Pharmacy Technician Hassocks

The post holder will work across the practices with each of the practice teams and will be assigned a lead clinical and operational contact for each contract. This post is part of the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme for Primary Care Networks funded by NHS England and includes funded access to the Primary Care Pharmacy Education pathway pilot for pharmacy technicians. The ambition is to better utilise the role of pharmacy within primary care to pro-actively help patients stay safe and well and out of hospital as well as helping to reduce the demands on general practice.

The post holder is a Pharmacy technician, who acts within their professional boundaries, supporting pharmacists in general practice to ensure effective and efficient use of medicines. In this role they will be supervised by a pharmacist who will develop, manage and mentor them. The Pharmacy technician's core role responsibilities will cover clinical, technical and administrative categories.

Please note that if we receive a high volume of applications, the advert may close early.

Main duties of the job

The post holder will work as part of a multi-disciplinary team and this role involves provision of technical support for the pharmacy service to ensure professional operational standards and excellence in pharmaceutical care and safety are maintained. The role will support the practices within Burgess Hill & Villages PCN to ensure the delivery of safe, effective and efficient systems for medicines related clinical correspondence; repeat prescribing, medicines optimisation, reducing medicines waste and maximising patient outcomes.

The post holder will support training and development of administrators to support safe, effective and efficient processes involving medicines with a particular focus on repeat prescribing processes and will also provide support to general practice staff and patients regarding prescription and medication queries. They will also help to develop and improve repeat prescribing & medicines reconciliation processes and systems for safer prescribing. The post holder will ensure that the service is integrated with community and hospital pharmacy to improve patient outcomes.

The pharmacy technicians will work closely with the CCG Medicines Optimisation teams, community pharmacists and hospital pharmacy teams to support an integrated approach to prescribing and medicines optimisation which works towards shared goals.

Job responsibilities

• Clinical: Undertake patient facing and patient supporting roles to ensure effective medicines use, through shared decision-making conversations with patients. Carry out medicines optimisation tasks including effective medicine administration (e.g. checking inhaler technique), supporting medication reviews and medicines reconciliation. Where required, utilise consultation skills to work in partnership with patients to ensure they use their medicines effectively. As determined by the PCN, support medication reviews and medicines reconciliation for new care home patients and synchronising medicines for patient transfers between care settings, linking with local community pharmacies. Support the Clinical Pharmacist in Structured Medication Reviews (SMR) i.e. organise necessary monitoring tests prior to SMR. Provide expertise to address both the public health and social care needs of patients, including lifestyle advice, service information, and help in tackling local health inequalities. Manage shared care protocols and liaise with Clinical Pharmacists for more complex patients. Support initiatives for antimicrobial stewardship to reduce inappropriate antibiotic prescribing locally.
• Technical and Administrative: Support the PCN multi-disciplinary team to ensure efficient medicines optimisation processes are being followed. Support medications reconciliation for patients when they are discharged from hospital. Implement efficient ordering and return processes and reducing medication wastage. Provide training and support on the legal, safe and secure handling of medicines, including the implementation of the Electronic Prescription Service (EPS). Promotion of Electronic Repeat Dispensing (eRD) and online ordering. Develop relationships with other pharmacy professionals and members of the multidisciplinary team to support integration across health and social care including primary care, community pharmacy, secondary care and mental health. Support practice reception teams in streaming general prescription requests, so as to allow GPs and clinical pharmacists to review the more clinically complex requests. Support the implementation of national prescribing policies and guidance within GP practices, care homes and other primary care settings. Support the PCN to deliver on QIPP agenda, QOF and locally commissioned enhanced services. Support the PCN in reviewing and developing practice policies for CQC requirements.

Benefits

• Generous annual leave allowance
• Access to NHS pension
• Bespoke training programme
• Cycle to Work Scheme
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Enhanced maternity pay
• NHS discounts
• Leadership Development Programme
• Salary sacrifice schemes technology and electric vehicle
• Opportunities for secondments

Study Leave/Training

There are opportunities for a study leave allowance.

Supervision

Regular supervisions on a one-to-one basis including an annual formal appraisal are held with a line manager. If you are in a patient-facing role, you will also receive regular Clinical Supervisions with a Clinical Supervisor.

Induction Programme

You will receive an in-depth induction programme and will be invited to a face-to-face induction day within your first week to give you relevant information about the organisation and your job role.

Person Specification

Skills and Competencies

• Essential: Computer literate with an ability to use Microsoft office packages. Able to analyse and interpret prescribing data. Has attention to detail, able to work accurately, identifying errors quickly and easily. Able to effectively manage allocated resources. Has a planned and organised approach with an ability to prioritise their own workload to meet strict deadlines. Able to think analytically; anticipating obstacles and thinking ahead; using analytical techniques to draw logical solutions to problems. Excellent verbal and written communication skills with team members, patients, carers, and other healthcare professionals, whilst recognising peoples needs for alternative methods of communication. Influencing and negotiating skills. An excellent understanding of data protection and confidentiality issues.
• Desirable: Ability to use the required GP clinical systems.

Experience

• Essential: Experience of working as a qualified, registered pharmacy technician in primary care, community, or hospital pharmacy.
• Desirable: Evidence of continued professional development (CPD). Demonstrate ability to influence and persuade partners and stakeholders of the respective merits of different options, innovations, new opportunities, and challenges.

Knowledge and Understanding

• Essential: Relevant theoretical and practical knowledge of Primary Care Networks, General Practice and evidence-based medicine. Awareness of systems to support management of patients in a primary care setting, delivering pharmaceutical input and support in the context of pathways of care and the business of the organisation(s). Good clinical pharmacy knowledge including terminology. An appreciation of the nature of primary care prescribing, concepts of rational prescribing and strategies for the improvement of prescribing. Knowledge and understanding of pharmacy law, ethics and current legislation.
• Desirable: Understanding of NHS long term plan and priorities relevant to primary care. Awareness of funding systems to enable GP clinical pharmacist services to assist delivery of PCN and NHS priorities and requirements for financial balance and quality.

Qualifications

• Essential: Professional registration with GPhC. BTEC/NVQ level 3 or equivalent in pharmaceutical sciences.

Attributes

• Essential: Works effectively independently and as a member of a team. Flexible approach to meet service needs and ensure a stakeholder focused response. Self-motivated and proactive. Continued commitment to improve skills and ability in new areas of work. Able to undertake the demands of the post with reasonable adjustments if required. Independently mobile to be able to work across several sites and travel to meet with stakeholders. Adaptability, flexibility and ability to cope with uncertainty and change. Demonstrate ability to work in a busy environment; ability to deal with both urgent and important tasks and to prioritise effectively whilst also supporting others. Excellent time keeping and prioritisation skills.

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. UK Registration Applicants must have current UK professional registration.