Clinical Pharmacist - HIPC PCN

An exciting opportunity has arisen to work within HIPC PCN. You will work to contribute to improve health outcomes in long term conditions as a member of the multidisciplinary primary care team within the PCN practices. You will provide specialist knowledge and advice on pharmaceutical matters, including cost-effective prescribing and clinical guidelines for disease treatment, and to also provide evidence-based education and training for colleagues in partnership with the practice. You will provide advice and support for patients with self-limiting conditions. You will work to improve communication about medication-related issues between the practice and other care providers and to lead on implementation of safe and efficient repeat prescribing systems. This is a new and exciting role for you to develop and strive to support the needs of the PCN going forward.

Job description

Main tasks/overview of responsibilities:

Contribute to improved health outcomes in long term conditions for PCN practices

Practice as an independent non-medical prescriber, holding clinics for long term conditions within scope of competence

Aim to review multiple long-term conditions at same clinic visit to provide holistic care and improve patient experience

Support patients to manage their long-term conditions

Carry out face to face 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 daily pathology results for patients under their care

Contribute to achievement of QOF targets to improve health outcomes

Identify and visit housebound patients who would benefit from a clinical medication review or a review of their LTC by a clinical pharmacist. To note Indemnity cover will need to be checked for domiciliary visits

Answer medical information queries from GPs, Nurses, practice staff, patients and third-party providers

Provide education on medicines related topics for GPs, Nurses, medical students, registrars

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 PCN practices

Provide regular education sessions for the clinicians at the PCN practices to discuss audit results and agree an action plan for improving standards within clinical areas

Provide advice on suitable alternative medications in the event of a medicine being unavailable

Encourage cost effective prescribing within the practice, including adherence to local formulary

Build good working relationships with local Medicines Management Team members

Provide education for the clinical team on new medicines

Review all relevant safety alerts (e.g. MHRA) and ensure any action required is undertaken

Provide specialist knowledge and advice on pharmaceutical matters

Work with the PCN practice team to help reduce medicines related emergency admissions by running regular searches to identify patients at risk of harm from their medicines. Review these patients to reduce the risk of harm

To provide advice and support for patients with self-limiting conditions

Provide patients with advice on treating self-limiting conditions through face to face/ telephone consultations and patient information leaflets/website. Conditions may include UTIs, hayfever, emergency contraception, conjunctivitis

Improve communication about medication-related issues between the practice and both the patient and other care providers

To review communication processes between practices/ hospitals/care homes/ community pharmacies at hospital admission to evaluate how this can be improved

To reconcile medicines following discharge from hospital/ intermediate care; identify and rectify unexplained changes, manage these changes without referral to the GP; 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

Act as the PCN lead contact for community pharmacy related projects and build effective working relationships.

Act as the PCN lead contact for hospital pharmacy related projects and build effective working relationships

Ensure care home residents have an annual medication review by a clinical pharmacist. Any changes agreed with the patient and/or their representative should be communicated to the care home staff and the community pharmacy

To review medications for new patients, to ensure safe, cost-effective prescribing in line with practice/local prescribing policies

Lead on implementation of safe and efficient prescribing systems

To ensure the practice repeat prescribing system is safe, efficient and helps minimise waste

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 to save GP time

To reauthorise medication for future repeat prescribing within scope of competence as an independent prescriber

To work with practice staff to ensure a robust medication review policy

To identify patients suitable for repeat dispensing. Ensure this is implemented effectively by close working with patients, prescribers and community pharmacies

Review the prescribing of medication for vulnerable patients to ensure it is appropriate e.g. weekly prescriptions for at risk-patients, monitored dosage systems or alternative solutions to improve patient compliance

To ensure all safeguarding incidents are reported to the nominated Practice Safeguarding Lead

All employees should commit to the following:

Complete the set training and objectives from the CPPE programme.

Maintain valid and appropriate level of indemnity cover

Commitment to CPD and revalidation under the required criteria set by the GPhC

This job description is not exhaustive and duties may vary with the requirements of the PCN

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential

• Undergraduate degree or MSc in Pharmacy
• Hold or be working towards a Postgraduate Diploma
• Hold or be working towards a prescribing qualification (training will be provided if not already underway

Professional Registration

Essential

• Mandatory registration with General Pharmaceutical Council

Desirable

• Membership of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society
• A member of or working towards Faculty membership of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society

Other

Essential

• Self-motivation
• Adaptable

Experience

Essential

• Minimum of 2 years post-qualification experience
• 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
• Excellent interpersonal, influencing and negotiating skills
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Demonstrates the ability to communicate complex and sensitive information in an understandable form to a variety of audiences (e.g. patients)
• Is able to plan, manage, monitor, advise and review general medicine optimisation issues in core areas for long term conditions
• Good IT skills
• Recognises priorities when problem solving and identifies deviations from the normal pattern and is able to refer to seniors or GPs when appropriate
• Able to work under pressure and to meet deadlines
• Produce timely and informative reports
• Gain acceptance for recommendations and influence/motivate/ persuade the audience to comply with the recommendations/agreed course of action where there may be significant barriers

Desirable

• In depth therapeutic and clinical knowledge and understanding of principles of evidence-based healthcare Able to obtain and analyse complex technical information

About the employer

North Staffordshire GP Federation is a membership organisation supporting North Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent primary care, including all 66 GP Practices and 13 Primary Care Networks.