Pharmacist

Job Advert: Specialist Pharmacist (Band 7)Camden & Islington NHS Foundation TrustLocation: Highgate Mental Health CentreSalary: AfC Band 7 Contract: Full-time, 37.5 hours per week

Job Summary

As a Specialist Pharmacist, you will work alongside and support the Senior Lead Pharmacists across various clinical rotations and areas, with a primary focus on medicines safety and governance. Your role will include developing and delivering comprehensive medicines management services to patients across our mental health services, as well as ensuring effective pharmaceutical care in inpatient, outpatient, and community settings.

This role is an exciting opportunity for those who are motivated to advance clinical pharmacy services, drive quality improvement, and contribute to shaping policies that enhance patient care and safety. You will also have the opportunity to supervise and develop junior pharmacy staff, including Band 6 and pre-registration pharmacists, ensuring they receive the support and training necessary to thrive.

Key Responsibilities

1. Clinical Practice

• Optimizing Medicines Use: Ensure safe and appropriate use of medications for maximum benefit and minimal risk, regularly reviewing prescriptions, identifying significant drug interactions, and monitoring compliance with applicable laws, including the Medicines Act and Mental Health Act.
• Pharmaceutical Care at Ward Level: Act as the primary pharmacist at ward level, providing clinical guidance to the multidisciplinary teams. You will be responsible for completing medication histories, formulating pharmaceutical care plans, and monitoring patient outcomes to ensure medicines are effective and safely managed.
• Patient Discharge Planning: Play a vital role in discharge planning to facilitate timely and accurate dispensing and ensure medicines are labeled and prepared for safe patient use post-discharge.
• Advice on Unlicensed Medicines: Provide essential clinical advice on unlicensed medication use, collaborating closely with the Lead Pharmacist to guide treatment plans.
• Risk Reduction: Contribute to the Trust’s safe medication practice agenda by identifying and reporting medication errors, working proactively to prevent harm.

2. Communication

• Supporting Patients and Teams: Respond effectively to the pharmaceutical information needs of patients, caregivers, and healthcare professionals, delivering information in formats appropriate to each audience.
• Liaison and Collaboration: Build and maintain communication channels with community pharmacists, primary care providers, and secondary care organizations to facilitate seamless medication management and supply continuity across transitions in patient care.
• Addressing Barriers: Manage and overcome communication barriers, such as learning disabilities, mental impairment, or non-compliant patients, adapting your approach to meet each patient's needs.

3. Education & Training

• Training Delivery: Assist in delivering medication education to clinical staff and multidisciplinary team members, supporting the Clinical Lead Pharmacist in delivering the Trust’s Medicines Management program.
• Mentorship & Supervision: Take an active role in training and supporting Band 6 pharmacists, pre-registration pharmacists, and medicines management technicians. You will also be responsible for providing ward-based training to undergraduate students.
• Continuous Professional Development: Maintain and develop your professional competencies and portfolio in compliance with General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) standards to ensure continued high-quality practice.

4. Research & Development

• Quality Improvement (QI) Initiatives: Actively participate in the Trust’s Quality Improvement and Medicines Audit programs, collecting and analyzing data to drive positive changes.
• Clinical Audits: Design and implement your own quality improvement projects and audits that target service delivery improvements, optimized medicine use, or enhanced patient outcomes.
• Clinical Trials Participation: Where required, you will also have opportunities to engage in clinical trials within your clinical specialty area.

Additional Responsibilities

You will participate in the Trust's on-call rota, weekend, and bank holiday dispensary services, ensuring patients have continual access to pharmacy services.

Requirements

Essential Qualifications and Skills

• Registration: Current registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC).
• Experience: Previous experience in a clinical pharmacy setting, ideally with experience in mental health.
• Clinical Knowledge: Comprehensive understanding of medication management, risk assessment, and patient safety in a mental health setting.
• Communication Skills: Strong communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to adapt to different audiences and overcome barriers.
• IT Skills: Proficiency in IT applications, including Trust Clinical Information Systems for data entry and report generation.

Desirable Skills

• Experience supervising or mentoring pharmacy staff.
• Knowledge of the Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust policies and practices related to medication management.
• Familiarity with the Agenda for Change NHS Terms of Service.

Benefits

• Competitive salary in line with AfC NHS Band 7 pay scale.
• Access to comprehensive training, development programs, and quality improvement training.
• Opportunities to participate in research, clinical trials, and policy development.
• Generous NHS pension scheme and annual leave entitlement.
• Access to staff wellbeing initiatives and mental health support services.
• Support for professional development and continuous learning.

Application Process

If you are passionate about mental health, committed to improving patient care, and ready to take on a challenging but rewarding role as a Specialist Pharmacist, we encourage you to apply by clicking on the link https://pathway.nhsp.uk/members/?j=1491