Pharmacy Technicians

Cardiff and Vale University Health Board; Ellesmere Port; On-site; GBP 26,000 - 36,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

NHS Pension 2015 Scheme

Cycle to work scheme

Free parking across many sites

Job summary

Ashfield North PCN is seeking a Pharmacy Technician to join our team of clinical pharmacists. You will support medicines optimisation, patient-facing roles, and medication reviews across practices and care homes in Sutton in Ashfield (pop. 52,000).

You'll work under supervision, attend Care Home Ward Rounds with GPs, and access CPPE pathways to develop skills while contributing to safe, cost-effective prescribing.

Responsibilities

• To undertake patient facing and patient supporting roles to ensure effective medicines use.
• To support the medication reviews process
• To conduct medicine optimisation tasks including effective and efficient medicine administration
• Be a key player in the multi-disciplinary PCN team.
• Attend weekly Care Home Ward Rounds with the GPs, face to face and virtually.
• Undertake patient facing and patient supporting roles to ensure effective medicines use, through shared decision-making conversations
• Carry out medicines optimisations tasks including effective medicine administration, supporting medication reviews and medicine reconciliation.
• Support the Clinical Pharmacists in Structured Medication Review, ie. Organise necessary monitoring tests prior to SMR
• Provide expertise to address both the public health and social care needs of patients, including lifestyle advice, service information, and talking local health inequalities
• Manage shared care protocols and liaise with Clinical Pharmacists for more complex patients
• Support initiatives for antimicrobial stewardship to reduce inappropriate antibiotic prescribing locally
• Promote Electronic Repeat Dispensing to patients
• Promote online ordering through the NHS App
• Support practice reception teams in streamlining prescription requests, so as to allow GPs and Clinical Pharmacists to review the more clinically complex requests
• Attending weekly Care Home Ward Rounds with the GPs, face to face and virtually.
• Support the implementation of national prescribing policies and guidance within GP Practices
• Support the PCN to deliver on QIPP agenda, QOF, IIF, and other contracts
• Support the PCN in reviewing and developing practice policies for CQC requirements
• Carry out housekeeping while in patient records e.g. dose optimisation, syncing medicines etc
• Conduct prescribing audits (as requested by Senior Clinical Pharmacist)
• To work at one or more of the 4 practices, and allocated care homes within the PCN

Job description

We are recruiting a Pharmacy Technician to join our team of Clinical Pharmacists at Ashfield North PCN. Pharmacy Technicians work under supervision to ensure effective and efficient use of medicines. The responsibilities of a Pharmacy Technician cover clinical, technical, and administrative categories. The successful applicant will be responsible for encouraging the development of better understanding of the principles of medicine optimisations throughout the practice teams, promoting good practice in line with therapeutic developments which will involve national requirements, NICE guidance, and utilisation of medicines optimisation initiatives. At PICS, patient safety is at the core of everything we do, and we recognise the importance of the support provided by Pharmacy Technicians in improving best practice to maximise safe and cost-effective prescribing. Our Senior Pharmacy staff will support you to fulfil the requirements of the role and you will have access to the CPPE pathway to develop your skills. We are committed to further the development of Pharmacy Technicians within Primary Care. You will be part of a wider team of Pharmacy staff, supporting the care homes, while being supported by our Clinical Lead who is on the PICS leadership team. You will be based at practices and care homes within Ashfield North PCN (all in Sutton in Ashfield) who support a population size of 52,000.,

• To undertake patient facing and patient supporting roles to ensure effective medicines use.
• To support the medication reviews process
• To conduct medicine optimisation tasks including effective and efficient medicine administration
• Be a key player in the multi-disciplinary PCN team.
• Attending weekly Care Home Ward Rounds with the GPs, face to face and virtually., You will be part of a wider team of Pharmacy staff, supporting the care homes, while being supported by our Clinical Lead who is on the PICS leadership team.
• Undertake patient facing and patient supporting roles to ensure effective medicines use, through shared decision-making conversations
• Carry out medicines optimisations tasks including effective medicine administration, supporting medication reviews and medicine reconciliation. Where required, utilise consultation skills to work in partnership with patients to ensure they use their medicines effectively.
• Support the Clinical Pharmacists in Structured Medication Review, ie. Organise necessary monitoring tests prior to SMR
• Provide expertise to address both the public health and social care needs of patients, including lifestyle advice, service information, and talking local health inequalities
• Manage shared care protocols and liaise with Clinical Pharmacists for more complex patients
• Support initiatives for antimicrobial stewardship to reduce inappropriate antibiotic prescribing locally
• Promote Electronic Repeat Dispensing to patients
• Promote online ordering through the NHS App
• Support practice reception teams in streamlining prescription requests, so as to allow GPs and Clinical Pharmacists to review the more clinically complex requests
• Attending weekly Care Home Ward Rounds with the GPs, face to face and virtually.
• Support the implementation of national prescribing policies and guidance within GP Practices
• Support the PCN to deliver on QIPP agenda, QOF, IIF, and other contracts
• Support the PCN in reviewing and developing practice policies for CQC requirements
• Carry out housekeeping while in patient records e.g. dose optimisation, syncing medicines etc
• Conduct prescribing audits (as requested by Senior Clinical Pharmacist)
• To work at one or more of the 4 practices, and allocated care homes within the PCN

Additional Responsibilities

• Promote our culture of equality and diversity
• Ensure our principles of openness, transparency and candor are upheld
• Continue annual training and CPD to maintain good practices, especially within Safeguarding and IPC.

Professional Development / Personal Performance.

• Identify learning needs, plan, implement and evaluate programmes of education to meet identified need.
• Establish own support mechanisms to enable structured reflection, including clinical supervision, development of supportive networks mentoring and coaching.
• Participate in and undertake clinical supervision of colleagues on an individual or group
• Participate in the Divisional appraisal System and demonstrate the achievement of agreed personal objectives.

Physical and Mental Skills

• The post holder should be physically fit for the role with the necessary keyboard and IT skills.
• The post holder would be expected to coordinate delivery of care in line with the pathway for heart failure patients, performing comprehensive assessment of patient nursing needs, plan, implement and evaluate care delivery according to changing health care needs.
• Required to communicate across the health community and with patients / carers where the nature of the information given may be sensitive and could be disputed.
• The post holder should be empathetic and skilled in listening, persuasion and negotiation, and recognizes Care, Compassion, Courage, Competency, Communication, and Commitment in their role.

Effort and Environment Physical Effort

• Frequent long periods of time spent writing up patient related information within agreed time limits. There is a need for speed and accuracy. This is a continuous requirement throughout each day.
• Prolonged periods of time spent in a sitting position at a computer screen when answering the telephone and writing clinical information in patients notes at the same time.
• Infrequent sitting or standing in a restricted position eg: crouching or kneeling to deliver care. Infrequent moderate / occasional intense effort for several short periods.
• Treatment sessions may require the post holder to undertake moving and handling tasks with the patient which may or may not involve using specialist equipment. Occasional requirement to transport bulky equipment to patients homes.
  General Pharmaceutical Council professional registration

Emotional Effort

• Some patients will have complex needs. Some will have problems that can cause stress for the post holder.
• The post holder can also be faced with distressing circumstances and emotionally demanding situations, which will come about occasionally when dealing clients and their families. There can be frustration when patients do not accept or action health plans.
  We offer a comprehensive package which includes:

We offer a comprehensive package which includes:

• NHS Pension 2015 Scheme (subject to eligibility)
• Alternative government-based scheme (subject to eligibility)
• Competitive leave entitlement that includes maternity, paternity and adoption leave, study leave allowance, and sickness provisions
• Access to education and training opportunities, depending on your role (CPPE Pharmacy, NHS England Roadmap for First Contact Practitioners, apprenticeship schemes, support professional development)
• Working in a multi-disciplinary team with support from a wide variety of professionals
• A flexible approach to a work-life balance
• Cycle to work scheme (subject to eligibility)
• Access to Blue Light Card scheme
• All staff events and conferences
• Staff engagement (Wellbeing Group, EDI Network, Staff Focus group)
• Free parking across many sites
• Personalised induction into the company and job role, To function effectively across a variety of environments e.g.: GP Practice, patients homes and care homes.
• The post holder can be a lone worker.