We are seeking exceptional pharmacists to join our pharmacy team at LSW working across our community, general medicine, frailty, mental health, substance misuse and virtual ward areas. You will be confident, motivated individuals who will work closely with other health care professionals within the organisation to deliver a responsive and pro-active people-focused service to continuously improve clinical pharmacy delivery.
As a rotational specialist pharmacist, you will have the unique opportunity to rotate and work across different sectors within the organisation that will give you a wealth of experience in different clinical areas of pharmacy enabling you to further develop your knowledge and career aspirations.
In this post, your personal and professional development will be key to achieving job satisfaction and success. You will be supported in your clinical and leadership development by experienced pharmacists and through formal education.
At LSW, we support flexible working and value work-life balance. We currently provide clinical pharmacy services Monday to Friday, with no late nights, weekend or bank holiday working. We have free parking available on site.
For an informal discussion about the role, please email Nicola Diffey.
Interviews will take place between 18th and 22nd of November 2024.
Main duties of the job
You will work under the supervision and support of the Advanced Clinical Pharmacists in MH and Community and General Medicine to provide clinical pharmacy services to inpatient and community-based services across LSW specialties.
This role in particular centres on rotations through general medicine (medical rehabilitation, stroke rehabilitation and neuro rehabilitation) and mental health (acute, rehabilitation and forensic inpatient units alongside community mental health areas).
There will be opportunities to gain experience working within the virtual ward (acute and community), within substance misuse, and within medicines governance, contributing to policy and guideline writing and carrying out audits.
You will deliver a high-quality clinical pharmacy service ensuring the safe, clinically effective and cost-efficient use of drugs. This will be achieved through attendance at ward rounds/MDTs and being responsible for medicines reconciliation on admission, medicines optimisation and provision of clinical services during inpatient stay, and pharmacy authorisation of discharge summaries.
This role may not be eligible for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker route.
Please note that Livewell may close the job advertisement earlier than the specified deadline if a high number of applications are submitted. Therefore, we recommend you submit your application at the earliest opportunity.
All Livewell staff are expected to be able and willing to work across a 7-day service.
About us
Livewell Southwest is an independent, award-winning social enterprise delivering integrated health and social care services across Plymouth, South Hams, and West Devon, with specialist services in parts of Devon and Cornwall. Our teams work in community hospitals, GP practices, sports centres, and health hubs.
As an organisation with a strong social conscience, we are guided by our values: kindness, respect, inclusivity, ambition, responsibility, and collaboration. We focus on transforming services to ensure sustainability while empowering staff and those we serve.
We involve the people we care for, along with their families and carers, in shaping the care they receive, striving to deliver the right care at the right time and place. Centering our work on individual needs helps people lead healthy, independent lives.
We prioritise employees' development, offering protected CPD time, training pathways, leadership programs, and funding for qualifications like the Care Certificate and Nurse Training Scholarships. Our induction and preceptorship programs ensure a smooth transition into our organisation.
Livewell Southwest values diversity and encourages applications from all sections of the community, including those with armed forces experience, lived experience of mental health, neuro-diverse conditions, and learning disabilities. If you need assistance or reasonable adjustments during the application process, contact the Recruiting Manager listed in the job advert.
Job responsibilities
Professional/Clinical
Under the direction of the Clinical Director of Pharmacy and supported by the Advanced Clinical Pharmacist, you will:
* Deliver optimum clinical pharmacy services to patients within our care.
* Attend MDTs and consultant ward rounds. Be responsible for the safe and effective transfer of patients across care settings including medicines reconciliation on admission and authorise discharge summaries on discharge.
* Provide clinical pharmacist support and advice to consultants, junior doctors, nurses, members of the MDT, patients, and their carers by completing medicines reconciliation, comprehensive drug histories, pharmacist-led medication reviews, monitoring, and advising on strategies to optimise response to therapies.
* Be supported in this training post to achieve a Clinical Diploma and Independent Prescriber qualification or similar qualification.
* Contribute to the clinical governance agenda(s) of the service and of the organisation.
* Review policies and procedures relevant to pharmacy and monitor and evaluate medicines-related protocols and guidelines.
* Propose policy or service changes to improve the delivery of pharmaceutical care to patients which may have multidisciplinary and resource implications.
* Use risk stratification tools/protocols to minimise the risk of harm from medicines.
* Implement changes following local and national drug alerts/information in accordance with local policy.
* Provide pharmacist cover for other areas and settings during annual leave or sickness.
* Attend, deliver and contribute to CPD sessions and peer review for the purposes of revalidation in order to maintain professional registration.
Clinical services will be achieved through:
* Contribution to multidisciplinary team meetings, this will require pharmaceutical advice ensuring optimum treatment is recommended for every patient.
* Undertake medication reviews with patients to support optimum therapy and adherence, making recommendations to prescribers and the MDT and involving the patient in every aspect of their treatment.
* Review and interpret clinical data each day for patients requiring therapeutic drug monitoring.
* Recommendation of appropriate therapy for individual patients where evidence is not available, controversial, evidence exists, or other professionals may challenge advice.
* Provide advice on the pharmaceutical and pharmacodynamics properties of drugs including alterations of these parameters in special groups of patients, such as the older adult or those with mental health conditions.
* Attendance at Consultant/Doctor/whiteboard/MDT meetings to actively facilitate and provide advice on the treatment of patients.
* Promote compliance by prescribers and other healthcare staff with the South and West Devon Formulary and Referral.
* Application of the evidence base behind drug therapies.
* Identification of adverse drug reactions and reporting them to the MHRA via the Yellow Card system.
* Complete medicines reconciliation within 24 hours for acute areas (72 hours at weekends) and within 7 days for rehabilitation areas as patients enter and leave services, identifying and informing prescribers of any changes.
* Contribute to the organisation's wider antimicrobial surveillance programme, implementing local programmes ensuring appropriate antimicrobial prescribing within the organisation.
* Contribute to public health campaigns, including flu vaccinations, and adult immunisation programmes.
Analytical and Judgmental skills
* Applying specialist pharmaceutical knowledge to ensure drug, dose, frequency, route etc. are suitable for the individual patient. This may involve calculations and/or analysis of past medication/medical history and laboratory results.
* To clinically screen drug charts to ensure all aspects are compatible and no pharmaceutical needs are unmet.
* To clinically screen discharge summaries and ensure they are safe, detailed, and complete to enable better transfer of care for patients across care settings.
* Use knowledge and professional judgement to respond to medicines-related issues with the relevant clinician or team in a timely manner.
* Support the delivery of the NHS Devon ICB medicines optimisation agenda in primary care.
* Participation in audit and project work.
* Identify areas for service development, interpreting NICE recommendations and developing relevant pathways.
* Responding to medicines information requests from prescribers and other healthcare professionals and providing advice on medicines. In many cases, this is a complex task involving specialist up-to-date knowledge, effective search strategies, evaluation of the evidence base and formulation of an appropriate response.
* Contribute to clinical governance and risk management through interventions which optimise the management of medicines in all areas of practice, supporting best practice throughout all areas of responsibility.
Planning and Organisational skills
* Organise and prioritise one's own workload in order to respond to urgent and varied requests in a timely manner.
* Be flexible according to the needs of the service, which are often unpredictable.
* Ability to work under pressure to ensure that deadlines are achieved.
Service Development:
* Agree therapeutic areas of practice for development and independent prescribing in accordance with your competency and the requirements of the service.
* Implement changes aligned to local and national drivers for organisational and system service improvements that are designed to enhance the delivery of care to patients across the system.
* Actively contribute to the development of the Clinical Pharmacy Service initiatives that improve patient care and access across the system.
* Contribute to the delivery of initiatives that help with the seamless transfer of patients between different healthcare settings.
* Integrate research evidence into your practice and identify gaps in the evidence base.
* Provide education and training to all healthcare professionals.
* Write and review Medicines Policies, procedures and guidelines under the direction and support of the Advanced Clinical Pharmacist and senior management team.
* Review Patient Group Directions and Protocols with training and support from the Advance Clinical Pharmacist.
Development and Support of other Pharmacy Staff
* Provide training and mentorship to other pharmacists, trainee pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and pharmacy assistants, work experience students, volunteers and any other members of staff needing support as required.
Health, Safety and Security:
* To work safely in the dispensary or ward environment ensuring any risks identified to health and safety are managed or escalated to line manager.
* To ensure safety and security of medicines, prescription stationery and other patient identifiable documents according to locally agreed standard operating procedures.
* To inform line manager of any breaches of safety or security or if agreed procedures are thought to be inadequate to manage the risk.
Training and Development
This is a training post to develop a pharmacist for their future career. Study at clinical pharmacy post-graduate diploma level and/or construction of an Advanced Practice Portfolio for RPS Faculty membership is encouraged. Study to achieve Independent Pharmacist Prescriber status will also be possible.
Deliver appropriate training and education to healthcare colleagues, carer groups and outside agencies in order to promote the safe use and clinical application of drugs.
Freedom to Act:
Pharmacists are expected to work largely unsupervised and to act on their own professional judgement. Support mechanisms exist within the clinical pharmacy service by contacting other team members on a mutually beneficial basis. If studying for a specific qualification a suitable mentor and/or facilitator will be made available as necessary. Line manager support is available as required. Clinical supervision from another health professional can be arranged and is to be encouraged. Clinical roles are supported by policies, SOPs and guidelines within which the registered professional is allowed to exercise professional discretion/interpretation.
Communications and Relationships
* Well-developed verbal and written communications skills are essential to the role.
* Communicate medicines information (e.g. medicines doses and side effects) in oral or written form to patients and/or carers, who may have difficulties with understanding.
* Work with the Pharmacy team to manage day to day medicines queries, including face to face consultations with patients identified to have compliance or other problems in medicine administration.
* Be actively involved in patient counselling.
* Develop and implement patient/carer health educational groups across the organisation.
* Refer patients to other community services where appropriate.
* Discuss and resolve medication problems with prescribers where appropriate, ensuring treatment is appropriate, safe and effective.
* Input and maintain clinical and pharmacy records, for example using System-one IT, controlled drugs, unlicensed medication.
* To provide information for summary care records to other healthcare professionals if appropriate to do so.
* Work collaboratively and effectively with all levels of healthcare staff in every area of work.
Physical Demands of the Job
There is a need to travel between sites, therefore ability to drive or commitment to attaining a driving license is essential, and to use own car is an advantage. Good keyboard/computer skills are essential. Dispensing and checking of medication including blister packs as needed. Manual handling may include small static loads and some patient handling.
Person Specification
Experience
* Post-graduate experience in hospital, community or primary care pharmacy.
* Experience/understanding roles of other health care professionals e.g. staff working in community/multidisciplinary teams.
* Experience of working within mental health.
* Experience of influencing, negotiating, and implementing change in practice.
* Experience of developing policies, standard operating procedures and guidance.
* Experience of multidisciplinary and multi-organisational working.
* Experience of using and collecting both qualitative and quantitative data, auditing and producing reports.
* Experience in presenting evidence and research.
Skills
* Ability to plan and prioritise work with good organisational and time management skills.
* Ability to have a high level of self-motivation, use own initiative, devise and organise own workload as part of the larger team's work plan for optimum service delivery.
* Ability to work closely with and as a valued member of the Clinical Pharmacy Service Team.
* Ability to evaluate quality of own work.
* Ability to achieve personal and corporate goals.
* Ability to engage with and learn from peers, other professionals and colleagues.
* Professional calm and efficient manner.
* Ability to influence and negotiate with a range of stakeholders to implement change in practice.
* Holds a valid UK driving license or is willing to learn to drive within 12 months of taking the post.
Qualifications
* Mpharm degree or equivalent.
* Registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC).
* Evidence of commitment to and able to demonstrate CPD.
* Postgraduate diploma (or working towards) or equivalent evidence of clinical knowledge, competence and achievements in practice.
* Independent Pharmacist Prescriber accreditation - or willing to work towards.
* Membership with the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain.
* Working towards or membership of the RPS Faculty.
Knowledge
* Evidence of practical application of in-depth therapeutic and clinical knowledge.
* Ability to analyse, interpret and evaluate clinical evidence, data and information from various sources to make judgements, decisions and provide recommendations.
* Logical and focused approach to problem solving.
* Awareness of legislation governing equality and diversity.
* Understanding of confidentiality and data protection act.
* Experience of IT applications including Microsoft programmes, pharmacy dispensing programmes and Systm-one.
* Demonstrate awareness of interface issues.
* Understand relationships between health and social care.
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.
Full-time, Part-time, Job share, Flexible working.
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