Clinical Pharmacist

NHS; Gravesend; On-site; GBP 40,000 - 60,000

Job description

We are looking for a Clinical Pharmacist to join the practice to cover 12 months maternity leave from May 2025. The Clinical Pharmacist will work to develop and deliver the medicines optimisation and medicines safety agenda, contribute to the management of long-term conditions and repeat prescribing, clinical medication reviews, clinical assessment and diagnosis within sphere of competency.

The post-holder will work with clinical colleagues to ensure the highest standards of care are provided for all registered and temporary patients, and will work across the organisation to become a core member of the team of healthcare professionals.

Main duties of the job

The Post holder will be required to undertake all the normal duties and responsibilities of a clinical pharmacist working within General Practice. For example undertake clinical medication reviews, manage repeat prescribing, reconcile medicines following discharge from hospital, monitor cohorts of patients identified at high risk of harm from medicines, assist the practice to achieve QOF objective, implement changes to medicines that result from MHRA alerts, product withdrawal and other local and national guidance.

About us

The Practice has a patient list of 15,500 across two sites located in Gravesend, with Pelham Medical being the larger site of the two. The team consists of 4 GP Partners, 3 Salaried GP's, ARR staff (Nurse Prescriber, Paramedic & Physician Associate), Mental Health Practitioner, Physiotherapist, 2 HCA's, 2 Practice Nurse's and Clinical Pharmacists. We have clinical meetings where we have guest speakers and the team are about to share and discuss clinical cases etc. These are on a monthly basis and all staff are encouraged to attend. The staff across both sites work closely as a team ensuring that everyone feels supported.

Job responsibilities

Key Responsibilities

Clinical Practice

The post-holder will be expected to undertake all the normal duties and responsibilities associated with a Practice Pharmacist working in general practice including:

1. Undertake clinical medication reviews with patients.
2. Contribute to updating and implementing prescribing policy.
3. Manage the repeat prescribing reauthorisation process by reviewing patient requests for repeat prescriptions, and reviewing medicines reaching review dates, and flagging up those needing a review.
4. Undertake repeat prescribing.
5. See patients where medicine optimisation is required.
6. Incorporate the objectives of medicines optimisation into every day general practice, including the aims of national and local strategies.
7. Work with care home staff to improve safety of medicines ordering and administration.
8. Reconcile medicines following discharge from hospitals and intermediate care, including identifying and rectifying unexplained changes, and working with patients and community pharmacists to ensure patients receive the medicines they need.
9. Set up and manage systems to ensure continuity of medicines supply to high-risk groups of patients (e.g., those with medicine compliance aids or those in care homes).
10. Identify cohorts of patients at high risk of harm from medicines through practice computer searches, including risks that are patient related, medicine related, or both.
11. Contribute pharmaceutical advice for the development and implementation of new services that have medicinal components (e.g., advise on treatment pathways and patient information leaflets).
12. Analyse, interpret and present medicines data to highlight issues and risks.
13. Monitor the practices prescribing against local ICB guidance and make recommendations to GPs for medicines that should be prescribed by hospital doctors or subject to shared care.
14. Implement changes to medicines that result from MHRA alerts, product withdrawal and other local and national guidance.
15. Answer all medicine-related enquiries from GPs, other practice staff and patients with queries about medicines.
16. Assist practices to achieve QOF objectives.
17. Evaluate clinical information from examination & history taking and initiate appropriate treatment and/or referral.
18. Signpost appropriately to other services in the identified healthcare pathway.
19. Refer patients to appropriate care settings, where appropriate.
20. Provide assessment, treatment and diagnosis within competency.

Other Duties / Responsibilities

1. Work to ensure compliance with CQC standards.
2. Undertake risk assessment and management and ensure compliance with medicines legislation.
3. Contribute to public health campaigns, including flu and other immunisation initiatives.
4. Undertake audits of prescribing in areas directed by the GPs/MOS, feedback the results and implement changes in conjunction with the clinical team.

Person Specification

• Ability to work at pace in a busy working environment and able to multi-task.
• Work effectively independently and as a team member.
• Ability to work flexibly.
• Able to work on own initiative, organising and prioritising own and others workloads to changing and often tight deadlines but recognise own limitations and act upon them appropriately.
• Commitment to and demonstration of practice values.

Experience

• Minimum of 2 years post-qualification experience.
• In depth therapeutic and clinical knowledge and understanding of the principles of evidence based healthcare.
• An appreciation of the nature of general practice.
• An understanding of medicines safety.
• Experience of medication review, face to face and remotely.
• Experience of repeat prescribing and prescribing for long term conditions within competency.
• Is able to plan, manage, monitor, advise and review general medicine optimisation issue in core areas for long term conditions.
• Make professionally autonomous decisions for which he/she is accountable.
• Provide a first point of contact for patients presenting with undifferentiated, undiagnosed problems, making use of skills in history taking, physical examination, problem-solving and clinical decision-making, to establish a diagnosis and management plan.
• To maintain accurate and contemporaneous records, utilising computer systems where appropriate and consider the Caldicott Principles in relation to all data handling.
• Instigate necessary invasive and non-invasive diagnostic tests or investigations and interpret findings/reports.
• Provide safe, evidence-based, cost-effective, individualised patient care.
• Refer patients directly to other services/agencies as appropriate.

Qualifications

• Degree in Pharmacy.
• Clinical Diploma.
• Clinical Examination Skills.

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.