Specialist Pharmacist - Queen Mary's Hospital in Orpington

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Specialist Pharmacist - Queen Mary's Hospital

Specialist Pharmacist - Queen Mary's Hospital in Orpington

Orpington Full-Time On-site

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Specialist Pharmacist - Queen Mary's Hospital

NHS AfC: Band 8a

Main area Pharmacy Grade NHS AfC: Band 8a Contract Permanent Hours Full time - 37.5 hours per week (includes 7 day working) Job ref 213-Division-A-8263711

Employer King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Employer type NHS Site Princess Royal University Hospital Town Orpington Salary £63,665 - £70,887 per annum, inc HCA's Salary period Yearly Closing 13/10/2026 23:59

King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is one of the UK’s largest and busiest teaching Trusts with a turnover of c£2.1 billion, 1.5 million patient contacts a year and more than 14,000 staff based across 5 main sites in South East London. The Trust provides a full range of local hospital services across its different sites, and specialist services from King’s College Hospital (KCH) sites at Denmark Hill in Camberwell and at the Princess Royal University Hospital (PRUH) site in the London Borough of Bromley.

We encourage all our staff to have a healthy work/life balance. In doing so, you can apply for flexible working from the beginning of your employment. We offer a range of options which are designed to suit different circumstances and priorities in line with service requirements.

A unique opportunity has arisen for an enthusiastic senior operational and clinical pharmacist with excellent communication, vision, organisational and leadership skills to join the pharmacy team at PRUH and the South Sites.

The post holder will work as part of a dedicated pharmacy team to lead, provide and develop operational pharmacy services and clinical pharmacy services to Rheumatology at Queen Mary’s Hospital. The post holder will support the Principal Pharmacists and Technician for clinical care groups and pharmacy operations in managing the service and team, liaise between clinical areas, departments and pharmacy to ensure that services are tailored to meet the Care Group’s needs wherever possible.

This post provides a varied experience as well as flexible and challenging opportunities for personal and professional development in operational, clinical, research, strategic and managerial skills. The successful applicant will be a team player with clinical and operational experience, excellent communication skills, and attention to detail. We seek a highly motivated individual with relevant experience to join our team.

Main duties of the job

Lead, manage, provide and develop operational services and clinical services to Rheumatology at QMH.
Deputise for the Principal Pharmacist and Technician at QMH for the clinical care group and pharmacy operations.
Support Principal Pharmacists for other clinical care groups in managing the service and team at QMH.
Act as a specialist role model and an expert in medicines, the clinical care group and pharmacy operations at QMH.
Participate regularly in outpatient clinics to deliver and promote high quality, cost-effective and patient-focused pharmaceutical care.
Act as a pharmacist independent prescriber to optimise the care of patients at QMH.
Ensure a high level of clinical pharmacy input to the care of patients at QMH, providing interface and discharge liaison and support.
Actively participate in multidisciplinary ward rounds when required, delivering and promoting high quality, cost-effective, patient-focused pharmaceutical care.
Provide patient and carer education and close liaison across the interface.
Promote safe drug use within the QMH specialties.
Development, implementation and audit of local guidelines.
Supervise and train pharmacy staff.
Provide education and training of healthcare professionals within and outside the Trust.
Regular financial reporting, drug usage and expenditure forecasting, and drug budget management.
To participate in practice and clinical research and audit.
To work with the Deputy Chief and Principal Pharmacists to extend the boundaries of professional practice at QMH.

Working for our organisation

The Trust provides a full range of local and specialist services across its five sites. The trust-wide strategy of Strong Roots, Global Reach is our Vision to be BOLD, Brilliant people, Outstanding care, Leaders in Research, Innovation and Education, Diversity, Equality and Inclusion at the heart of everything we do. By being person-centred, digitally-enabled, and focused on sustainability, we aim to take Team King’s to another level.

We are at a pivotal point in our history and we require individuals who are ready to join a highly professional team and make a real, lasting difference to our patients and our people.

King’s is committed to delivering Sustainable Healthcare for All via our Green Plan. In line with national Greener NHS ambitions, we have set net zero carbon targets of 2040 for our NHS Carbon Footprint and 2045 for our NHS Carbon Footprint Plus. Everyone’s contribution is required in order to meet the goals set out in our Green Plan and we encourage all staff to work responsibly, minimising their contributions to the Trust’s carbon emissions, waste and pollution wherever possible.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Leadership

To deputise for the Principal Pharmacist and Technician at QMH as necessary.
To lead clinical services in Rheumatology and operational services for patients treated at QMH in conjunction with the Principal Pharmacist and Technician.
To propose and implement policies and procedures designed to improve the pharmacy service to patients in the Trust in conjunction with the Deputy Chief Pharmacist and Principal Pharmacists and Technician in line with national and international consensus guidelines.
To lead and comment on policy and service changes and plans within the clinical and operational pharmacy service and to contribute to, and participate in, pharmacy service developments in line with departmental and Trust policy.
To develop, implement, monitor and evaluate evidence-based guidelines and protocols for use both Trust wide and at QMH.
To ensure services provided are in line with local and national policies, guidelines and frameworks.
To contribute and adhere to clinical pharmacy and other relevant service standards.
To proactively support the development of clinical and operational pharmacy services to QMH to advance the safe, clinically effective and cost-effective use of drugs.
To attend relevant meetings, including inpatient and outpatient MDTs.
To attend Pharmacy and Care Group meetings attended by senior management and clinical staff, participating in and representing pharmacy views at such meetings.
To manage specific service initiatives and changes affecting the clinical and operational pharmacy service in the department and across the Trust.

Clinical and Operational Responsibilities

To participate in and contribute to the operational and clinical pharmacy service.
To act as a specialist practitioner and as an expert pharmacist at QMH.
To practice as an independent prescriber, in area of own expertise, and provide direct high quality of care to inpatients and outpatients within scope of practice
To promote and deliver pharmaceutical care for QMH patients and more generally for all patients.
To provide highly specialised and complex evidence-based clinical and operational advice and information using expert knowledge and experience to pharmacy, nursing, medical and other healthcare professionals on the care and treatment of patients, inside and outside of the Trust.
To actively participate in consultant ward rounds as appropriate.
To participate in outpatient clinics and assist in the further development of the pharmacist’s role in this area.
To actively participate regularly in multidisciplinary ward rounds, antibiotic ward rounds and other multidisciplinary meetings as appropriate, delivering and promoting high quality, cost-effective, patient-focused pharmaceutical care.
To participate in patient education and counselling schemes for all QMH patients/carers.
To ensure appropriate and timely supply of medication to patients in conjunction with dispensary staff, including the POD scheme and discharge facilitation for patients.
To liaise with other pharmacists/healthcare professionals to ensure efficient transfer of operational, clinical and medicines management issues.
To develop shared care guidelines to support GP prescribing as necessary.
To support the set up and provision of homecare services, as necessary, in line with Royal College of Pharmacy Homecare Services Professional Standards
Maintain and further develop specialist information on the use of drugs in clinical conditions relevant to QMH, ensuring accurate and up to date clinical information is available to all pharmacists performing out-of-hours duties in a format relevant to those pharmacists’ needs.
To participate in Trust adverse incident reporting scheme.
To support the Deputy Chief Pharmacist and Principal Pharmacists/Technician in monitoring drug expenditure at QMH and provide accurate expenditure information, with appropriate analysis, to the Clinical Director and General manager.
To identify areas of potential cost-savings at QMH, and to implement systems to realise savings and contain prescribing costs.
Using horizon scanning techniques identify future high-cost medications.
To support the development and implementation of policies to control drug expenditure and ensure cost-effective prescribing.
To educate other healthcare professionals on the costs associated with drug therapy and promote evidence‑based, cost‑effective prescribing at QMH.
To attend QMH financial meetings when required.
To work across traditional boundaries e.g. primary and secondary care.
To monitor all FP10 and homecare prescribing costs and feed those to the Trust, NHSE and ICs when required.
To optimise the use of homecare providers to ensure VAT savings are realised as necessary.

People Management and Performance

Lead, coach and manage the performance of the team in line with good people management practices, ensuring excellence is recognised and underperformance is addressed.
Participate in regular performance appraisal meetings and ensure each member of the team has a clear set of objectives and development plans.
Ensure the team is compliant with all statutory, mandatory training together with any professional training requirements, ensuring they are up to date and fully compliant.
Manage team absences including sickness in line with Trust policy ensuring the appropriate return to work meetings occur, e‑roster is updated and productivity is at keep to the highest possible level.
Identify and fill any vacancies that arise within the team in line with the Trust’s recruitment policy and process.
Identify talent and support the internal talent management process in order attract and retain and succession plan for your people.
Review skills mix at regular intervals to identify any potential opportunities to maximise resource utilisation / allocation, ensuring job descriptions are kept up to date.
Ensure overall wellbeing of the team is maintained. Continuously support in improving the morale of the team and implementing a culture of zero‑tolerance for bullying and harassment.
To participate in teaching and supervising students at undergraduate and postgraduate levels.
To act as postgraduate tutor for diploma students.
To act as a tutor for trainee pharmacists.
To act as a Designated Prescribing Practitioner as appropriate.
To participate in the recruitment and selection of pharmacy students, trainee pharmacists, and junior pharmacists as needed.
To plan activities for and regularly train, supervise and assess junior pharmacy staff providing clinical and operational pharmacy services.
To participate in the in‑service clinical and operational pharmacy training of all pharmacy staff.
To undertake CPD to ensure that knowledge is continually updated.
To participate regularly in the induction, training, teaching and development of medical, nursing and other healthcare staff.
To appropriately delegate tasks to junior staff as and when required.
To manage, organise and/or support the induction of new pharmacy staff.

Research and Service Development

To participate in and co‑ordinate relevant practice research or audit projects to investigate and where appropriate improve the quality of service.
To publish and present the results and outcomes of own research and audits locally, nationally or internationally as appropriate.
To supervise junior pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and trainee pharmacists undertaking audit projects.

Person specification

Eduation and Qualifications

MPharm (Masters Degree)
Registered Pharmacist (1 year competency assessed and examined professional registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council)
Mandatory CPD to maintain fitness to practice
Postgraduate Diploma in Pharmacy Practice or equivalent qualification / experience
Registered Independent Prescriber or willingness to complete
Member of the Royal College of Pharmacy

Knowledge and Experience

Specialist knowledge and skills relevant to areas of practice
Maintains a broad level of pharmacy practice
Demonstrates awareness of and commitment to the clinical governance agenda
Understands national and local priorities
Knowledge of regulations and legislation relevant to areas of practice
Demonstration of advanced practice using evidence mapped to the Royal College of Pharmacy Core Advanced Curriculum

Skills and Competencies

Be able to provide highly complex Information on medicines use, clinical and operational pharmacy and financial issues to all levels of healthcare professionals (up to and including senior consultants/professor level)
Be able to impart knowledge on medicines use to other healthcare professionals
Be able to analyse and interpret complex clinical and operational information where there are a range of facts requiring analysis and where a range of options need to be compared
Be able to use available evidence to make sound judgments in relation to operational or patient‑or drug‑specific issues
Ability to plan the day‑to‑day activities of self and others
Be able to concentrate on highly complex matters (drug use evaluations, drug query answering, clinical prescription review, checking of dispensed prescriptions) despite frequent interruptions
To have basic keyboard and computer skills (word processing, spreadsheet, report generation and presentations)

IMPORTANT

Check your email account regularly as this is how we will communicate with you
If you delete the job from any of your accounts, you may be prevented from accessing further communications
To enquire about your application or inform us of any changes in your circumstances, please contact the named person on this advert
Please provide email addresses for referees where possible
Please review the documentation on our recruitment microsite, particularly the Trust’s criminal records checking policy
All staff have a responsibility for safeguarding children and vulnerable adults and for ensuring they are aware of the specific duties relating to their role.
Please note that the closing date is given as a guide. On occasion, we might close a vacancy early due to a high number of applications being received. You are advised to submit your application as early as possible to avoid disappointment.

AI tools like chatbots and virtual assistants can support you as you complete your application. For example, they can check for spelling or grammar errors, or help you to decide what to include. They shouldn’t however replace your own responses or be used to write the application for you.

Relying too much on AI can negatively impact your chances of success because automatically generated answers:

might not be specific or relevant enough to address the criteria in the recruitment profile
often seem generic and not personalised enough – an AI response won’t show your unique voice and perspective
could misrepresent information about you, such as your qualifications, skills and experience

We monitor applications for any behaviour that could create an unfair advantage, and we check all references carefully. You are likely to be tested on your experience at interview, so be honest and make sure all the information in your application is correct.

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King's College Hospital is part of King's Health Partners Academic Health Sciences Centre (AHSC), a pioneering collaboration between King's College London, and Guy's and St Thomas', King's College Hospital and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trusts.

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.

Name Julie Hawkes-Reekie Job title Deputy Chief Pharmacist Email address j.hawkes-reekie@nhs.net Telephone number 01689864014

If you have problems applying, contact

Address King’s College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Jennie Lee House
2nd Floor
Love Walk Lane
SE5 8AD
Telephone 020 3299 0072

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