outcomes
• Contribute to the achievement and maintenance of good to outstanding CQC registration status for practices within Canterbury.

In addition it is the responsibility of the post holder to:

• Be an independent prescriber, or be willing to train to become a prescriber (training will be provided).
• Actively participate in national Centre for Postgraduate Pharmacy Education (CPPE) training scheme for clinical pharmacists
• Provide specialist expertise in the use of medicines whilst helping to address both the public health and social care needs of the PCN Practices patients and tackling inequalities.
• Provide leadership on person-centred medicines optimisation (including supporting practice prescribers to conserve antibiotics in line with local antimicrobial stewardship guidance and working to deliver care through effective use of shared care protocols) and quality improvement, whilst contributing to the quality and outcomes framework and enhanced services

Key PCN Roles:

Patient Facing Clinical Services and Care

• Manage a caseload of complex patients, including those who reside in a care home, those exhibiting addictive behaviours, severe mental illness or end of life care
• Develop a specialist area of interest in line with team objectives
• Conduct face-to-face and other modes of medication reviews and construct medicines care plans in agreement with patients and carers
• Delivering long term conditions clinics and home visits particularly for patients with complicated medication regimens
• Prescribing of acute and repeat medication within areas of clinical competency once patients have been assessed
• Receive referrals for patients from triage services and other clinicians
• Contribute to public health campaigns (e.g. flu clinics) through advice or direct care
• Take an active part in therapeutic drug monitoring system and recall of patients taking high risk drugs i.e. anticoagulants, anticonvulsants and DMARDs etc.
• Support virtual and remote models of consultation including e-consultations, remote medication review, telehealth.

Medicines Optimisation Systems

• Feedback on examples of best practice within the PCNs and apply these across practices.
• Support improvements in repeat prescribing, repeat dispensing and medication review systems
• Provide support to prescribing and dispensing staff
• Support a Medicines Handling Policy for the PCNs to ensure safe processes for self-administered medicines and controlled drugs
• Support the delivery of QOF, incentive schemes, QIPP and other quality or cost effectiveness initiatives
• Improve the data quality of medicines records and linking to conditions.

Safety

• Report medicines related incidents, contribute to investigations and root cause analyses
• Participate in serious incident investigations and multidisciplinary case reviews
• Report Adverse Drug Reactions and promote reporting
• Oversee use and monitoring of high-risk drugs and drugs of abuse
• Ensure safe storage and security of medicines
• Action and respond to Drug Safety Alerts and other safety cascades.

Training and education and information

• Support and advise other clinicians
• Participate in MDT learning activities e.g. MDT clinical supervision and case review
• Develop and deliver education sessions and training to clinical and non-clinical staff
• Deliver education and support to individual patients and patient support groups
• Provide ad-hoc medicines advice to doctors and other clinicians
• Horizon scan for new drugs and provide information on their introduction
• Provide advice on cost effective prescribing and supply issues
• Provide teaching and support to medical students, GP trainees and other trainee healthcare professionals

Quality

• Contribute to the achievement of KPIs and objectives of the PCN priorities for Canterbury
• Ensure compliance with CQC and other professional standards
• Promote a culture of continuous improvement and excellence
• Conduct regular clinical audits and other improvement activities
• Assess own performance regularly and make suggestions of how to improve personal and team performance
• Understand a risk management approach and apply it to all activities.

In addition to the above, candidates will be expected to perform any other tasks or duties deemed appropriate to the role.

Qualifications

Essential

• Mandatory registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council
• Commitment to complete CPPE & IP qualifications
• Evidence of continuing professional development

Desirable

• Membership of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society
• Existing CPPE & IP qualifications

Experience

Desirable

• 2 years post-qualification experience
• Experience of working within Primary Care

Knowledge

Essential

• In depth therapeutic and clinical knowledge and understanding of the principles of evidence-based healthcare
• An understanding of the nature of general practice
• Good knowledge of Microsoft Office

Desirable

• Good knowledge of EMIS, Docman & other clinical software

Skills

Essential

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Ability to convey complex and sensitive information in an understandable form to a variety of audiences
• Prioritise when problem solving and identify deviations from normal patterns and refer to senior clinicians when appropriate
• Able to work under pressure and to meet deadlines
• Ability to constructively challenge the views and practices of clinicians and managers
• Ability to work autonomously
• Ability to work as part of a team
• Demonstrates accountability for delivering professional expertise

Desirable

• Ability to plan, manage, monitor, advise and review general medicine optimisation issues in core areas for long term conditions

Personal Qualities

Essential

• Drive to provide excellent services for patients
• Act as a role model and lead by example
• Confident, assertive and resilient
• High levels of integrity, confidentiality and loyalty
• Sensitive and empathetic in distressing situations

Other Requirements

Essential

• Access to own transport and ability to travel across the locality on a regular basis, including to visit people in their own homes
• Flexibility to work outside of core hours when required
• Disclosure Barring Service (DBS) check
• Ability to work remotely when required

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).