Pharmacy Medical Procurement Officer

Job description

Job responsibilities

Key Duties:

Procurement:

Place orders with external suppliers for medicines and associated products for the Pharmacy Departments using the Pharmacy Computer System.

Ensure that appropriate orders are placed following set re-order quantities on the computer system to ensure medicines are available when required whilst minimizing costs, stock-holding and waste due to expiry.

Ensure that reorder levels and reorder quantities are appropriate to the changing needs of the Trust.

Raise orders in accordance with the Trusts Standing Financial Instructions and Commercial Medicines Unit (CMU) and HealthTrust Europe (HTE) contracts when these exist.

Ensure orders are signed by a pharmacist when required legally. and then transmitted to suppliers by fax, mail or electronically as per policy.

When contracts do not exist, place orders according to the best value that can be obtained taking account of timescales to arrive, price, delivery and quality (determined by using approved suppliers) and escalating any issues immediately.

Identify when product ordering is eligible for off contract claim and escalate for action.

Maintain confidentiality of pricing agreements.

Anticipate supply problems, contact suppliers directly to identify issues and obtain estimated resolution timescales and escalating the information immediately to the procurement managers.

Liaise with medicine suppliers with regard to alternative pack sizes and brands available.

Source alternative supplies for stock outs or stock issues and feedback results immediately to procurement managers to action.

Support medicine supply issues including MSNs, SDAs and drug alerts etc.

Liaise with the appropriate Pharmacy staff to assess the urgency of requirements.

Contact suppliers, or other hospitals if necessary, to find a source of supply in emergencies and arrange for an urgent delivery.

Provide information to pharmacy staff with regard to the progress of orders.

Ensure the outstanding order report is reviewed and actioned regularly as instructed and any problems that cannot be resolved escalated.

Share ordering problem information such as out of stocks, manufacturers delays, pack size changes etc. with appropriate Pharmacy staff to ensure that patients' needs are met.

Investigate delivery discrepancies, quality issues and deficiencies when these occur at the point of goods received. Organize and ensure replacements or credits are received by the Trust.

Assist in ensuring all goods received are accurately recorded and correspond to a signed order.

Organize the return of goods obtaining the necessary authorization and, where appropriate, packaging the items for dispatch.

Work with the Pharmacy staff invoicing to resolve problems arising from invoice checks as a result of goods receiving discrepancies, liaising with medicine suppliers and/or procurement managers as necessary.

Help maintain the drug product files on the Pharmacy Computer System under direction of the Pharmacy Procurement and Finance Manager to support the ordering process.

Support the implementation of contract changes.

Actively contribute to the development of the procurement service.

Effectively communicate with pharmaceutical wholesalers, manufacturers, homecare companies, and external agencies e.g. CMU, regarding safe, efficient, and cost-effective procurement and supply of medicine.

Escalate any issues which may include supply or invoicing problems that cannot be resolved immediately.

Have a duty of care to ensure all work is completed on time as omissions, delays and errors may impact directly on patient care.

Use keyboard continuously for substantial proportion of the day.

Finance:

Ensure all actions taken are within the framework set by the Trusts Standing Financial Instructions, Financial Policies and Procedures, and Pharmacy's Policies and Procedures.

Organize invoices as they are received and keep track of those with queries, ensuring payment is made within the financial timescale required to comply with the Government prompt payment policy.

Check supplier's invoices and credit notes, prior to payment, to ensure they reconcile with the Trusts official orders and record of goods received.

Check all prices against the expected price using the Pharmacy Computer System.

Authorize invoices for payment when the prices being charged are within the authorized tolerance.

Batch invoices and send them for payment by using the Accounts Payable Interface between the Pharmacy and Finance Creditor Payments Computer Systems ensuring that all fields are completed and that all inputting errors are identified and corrected.

Manually send invoices for payment that must be excluded from the interface to Finance.

Configure the Pharmacy Accounts Payable Interface to exclude suppliers with defined characteristics and update the Pharmacy System Database creditor reference codes when required to ensure payments are made to the correct supplier.

Maintain hard-copy or electronic records of payments made to enable queries and checks to be carried out as necessary.

Contact suppliers to investigate all pricing that appears to be incorrect and arrange for credit to be issued to the Trust.

Arrange with suppliers for credit to be issued for goods that are received damaged or which are returned to the supplier.

Contact wholesalers, manufacturers, homecare companies, and external agencies as well as pharmacy staff to resolve discrepancies and problems with invoices, credit notes, statements, payments and pharmacy orders.

Investigate enquiries and solve problems raised by suppliers about payments due and received.

Refer problems that cannot be resolved satisfactorily.

Work with the financial accountants in the Trust to ensure correct file transfers are made and received, queries are answered using e-mail and, to arrange for invoices/credits excluded from the Pharmacy to Finance Interface, to be processed manually.

Provide information to managers and colleagues as required and answer routine queries from staff/customers and suppliers.

Maintain confidentiality of pricing agreements.

Answer queries from suppliers, customers and staff and where there are issues about non-payment, incorrect or late payments or other sensitive or complicated financial matters.

Analyse and interpret financial payments/receipts. Investigate financial queries and analyse data to identify errors/discrepancies. Carry out financial calculations/analyses, investigate and resolve complex financial queries and discrepancies. Analyse financial data to identify errors and sort out problems from a range of options. Make complex calculations about payments and decide whether and how to pursue over/under payments escalating when necessary.

Prioritise own work. Plan own day-to-day work/schedules to ensure weekly, monthly, quarterly and annual financial timetables are met.

Input and manipulate financial data into computer databases and spreadsheets, where speed and accuracy are necessary.

Use keyboard continuously for substantial proportion of the day.

Actively contribute to the development of the service.

Effectively communicate with pharmaceutical wholesalers, manufacturers, homecare companies, and external agencies e.g. CMU as necessary.

Escalate any issues which cannot be resolved immediately.

General Duties: The post holder will

Use the Pharmacy Computer System, finance systems, MS Office and other computer software to produce reports e.g. outstanding order and outstanding invoice reports.

Undertake a mutually agreed range of technical duties in the department, meeting the required standards at all times, gained by completion of the appropriate competency based training program.

Participate in the Trusts Skills Development Review process on at least an annual basis this will include following the Personal Development Plan (PDP) devised.

Be expected to work on some weekends and Bank Holidays.

Follow all departmental Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) at all times, where necessary identifying any aspect of an SOP which could be improved and/or amended to the Pharmacy Procurement and Finance Manager or the Countywide Procurement and Homecare Patient Services Manager.

Be personally responsible for keeping up-to-date with all relevant SOPs, COSHH and Health and Safety requirements, policies and communiqués within the department and, where appropriate, the Trust as a whole.

Be responsible for maintaining accurate stock control, bringing immediately unresolvable stock discrepancies to the attention of the appropriate section manager.

Assist in the smooth running of the Procurement and Invoicing teams helping to prioritise work in the event of staff shortages.

Attend meetings as required to support procurement and invoicing activities.

Manage own time and prioritise workload to ensure that urgent requirements are given the necessary attention and less urgent requirements are completed by their due time.

Make judgments concerning own work.

Where concerns or doubts of the accuracy of another member of staff are identified by the post holder, these must be communicated promptly and appropriately to the Countywide Procurement and Homecare Patient Services Manager or Lead Pharmacist, Patient and Business Services.

Work within set routines with little direct supervision but with support and advice available when required.

Demonstrate own tasks and train new starters to Trust and Departmental Standards.

Maintain a high degree of confidentiality regarding information concerning members of staff, patients and commercially sensitive information.

Act in a professional, caring and responsible manner at all times ensuring that the needs of patients and all customers of the Pharmacy Service are met.

Support and encourage all team members acting as a role model and demonstrating Trust values and behaviours.

Undertake all appropriate housekeeping duties when necessary.

Maintain all work and desk space in a tidy and organized manner.

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

• Recent and relevant demonstrable experience of successfully delivering technical pharmacy services as a Pharmacy Assistant in a hospital setting
• OR
• Recent and relevant demonstrable experience of working with medicines in an alternative setting
• PLUS
• Experience and knowledge of medicines and pharmacy policies including naming, handling and storage practices.
• Experience of successfully working under pressure with very tight deadlines e.g. sourcing medicines required in an emergency situation.
• Experience of dealing with a range of routine and non-routine activities, work allocation, problem solving for an area of work, answering queries, progress chasing, and task related problem solving.

Desirable

• Recent demonstrable experience of successfully ordering pharmaceutical products where accuracy is of the utmost importance.
• Recent demonstrable experience of successfully receiving pharmaceutical products.
• Previous experience of invoice and credit processing.

Other Job Requirements

Essential

• Must be able to undertake all manual handling duties using appropriate aids e.g. pushing trolleys containing loads of up to 50kg and manual handling of boxes up to 15kg individually.
• Must be able to work at weekends and bank holidays.
• Must be able to work flexibly when needed depending on the service requirements.
• Standard Clauses
• A Disclosures and Barring Service check will be carried out where the position is eligible for a Disclosures and Barring Service Check in accordance with the 2012 Protection of Freedom Act and the guidance issued by the DBS.
• All posts working with children or vulnerable adults are required to have an Enhanced DBS checked including checking against DBS / ISA Vetting and barring lists.

Qualifications

Essential

• GCSE Grade A-C in English Language, Maths and Science (or equivalent)
• NVQ Level 2 in pharmacy technical services, or working towards it (or equivalent)

Desirable

• NPA counter assistant course or equivalent NHS in-house training course/accreditation
• Previous successful completion of a combination of courses, training and or study days to obtain knowledge of Pharmacy Systems, Pharmacy Procurement Policies and Procedures and financial management.

Skills / Knowledge

Essential

• Must be able to communicate clearly and effectively both verbally and in writing and have the ability to record details accurately and neatly.
• Must be skilled at using Microsoft Office packages i.e. Word, Excel, Teams and Outlook to communicate affectively, produce reports and create memos etc.
• Must be skilled at using the internet and on-line information resources to access and interpret NHS pharmacy catalogues to order goods etc.
• Must have good Computer skills for using the Pharmacy Computer System for: determining the amount of medicines to order, urgency and frequency of ordering, status of orders and invoices, and correcting receiving/ invoicing errors etc.

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.

Employer details

Employer name

Worcestershire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust

Address

The Alexandra Hospital

Woodrow Drive

Redditch

Worcestershire

B987UB

Employer's website

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