Job responsibilities
JOB PURPOSE
To deliver and develop specialist clinical pharmacy services to a clinical specialty within the Trust.
JOB DIMENSIONS
Provide a specialist clinical pharmacist service to patients and the multidisciplinary team within a given specialty. Ensure medicines are used appropriately, safely, and cost effectively in accordance with Trust policy, standard operating procedures, and medicines legislation.
Monitors drug use within their clinical area. This includes recording of significant clinical interventions, risk management, and some basic financial aspects.
Supervise, along with other members of their multidisciplinary team, the development and implementation of treatment protocols, and guidelines for use of drugs within the clinical area.
Responsible for training pharmacists, and other health care professionals, on aspects of drug use within the clinical area.
Provides minimum of at least one 4 hour session of service cover in the dispensary or aseptic dispensary per week.
KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE REQUIRED
Masters qualification in Pharmacy (4 years), or equivalent qualification, plus 1 year pre-registration training.
Registrant of the General Pharmaceutical Council.
Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Pharmacy or equivalent experience or qualification.
Ability to demonstrate competency in all domains of the General Level Framework (GLF).
Specialist knowledge of a clinical area/department which demonstrates the ability to manage a caseload within the given speciality.
Experience of dealing with complex clinical issues that require the analysis of a variety of sources of information, which may not be in agreement, to reach an appropriate response. The pharmacist will have experience in negotiating with, and persuading other members of the multidisciplinary clinical team, or patients/clients, to agree on a course of action.
Experience of dealing with clinical and non-clinical staff, typically at junior grades, but occasionally at higher consultant and managerial levels.
CORE BEHAVIOURS AND SKILLS
Work within standard operational procedures, Trust policy, and wider professional guidelines.
Team player.
Enthusiastic.
Lateral thinker.
Excellent communication oral/written/listening.
Good problem solver.
Good time management.
Adaptable.
Use initiative.
Negotiation and influencing skills.
Attention to detail.
Self directed management of own work load.
CORE KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING
Specialist theoretical and practical knowledge in clinical pharmacy practice, preferably, but not essentially, in the specific clinical field.
Be professionally accountable for action and advice.
PRINCIPAL DUTIES & AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY
Provide specialist clinical service to patients and other members of the multi-disciplinary team within the given specialty. This will include:
Individual prescription review to optimise therapy.
o Advice on dosage and side effects.
o Advise on safe administration of medicines.
o Participation on consultant ward rounds and multidisciplinary team meetings.
o Responsibility for medicines risk management in clinical area, including investigating clinical incidents, recording significant clinical interventions/near misses, and ensuring compliance with medicines legislation, and local policies.
o Assist in the introduction of new drugs, including unlicensed medicines, into the clinical specialty.
o Keep records of patient related information e.g. pharmaceutical care plans.
Organisation and planning of own workload on an on-going basis e.g. ward cover, training, audit, project work, attendance of meetings etc.
Pharmacists who are registered as prescribers will, with the agreement of the clinical director of the speciality, prescribe within their level of competence, to support patient care.
Supervise, teach, and assess junior pharmacy staff completing training modules within the clinical area. This input varies, mostly based on the experience of the post holder, and increases over time. From the outset, input will typically involve at least one of the following:
o Up to six pre-registration practice modules per year (each lasting 3 days).
o One or more Grade B Clinical Pharmacy Practice Teaching Units (PTU) per year (Lasts 6 weeks).
o Lecturing on clinical issues relevant to the specialty, as part of the pre-registration training program, the clinical diploma, and any other in service training.
o The post holder is also expected to participate in the training of other clinical professionals within their specialist area as requested.
Participate in any medicines related clinical trials in the specialty.
Propose and carry out clinical pharmacy practice research within their clinical area, and participate in any larger pharmacy research and audit.
Work within standard operational procedures, Trust policy, and wider professional guidelines.
Provide a service commitment (typically one 4 hour session) to a specified area within the pharmacy department i.e dispensary, aseptics, or medicines information.
Participate in evening, weekend and bank holiday pharmacy service on a rotational basis, and where contracted, the emergency duty service.
Health and Safety/Risk Management
All staff are responsible for working with their colleagues to maintain and improve the quality of services provided to our patients and other service users. This includes complying at all times with the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust Policies, including Health and Safety policies, in particular by following agreed safe working procedures, and reporting incidents using the Trust Incident Reporting system.
Infection Control
The jobholder must comply at all times with the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust Infection Control policies, in particular by practising Universal Infection Control Precautions. Hand hygiene must be performed before and after contact with patients and their environment.
Equality and Diversity
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. 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.
Patient and Public Involvement
The Trust has a statutory duty to involve patients and public in evaluating and planning services. All staff have a responsibility to listen to the views of patients and to contribute to service improvements based on patient feedback.
Training and Personal Development Continuous Professional Development
The jobholder must take responsibility in agreement with his/her line manager for his/her own personal development by ensuring that Continuous Professional Development remains a priority. The jobholder will undertake all mandatory training required for the role.
Respect for Patient Confidentiality
The jobholder should respect patient confidentiality at all times and not divulge patient information unless sanctioned by the requirements of the role.
COMMUNICATION & WORKING RELATIONSHIPS
Communicate complex information about medicine use to pharmacy staff, consultants and junior doctors, nursing staff, patients, managers, and other members of the multi-disciplinary team.
All registered healthcare professionals must ensure adherence to professional codes of practice
Communicate complex information about medicine use to pharmacy staff, consultants and junior doctors, nursing staff, patients, managers, and other members of the multi-disciplinary team.
All registered healthcare professionals must ensure adherence to professional codes of practice
SPECIAL WORKING CONDITIONS
i) PHYSICAL EFFORT:
The post requires a combination of sitting, standing, and walking with little requirement for physical effort, excepting an occasional need to move pharmacy boxes, fluids, enteral nutrition packs. These typically weigh approximately 10kg per box.
ii) MENTAL EFFORT:
The post requires frequent amounts of concentration for clinical checking, reviewing prescriptions, performing complicated calculations etc. Post holders will frequently be interrupted by urgent or non-urgent clinical enquiries, received verbally, or by telephone or bleep, at anytime, including during breaks.
iii) EMOTIONAL EFFORT:
Depending on the clinical specialty the post holder may be exposed to distressing or emotional circumstances due to their work with sick or dying patients. More occasionally, they may be exposed to emotional or distressing circumstances when investigating drug misadventures, or explaining to relatives the consequences of a medicine related incident
iv) WORKING CONDITIONS:
The post holder will spend a significant part of their working day in clinical areas. This means they will regularly be in the vicinity of, but not having to deal with personally, body fluids, smells, foul linen etc. Exposure to unpleasant working conditions outside of a clinical area will be rare, except for pharmacists who undertake aseptic work, and/or work in oncology. These individuals may occasionally experience noxious fumes, or be at increased risk of exposure to cytotoxic drugs.
