Medicines Optimisation Pharmacy Technician

North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare Trust

We have an exciting role for an experienced Pharmacy Technician to join our team as a Medicines Optimisation Pharmacy Technician. We are looking for an enthusiastic, self-motivated and adaptable Medicines Optimisation Pharmacy Technician with the ambition and interpersonal skills to take on this challenging post.

Band 5 £29,970 - £36,483 per annum, full time 37.5 hours per week (pro rata if part time).

You will have excellent communication, organisational and time management skills who can work effectively as part of a team and independently.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will work with the hospital and community-based pharmacy teams to identify cost pressures and potential savings regarding medicines. They will lead and feedback on the cost saving projects to the relevant teams. The post holder will be responsible for collaborating closely with clinical colleagues in providing an integrated, efficient, cost-effective patient-focused clinical pharmacy service at ward and department level throughout the Trust. This role will broaden the skills you have and is an excellent career development opportunity. It helps us to ensure we have a service that can meet all the demands that are placed on it.

1. Challenge your problem-solving skills
2. Stretch your organisational skills
3. Develop and expand your leadership skills

About us

As a Trust we remain bold and ambitious with plans for both service and system collaborative transformation over the coming years to improve the health and wellbeing of our local people through high quality care.

We pride ourselves on ensuring our team has their wellbeing put first and as such provide a range of wellness opportunities including flexible working.

We are committed to the Greener NHS national ambition to becoming the world's first 'carbon net zero' national health system by 2045. As part of this, sustainability is embedded in our strategy as one of our four key enablers. In order to deliver on this commitment, we recognise that we need a workforce that is as passionate as we are about achieving these goals, for the benefit of our service users, workforce, local communities and the planet alike. For 2024/2025, we have launched our "Proud to be Green" engagement campaign which is aligned to the targets set out in our Green Plan. As a Trust, you can be assured that we will commit to supporting you in working towards our net zero ambitions, set out in our Green Plan, through our sustainability programme.

The Trust is committed to ensuring that a diverse workforce is representative and inclusive at all levels. We would very much welcome applications from all under-represented groups including women, people with disabilities, people from global majority backgrounds, and those from the lesbian, gay, bi and trans communities.

Job responsibilities

Your responsibilities will include:

• Dispensing for inpatients, outpatients, discharge, and clinical trials
• Medicines safety
• Cost improvement projects
• Ensuring timely supply of medicines
• Workforce development
• Medicines management
• Final accuracy checking
• Undertaking medicines reconciliation
• Support the timely and smooth transfer of patient care at the point of discharge
• Assessing patients' own medicines (PODs) for suitability for re-use
• Overseeing top-up services
• Responsibility for completion of medicines safety audits across the Trust
• Participate in the training and supervision of new staff, trainees, and wider healthcare team

You must be registered with The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) as a Pharmacy Technician, have post qualification experience working as a Pharmacy Technician within an NHS Hospital Pharmacy, have completed medicines management training and will have achieved Accredited Checking Pharmacy Technician (ACPT) status.

Person Specification

Education

• NVQ Level 3 and BTEC in pharmaceutical science - or equivalent
• Current registration as Pharmacy Technician with the General Pharmaceutical Council
• Accreditation as a Nationally Approved Accuracy Checking Technician

Experience

• Post-qualification experience as a registered pharmacy technician commensurate with the role including a minimum of 6 months in hospital pharmacy
• Working in a mental health setting
• Experience of undertaking medicines management duties in the ward environment including Medicines Reconciliation

Knowledge and Skills

• Able to use computers and the various software relating to electronic prescribing, EPR, dispensing, procurement, and stock management
• Excellent communication skills with patients and staff verbally, electronically or in writing clearly, concisely and accurately considering barriers to understanding
• Ability to review legality and accuracy of prescription charts in the dispensary and on the ward; ability to challenge/question when appropriate
• Good IT skills and familiarity with common software packages (e.g. Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint etc.)
• Knowledge of quality assurance, performance management, and medicines management frameworks

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.

North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare Trust

£29,970 to £36,483 a year per annum (pro rata)