Clinical Pharmacist

Job summary

You will work with a multi-disciplinary team including doctors, nurses, paramedics and other roles. Your role will be to lead on medication management including safe repeat prescribing for our patients. This includes overseeing Shared Care Agreements and High Risk Drug Monitoring, ensuring appropriate plans are in place for our patients and that they have access to the best possible care. You will also take a lead role in delivering CQC compliance and ensuring QOF achievement on specific indicators.

You will provide expertise in clinical pharmacy, medicines optimisation and promote safer prescribing practices. You will be part of team working alongside a pharmacist and two pharmacy technicians and a pharmacy administrator.

The main duties will include using your own clinical competencies as part of a multi-disciplinary team to provide face to face and remote medications reviews, support management of patients with long-term conditions and co-morbidities, undertake medicines reconciliation, reduce polypharmacy and conduct Structured Medication Reviews (SMR). You will work closely with the administration team on drug monitoring management and carry out clinical audits on behalf of the Clinical team.

The role is pivotal to improving the quality of care and operational effectiveness within the practice so requires, motivation, passion and resilience to deliver an excellent service.

Responsibilities

Long-term conditions

• Contribute to improved health outcomes in long term conditions
• Support patients to manage their long-term conditions
• Carry out clinical medication reviews for patients on multiple medications for long term conditions
• Review if prescribing is appropriate in line with current guidance, cost-effective and safe; identify unmet need, stop unnecessary/ineffective medicines. Implement own prescribing changes as an independent prescriber
• Review of pathology results for patients under their care
• Contribute to achievement of QOF targets to improve health outcomes
• Make appropriate recommendations to the wider clinical team including medical and non-medical prescribers

Clinical medication reviews

• Undertake clinical medication reviews with patients
• To review medications for new patients, to ensure safe, cost-effective prescribing in line with practice/local prescribing policies
• Work with patients to educate about medication safety, storage and ordering within the home
• Review prescribing of acute medications

Care home medication reviews

• Undertake clinical medication review with patients and staff within the care home
• Work with care home staff to improve safety of medication ordering and administration

Risk stratification

• Carry out clinical audits as identified as being required by Clinical team for example as part of monthly clinical meetings
• Identification of patients at high risk of harm from medicines through computerised searches
• Review all relevant safety alerts (e.g. MHRA) and ensure any action required is undertaken
• Conduct medication reviews for patients identified as above

Unplanned hospital admissions

• Review the use of medications most commonly associated with unplanned admissions and re-admission through audit and individual patient reviews
• Put protocol and policies in place to implement changes to reduce the prescribing of these medicines to high-risk patient groups
• Carry out medications management requirements of the highest and ongoing needs LCS

Medicines support and information for practice staff and patients (patient facing or telephone)

• Answer medical information queries from GPs, Nurses, practice staff, patients and third-party providers
• Provide education on medicines related topics to the clinical team
• Provide advice on suitable alternative medications in the event of a medicine being unavailable in conjunction with the pharmacy technicians
• Provide education for the clinical team on new medicines
• Provide specialist knowledge and advice on pharmaceutical matters
• Provide regular education sessions for clinicians to discuss audit results and agree action plans for improving standards within clinical areas
• To provide specialist knowledge on medication monitoring and ensure a system for implementation is in place
• To answer queries from administration staff regarding medication requests where appropriate

Management of medicines at discharge from hospital

• To work with the whole pharmacy team to reconcile medicines following discharge from hospital/intermediate care; identify and rectify unexplained changes; perform a clinical medication review; produce a post-discharge medicines care plan including dose titration and booking of follow-up test, and work with patients and community pharmacists to ensure patients receive the medicines they need post discharge
• Set up and manage systems to ensure continuity of medicines supply to high-risk groups of patients (e.g. those with medicine compliance aids)
• Reconcile medication from clinic appointment correspondence, identifying any unexplained changes and rectifying these by communication with the secondary care provider. Ensure patients are fully aware of any changes and that a plan for monitoring/dose titration is in place

Repeat prescribing

• To re-authorise medication for future repeat prescribing within scope of competence if an independent prescriber
• Manage medication review dates and ensure that any clinical monitoring or reviews are actioned
• To ensure the practice repeat prescribing system is safe, efficient and helps minimise waste

Service development

• Review NICE and other evidence-based guidance as it is issued, to evaluate any impact on medicines and prescribing
• Undertake regular clinical audit to support implementation of clinical guidance across the practice
• To take part in practice clinical meetings
• Encourage cost effective prescribing within the practice, including adherence to local formulary
• Build good working relationships with local medicines management team members
• Improve communication about medication-related issues between the practice and both the patient and other care providers

Professional development

• Work with your line manager to undertake continual personal and professional development, taking an active part in reviewing and developing the role and responsibilities
• Adhere to organisational policies and procedures including keeping up to date with mandatory training
• Attend formal clinical supervision sessions for further development, case reviews and dealing with difficult issues
• Attend annual appraisals
• Participate in the delivery of formal educational programmes
• Demonstrate an understanding of current educational policies relevant to working areas of practice and keep up to date with relevant clinical practice

Miscellaneous

• Work as part of the team to seek feedback, continually improve the service and contribute to business planning
• Undertake any tasks consistent with the level of the post and the scope of practice, ensuring that work, tasks and results are processed within a timely manner
• Use effective communication skills to ensure appropriate and detailed information is effectively communicated whether that be a patient, member of the community, member of the multi-disciplinary team or a staff member

Requirements

• Current registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council
• Non-medical/independent prescriber
• Completed or working towards Primary Care Education Pathway (CPPE)

About us

Sussex Primary Care’s values

• Be patient-focussed in everything we do
• Support staff to be the best they can be
• Innovate, learn and evaluate

Sussex Primary Care run a number of GP practices across Sussex providing excellent primary care in the heart of the community. We are a learning organisation that listens to our team of staff, patients and partners to guide our future. At the heart of our vision are our patients and their needs.

Benefits package

• A supportive working environment
• Induction and training programme
• 25 days annual leave
• Numerous other benefits such as car lease schemes
• Full NHS pension
• Free on-site parking
• Peer and operational support with dedicated mentorship and access to an SPC Education Lead
• Employee Assistance programme
• A supportive, approachable management team
• Being part of a growing company with great opportunities to develop as a result