About this role
Job summary
The Christie is one of Europe's leading cancer centres with an international reputation for delivering excellence in cancer care, research, education and innovation. We are seeking an exceptional and visionary pharmacist to join our Haematology team as a Consultant Pharmacist - Haematology.
This newly credentialled senior leadership role offers a unique opportunity to transform the future of pharmaceutical care for patients with haematological malignancies leading and supporting innovation in systemic anti-cancer therapy (SACT), and other novel therapies within the rapidly growing ATMP treatment landscape.
Working as an integral member of the multidisciplinary team, the successful candidate will provide expert clinical leadership, advanced patient care, strategic service development and professional influence across haematology disease group services at the Trust and across the network. The post holder will deliver their own research and contribute to the wider research agenda.
We welcome applications from pharmacists who have commenced, but not yet completed, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society Consultant pharmacist credentialling process and who can demonstrate substantial progress towards approval may be considered for an interim developmental appointment, pending completion of RPS credentialling.
If you are ready to take on a high-impact leadership role, advance haematology pharmacy practice and make a lasting difference to patients, we would be delighted to hear from you.
Main duties of the job
The postholder will provide strategic leadership for a high-quality professional clinical pharmacy team supporting haematology services, optimising access to medicines and improving the overall patient experience. The post holder will work in collaboration with the haematology disease group, the Trust's network services division, multidisciplinary clinical and researcher colleagues, and the Trust's designated commercial and outsourced service providers to develop and deliver an efficient, high quality, professional and well-coordinated service capable of meeting patients' clinical needs and all statutory, regulatory and NHS commissioning requirements relating to haematology services including services to other disease groups in respect of ATMPs only. The postholder will support service delivery for haematology patients across the Trust network including satellite sites and neighbourhood initiatives.
This will include provision of direct patient care to patients, as a non-medical prescriber with their own clinic caseload in addition to being responsible for the governance oversight of the Trust's Intrathecal Chemotherapy Policy and register.
Although the pharmacy service is based at The Christie Hospital main the postholder may be required to work at any location across the Greater Manchester and Cheshire Cancer Network. The Trust has a flexible working policy and, subject to service commitments, it may also be possible to support an element of working from home.
About us
The Christie is one of Europe's leading cancer centres, looking after more than 64,000 patients a year. We are based in Manchester and serve a population of 3.2 million across Greater Manchester & Cheshire, but as a national specialist around 25% patients are referred to us from other parts of the country.
We are the largest radiotherapy provider in the NHS with one in 20 treatments delivered at The Christie. We have up to 15 linear accelerators operating across our network of sites. We operate the largest chemotherapy unit in the UK on our main site and treatments are also provided at 13 other networked sites, and in patients homes. And as a specialist tertiary surgical centre, we focus on rare cancers, complex procedures, and multidisciplinary approaches to cancer surgery, specialising in colorectal, peritoneal, gynaecological, urological and plastic surgery.
We are also an international leader in research, with world first breakthroughs for over 100 years. We have been named by the UK's National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), as one of the best hospitals providing opportunities for patients to participate in clinical research studies, with more than 800 studies open at any time, caring for over 3,000 patients.
Job description
Job responsibilities
DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
The post is primarily structured around four main functions:
Expert Professional Practice Leadership and Management Education, Training and mentoring Research, Evaluation and Service Development
Expert Professional Practice
To be recognised as the pharmacy professional lead and expert clinical practitioner in support of the haematology disease group and the Trusts ATMP portfolio across all disease groups.
Lead expert pharmacy support including the development of trust policy, protocols and SOPs relating to haematology and ATMPs.
To be responsible for governance oversight of the Trusts Intrathecal Chemotherapy Policy and register.
To appropriately manage difficult and ambiguous problems, managing uncertainty, and to make decisions with limited information.
Responsible for the clinical pharmacy management of a caseload of patients in the haematology disease group under the clinical supervision of the lead consultant haematologist.
Fulfil the role of Consultant Pharmacist, providing leadership for the pharmaceutical aspects of SACT, including ATMPs, across in the Trust. Provide information and advice on therapeutic and cost-effectiveness measures and guide doctors and other prescribers in the composition of appropriate drug treatments for individual patients in accordance with guidance from NICE, Trust Policy and other guidelines.
Leadership and Management.
To be recognised as an expert in haematology and ATMP clinical pharmacy, locally and nationally and/or internationally, demonstrating active participation in creating national healthcare policies and providing clinical and professional leadership in accordance with local strategy, priorities and objectives.
To identify and promote best practice, motivating and inspiring others to excel in clinical service delivery
To work with local and national commissioners and stakeholders in investigating innovative treatment pathways, setting goals in line with local and national strategy and standards, identifying and managing the risks involved and working with colleagues to extend boundaries across professions and convincing others to share the vision at a higher level.
Develop strong working relationships and communication with clinical and managerial staff across the Greater Manchester Integrated Care System and wider Cancer Alliance and provide a link regarding all aspects of the Pharmacy Service across the local health economy.
To ensure that information relating relating to haematology SACT and ATMPs for other relevant disease group issues are communicated to all pharmacy staff as appropriate
To work collaboratively with all pharmacy staff and management, to ensure implementation of local and nationally agreed pharmacy service objectives
To ensure that clinical and operational policies are kept up to date with legal and professional developments
To set standards, operational guidelines and safe systems of work. To monitor the compliance with these and ensure action is taken in the event of failure or incidents. This will include responsibility for pharmacy leadership for the Trusts Joint Accreditation Committee of the International Society for Cellular Therapy (JACIE) accreditation for haematopoietic stem cell transplantation and other cellular therapies, supporting the haematology disease group, other disease groups where necessary and the Trusts partnership with Health Care America supporting relevant private patients.
To lead innovation and work actively to continuously improve services
To develop, implement and review the departmental strategy in support of pharmacy and the haematology disease group
To ensure strategic input and implementation of clinical trials where appropriate to the disease group.
Education, Training and Mentoring
To contribute to national pharmacy workforce strategy and support implementation across the local Cancer Network
To be involved in the development and/or delivery of higher education qualifications, thereby contributing to national education policy.
Work with Higher Education institutes or specialist training associations to further develop undergraduate and postgraduate level education to ensure clinical pharmacy practitioners are both competent and confident.
Identify pharmaceutical training needs of other healthcare practitioners and contribute to the training of healthcare professionals across the Trust.
Responsible for the provision of specialist teaching and the delivery of core training to nurses, pharmacists, doctors and other healthcare staff. In particular, ensure that medical staff understand and can apply the relevant SACT prescribing guidelines and know where to obtain further advice in relation to their prescribing.
Tutor and mentor clinical pharmacists undertaking postgraduate qualifications and pre-registration foundation year pharmacists
Design, deliver and evaluate appropriate education and training for other pharmacy staff and healthcare professionals.
To identify own training needs and undertake further professional and management training as deemed appropriate as to achieve objectives agreed at performance reviews.
Research, Evaluation and Service development
To contribute to monitoring safe, effective and economical use of medicines following national and local guidelines, working with appropriate colleagues.
To contribute to the Trusts Risk and Quality Governance agenda, including investigation of pharmacy services and medication-related incidents and other aspects of medicines safety.
To lead on and participate in clinical audits, quality improvement projects and development and implementation of treatment protocols and guidelines for the use of SACT across the local cancer network, using quality improvement skills and methodology where required and linked with local/regional QI groups/bodies. This will include making recommendations to primary care for ongoing preventative treatments to appropriately consider how they are integrated within prescribing systems across primary, secondary and tertiary care interfaces.
To provide advice and support to other professionals undertaking pharmacy practice research within the Trust and in the National Arena.
To design, plan, organise, participate in and supervise multidisciplinary and pharmacy led audit/research, supporting the development of clinical pharmacy practice and clinical pharmacy practitioners
Statutory Professional Responsibilities
To practice within the professional boundaries described by the General Pharmaceutical Council.
To undertake annual professional revalidation comprising; continuing professional development (CPD) entries, reflective account and peer discussion.
To follow all relevant legal, ethical, professional and employer codes of conduct.
Communication and Working relationships
To develop positive working relationships with all NHS staff in all areas of work to ensure the safe and effective use of medicines and resolution of identified pharmaceutical care issues.
To collaborate and share learning with pharmacy services colleagues in the wider healthcare system, regionally and nationally as part of established specialist pharmacy networks.
The postholder will be based at The Christie Hospital main site but work within a hub and spoke model across the Greater Manchester and Cheshire Cancer Network.
To promote and participate in team working across the Pharmacy service
HR, management and organisational tasks
Accountable for the leadership and clinical supervision of the haematology disease group clinical pharmacists and medicines management technicians in accordance with the appropriate Trust HR policies, directly line-managing the 8B principal pharmacist
To continually review skill mix to meet service needs and professional standards in force at the time, and implementing change management to new requirements.
To develop and motivate staff; ensure annual personal development review planning, delivery and objective setting
To ensure regular individual and team meetings for relevant pharmacy staff.To support the Director of Pharmacy and other senior pharmacy managers in the delivery of performance standards.
Risk and Governance
Responsible for developing of strategies for risk assessing and mitigation strategies working with colleagues in pharmacy and other departments
To ensure all staff, including self, handle medicines and any other toxic substances in the correct and safe manner following Trust protocols and national legislation.
To ensure that complaints and adverse incident reports are investigated and are used as lessons for learning, with trends monitored and analysed as appropriate
Responsibility for financial resources
To support budgetary control for relevant pharmacy cost centres, including the delivery of Trust Value Improvement Programme savings and efficiency schemes
To ensure that pharmacy clinical service finances are managed in accordance with Trust Standing Financial Instruction.
To lead horizon scanning, budgetary prescribing trends, best value medication, medicines expenditure forecasting and to identify or any changes in prescribing practices that may potentially impact on the medicines budget (for the haematology disease group and ATMPs Trust-wide).
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Masters Degree in Pharmacy or equivalent
- Pharmacist registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council
- Postgraduate diploma in clinical pharmacy or equivalent
- Independent Prescriber in advanced oncology pharmacy practice with previous experience of managing SACT and ATMPs for haematology patients, including the training and supervision of other advanced pharmacist
- Meet the requirements of the RPS Faculty cancer care expert professional practice curriculum
- Member of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS)
- Membership of the British Oncology Pharmacy Association, with SACT passport for clinical screening of prescriptions
- Demonstrated ability to work at Doctorate level
- Credentialed as a consultant pharmacist with the RPSGB (or consultant-ready awaiting appointment to an approved post) is an essential requirement for appointment at Consultant status. NB: Should an appointment be made to an individual still working towards consultant level, the postholder may only use the title Consultant Pharmacist once RPS credentialing has been successfully achieved.
- A majority of competencies in each of the expert professional practice, collaborative working relationships and leadership clusters at the highest level (mastery) as defined in the Royal Pharmaceutical Society Advanced Pharmacy Framework (APF)
- A majority of the competencies in each of the management, education, training and development and research and evaluation clusters at the Advanced Stage II as defined in the Royal Pharmaceutical Society Advanced Pharmacy Framework
Desirable
- Post Graduate qualification in Clinical Oncology, HaemOnc, or Clinical Research
- Management, leadership or quality improvement training
- DPharm, PhD or undertaking study at doctorate level
Expert Professional Practice
Essential
- Advances the knowledge base in defined area(s).
- Advances in-depth/complex pharmaceutical care programmes for patients.
- Demonstrates accountability for the delivery of professional expertise at a defined higher level.
- May include providing expertise and service delivery nationally or at a strategic level.
- Demonstrates ability to use skills to manage difficult and dynamic situations.
- Demonstrates ability to make decisions in the absence of evidence or data or when there is conflicting evidence or data.
- Is able to interpret relevant policy and strategy, in order to establish goals and standards for others within the defined area(s).
- Extensive (minimum 5 years') clinical pharmacy experience within Cancer services and Haematology Oncology, including relevant experience in the management of ATMPs, Haematopoietic Stem Cell Transplants and JACIE accreditation
- Evidence of ability to plan complex pharmaceutical care programmes for patients
- Demonstrates application of critical evaluation skills in the context of working practice
- Able to demonstrate ability to apply research and evidence-based practice within the team and/or service
- Able to demonstrate ability to make decisions in the absence of evidence or data or when there is conflicting evidence or data.
- Ability to work in a pressured environment, with an unpredictable workload
- Demonstrates awareness of and commitment to the clinical governance agenda
Desirable
- Experience of using chemotherapy e-prescribing systems (iQemo, Chemocare or equivalent)
- Experience in the management of pharmacy clinical trials, including GCP
- Understanding of health economics
Collaborative Working Relationships
Essential
- Demonstrates ability to present complex, sensitive or contentious information to large groups of relevant stakeholders.
- Demonstrates ability to communicate in a hostile, antagonistic or highly emotive atmosphere.
- Works across boundaries to build relationships and share information, plans and resources.
- Sought as an opinion leader both within the organisation and in the external environment.
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills
- Experience of working successfully with a range of stakeholders outside NHS structure eg. industry, service users, Higher Education institutions.
- Ability to analyse, interpret and communicate highly complex clinical and technical information in an informative manner to a wide range of individuals which may be in challenging circumstances
Desirable
- Experience of work at national level (development of policies, strategies, national guidelines etc)
- Demonstrable high-level understanding of current issues on cancer services and clinical trials
Leadership
Essential
- Demonstrates active participation in creating relevant national policies.
- Shapes and contributes to the governance agenda at a higher level.
- Convinces others to share the vision at a higher level.
- Takes the lead to ensure innovation produces demonstrable improvement.
- Relates goals and actions to strategic aims of organisation and profession.
- Demonstrates ability to motivate individuals and/or teams at a higher level. May include more strategic motivational activities at local, institutional and national levels.
- Highly developed leadership skills
- Experience of leadership skills in highly complex projects and change management skills
- Proven experience of working at a strategic level across healthcare geographies and the wider health community
- Demonstrable experience of change management at a senior pharmacy level
- Excellent interpersonal, negotiating and influencing skills. Able to convince others to share the vision at a higher level.
- Ability to engage, motivate and lead a wide range of professionals
- Inspires confidence and positive role model
- Demonstrates values and behaviours in line with Christie Trust values and behaviours framework
Desirable
- Demonstrates ability to extend the boundaries of the service across more than one team.
Management
Essential
- Shapes the response of the team and/or service to national priorities.
- Demonstrates ability to effectively manage resources.
- Demonstrates ability to set and monitor standards of practice at team and/or service level.
- Develops risk management policies/protocols for the team and/or service, including identifying and resolving new risk management issues.
- Is accountable for performance management for a team or group of personnel.
- Demonstrates ability to successfully manage a project at team and/or service level.
- Demonstrates ability to manage a process of change for the team and/or service.
- Demonstrates ability to think over a year ahead within a defined area.
- Demonstrates understanding of culture and climate and ability to plan with the whole of the organisation in mind.
- Demonstrates ability to extend the boundaries of the service across more than one team.
- Proven medicines and risk related policy development, service development, implementation and project management
- Demonstrates ability to horizon scan and forecast in relation to developments in Oncology
- Demonstrates accountability for the delivery of professional expertise at a defined higher level
- Proven ability to respond and shape resources (financial, people) to deliver strategic priorities
- Demonstrates ability to successfully manage a project at team, and/or service level, prioritise and meet deadlines
- Use skills to manage difficult and dynamic situations
- Report and business case writing for a Board level audience
Desirable
- Proven track record of budget management or monitoring ability and demonstrable success in identifying and achieving savings
- Experience of staff management and implementation of Trust HR policies
- Demonstrates ability to successfully manage a project at regional level
- Financial planning
- Demonstrates understanding of culture and climate and ability to plan with the whole of the organisation in mind
Education, Training & Development
Essential
- Demonstrates the characteristics of an effective role model at a higher level.
- Demonstrates ability to effectively mentor others within the team and/or service.
- Demonstrates ability to assess the performance and learning needs of others.
- Demonstrates ability to plan a series of effective learning experiences for others.
- Facilitates the professional development of others.
- Participates in education and training in an external environment.
- Demonstrates ability to interpret national policy in order to design strategic approaches for local workforce education planning and development.
- Experience of designing, delivering and evaluating education programmes to both pharmacy and non-pharmacy professionals.
- Demonstrates ability to influence and educate at a high level
- Demonstrates ability to effectively mentor others within the team and/or service
- Facilitates the professional development of others.
- Ability to interpret national policy to design strategies for local workforce planning
Desirable
- Formal teaching/training qualification
Research & Evaluation
Essential
- Demonstrates application of critical evaluation skills in the context of working practice.
- Demonstrates ability to formulate appropriate and rigorous research questions.
- Demonstrates ability to design a rigorous protocol to address previously formulated research questions.
- Demonstrates ability to generate new evidence suitable for presentation at research symposia.
- Demonstrates ability to apply research and evidence-based practice within the team and/or service.
- Is able to contribute to research supervision in collaboration with research experts.
- Demonstrates ability to establish new multidisciplinary links to conduct research projects
- Evidence of involvement in research activities eg. advanced audits, quality improvement projects, poster presentations or publications including multidisciplinary collaboration
- Demonstrates application of critical evaluation skills in the context of working practice
Desirable
- Evidence of peer reviewed publications
- Quality improvement training
Values
Essential
- Ability to demonstrate the organisational values and behaviours
Other
Essential
- Required to work unsocial hours (on a rota basis with other team members), including evenings, weekends, Bank Holidays and on-call
- Required to work at any site that treats Christie patients across the local cancer network
Desirable
- Driving licence and access to a car
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).
Employer details
Employer name
The Christie NHS FT
Address
Pharmacy Clinical - E00920
Manchester
M20 4BX
United Kingdom
Employer's website
https://www.christie.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)