Principal Pharmacy Technician - Chemotherapy Services

Guys & St Thomas Hospital; London; On-site; GBP 44,000 - 54,000; Full time

Job description

Principal Pharmacy Technician - Chemotherapy Services

NHS AfC: Band 6

Main area: Chemotherapy Services

Grade: NHS AfC: Band 6

Contract: Permanent

Hours: Full time - 37.5 hours per week (Weekends, Bank Holiday and ad-hoc Out of Hours. Contract hours 08:00 - 18:30.)

Job ref: 196-LIS9382

Employer: Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust

Employer type: NHS

Site: Guy's Cancer Centre, Guy's Hospital

Town: London

Salary: £44,806 - £53,134 p.a inc of HCA

Salary period: Yearly

Closing: 08/04/2025 23:59

Interview date: 07/05/2025

This is an exciting opportunity to join the leadership team of a highly specialist chemotherapy aseptic preparation and dispensing unit providing high quality and responsive pharmacy services to a cancer centre and satellite units.

Main duties of the job

The person will be responsible for:

1. The daily technical and operational management of the Chemotherapy Preparation and Dispensing Unit.
2. Ensuring the quality management system is fully implemented, maintained and GMP compliant.
3. Collaborative working alongside other Cancer services and Pharmacy teams, Procurement, Engineering and External Contractors to regularly review service delivery, stock holdings, and unit maintenance.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

1. To ensure the chemotherapy unit’s quality system is fully implemented and deviations are reported appropriately. To ensure all changes and other actions are assessed and implemented following standard operating procedures.
2. To be overall responsible for the workflow management and planning of all aseptic preparations.
3. To be responsible for the day to day management and allocation of all technical staff.
4. To undertake when required the roles of the senior technician including aseptic preparation and dispensing of chemotherapy and other products, and to act as a supervisor checker within aseptic areas.
5. To act as a role model to staff working throughout the department.
6. To undertake any other reasonable duties as specified by the highly specialised chemotherapy production pharmacists or chief technician.
7. To lead in the recruitment and selection of staff to the Trust’s chemotherapy aseptic units and assist in recruitment to the pharmacy as a whole.
8. To lead annual stock takes and internal audits.

Person specification

Skills and Ability

• Demonstrated ability to train and assess others in a GMP compliant manner.
• Demonstrated ability to apply specialist knowledge GMP, GCP & Quality Assurance to maintain, develop and validate an aseptic unit quality system and service provision.
• Demonstrated ability to organize and have oversight of stock management.
• Demonstrated ability to communicate effectively with a wide range of professionals and patients, using clear written and spoken English, and overcoming barriers to understanding in a multidisciplinary team.

Previous Experience

• Demonstrates knowledge, experience and competence in aseptic preparation or manufacturing either within or outside NHS pharmacy aseptic units.
• Multidisciplinary working with professionals, whilst operationally managing and planning aseptic services supply.
• Demonstrated experience of a senior role (minimum NHS AFC B5) as a team leader within aseptic services.
• Demonstrated ability to initiate and complete quality system entries such as deviations, change controls and CAPAs. Demonstrates ability to ensure all required actions are appropriately evaluated, completed and documented in a timely manner.
• Direct participation in an EL(97)52 or MHRA audit.
• Demonstrated experience of ability to appraise staff and set performance objectives.

Qualification and Knowledge

• Registered as a Pharmacy Technician with the General Pharmaceutical Council GPhC.
• QCF/NVQ Pharmacy services Level 3 plus an accredited underpinning knowledge (BTEC in Pharmaceutical Science or equivalent) or equivalent.
• Relevant leadership and management experience - portfolio that demonstrates acquisition of this level of specialist knowledge.
• Relevant leadership and management underpinning knowledge or working towards e.g. CMS/DMS post graduate studies or equivalent.
• Relevant University courses to aseptic services.

Guy’s and St Thomas’ celebrates, respects and values the diversity of its staff and patients. We review our policies, procedures and practices to ensure that all employees, patients and carers are treated equitably according to their needs. We are actively committed to ensuring that no one who applies for a job, works or studies at the Trust, or accesses our services is discriminated against on the grounds of race, ethnicity, nationality, disability, religion or belief, age, gender identity, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity/paternity, or marital/civil partnership.

Applications are welcomed from applicants with a disability. We can make reasonable adjustments and offer support and advice in a variety of ways throughout the application process. Equality of opportunity is our policy.

As an organisation we are committed to developing our services in ways that best suit the needs of our patients. This means that some staff groups will increasingly be asked to work a more flexible shift pattern so that we can offer services in the evenings or at weekends.

We are committed to supporting all employees to achieve a healthy work-life balance and to work in a way that is best for them and our patients. We will consider all requests to work flexibly, taking into account the individual’s personal circumstances as well as the needs of the service. We encourage all prospective applicants to discuss their individual circumstances with the recruiting manager as part of the onboarding process.

Your e-mail address is important to us - We communicate to all job applicants via the e-mail address which has been provided on the application form. Please ensure that you check your e-mail on a regular basis.

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Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

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.

Our dedicated and talented staff make it their mission to provide outstanding care for our patients.