Senior Pharmacist - Rheumatology

East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust; Blackburn; On-site; GBP 54,000 - 63,000; Full time

Job summary

East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust is seeking a Senior Pharmacist (Band 8a) to join the Rheumatology Directorate. The post focuses on delivering expert pharmaceutical care within a dynamic team and supporting the MEC Division with strategic service development.

The successful candidate will lead rheumatology pharmacy services, provide specialist clinical advice, and manage a defined caseload as an independent prescriber, ensuring safe and cost-effective medication use.

Qualifications

• Registered Pharmacist with GPhC
• Experience in clinical pharmacy and rheumatology preferred
• Independent prescriber status desirable

Responsibilities

• Provide specialist clinical pharmacy support to the Rheumatology service as part of a multi-disciplinary team.
• Lead and develop the clinical pharmacy service for the MEC Division within Rheumatology.
• Manage a defined patient caseload as an independent prescriber.
• Ensure medicines use in Rheumatology is safe, effective and cost-efficient.
• Collaborate with homecare pharmacy to optimise homecare medicines use.
• Lead development of rheumatology clinics and provide patient education on systemic therapies.
• Monitor drug expenditure, including high-cost biologics and biosimilars, and participate in new therapy introductions.

Skills

Clinical pharmacy

Rheumatology

Independent prescriber

Cost-effectiveness

Education

Pharmacist degree

GPhC registered

Job description

An exciting opportunity has arisen to join our dynamic Pharmacy team as a Senior Pharmacist (Band 8a) working within theRheumatologyDirectorate.

This position offers a wealth of unique clinical and professional development opportunities within the both the Rheumatology and Pharmacy Department.

The successful candidate will play a pivotal role in delivering exceptional pharmaceutical care and services, working collaboratively within a multi-disciplinary team to support optimal patient outcomes.

• Work as an integral member of the multi-disciplinary team to provide specialist clinical pharmacy support to the Rheumatology service.
• Be responsible for leading and developing the clinical pharmacy service to the Medicines and Emergency Care (MEC) Division in accordance with the objectives set by the Divisional Lead Pharmacist, with particular emphasis on the Rheumatology Directorate.
• Provide highly specialised advice in all pharmaceutical matters.
• Work as an independent prescriber managing a defined patient caseload within Rheumatology.
• Ensure that medicine use within the Rheumatology speciality is safe, effective and cost effective.
• Work with the homecare pharmacy team to ensure appropriate use of homecare medicine supply.
• Monitor and provide comment on drug expenditure as required e.g in relation to high cost (biologics and biosimilars) and the introduction of new therapeutic agents.

Lead and deliver an advanced specialist pharmaceutical care service to patients within the rheumatology service, in accordance with the priorities set by the post-holder and the Clinical Lead Pharmacist, in order to ensure, safe, clinically effective and cost-efficient use of medicines and taking into account national and corporate priorities.

Lead the development of the Rheumatology pharmacy service including; setting up and delivering pharmacist-led rheumatology clinics, providing patient education on systemic treatments for rheumatology and initiate appropriate medication and associated monitoring ensuring accurate transfer of care information and follow up.

Maintain clinical competencies and support the Clinical Pharmacy team by working on in-patient wards or the dispensary.

In Addition, You Will Be Required To

• Assist in the development of relevant policies, guidelines and pathways.
• Monitor compliance with NICE guidance and TAs, and other nationally and locally agreed guidelines, pathways and audits.
• Work with the homecare pharmacist to incorporate relevant treatments or undertake medicine switches.
• Proactively undertake quality improvement and/or research.

East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust aims to deliver the highest quality care to its patients. We employ dedicated staff, some of which have won awards for their work and are internationally renowned.

Whilst being spread across sites and having a large number of staff we are very welcoming to all and have many assistants, technicians and pharmacists who have worked and progressed with us for very many years.

We have strong links with our local universities with three teacher practitioners who support junior pharmacists and provide teaching to medical and pharmacy undergraduates.

We have highly specialist pharmacists working within other clinical areas e.g Homecare and Medicines Information and those who deliver clinics for Cardiology, Dermatology and Paediatrics. We are keen to support the professional development of our staff and look to the future of Consultant Pharmacist roles at the Trust.

It is a challenging time for all in the NHS, but at East Lancashire Teaching Hospitals you be given support, mentorship, autonomy and the Pharmacy Management Team will work hard to ensure that you reach and maintain your potential whilst having a rewarding and fulfilled career.