About this role
Job summary
Our practices are looking for a highly motivated and enthusiastic clinical pharmacist to join our clinical team and work as part of a multidisciplinary team in a patient-facing role.
This is an exciting opportunity for a Clinical Pharmacist to join an established medicines team within the PCN footprint. You will be based across 2 to 3 practices so you will have the opportunity to build up relationships with the primary care team.
Main duties of the job
The role will be supported by a lead Clinical Pharmacist in our PCN. There are regular teaching sessions, and all our practices are engaged in ensuring the role is optimised and developed.
We are keen to hear from pharmacists of all backgrounds and level of experience, whether you have already completed or would like to complete the independent prescriber (IP) qualification.
Although we are looking to recruit to a full-time post, we would consider part-time or flexible working particularly to support our extended hours provision.
About us
Hackney Marshes PCN comprises of five GP practices: Lower Clapton Group Practice, The Lea Surgery, Latimer Health Centre, Athena Medical Centre, and Kingsmead Medical Centre with a combined list size of 42,470.
We support a patient population within an area of high social deprivation with the aim to deliver higher quality care leading to better experience and outcomes. This is a truly exciting time to be working in Primary Care in Hackney, we hope you will consider joining us to be a part of our exciting and innovative team.
Job description Job responsibilities
The PCN Clinical Pharmacist will:
work as part of a multi-disciplinary team in a patient facing role to clinically assess and treat patients using their expert knowledge of medicines for specific disease areas;
be a prescriber, or completing training to become a prescriber, and work with and alongside the general practice team;
be responsible for the care management of patients with chronic diseases and undertake clinical medication reviews to proactively manage people with complex polypharmacy, especially the elderly, people in care homes, those with multiple co-morbidities (in particular frailty, COPD and asthma) and people with learning disabilities or autism (through STOMP Stop Over Medication Programme);
provide specialist expertise in the use of medicines whilst helping to address both the public health and social care needs of patients at the PCNs practice(s) and to help in tackling inequalities;
provide leadership on person-centred medicines optimisation (including ensuring prescribers in the practice conserve antibiotics in line with local antimicrobial stewardship guidance) and quality improvement, whilst contributing to the quality and outcomes framework and enhanced services;
through structured medication reviews, support patients to take their medications to get the best from them, reduce waste and promote selfcare;
have a leadership role in supporting further integration of general practice with the wider healthcare teams (including community and hospital pharmacy) to help improve patient outcomes, ensure better access to healthcare and help manage general practice workload;
develop relationships and work closely with other pharmacy professionals across PCNs and the wider health and social care system;
take a central role in the clinical aspects of shared care protocols, clinical research with medicines, liaison with specialist pharmacists (including mental health and reduction of inappropriate antipsychotic use in people with learning difficulties), liaison with community pharmacists and anticoagulation.
Key aspects of PCN pharmacist role
Patient facing role undertaking face to face structured medications reviews for:
patients on complex polypharmacy with long term conditions
housebound patients
specific disease areas identified as a priority area within the PCN
Review patients with single or multiple medical problems where medicine optimisation is required.
Review on-going need for each medicine, assess monitoring requirements and support patients to ensure treatment is safe, appropriate and optimised for maximum clinical benefit.
Discuss recommendations and outcomes with relevant members of the PCN team and provide appropriate and timely follow up.
Support patients to optimise medicines by providing additional written patient information leaflets, and liaise with community pharmacists about the need for special requirements to aid adherence.
Management of Common/Minor/Self-Limiting Ailments
Support practices in improving patient access for minor ailments and acute presentations.
Promote the importance of self-care and signpost patients to community pharmacies in line with national guidance on over the counter medicines.
Medicines Information to Practice Staff and Patients
Support relevant medicine-related enquiries from the practice team, PCN team, community pharmacists and patients.
Update practice teams at weekly meetings on current medicines related information and issues with a view to educating and improving prescribing within the practice.
Analyse, interpret and present medicines data to practice staff regularly to highlight prescribing issues.
Communicate recommended actions relating to medication and medical device safety alerts.
Medicines Reconciliation
Reconcile medicines following discharge from hospitals, intermediate care and into care homes, including identifying and rectifying unexplained changes and working with patients and community pharmacists to ensure patients receive the medicines they need post discharge.
Commissioned improvements for QIPP and medicines optimisation
Support the practice and the PCN in delivering the outcomes as required in the medicines section of the Clinical Commissioning Contract
Signposting
Ensure that patients are referred to the appropriate healthcare professional for specialist referral, monitoring and/or referred to the social prescriber for further support services where required.
Repeat Prescribing
Review, implement and support adherence to the practice repeat prescribing policy.
Manage the repeat prescribing reauthorisation process by reviewing patient requests for repeat prescriptions and reviewing medicines reaching review dates and flagging up those patients needing a review.
Ensure patients on repeat prescriptions have the required monitoring and assessments undertaken as appropriate to their condition(s) and medicines prescribed.
Clinical Governance
Communicate, action and support implementation of MHRA alerts, product withdrawals and other local and national guidelines and formulary recommendations.
Undertake clinical audits in priority areas identified by the CCG medicines management team or within the PCN and feedback results to practices and the PCN and support them in implementing recommendations.
Support practices and PCNs in identifying and reporting onto NRLS any incidents relating to medicines. Be involved in investigating medicines incidents and identifying and implementing any required system improvements.
Support implementation of shared care protocols in practice, including processes to improve monitoring of high- risk drugs.
Review the use of medicines most commonly associated with unplanned hospital admissions and readmissions through audit and individual patient reviews.
Identify cohorts of patients at high risk of harm from medicines through pre-prepared practice computer searches e.g. using PINCER and other tools.
Work with the general practice team to ensure the practice is compliant with CQC standards where medicines are involved.
Education and Training
Contribute to the provision of education and training on medicines optimisation and specific therapeutic areas to healthcare professionals within the PCN and to the wider CCG geography.
Public Health
To support public health campaigns.
To provide specialist advice on all public health programmes available to the general public.
General
Undertake any other work supporting medicines optimisation in GP practices and the PCN commensurate with the banding of the post and which is agreed between the postholder and the manager
Key Collaborative Working Relationships
The post-holder will be required to work with a wide range of stakeholders. It is important that the post holder recognises the roles of other colleagues to person-centred care, and liaises with other stakeholders as needed for the collective benefit of patients including:
Patients and Patient Participation Groups (PPGs)
GPs, nurses and other practice staff
Other healthcare professionals including CCG pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, optometrists, dentists, health and social care teams, dieticians etc.
Locality / GP prescribing lead and Locality managers
Community nurses and other allied health professionals
Integration between general practice community and hospital pharmacy teams
Ability to work as a member of a team within the PCN
Collaboration with network resources to support care management plans and social prescribing
Knowledge, Skills and Experience Required (please see attached Person Specification)
Has experience/awareness of the breadth of common acute and long-term conditions that are likely to be seen in a general medical practice.
Minimum of 2 years post graduate experience in pharmacy, as demonstrated within a practice portfolio.
Holds an independent prescribing qualification, is working towards a qualification or has the intention to complete this in the future.
Demonstrates an understanding of the role of a clinical pharmacist within primary care and where it fits into and how it complements the practice team and the wider PCN team.
Accountable for delivering professional expertise and direct service provision.
Able to follow legal, ethical, professional and organisational policies/procedures and codes of conduct.
Health and Safety/Risk Management
An expectation is for all staff to have a commitment to promoting and maintaining a safe and healthy environment and be responsible for their own and others welfare. In addition, staff will be expected to undertake the statutory mandatory health and safety training and other training relevant to their specialist area of work.
Equality and Diversity
The post-holder must co-operate with all policies and procedures designed to ensure equality of employment and complete the required statutory mandatory training.
Patient Confidentiality
The post-holder should respect patient confidentiality at all times and not divulge patient information unless sanctioned by the requirements of the role.
In view of the dynamic nature of the role, this job description is intended to provide an outline of the duties and responsibilities; it will be subject to review and amendment as necessary in consultation with the post holder.
Person Specification
Qualifications Essential
Registered as a pharmacist with the General Pharmaceutical Council Masters degree in pharmacy (MPharm) (or equivalent) Enrolled on or willingness to complete the CPPE Primary care Pharmacy Education pathway
Experience Essential
Minimum of 2 years postqualification experience
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).
Employer details Employer name City & Hackney Integrated Primary Care CIC
Address Latimer Health Centre
4 Homerton Terrace
London
E9 6RT