Pharmacy Purchasing and Invoicing Senior Assistant Technical Officer

Main area: Pharmacy

Grade Band: 4

Contract: Permanent

Hours: Full time - 37.5 hours per week (including weekends and bank holidays)

Job ref: 200-NN-7007604-BC-Y

Employer: St George's University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Employer type: NHS

Site: St Georges University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Town: Tooting

Salary: £31,944 - £34,937 Per annum including inner London HCAS

Salary period: Yearly

Closing: 09/04/2025 23:59

Pharmacy Purchasing and Invoicing Senior Assistant Technical Officer

Band 4

*The pay scales advertised have been confirmed by NHS England, we are awaiting confirmation of when these will be reflected. The new scales can be found here: Pay scales for 2024/25 | NHS Employers

Job overview

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an enthusiastic and motivated individual to join the Pharmacy department at St Georges University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. The individual will join the Pharmacy procurement contracts and invoicing team who are responsible for the safe and effective purchasing of medicines for the Trust.

You should have medicines procurement and invoicing experience, preferably in a hospital setting and be looking to expand your role and knowledge.

The post holder must have good prioritisation and organisation skills, as well as attention to detail and a good knowledge of IT. You will need good communication skills and experience working as part of a team.

The Pharmacy Department is highly regarded in the Trust and has over 270 staff members. The department is friendly, forward-thinking and constantly expanding with opportunities for personal development and further education.

Main duties of the job

• Resolve invoice discrepancies in liaison with Purchasing, Stores & Distribution and Finance staff
• Contact wholesalers and suppliers for resolutions of queries
• Ensure that all contract amendments for purchasing are entered into the pharmacy computer system in a timely manner
• Purchase medicines and process any urgent ad-hoc requests
• Provide training to members of staff
• Participate in dispensary/stores-based duties on a rota system

Working for our organisation

The GESH hospital group is a leading healthcare provider in South-West London, comprised of St George’s University Hospitals and Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals. Our vision is to provide outstanding care, together, by collaborating and working in partnership to meet the needs of our patients, and making sure our services are affordable and fit for the future.

As GESH partners, the pharmacy departments at St Georges University Hospital and Epsom & St Helier University Hospitals are working together in a number of areas including workforce, key functions such as medication safety, education and training and digital workstreams.

St George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust itself is a major acute hospital that offers specialist care for complex injuries and illnesses, including trauma, neurology, neurosurgery, cardiac care, lipid disorders, renal transplantation, cancer care and stroke. We are the regional specialist care provider for South-West London, Surrey and beyond. Acute and tertiary health services are delivered from over 1,000 beds across two sites, by around 8,000 staff.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see attached the job description for more details on the main responsibilities for this role.

Person specification

Qualifications

• GCSE (Grade 4-9 or A-C) Maths, English, Science
• Registered Pharmacy Technician with the General Pharmaceutical Council
• NVQ level 2 Pharmacy Services

Experience

• Hospital Pharmacy experience from a broad rotation, particularly in invoicing and/or procurement
• Stock control experience & knowledge
• Experience of staff training
• Experience of using Pharmacy computer systems to procure medicines
• Experience of providing telephone support and dealing with customer services
• Experience of participation in audit
• Ward/clinical experience
• Experience in supervising staff and workload on a day-to-day basis
• Experience of using the JAC/CMM Pharmacy computer system

Skills

• Ability to prioritise and organise routine daily tasks using own initiative
• Communicate information effectively using clear written and spoken English and overcome barriers to understanding
• Effective customer care skills
• Good interpersonal skills and the ability to work as part of a team
• Ability to accurately follow written procedures in a busy working environment

Knowledge

• Attention to detail and highly numerate
• Competent in all areas of dispensing practice
• Familiarity with MS Office applications
• Understanding of unlicensed medicine procurement requirements
• Knowledge and understanding of pharmaceutical stock control
• Ability to train and assess others

We expect all our staff to share the values that are important to the trust – being excellent, kind, responsible and respectful – and behave in a way that reflects these.

Please note that this vacancy may close before the advertised closing date if sufficient applicants are received. Please check your email regularly as all candidates shortlisted for interview will be contacted and informed by email.

If you are appointed to the post, as part of your pre-employment check we will be required to verify your identity. The document/s you present for this purpose will be checked for their authenticity by scanning all known security features.

The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.