Clinical Pharmacist inCoventry inCoventry PUBLISHED 22 OCT 2024

Navigation 1 is seeking to recruit Clinical Pharmacists to develop & support medicines optimisation work across the 11 GP practices within the Primary Care Network (PCN).

This is an exciting opportunity for a Clinical Pharmacist to join a developing PCN. The post will be directly employed by Navigation 1 but will work across a number of Practices and be supported by our GP practices Clinical Pharmacists who all have a wealth of primary care experience to support your development.

The post holder will work as part of a multidisciplinary team in a patient-facing role. The Clinical Pharmacists will take on responsibility for areas of chronic disease management and will work proactively with other healthcare professionals as part of this across the organisation and PCN area. Working alongside other Pharmacist and Technician resource within our practices and CCG. We are keen to hear from pharmacists of all backgrounds and level of experience, whether you have already completed or would like to complete the independent prescriber qualification. Full time working will be considered

The PCN Clinical Pharmacist will need to be committed to improving health and putting patients first. Key qualities will be the ability to build effective relationships with patients, GPs, nurses, community Pharmacists, hospital and practice staff, and to work effectively as part of a team.

The post holder will:

• Work as part of a multi-disciplinary team in a patient-facing role
• Support delivery of the new network Directly Enhanced Service (DES)
• Conduct structured medication reviews to proactively manage patients with complex polypharmacy
• Provide clinical medicines expertise to both patients and practice teams
• Improve prescribing practices across the PCN
• Improve service and quality through mechanisms such as clinical audits
• Interface with community and hospital colleagues to help resolve medication-related issues
• Assist with delivery of enhanced health in care homes initiatives alongside the already established CCG Care Homes Medicines Team.

It is a requirement of the role to be registered with the General Pharmaceutical Council. Primary care experience would be an advantage however is not essential. Flexibility, enthusiasm and good clinical knowledge are essential.

About us

KEY DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Clinical Duties

• Perform face to face medication reviews of patients with polypharmacy, in practice and in patient’s homes (including care homes).

• Through structured medication reviews, support patients to take their medications to get the best from them, reduce waste and promote self-care

• Provide expertise in clinical medicines review and address public health and social needs of patients in GP practices 2

• Discuss complex and sensitive information with patients during medication review including medical histories, lifestyles and personal circumstances and to refer on to other services as appropriate.

• Improve patient and carer understanding of, confidence in and compliance with their medicines.

• Provide leadership on person-centred medicines optimisation (including ensuring prescribers in the practice conserve antibiotics in line with local antimicrobial stewardship guidance) and quality improvement whilst contributing to the quality and outcomes framework and enhanced services.

• Provide general practitioners with appropriate recommendations and actions plans following medication review clinics with patients to optimise the patient’s treatment with medicines and ensure appropriate follow up with patients.

• Record medication review plans, recommendations and outcomes on GP computer clinical systems and own clinical notes in accordance with practice procedures.

• Reconcile medicines following discharge from hospitals, intermediate care and into care homes; identify and rectify unexplained changes; manage changes by referral to the GP; perform clinical medication review; support the production of post-‐discharge medicines care plans and work with patients and community pharmacists to ensure patients receive the medicines they need.

• Support the processing of complex repeat prescribing medication requests made by patients or other repeat prescribing queries.

• Work in partnership with hospital clinicians to proactively manage patients at high risk of medicine-‐related problems before they are discharged to ensure continuity of care.

• Liaise with the GP and Nurse Practitioner team on prescribing and medication issues, especially around management of long-term conditions.

• Develop as an independent prescriber to manage and prescribe for patients within a specific chronic disease area.

• With appropriate training, monitor the effects of medication by checking clinical signs (e.g. BP, pulse monitoring, spirometry, etc).

• Attend regular clinical supervision sessions to promote a culture of continuous professional development and shared learning.

Supportive Clinical Duties

• As part of the multi-disciplinary team, attend relevant MDT Network meetings, providing information and feedback.

• Report medicines related incidents, contribute to investigations and root cause analyses as well as participating in serious incident investigations and multidisciplinary case reviews

• Deliver training, mentoring and guidance to other clinicians and staff on medicine issues.

• Attend Protected Learning Time sessions (PLT’s) and possibly practice away days/development sessions.

• Ensure that, within each practice you work, staff and clinicians are kept up to date regarding changes in national and local medicines guidance and legislation.

• Critically appraise clinical evidence and present information to prescribers via prescribing meetings and educational events, as required.

• Lead on medicines management governance arrangements to adhere to CQC standards, including assisting in developing policies and SOPs.

• Review repeat prescribing protocols and processes and support staff in their implementation

• Perform prescribing audits and direct/supervise the audit activity of others

• Facilitate good working relationships between practices and local community pharmacists.

• Be responsible for delivering local prescribing quality initiatives in collaboration with CCG medicine management.

• Develop an effective network and working relationship with individual practice GPs, practice staff, CCG medicines management colleagues, secondary care and other professionals.

• All members of staff have an individual responsibility to comply with the organisation’s policies and practices.

Safeguarding

• All members of staff have a responsibility to ensure the Safeguarding of patients within the organisation.

• Ensure knowledge of Safeguarding policies and training is up to date

• Demonstrate due regard for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children.

Confidentiality

• In the course of seeking treatment, patients entrust us with, or allow us to gather, sensitive information in relation to their health and other matters. They do so in confidence and have the right to expect that staff will respect their privacy and act appropriately

• In the performance of the duties outlined in this job description, the post-holder will have access to confidential information relating to patients and their carers, member practices, staff and other healthcare workers. All such information from any source is to be regarded as strictly confidential

• Information relating to patients, carers, colleagues, other healthcare workers or the business of the organisation may only be divulged to authorised persons in accordance with the policies and procedures relating to confidentiality and the protection of personal and sensitive data

Keep up to date with IG And GDPR legislation

Health & safety

• The post-holder will ensure the promotion and management of their own and others’ health, safety and security as defined in the organisations Health & Safety policy and the Infection Control policy and published procedures. This will include (but will not be limited to):

• Ensuring adherence to individual responsibilities for infection control and health and safety, using a system of observation, audit and check, hazard identification, questioning, reporting and risk management.

• Maintaining an up-to-date knowledge of health and safety and infection control statutory and best practice guidelines, and ensure implementation of these across all areas

• Using personal security systems within the workplace according to organisation guidelines

• Identifying the risks involved in work activities and undertaking such activities in a way that manages those risks

• Making effective use of training to update knowledge and skills

• Using appropriate infection control procedures, maintaining work areas in a tidy and safe way and free from hazards, and initiation of remedial / corrective action where needed

• Actively identifying, reporting, and correction of health and safety hazards and infection hazards immediately when recognised

• Keeping own work areas and general / patient areas generally clean, identifying issues and hazards / risks in relation to other work areas within the business, and assuming responsibility in the maintenance of general standards of cleanliness across the business in consultation (where appropriate) with other managers

• Undertaking periodic infection control training (minimum annually)

Equality and diversity

• The post-holder will support the equality, diversity and rights of patients, carers and colleagues, to include:

• Acting in a way that recognises the importance of people’s rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with procedures and policies, and current legislation

• Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs and beliefs of patients, carers and colleagues

• Behaving in a manner that is welcoming to and of the individual, is non-judgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings priorities and rights.

Contribution to the implementation of services

The post-holder will:

• Apply Navigation 1 Limited policies, standards and guidance

• Apply relevant policies, standards and guidance of practice within which you work

• Discuss with other members of the team how the policies, standards and guidelines will affect own work

• Participate in audit where appropriate

Conditions of employment including hours of work, holidays etc. are covered in the Contract of Employment. The staff handbook contains employment policies. You are employed in the role as specified within your job description. However, in order to meet the needs of service users and ensure the efficient running of the service, a flexible approach to your duties is required. You may be required to undertake any other reasonable duty which is required such as covering for colleagues and undertaking general administration tasks in relation to working within Navigation 1 and local practices, this may on occasion not be planned and will be on an, as and when required basis