Pharmacy Technician (NHS AfC: Band 4) - Pharmacy - Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospital[...]

We want talented and enthusiastic people from all backgrounds to join #TeamMWL, with us you can learn, grow and develop yourself and your career, realising your true ambitions and aspirations.

Whatever you’re looking for in your career, you’ll find it here at MWL.

After applying via NHS Jobs, your submitted application will be imported into our preferred Third-party recruitment system. All subsequent information regarding your application will be generated from apps.trac.jobs. You will not be able to track the progress of your application or receive messages through the NHS Jobs website, and furthermore, as an employer, we will not be able to respond to any e-mails sent to us via the NHS Jobs website. By applying for this post you are agreeing to \”name of trust\” transferring the information contained in this application to its preferred applicant management system. If you are appointed to a post information will also be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Records system.

Job overview

An opportunity has arisen for a qualified Pharmacy Technician to join a developing team of pharmacy staff serving Southport & Ormskirk Hospital NHS Trust.

The post will be based at either Southport District General or Ormskirk District General but the ability to travel to all hospitals within the Trust is essential. Duties will include inpatient, out-patient and ward-based dispensing, stock control, Aseptic preparation, ordering and supply of medicines.

Advert Closes 27th July

Shortlisting 28th July

Interviews 7th August, 2025

Main duties of the job

The post holder will participate with other team members of the pharmacy staff aiming to provide an efficient and comprehensive pharmaceutical service within the pharmacy departments of Southport and Ormskirk Hospitals NHS Trust, under the direction of the Chief Pharmacist.

Duties will include labelling, dispensing, stock rotation, storage and dealing with dispensary queries, ward-based discharge, and patient counselling. Extended duties will include the preparation of Intravenous and other Aseptically prepared products including cytotoxics.

Working for our organisation

Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust serves a population of over 600,000 with a workforce of over 9000 dedicated and skilled staff across 21 sites.

We strongly believe that the communities we serve should all have access to Five Star Patient Care.

Our Services:

Acute Care

Providing emergency and maternity services at Whiston, Southport and Ormskirk hospitals, and medical and surgical specialties across all our sites.

Primary Care

Providing primary care services at Marshalls Cross Medical Centre situated in St Helens Hospital.

Community Services

Providing adult community services for St Helens and a wheelchair service in Chorley, South Ribble, and West Lancashire. Our inpatient unit at Newton Community Hospital is where patients needing acute hospital beds can continue rehabilitation, freeing up space for more unwell patients. We also provide urgent care at our Urgent Treatment Centre located in St Helens town centre.

Specialist Regional Services

We provide the Mersey Regional Burns & Plastic Surgery Unit at Whiston Hospital and the Spinal Injuries Unit at Southport Hospital to more than 4 million people across the whole of Merseyside, West Lancashire, Cheshire, Isle of Man and North Wales.

Achievements:

• Rated Outstanding by CQC Inspection August 2018

• Top 100 places to work in the NHS (NHS Employers & Health Service Journal)

• National Preceptorship Accreditation (2023) for Nursing & AHP Preceptorship Programme

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

KEY DUTIES

• To be a member of the Pharmaceutical Service team as required at Southport District General, or Ormskirk District General Hospitals.
• To participate in inpatient, outpatient and discharge dispensing including extemporaneous, unlicensed, controlled drugs & Clozaril within the guidelines of the GPhC Standards for Pharmacy Professionals.
• To undertake cytotoxic dispensing in accordance with departmental procedures and the criteria set out under COSHH Regulations and Regional and National Standards.
• To undertake specialist dispensing involving the use of aseptic technique to a suitable standard in preparation of sterile products in accordance with Aseptic Procedures and under the direction of the Senior Technician and Aseptic Services Manager.
• To undertake cytotoxic reconstitution and dispensing in accordance with the recommendations contained in the aseptic production manual and in accordance with the criteria set out under COSHH Regulations and Regional and National Standards.
• To be an active member on the Trust’s Intrathecal Registering enabling the preparation of Intrathecal cytotoxic Injections in accordance with Trust and Departmental Procedures.
• To participate in Annual Performance Appraisal Reviews, setting joint objectives in relation to the Trust set objectives.
• To co-operate in the operation and development of the ASCribe Pharmacy computer system under the direction of the Computer Services Manager.
• In the absence of the Dispensary, Stores and Purchasing and Computer Services Manager’s raise and release orders internally and to external wholesalers after appropriate, documented training and in line with departmental procedures.
• To participate in the physical receipt of medicines and sundries, including signing for delivery and put away such items in the appropriate location ensuring stock rotation. To assist in the maintenance of stock levels and stock storage ensuring efficient turnover whilst maintaining quality and potency.
• To participate in ward “topping-up” for individual patient and stock drug supplies service under the supervision of the Stores and Purchasing Manager in accordance with departmental procedures.
• To participate in extemporaneous dispensing in line with the “Guide to the Preparation of non-sterile extemporaneous products in NHS Hospitals” and departmental procedures under the guidance of the Responsible Pharmacist.
• To raise orders through the ASCribe computer system for wards and departments as per approved stock order sheets.
• To answer telephone and face to face queries of a routine or technical nature from a wide range of staff groups, either in the Pharmacy or on the wards. Refer appropriate queries to the relevant member of the Pharmacy team when necessary.
• To liaise with various members of the Pharmacy team and ward staff when solving supply problems and ensuring the best service to patients.
• To undertake Patient Counseling in the Out-patient area taking into account difficult situations which can arise with aggressive, elderly, terminally ill patients and/or complex medication regimes.
• To participate in the assessment of patients’ own medicines at ward level, to record and act on interventions where appropriate and counsel patients on the use of their discharge medication.
• To participate in ward-based discharge.
• To assemble stocks of medicines for wards, departments, and associated hospitals.
• To accuracy check orders of stock medicines for wards, departments, and associated hospitals.
• To check expiry dates on stock items on a regular basis, no less than monthly.
• To re-issue returned drugs in accordance with local procedures.
• To participate with Saturday, Sunday, and Bank Holiday duties on a Rota basis.
• To participate on the late-night rota duties as considered appropriate by the Technical Services Manager or other supervising pharmacists or senior technical staff.
• To participate in appropriate training schemes for pharmaceutical staff. To keep relevant pharmaceutical clinical and technical knowledge up to date.
• To comply with Health and Safety at work regulations, safe systems of work including COSHH requirements and the Data Protection Act.
• To ensure compliance to all Trust Risk Management, Research Governance and Infection Control Policies and Procedures and abide by the Standards for Better Health’.
• Take responsibility for managing their own health and wellbeing.

CLINICAL & PROFESSIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES

• Maintain Professional Registration with the GPhC
• To undertake Continuing Professional Development in order to keep pharmaceutical clinical and technical knowledge current to ensure best practice and comply with requirements for entry on the GPhC Pharmacy Technician Register.
• Adhere to the Standards for Pharmacy Professionals as set out by the GPhC.

ADMINISTRATIVE RESPONSIBILITIES

• To provide accurate record keeping of CDs kept in the Pharmacy including supplies to wards and departments, orders received into the Pharmacy and regular Audits of the accuracy of the computer and paper records.
• Input and maintain data ensuring the Patient Medication Record is accurate and up to date.

TEACHING & TRAINING RESPONSIBILITIES

• To provide mentoring, induction and training of student technician’s, pre-registration pharmacists, dispensary ATOs, summer placement and work experience students and any other relevant members of Trust staff.

FINANCIAL RESPONSIBILITIES

• In the absence of the Dispensary, Stores and Purchasing and Computer Services Manager’s raise and release orders internally and to external wholesalers after appropriate, documented training and in line with departmental procedures.
• To participate in the physical receipt of medicines and sundries, including signing for delivery and put away such items in the appropriate location ensuring stock rotation. To assist in the maintenance of stock levels and stock storage ensuring efficient turnover whilst maintaining quality and potency.

RESEARCH & AUDIT

• To dispense clinical trials in accordance with the dispensing protocol, ICH GCP Guidelines and European Directive under supervision of the Clinical Trial Pharmacist.
• To participate in ward based SSHM Audits under the direction of the Technical Services Manager on a quarterly basis.

Person specification

Qualifications

• BTEC / NVQ LEVEL III in Pharmacy Services with relevant underpinning knowledge (or equivalent)
• Professional Registration with the GPhC

Knowledge & Experience

• Work based training in a hospital / retail pharmacy
• General Rotational experience

Skills & Abilities

• Good communication skills, both written and verbal
• Ability to work on own initiative and as part of a team
• Ability to pay attention to detail
• Ability to work to a high specification of accuracy
• Ability to understand the importance of confidentiality
• Commitment to Continual Professional Development
• Acts as a role model with the ability to supervise and train others
• Self-motivating and flexible

Other

• Ability to participate in the departmental rota for late, weekend and Bank Holiday working
• Presents professional image/appearance
• Supportive of colleagues of all grades

Thank you for considering an application to work for Mersey West Lancashire NHS Trust. MWL is an exciting and forward-thinking NHS Trust who are one of the best places to work for in England.

Given sometimes we receive a high volume of applications to work for us, please be aware, that we may close a vacancy earlier than stated should a sufficient number of applications be received from which a shortlist can be confirmed. Therefore, you are advised to apply at your earliest convenience.

The Trust may contact you during the recruitment process for your feedback on your experience. We always aim for continuous improvement in our practice.

Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion

We actively cultivate a professional environment of fairness, equality, dignity, and respect for all individuals. We welcome individuals from all backgrounds and value the unique skills, perspective and experience you bring. We are grounded in the belief that diversity enhances our collective strength, fostering innovation and excellence within our workforce. We welcome all applications irrespective of people’s race, disability, gender, sexual orientation, religion/belief, age, gender identity, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy/maternity and in particular those from under- represented groups.

As a Disability Confident Leader , we commit to offering an interview to all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the job (the essential criteria) listed in the personal specification. If you wish to apply under this Guaranteed Interview Scheme, please indicate this on the online application form.

If you are having difficulty completing an online application, or require any disability reasonable adjustments, to the application process, please contact Recruitment@merseywestlancs.nhs.uk

We also commit to offering an interview to all armed forces veterans who meet the minimum criteria for the job (the essential criteria) listed in the personal specification. If you wish to apply under this Guaranteed Interview Scheme, please indicate this on the online application form.

The Trust operates anonymous shortlisting where no personal information about you, including your name or personal details are shared with the recruiting manager. No equality information is shared at any time during the recruitment process with the recruiting manager or other people involved in the decision-making process.

The equality monitoring information you provide is used in the following situations: to review our recruitment practices; where a job is limited to a specific person to verify their eligibility to apply; and to offer disability reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process.

Following the recent update on UK immigration policy for those on a Health and Care Visa or Skilled Worker Visa, please click here to check your eligibility before applying for this post as we may be unable to provide sponsorship.

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

If this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 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.

Please note if applicable, applicants will be required to pay for their DBS check. Costs are deducted from salary following appointment.

If you have not already done so, you are therefore encouraged to enrol for the DBS Update Service to which a small annual fee of £13 per year applies.

Flexible Working

We actively support flexible working patterns throughout MWL. Changes made to the NHS Terms and Conditions of Service Handbook mean that:

· All employees have the right to request flexible working from day one of employment.

· There is no limit on the number of requests they can make.

· Employees have the right to make requests, have them considered, regardless of the reason.

At Mersey and West Lancashire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, we will consider requests for flexible working. We would also encourage you to also discuss flexible working options at interview stage.

Working for Team MWL

Staff recognition is especially important to us; as well as performance reviews and appraisals, we recognise staff through Employee of the month. Along with supporting you to achieve your career goals we offer a generous pension scheme, unsocial hours payments (where applicable), 27 days annual leave on commencement (pro rata) and access to a range of NHS discounts. Our Staff Health and Wellbeing programme offer a variety of services.

The Trust is a non-smoking across all our sites. Failure to follow this rule could lead to disciplinary action. For more information, see the Smoke Free NHS website

You must ensure that your application, including personal statements and behaviour examples, are truthful and factually accurate. Please note plagiarism can include presenting the ideas and experience of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own.

The Trust will not accept applications which are found to be AI generated and will check all applications against AI detection software.

Additional Information

Before applying, we encourage you to review the Trusts Values and Behaviours which are We are KIND, We are OPEN, We are INCLUSIVE, which can be found here .

An applicant guide to help and support you with your application and what to expect during your recruitment journey can be accessed in the supporting documents.

Good luck with your application. We hope to welcome you to Team MWL very soon.

Employer certification / accreditation badges

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.

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