Care Home Pharmacist

Primary Healthcare Darlington is looking to recruit a Care Homes Pharmacist to work 30 hours within our well-established Care Homes team, which comprises of Pharmacy Technicians, a Pharmacist, Care co-ordinators and GPs. We also work alongside ANPs. The post holder will work alongside the MDT within the Care Homes team to provide clinical expertise in prescribing and medicines management within the care home setting.

In this position, you will be employed by Primary Healthcare Darlington on behalf of Darlington Primary Care Network in a role funded through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) and the General Practice Network Contract Directed Enhanced Service (2025/26) (the DES). As part of your role, you will work closely with the PCN and the General Practices across Darlington.

Main duties of the job:

• We are looking for a pharmacist who is enthusiastic and adaptable to change, with excellent clinical and people management skills and with a good knowledge of the medicines management issues within the care home settings.
• The post holder will work as part of the multidisciplinary Care Homes team, attending weekly care home ward rounds and working with individual GP practices to support the safe, effective, and cost-effective use of medicines.
• This will be achieved through the application of clinical, pharmaceutical, and technical expertise across a range of Medicines Optimisation activities.
• The applicant must be a registered GPhC pharmacist with the ability to deliver medicines management and optimisation services in Care Homes and GP practices.
• You should demonstrate excellent clinical skills and must be computer literate.
• You must be organised, be able to work independently and also be an excellent team player.
• Due to the requirement to attend weekly ward rounds across the locality, a full driving licence and access to your own transport are essential for this role.

About us:

The Enhanced Health in Care Home Team are an established team with a long-standing history of delivering high quality services to support Care Homes and GPs across Darlington. The successful candidate will be welcomed into a close and supportive team with the unique opportunity to develop both clinical and strategic skills. Personal and professional development are supported for all members of the team and the successful candidate would also be expected to develop project work and contribute to the learning and development of the whole team as appropriate.

PHD was established in 2014 as the local GP federation consisting of 11 GP Practices covering an ever-increasing population of 108,000+ registered patients in Darlington. We have close links with Darlington Borough Council and local NHS Foundation Trusts and have the full support and backing of the ICB. We also work closely with and provide support to the Darlington Primary Care Network.

We are an award-winning company who places the wellbeing of our staff at the heart of everything we do. As a company we offer staff access to free counselling services, protected time to develop professionally, access to high-quality training and development, free tea and coffee and chilled, filtered water and much more. We are on the doorstep of some of the most beautiful and historic sites in the region.

Job responsibilities:

• The Senior Care Home Pharmacist plays a vital role in ensuring safe, effective, and person-centred use of medicines for residents in care homes.
• Working closely with GPs, nurses, carers, and other healthcare professionals, they review and optimise medication regimens, reduce risks, and improve residents' quality of life.
• The holder of this post will be an important part of the Care Homes team which will deliver a high-quality service across the Darlington area.
• The post holder will be responsible for the delivery of all aspects of the medicines management work plan in care homes.
• This includes the provision of specialist advice, promoting the safe handling and administration of medicines, education and training.
• He/she will deliver the medicines management agenda of quality, rational, cost-effective and evidence-based prescribing for service users in care homes.
• The senior clinical pharmacist will support the Lead Pharmacist & Pharmacy Technicians in the Enhanced Health in Care Home team to work with the PCN and GP practices to deliver a programme of medicines optimisation including managing hospital discharge medication changes, medication queries.
• The post holder will be responsible for encouraging the development of better understanding of the principles of medicines optimisation for the population of Darlington.
• This will also include the management and review of patients with polypharmacy.

Key responsibilities:

• Strong clinical knowledge of pharmacology and geriatric medicine.
• Excellent communication and relationship-building skills.
• Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
• Commitment to patient safety and evidence-based practice.
• Work as part of the multidisciplinary care homes team to support consistent standards and practice in medicines management.
• To work as part of the multidisciplinary team advising and supporting staff on prescribing/medicines management issues.
• Support the identification of patients who require a full medication review and working with the care home GPs facilitate this.
• Support deprescribing where appropriate to avoid unnecessary medication use.
• Provide advice and support to care homes on handling of medicines ensuring safe and appropriate ordering, storage and administration of medicines at all times.
• Provide advice and support to care homes and practices on covert administration of medicines to care home residents.
• Work with care home staff to ensure the safer use of medication, improving medication safety, reporting of incidents and pro-actively preventing safeguarding incidents.
• Liaise with health professionals in secondary care on interface medicines management issues relating to care home service users.
• Support the investigation of any concerns or incidents which occur in the care homes.
• To proactively develop good working relationships with all stakeholders.
• To input into the safeguarding team to support and advise care homes where medication management has been flagged as an issue.
• Plan, manage and prioritise own workload ensuring any deadlines are met.
• Be an independent prescriber, or willing to work towards.
• Support colleagues and patients with medication queries and monitoring.
• To support, mentor and line manage pharmacists and pharmacy technicians.
• Using audit and action planning, help to tackle inequalities.
• Provide leadership on person-centered medicines optimisation including ensuring prescribers in the PCN practices conserve antibiotics in line with local antimicrobial stewardship guidance and quality improvement.
• Work with general practice teams to ensure that practices are compliant with CQC standards where medicines are involved.
• Develop relationships and work closely with other pharmacy professionals across Primary Care Networks and the wider health and social care system.
• Take a central role in the clinical aspects of shared care protocols, liaison with specialist pharmacists, liaison with community pharmacists and anticoagulation services.
• Provide clinical support for Pharmacy Technicians within the Enhanced Health in Care Home team.

The above list of duties is not exhaustive and may be subject to change as deemed necessary.

Aims/Goals of post:

• To promote high quality, safe and cost-effective prescribing informed by the evidence base, national and local guidance within registered care homes.
• To be responsible for the provision of highly specialist pharmaceutical advice to all healthcare professionals working within care homes.
• Promote incident reporting in care homes and to encourage transparency and learning.
• To make professional decisions where appropriate and take responsibility for them, working within relevant medicines legislation and their own professional standards of conduct, ethics and performance at all times.

Person Specification:

• Degree in Pharmacy.
• Registration with General Pharmaceutical Council.
• Completed or willing to commit to completing CPPE pathway or other primary care training pathway.
• Experience please see person spec attached.
• 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.