Pharmacist in Croydon

This is a part-time/temporary role. (Maternity Cover - 12 Months) The post holder will be an integral part of the general practice team, working solely at East Croydon Medical Centre and across the PCN as needed, as well as part of a wider pharmacist network and multidisciplinary team. They will work to optimise medication issues to improve patient care.

Main duties of the job:

• To improve patients' health outcomes and the efficiency of the primary care team by providing direct, accessible and timely clinical medicine expertise, by working as part of a multidisciplinary team.
• To promote safe, evidence-based, cost-effective prescribing in line with ICB schemes and requirements.
• To provide expert pharmaceutical advice to practice staff and patients.
• Provide supervision and support to prescription clerks and pharmacist technicians.
• To provide prescribing support in areas such as: Face-to-face or Telephone medication/LTC reviews and follow up, Implementations of prescribing changes, Review of repeat prescribing, Audits.

They will improve patients' health outcomes and the efficiency of the primary care team by providing direct, accessible, and timely medicines expertise including face-to-face contact with patients.

About us:

East Croydon Medical Centre is centrally located in the fast-developing town of Croydon with its many transport links. The practice cares for 25,000 patients from a diverse population. We are a large, hardworking General Practice with a multi-disciplinary Team which includes Pharmacists, Practice Nurses, Healthcare Assistants, Physician Associates, GPs, along with a supportive and experienced administrative Team. We enjoy and feel positive about modern General Practice but also strive to ensure a healthy home/work balance. We are active members of our Primary Care Network and support the ethos behind this.

Job responsibilities:

The following are the core responsibilities of the PCN pharmacist. There may be, on occasion, a requirement to carry out other tasks. This will be dependent upon factors such as workload and staffing levels:

• Undertake structured medication reviews for patients with long-term conditions, polypharmacy, frailty, and those prescribed high-risk medicines, in line with national and local guidance, including care home residents.
• Support the management of long-term conditions (e.g. hypertension, diabetes, asthma, COPD), ensuring safe, effective, and evidence-based prescribing.
• Review ongoing medication plans to optimise outcomes and make appropriate recommendations to clinicians.
• Respond to medicines-related enquiries from GPs, practice staff, wider healthcare teams (e.g. community pharmacy), and patients/carers, providing clear advice and recommending appropriate solutions.
• Implement and support medicines optimisation initiatives in line with NICE guidance, local formularies, and ICB policies.
• Promote cost-effective prescribing in accordance with national and local guidance.
• Reconcile medicines following hospital discharge or outpatient clinic appointments to ensure continuity of care.
• Contribute to clinical audits, quality improvement projects, and prescribing reviews to support safe and effective practice.
• Support prescribing safety activities, including high-risk drug monitoring, medicines safety alerts, and recall processes.
• Support prescription clerks in the repeat prescribing process, ensuring timely, safe, and appropriate authorisation in line with practice protocols.
• Maintain accurate, contemporaneous clinical records in accordance with professional standards and information governance requirements.
• Support the practice in meeting CQC compliance standards.
• Provide supervision and oversight to prescription clerks and pharmacy technicians as appropriate.
• Carry out medication reviews for existing and newly registered patients.
• Take responsibility for continuing professional development and maintaining competence.
• Work within your scope of competence and refer patients to the appropriate healthcare professional when necessary.
• Support local pharmacy service initiatives (e.g. Pharmacy First).
• Identify cohorts of patients at high risk of harm from medicines using EMIS searches and take appropriate action.
• Act on safety alerts in a timely manner, including implementing changes following MHRA alerts, product withdrawals, and other local or national guidance.
• To support the delivery of enhanced services and other service requirements on behalf of the PCN.
• To ensure appropriate supervision of safe storage, rotation and disposal of vaccines and drugs.
• To undertake all mandatory training and induction programs.
• To attend a formal appraisal with their manager at least every 12 months.
• Once a performance/training objective has been set, progress will be reviewed on a regular basis so that new objectives can be agreed.
• To contribute to public health campaigns (e.g. flu clinics) through advice or direct care.

In addition to the primary responsibilities, the pharmacist may be requested to:

• Support delivery of QOF, ICB incentive schemes, QIPP and other quality or cost-effectiveness initiatives.
• Agree and review prescribing protocols and/or practice policies and monitor compliance levels.
• Analyse prescribing or long-term condition data using tools like ePACT, Eclipse or EMIS etc.
• Support care co-coordinators if needed with clinical queries related to long-term conditions.
• Undertake any tasks consistent with the level of the post and the scope of the role, ensuring that work is delivered in a timely and effective manner.

Confidentiality:

In the course of seeking treatment, patients entrust us with, or allow us to gather, sensitive information in relation to their health and other matters. They do so in confidence and have the right to expect that staff will respect their privacy and act appropriately. Information relating to patients, carers, colleagues, other healthcare workers or the business of the practice may only be divulged to authorised persons in accordance with the practice policies and procedures relating to confidentiality and the protection of personal and sensitive data.

Person Specification:

Qualifications:

• GPhC registered pharmacist;
• Experience of working within General Practice;
• Completion of the CPPE Primary Care Pharmacy Education Programme Pathway or equivalent postgraduate qualification;
• Minor ailments certification;
• Membership of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society;
• Working towards faculty membership of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society;
• Experience with EMIS;
• Experience with mentorship and supervision.

Experience:

• Minimum of two years working as a pharmacist demonstrated within a practice portfolio;
• An appreciation of the nature of GPs and general practice;
• An appreciation of the nature of primary care prescribing, concepts of rational prescribing and strategies for improving prescribing;
• Experience in managing pharmacy services in primary care;
• Experience and an awareness of common acute and chronic conditions that are likely to be seen in general practice;
• In-depth therapeutic and clinical knowledge and understanding of the principles of evidence-based healthcare;
• An appreciation of the new NHS landscape including the relationships between individual practices, PCNs and the commissioners;
• Broad knowledge of general practice;
• Ability to follow legal, ethical, professional, and organisational policies/procedures and codes of conduct;
• Ability to use own initiative, discretion, and sensitivity;
• Able to get along with people from all backgrounds and communities, respecting lifestyles, and diversity;
• Flexible and cooperative;
• Ability to identify risk and assess/manage risk when working with individuals;
• Sensitive and empathetic in distressing situations;
• Able to provide leadership and to finish work tasks;
• Problem solving and analytical skills;
• Ability to maintain confidentiality;
• Knowledge of and ability to work to policies and procedures, including confidentiality, safeguarding, lone working, information governance and health and safety.

Other requirements:

• Flexibility to work outside of core office hours;
• Evidence of continuing professional development;
• Access to own transport and ability to travel across the locality on a regular basis, including to visit people in their own home.

Skills:

• Ability to communicate complex and sensitive information effectively with people at all levels by telephone, email, and face to face;
• Excellent interpersonal, influencing and negotiation skills;
• Organisation skills with the ability to constructively challenge the view and practices of managers and clinicians;
• Knowledge of IT systems, including ability to use word processing skills, emails and the internet to create simple plans and reports;
• Clear, polite telephone manner;
• Effective time management (planning and organising);
• Demonstrate personal accountability, emotional resilience and work well under pressure;
• Ability to plan, manage, monitor, advise and review general medicine optimisation issues in core areas for long term condition;
• Good clinical system IT knowledge of EMIS/Systmone/Vision.

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.