PCN Pharmacy Technician

An exciting opportunity has arisen to join Norfolk Primary Care, working as a Pharmacy Technician across a Primary Care Network in Norwich. As a pharmacy technician, you will work alongside our Clinical Pharmacists as a key member of the GP practice teams, contributing to prescribing of the highest quality, safety and value, supporting medicines optimisation and prescribing processes.

You will provide support to our GPs, Pharmacists, other clinical staff and reception teams, co-ordinating discharge summaries and medication reviews, playing a central role in repeat prescribing processes, liaising with our patients, carers, hospital and community pharmacies, responding to medication queries and updating medical records.

Main duties of the job:

• To be part of the West Norwich Primary Care Network, Roundwell Medical Practice (PCN), working as a key member within the GP practice teams, contributing to prescribing of the highest quality, safety and value and supporting medicines optimisation.
• Reporting to a Clinical Pharmacist, the post holder will provide support to the GPs, Pharmacists, Dispensers, other clinical staff and reception teams to co-ordinate discharge summaries, medication reviews and ensure the safe prescribing of medication.
• The post holder will support the development of a safe, cost effective, efficient practice repeat prescribing system through reviewing, improving and implementing medicines management processes.
• Your core role in the GP practices will cover responsibilities in clinical, technical and administrative areas.

Job responsibilities:

• Undertaking patient facing and patient supporting roles to ensure effective medicines use, through shared decision-making conversations with patients.
• Carrying 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.
• Supporting medication reviews and medicines reconciliation for new care home patients and synchronising medicines for patient transfers between care settings, linking with local community pharmacists, and referring to the pharmacist for structured medication reviews.
• Providing specialist expertise, where competent, to address both the public health and social care needs of patients, including lifestyle advice, service information, and help in tackling local health inequalities.
• Taking a central role in the clinical aspects of shared care protocols and liaising with specialist pharmacists for more complex patients.
• Supporting initiatives for antimicrobial stewardship to reduce inappropriate antibiotic prescribing.
• Support the Clinical Pharmacist in SMRs i.e. organise necessary monitoring tests prior to SMR.
• Manage shared care protocols and liaise with Clinical Pharmacists for more complex patients.
• Working with the GP practice multi-disciplinary team to ensure efficient medicines optimisation, including implementing efficient ordering and return processes and reducing wastage.
• Providing training and support on the legal, safe and secure handling of medicines, including the implementation of the Electronic Prescription Service (EPS) and electronic Repeat Dispensing (eRD).
• Developing relationships with other pharmacy technicians, pharmacists and members of the multi-disciplinary team to support integration of the pharmacy team across health and social care including primary care, community pharmacy, secondary care and mental health.
• Supervising practice reception teams in sorting and streaming general prescription requests, so as to allow GPs and clinical pharmacists to review the more clinically complex requests.
• Supporting the implementation of national prescribing policies and guidance within GP practices, care homes and other primary care settings.
• Assisting in the delivery of medicines optimisation incentive schemes (e.g. medication switches) and patient safety audits.

Training requirements:

• Pharmacy technicians are registered healthcare professionals, who have been undertaking clinical and technical roles in hospitals, community and primary care.
• Their initial 2-year training is mandated by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), which specifies criteria to register as a pharmacy technician and this covers the education, training and experience requirements.
• The role may require travel between GP practice sites within the PCN area.

Experience:

• Experience of working as a qualified, registered pharmacy technician in a patient facing role e.g. primary care, community or hospital pharmacy.
• Experience of working with I.T systems i.e. Microsoft Office and or Clinical Systems.
• Experience of following set procedures and protocols and working to quality standards.
• Experience of working in a busy environment and meeting deadlines.
• Understanding of the implications of national priorities for the team and service.
• 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 and an awareness of common acute and long-term conditions that are likely to be seen in general practice.

Qualifications:

• Completion of or be enrolled in, be undertaking or be prepared to start an approved 18-month training pathway (e.g. Primary care pharmacy educational pathway (PCPEP) or Medicines Optimisation in Care Homes (MOCH)).
• Self-development through continuous professional development activity.
• BTEC/NVQ level 3 or equivalent in pharmaceutical sciences.
• Registered with the General Pharmaceutical Council.
• Registration with the Association of Pharmacy Technicians.

Skills and Abilities:

• Ability to communicate complex and sensitive information effectively with people at all levels by telephone, email and face to face.
• Ability to follow legal, ethical, professional and organisational policies/procedures and codes of conduct.
• Excellent interpersonal, influencing and negotiation skills.
• Organisation skills with the ability to constructively challenge the view and practices of managers and clinicians.
• Ability to work under pressure and to meet deadlines.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality.
• Ability to use own initiative, discretion and sensitivity.
• Attention to detail, able to work accurately, identifying errors quickly and easily.
• Ability to plan, manage, monitor, advise and review general medicine optimisation issues in core areas for long term conditions.
• Full driving license.
• Able to analyse and interpret prescribing data.

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.