Prison Services Pharmacy Technician

Job Summary

Are you prepared to unleash your potential in a dynamic, creative, and fast-paced work environment? Do you aspire to leave your current job and collaborate with individuals to construct positive and meaningful lives, regardless of their history? This is the moment to venture into offender healthcare to advance your career.

As a result of the South West Prison Healthcare contract granted to Oxleas NHS trust in 2022, we are expanding our team and seeking compassionate, knowledgeable, and motivated Pharmacy Technicians to join our welcoming team at HMP Dartmoor.

Our healthcare team significantly contributes to promoting health and well-being for those in prison. We take pride in utilizing skills and techniques that inspire hope for patients' future reintegration into the community. Through an integrated healthcare approach, we provide direct services in Mental Health, Physical Health, Pharmacy, and Clinical Substance Misuse to deliver efficient and responsive care, enhancing well-being and fostering better future outcomes.

As part of our pharmacy service (OPS), you will enjoy all the perks of NHS AfC employment (including pension) while having the opportunity to work within a forward-thinking service that fosters both career and personal development, empowering all staff to enhance their clinical and interpersonal skills.

Main Duties of the Job

As a Pharmacy Technician, your role will involve providing a medicines management service to prison patients under the guidance of a prison service pharmacist. You will dispense medicines to patients based on valid prescriptions, ensure proper intake, offer advice on medication usage, and promote healthy habits to aid in their recovery.

You will be responsible for dispensing prescriptions and managing stock, as well as supervising assistants in the dispensary. Your role will also entail elements of stock control, such as conducting stock top-ups, reviewing expiration dates, and assessing storage facilities for all medications, promptly reporting any issues to the prison service pharmacist.

Curious about what it's like to work in offender healthcare?

"I truly enjoy working in the Pharmacy Service at Oxleas. My role is diverse, and I am part of a highly supportive team. I find my job fulfilling as it revolves around facilitating patients' rehabilitation. I take pleasure in daily interactions with patients and building relationships with them. Oxleas is an excellent employer, offering numerous opportunities for support in gaining qualifications and training, paving the way for progression through various roles within the team." - Amanda, Pharmacy Tech.

About Us

Oxleas provides a broad range of NHS healthcare services to individuals in community and secure settings. Our services encompass community health care, such as district nursing and speech therapy, as well as care for individuals with learning disabilities and mental health issues like psychiatry, nursing, and therapies. Our multidisciplinary teams cater to individuals of all age groups, working closely with other NHS entities, local councils, and the voluntary sector through our new provider collaborations. With over 125 sites in diverse locations across the South of England, our 4,300 staff members operate in various settings, including hospitals, clinics, prisons, secure hospitals, children's centers, schools, and private residences.

We operate in London boroughs such as Bexley, Bromley, Greenwich, and Kent, managing hospital facilities like Queen Mary's Hospital in Sidcup and Memorial Hospital in Woolwich, along with the Bracton Centre, our medium secure unit for individuals with mental health requirements. As the primary NHS provider of prison health services, we offer healthcare in prisons across Devon, Dorset, Bristol, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, Kent, and South London. We take pride in the care we deliver and strive to enhance lives by providing optimal care to our patients and their families. This mission is reinforced by our core values: o We're Kind o We're Fair o We Listen o We Care

Job Description

Job Responsibilities

Key Tasks and Responsibilities

• To deliver a medicines optimization service to the prison.
• To provide a medicines administration service to offenders during scheduled medication times, following a 7-day per week roster.
• To conduct medicines reconciliation for inmates upon entry to the prison.
• To oversee assistants in the dispensary in providing dispensing services.
• To act as an accredited checking technician for final dispensing checks or medicines optimization qualifications.
• To uphold high standards in the dispensary, clinics, and wing visits to ensure adherence to all Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs).
• To support the Senior Prisons Technician in drafting, revising, and monitoring the usage of medicines optimization SOPs.

(Full job description available for download in the supporting documents section)

Oxleas Prison Services Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust, oversees the provision of pharmacy services for the prison pharmacy contracts. With the recent contract award from NHS England, we are now offering pharmacy services (OPS Ltd) and Healthcare Services (Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust) to prisons in Bristol, South Gloucestershire, Wiltshire, Devon, and Dorset, and are recruiting for newly established positions.

Oxleas Prison Services Ltd and Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust boast a rich history of innovation, featuring established prescribing protocols, strong relationships with medical staff, a robust culture of leading clinical audits and research initiatives, and a remarkable publication track record. We aim to extend all these attributes to the prison pharmacy and healthcare services.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION, PLEASE READ:

All applicants must be open to undergoing National Security Vetting to work in a Prison Setting. This process will be conducted as part of the pre-employment checks through Oxleas and the prison vetting team.

You will be required to present:

- Proof of right to work documentation

- Proof of ID (must include 1 photographic ID)

- Proof of address documentation

- Non-UK passport holders must have proper documentation and a Home Office Share code.

Address History:

A 5-year address history will be necessary.

Non-UK Passport holders providing less than 5 years of UK address history must furnish an English Police Certificate from their previous residence.

UK Passport holders who have lived abroad for over six months in the last three years should provide a certificate of good conduct or an overseas police check in English from the countries visited or resided in.

If you require guidance on obtaining a Police Certificate, you can seek assistance from:

If the country of your residence is not listed above, you can obtain the relevant information by contacting the respective Embassy or High Commission for that Country. Contact details can be found on the Foreign & Commonwealth Office website ().

Person Specification

Education/Qualifications

Essential

• NVQ Level 3 in Pharmacy Services or equivalent
• Registration with GPhC as a pharmacy technician
• Evidence of Continuous Professional Development (CPD)

Desirable

• Working towards an Accredited Checking or MM Technician Certificate

Experience

Essential

• Prior experience working in a pharmacy

Desirable

• Previous experience in prison or mental health pharmacy settings

Skills and Abilities

Essential

• Solid understanding of adhering to SOPs
• Proficiency in using (or willingness to learn) computer programs such as Pharmacy Manager/JAC and Microsoft Office

Desirable

• Ability to think critically and solve problems independently
• Basic knowledge of mental illness and substance abuse, along with their treatment methodologies