Neighbourhood Health and PCN Senior Clinical Pharmacist - portfolio role

Pay: £64,000 - £68,000 WTE: 1WTE Contract type: Fixed Term 1 year

Accountable to: Head of Pharmacy and Clinical Services, Healthcare Central London

Responsible to: Deputy Head of Pharmacy, Healthcare Central London

Job Purpose: As a portfolio pharmacist, the postholder will handle two roles within their portfolio working in conjunction. Half of the week in a Neighbourhood health team (CLCH) and half of the week in a PCN (HCL GP federation). The role enables the postholder to strike a balance of work that suits them and the prospect of gaining experience and skills in different settings. While at CLCH, the postholder will work within a neighbourhood health team to support medicines optimisation serving the PCN where the postholder will spend the remainder of their week. While at HCL, the postholder will be based in a Primary Care practice to deliver General Practice Clinical Pharmacist roles as well as supporting Federation projects.

Key Responsibilities Neighbourhood Health Pharmacist

• To deliver a high quality Medicines Optimisation Service to improve medicines related outcomes for high risk patients and ensure the safe, cost effective and evidence based use of medicines.
• Conduct clinical medication reviews with patients, within patient’s homes, clinic, local hub, or practice setting. The role may involve working within care homes.
• Undertake Proactive Structured Medication Reviews using a holistic approach to medicines management.
• To build relationships with key stakeholders delivering neighbourhood health care.
• Ensure proactive liaison with relevant healthcare professionals regarding changes to medication regimes.
• Make prescribing recommendations as per local and national guidance.
• Prescribe within competence for patients to improve patient care.
• Case manage patients who are frequently admitted to acute trusts as a result of medicines related problems.
• To provide professional support and compose patient-agreed medication care plans and communicate these with other health and social care professionals.
• Work with Neighbourhood health MDT to ensure patients are supported to get the best out of their medicines.
• Develop a range of practical solutions to enable patients to maintain their independence to self-administer their medication where possible and improve adherence and concordance.
• To liaise with the ICB Medicines Management Teams to ensure consistency across local prescribing strategies and support cost-effective prescribing.
• Contribute to agreed meetings within and outside the organisation and represent pharmacy as appropriate.
• Respond to unpredictable work patterns and urgent requests for help by phone or email within a reasonable time frame.
• To deliver training sessions to relevant staff groups and/or patients.
• Coordinate and participate in antibiotic stewardship.
• Respond to medicines information queries from the greater Community Adult Health Service team.

Key Responsibilities at Healthcare Central London:

• The post-holder will work as part of a multi-disciplinary team in primary care in a patient-facing role.
• To deliver pharmacy related aspects of the Network Direct Enhanced Service such as conducting structured medication reviews (SMRs).
• To review patients in multi‐morbidity clinics and in partnership with primary care colleagues in order to implement improvements to patient’s medicines.
• To manage own case load and run long-term condition clinics.
• To routinely review the on-going need for each medicine.
• To support the medicines optimisation of designated care home residents/ vulnerable housebound patients as needed.
• To attend and refer patients to multidisciplinary case meetings.
• To signpost to community pharmacy and referring to GPs or other healthcare professionals where appropriate.
• To provide follow up for patients to monitor the effect of any changes to therapy.
• To devise and implement practice searches to identify cohorts of patients most likely to be at risk of an unplanned admission.
• To reconcile medicines following discharge from hospitals.
• To perform a clinical medication review, produce a post discharge medicines care plan.
• To set up and manage systems to ensure continuity of medicines supply to high-risk groups of patients.
• To manage the repeat prescribing reauthorisation process.
• To identify and provide leadership on areas of prescribing and medicines optimization within the practice.
• To conduct clinical audits and improvement projects.
• To present results and provide leadership on suggested improvements.
• To identify national and local policy and guidance that affects patient safety through the use of medicines.
• To provide leadership to the general practice team to ensure the practice is compliant with CQC standards.
• To undertake risk assessment and management and ensure compliance with medicines legislation.
• To monitor practice prescribing against the local health economy’s RAG list for medicines.
• To liaise directly with hospital colleagues where prescribing needs to be returned to specialists.
• To assist practices in setting and maintaining a practice formulary.
• To audit the practice’s compliance against NICE guidance.
• To provide education and training to the primary healthcare team on therapeutics, medicines optimization and common chronic disease management.
• To support public health campaigns.
• To demonstrate self-development through continuous professional development activity.
• To support and engage with the HCL clinical supervision and training in place for all pharmacists.
• To demonstrate the ability to critically evaluate and review literature.
• To adopt a whole system approach to medicines management.

Education / Qualifications

• Undergraduate Degree in Pharmacy: MPharm (or equivalent prior to 2002).
• Professional registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC).
• Postgraduate clinical pharmacy qualification to at least diploma level.
• Completion of CPPE Primary care pharmacy education pathway.
• Takes personal responsibility for Continuing Professional Development as evidenced by portfolio.
• Uses reflective practice for personal and professional development.
• Independent Prescribing Qualification.

Experience

• Post-qualification experience of clinical pharmacy, medicines information and prescribing advice.
• Experience of working in secondary care and in a multidisciplinary environment.
• Primary care experience.
• Community Health Services experience.
• Experience of training.
• Experience of audit techniques.
• Project management experience.
• Experience in supervising a team/service and line management.

Knowledge

• Up to date clinical and pharmaceutical knowledge.
• Sound knowledge of prescribing, pharmacy and medicines management issues faced in primary and secondary care.
• Understanding of the NHS and political environment.

Skills

• Excellent communication skills – both verbal and written including presentation skills and report writing.
• Team player but able to work independently.
• Demonstrates initiative.
• Demonstrates excellent decision-making skills and is able to understand complex information.
• Effective negotiation skills and ability to persuade others.
• Ability to assimilate, analyse and interpret clinical and financial data.
• Good problem solving skills.
• Good inter-personal skills and ability to build relationships.
• Ability to provide succinct and objective advice.
• To manage own time, prioritise workload effectively and work to tight deadlines.
• Computer literate – working knowledge of office applications, internet, email and electronic diary systems.
• Ability to plan, set objectives, priorities and review performance against objectives.
• Ability to command and deal sensitively with emotive situations.
• Can identify and manage risks and evaluate quality of own work and service.
• Ability to adapt to different working environment.

Approach

• Self-motivator and commitment to supporting high quality medicines management.
• Flexibility in approach to meet service needs and ability to support complex changes.
• Innovative thinker and ‘can do’ approach.