Job summary
Job Summary
We have an exciting opportunity for an enthusiastic pharmacist (Band 8a) to join NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service (SPS). This is a new post, establishing a cross function role within the (Medicines Use and Safety) MUS and Digital team. This post is hosted by the Liverpool University Hospitals Foundation Trust and based at the Pharmacy Practice Unit (PPU) with opportunity to work remotely. This is one of two similar posts that SPS is advertising. Secondments will be considered.
About SPS
The NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service (SPS) supports the NHS to develop best practice systems of work-related to buying, making and using medicines. The service provides leadership, instructive and informative specialist input and operational support to the sourcing, supply and use of medicines across the system.
Our strengths are borne out of connecting national expertise with policy teams and arm's length bodies to ensure consistency and high standards. The service supports both regional and local connections to ensure that the service's outputs resonate with and support local NHS organisations which deliver care to patients. The key successes of SPS are through the development of their "Do Once and Share" methodology.
Main duties of the job
The Role
You will have a broad and varied role working in collaboration with colleagues across the MUS and Digital team as well as other functions of SPS and key external stakeholders.
This new role will support our Medicines Use and Safety programme by improving our existing online offer, and subsequently developing and maintaining new content. The post holder will:
- Work alongside the SPS digital team to maintain and promote high standards of website content. This will involve using digital analytics and content management systems to identify content for revision and subsequently, advise and support SPS website authors.
- Have an excellent understanding of medication related policy, legislation and frameworks. S/he will have first-hand experience of applying some of these in practice.
- Work alongside other experts and disciplines to identify where support is needed to promote medicines optimisation in practice; developing and promote resources that meet the needs of our end users and clinical networks.
- Build relationships across geographically dispersed teams and engage with a wide range of stakeholders.
- Be able to work methodically to develop plans that understand and account for constraints; be firm but flexible where needed in ensuring delivery.
About us
Medicines Use and Safety (MUS) team
Our Medicines Use and Safety (MUS) team are a well-respected team who work closely with policy makers, regulators and strategic leaders and engage with an extensive range of clinical networks to share experience and expertise. We interpret legislation and deliver practical guidance and support to NHS organisations and practitioners in providing safe patient care across the entire medicines pathway. Our resources support healthcare professionals to assess and improve medication safety culture, strategy and policy within the healthcare system.
Digital team
Our digital team deliver and maintain the quality of the SPS website, which is the service 'front door' and main route into our advice and guidance. The website is a key resource for our end-users, who are primarily pharmacy professionals working across the system in a variety of care settings. The site currently attracts over 500,000 28-day active users, many of those returning frequently and using the site at or near point-of-care.
In addition to the website, SPS also uses a variety of other digital services and products to support both internal processes and engagement with end-users.
Job description
Job responsibilities
- Contributes to the development, delivery and maintenance of quality assured Medicines Use and Safety (MUS) workstream resources (medicines governance, medicines safety and medicines optimisation) to support commissioners, organisations, and health professionals. Resources may be webinars, podcasts, videos, website articles and workspaces on NHS Futures.
- Develops and delivers a programme of work supporting the MUS team to improve legacy material and create new website content. Achieves this by working closely with the SPS Digital Team, by applying an agile approach, and through reference and application to NHS Digital and aligned gov.uk content standards.
- Uses business intelligence (BI) and analytics to identify trends and priority areas for MUS content improvement. Applies best practice principles to MUS content using the existing site features. Helps identify unmet user need that could be improved through further feature development.
- Supports the SPS Patient Group Direction (PGD) enquiry answering service and develops and maintains national PGD templates and medicines policy and governance principles as part of the SPS Medicines Governance Do Once programme.
- Acts as the inhouse expert for the MUS team on digital features available and their appropriate application for development and delivery of SPS resources.
Job description
Job responsibilities
- Contributes to the development, delivery and maintenance of quality assured Medicines Use and Safety (MUS) workstream resources (medicines governance, medicines safety and medicines optimisation) to support commissioners, organisations, and health professionals. Resources may be webinars, podcasts, videos, website articles and workspaces on NHS Futures.
- Develops and delivers a programme of work supporting the MUS team to improve legacy material and create new website content. Achieves this by working closely with the SPS Digital Team, by applying an agile approach, and through reference and application to NHS Digital and aligned gov.uk content standards.
- Uses business intelligence (BI) and analytics to identify trends and priority areas for MUS content improvement. Applies best practice principles to MUS content using the existing site features. Helps identify unmet user need that could be improved through further feature development.
- Supports the SPS Patient Group Direction (PGD) enquiry answering service and develops and maintains national PGD templates and medicines policy and governance principles as part of the SPS Medicines Governance Do Once programme.
- Acts as the inhouse expert for the MUS team on digital features available and their appropriate application for development and delivery of SPS resources.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Vocational master's degree in pharmacy or equivalent
- Pharmacist (registered with the General Pharmaceutical Council)
- Postgraduate diploma in clinical pharmacy or other relevant field, e.g. management, or equivalent experience of working in specialist area
Desirable
- Post graduate qualification, i.e. MSc, in clinical pharmacy, or equivalent experience
Experience
Essential
- Demonstrable diploma level experience related to the practice of clinical pharmacy in a range of settings
- Multidisciplinary working
Desirable
- Managing difficult situations and motivating others for service delivery
- Experience of working in a complex matrix type working environment within a diffuse national organisation
- Demonstrable experience in relevant MUS workstream e.g medicines safety, PGDs
Knowledge
Essential
- In depth knowledge of Medicines Optimisation as it pertains to both primary and secondary care
- A clear understanding of programme and project management
- Contemporary knowledge of NHS policy and understanding of its application in primary, secondary and tertiary care, including an appreciation of the relationship between the DHSC, NHSE, provider and commissioner organisations
Desirable
- Prior use of WordPress or similar content management system (e.g. Drupal) to publish webpages. Prior knowledge of principles of good online publishing
- Existing knowledge of the NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service and its role in delivery of Medicines Optimisation, Medication Safety and Medicines Governance
Skills
Essential
- Ability to manage own time and workload with good organisational skills
- Ability to influence the work of others, including those without direct line management responsibility
- Ability to motivate and influence the work of others
- Ability to manage small/discrete projects and use own initiative, within agreed cost, quality and time
- Ability to work under pressure, in a changing strategic environment, to tight deadlines, and with competing agendas
- Ability to present orally and in written form
- Ability to demonstrate tact, empathy and diplomacy in dealing with and communicating sensitive information
- Ability to use Microsoft Office software packages and other packages that support efficient, national team operations e.g. MS Teams, MS SharePoint, NHS Futures
Other
Essential
- Personal attributes and autonomy: Recognises accountability for own professional actions
- Personal attributes and autonomy: Ability to analyse complex facts and situations, develop a range of options, and to present these coherently to high-level decision-making audiences and to individual health care professionals
Desirable
- Planning and change management: Ability to plan and organise a broad range of complex activities, formulating and adjusting plans to reflect changing circumstances
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Vocational master's degree in pharmacy or equivalent
- Pharmacist (registered with the General Pharmaceutical Council)
- Postgraduate diploma in clinical pharmacy or other relevant field, e.g. management, or equivalent experience of working in specialist area
Desirable
- Post graduate qualification, i.e. MSc, in clinical pharmacy, or equivalent experience
Experience
Essential
- Demonstrable diploma level experience related to the practice of clinical pharmacy in a range of settings
- Multidisciplinary working
Desirable
- Managing difficult situations and motivating others for service delivery
- Experience of working in a complex matrix type working environment within a diffuse national organisation
- Demonstrable experience in relevant MUS workstream e.g medicines safety, PGDs
Knowledge
Essential
- In depth knowledge of Medicines Optimisation as it pertains to both primary and secondary care
- A clear understanding of programme and project management
- Contemporary knowledge of NHS policy and understanding of its application in primary, secondary and tertiary care, including an appreciation of the relationship between the DHSC, NHSE, provider and commissioner organisations
Desirable
- Prior use of WordPress or similar content management system (e.g. Drupal) to publish webpages. Prior knowledge of principles of good online publishing
- Existing knowledge of the NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service and its role in delivery of Medicines Optimisation, Medication Safety and Medicines Governance
Skills
Essential
- Ability to manage own time and workload with good organisational skills
- Ability to influence the work of others, including those without direct line management responsibility
- Ability to motivate and influence the work of others
- Ability to manage small/discrete projects and use own initiative, within agreed cost, quality and time
- Ability to work under pressure, in a changing strategic environment, to tight deadlines, and with competing agendas
- Ability to present orally and in written form
- Ability to demonstrate tact, empathy and diplomacy in dealing with and communicating sensitive information
- Ability to use Microsoft Office software packages and other packages that support efficient, national team operations e.g. MS Teams, MS SharePoint, NHS Futures
Other
Essential
- Personal attributes and autonomy: Recognises accountability for own professional actions
- Personal attributes and autonomy: Ability to analyse complex facts and situations, develop a range of options, and to present these coherently to high-level decision-making audiences and to individual health care professionals
Desirable
- Planning and change management: Ability to plan and organise a broad range of complex activities, formulating and adjusting plans to reflect changing circumstances
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.
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).
Additional information
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.
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).
