Principal Pharmacist

Cardiff and Vale University Health Board; Milton Keynes; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Flexible working

Learning and development

Supportive team

Job summary

Milton Keynes University Hospital, in proud partnership with the University of Buckingham, seeks an experienced pharmacist to lead neurology and biologics services within the trust. You will develop and deliver pharmaceutical services for MS patients and oversee the clinical pharmacy team to ensure safe, high-quality care.

The role includes regular clinical commitments, participation in out-of-hours work, and opportunities to influence service delivery and medicines management across divisions.

Qualifications

• MPharm degree and GPhC registration required.
• Postgraduate Clinical Diploma and CPD evidence required.
• Independent prescribing qualification and management/leadership development expected.
• Experience as a clinical pharmacist in a hospital setting.
• Experience managing drug expenditure and budgeting.
• Experience training and supervising colleagues.
• Experience Neurology/Biologics preferred.
• Good IT, time management, and communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Lead the neurology and biologics pharmacy service and contribute to service development.
• Develop and deliver pharmaceutical services to support MS patient care.
• Manage the clinical pharmacy team with line management responsibilities.
• Maintain a regular clinical pharmacy commitment and participate in out-of-hours rotas.
• Support repatriation of MS care and collaboration with multidisciplinary teams.

Skills

Excellent communication skills

Leadership skills

Project management

Team leadership

Time management

Problem solving

IT skills

Education

MPharm degree

GPhC registration

Postgraduate Clinical Diploma

MSc in relevant subject

Independent prescribing qualification

Education and training qualification

Management qualification

Tools

Microsoft Excel

Microsoft Word

Job description

Our services are evolving to provide our pharmacists and pharmacy technicians with more time to work alongside patients while supporting their medical and nursing colleagues. Our commitment is to ensure that every patient receives safe, high-quality care, placing our patients at the heart of our mission. This role is an ideal opportunity for a skilled and dedicated pharmacist looking for experience at a more senior level. As a trust we are currently repatriating the care of our MS patients on disease modifying therapies from our tertiary centre to MKUH. To support this move and develop the service we can offer to our MS patients we are looking for an enthusiastic, highly motivated pharmacist to join our team and become the pharmacy lead for neurology and biologics. Working alongside colleagues in different specialties, you will be responsible for the development and delivery of the pharmacy services to support the care of our MS patients and for the management of biologic medicines across the trust. You will have a regular clinical pharmacy commitment and will also be responsible for the line management of allocated members of the clinical pharmacy team., NHS Staff Survey: Our staff scored Autonomy and Control at 7.19, well above the national average. Here, youre trusted to lead, innovate, and shape your work. We are looking for an individual who shows a commitment to delivering excellence and working with us to make pharmacy a great place to be, for all staff in our wider team. A can-do approach and commitment to self and service development is essential. If you are passionate about patient care and developing pharmacy services for the future, this post is an ideal opportunity for you to build upon your clinical experience and further develop your management and leadership skills. This role is crucial to the delivery, development, and evaluation of pharmaceutical services across the hospital. It plays a key part in helping divisions optimise medicines use within available resources.

Our standard working hours consist of four long days (8 am to 6.00 pm) per week; in addition you will be required to work Saturdays, Sundays, and Bank Holidays on a rota basis. After a period of induction and training, you will contribute to the two-tier pharmacy out-of-hours service. If successful, you will be joining a friendly and welcoming team and will enter a supportive and learning environment that encourages both professional and personal development.

• MPharm degree (or equivalent).
• Registered as a Pharmacist with the GPhC
• Postgraduate Clinical Diploma.
• Evidence of ongoing CPD in line with GPhC, MSc in relevant subject
• Independent prescribing qualification
• Education and training qualification, Proven experience as a clinical pharmacist within an hospital based setting
• Experience of managing drug expenditure for a specialty and understanding of budgetary mechanism
• Previous evaluations or reviews of medicines used in the specialty's patient.
• Experience as a trainer
• Experience working as part of a multi-disciplinary team to provide patient care
• Experience of audit work
• Personnel management
• Service development
• An awareness of current national standards, guidelines and service delivery issues relevant to the directorate's patient.
• Previous experience of working in Neurology / Biologics
• Experience of appraising staff and giving feedback
• Medicines Information
• Management qualification
• Introduction of a new service
• Project management
• Published work
• Knowledge of the medical management of disease in the specialty's patients, Ability to manage time effectively and work to deadlines demonstrated in a previous post
• Ability to plan, prioritise and organise self and others
• Effective verbal and written communication demonstrated in a previous post.
• I.T. skills such as computer literacy, word processing and spreadsheet skills
• Ability to use Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Word
• Managerial skills
• Communication skills.
• Good presentation skills.
• Report writing
• Problem solving
• Good team work and ability to work alone, Leadership skills
• Critical appraisal skills
• Radical thinking
• Innovative
• Ability to motivate and act as a role model, Experience of supervising and developing colleagues
• Evidence of Continuous Professional Development, Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to influence others
• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to influence others
• Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written

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.

Milton Keynes University Hospital, in proud partnership with the University of Buckingham, is a University Teaching Hospital committed to advancing patient care through cutting-edge research and education. With a "Good" rating from the CQC and significant investment underway, this is an exciting time to join our team and grow your career. As a medium sized general hospital, we provide a full range of general medical and surgical services, including a busy Emergency Department, Maternity, and Paediatrics. As the population of our city and surrounding areas continues to grow rapidly, we are expanding and enhancing our facilities to meet rising demand and improve access to care for all our communities. We are also proud to offer a growing portfolio of specialist services. In January 2025 we opened our state-of-the-art Radiotherapy Centre, bringing advanced cancer treatment closer to home. Our services also include neonatology, specialist surgical care, and a wide range of diagnostics, supported by the new Community Diagnostic Centre at Whitehouse Health Centre. We have just opened the Oak Wards - a new ward block featuring two 24-bed wards. Further investment is underway, including the recently approved Women and Children's Centre, set to open by 2030. Visit our website to explore the latest news and opportunities at MKUH - News - Milton Keynes University Hospital -, MKUH is committed to equal opportunities and improving the working lives of our staff and as such we offer a range of flexible working practices. We reserve the right to expire vacancies prior to the advertised closing date once enough applications have been received. MKUH uses identification scanning technology to confirm the authenticity of documents; all prospective employees of MKUH will have their original documents verified using this technology.

Upon commencing employment with the Trust,all employees (except Medical & Dental Staff on national terms and conditions) are subject to a probationary period lasting a period of six months with an option to extend for a further six months to a total of 12 months.