Pharmacy Support Technician

Position Overview

Pharmacy Support Technician Band 2 - Permanent Role

Join our dedicated Pharmacy Department at Tameside General Hospital, where you will play a vital role in assisting our pharmacists and technicians in delivering a comprehensive dispensing and distribution service to various wards, departments, and clinics within the Trust.

While prior experience in pharmacy is beneficial, we are committed to providing thorough training for candidates who are new to the field.

As part of your professional development, you will undertake a GPhC accredited course in Pharmacy Stock Management.

Ideally, candidates should possess GCSEs in Mathematics and English at grades A-C (or equivalent), along with basic computer skills; however, functional skills training can be pursued concurrently with the stock management course.

Key Responsibilities

Your responsibilities will include supporting pharmacists and technical staff in the Dispensary, Aseptic Dispensing Unit, and Pharmacy Receipt & Distribution. This will involve making visits to hospital wards and departments to ensure the delivery of a thorough pharmaceutical service.

About Our Organization

Tameside and Glossop Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust serves a diverse community of 250,000 individuals across Tameside & Glossop. We offer a wide range of services both within the hospital and throughout the community for adults and children. Our mission is to enhance health outcomes for our population and address broader health determinants through collaboration with our health and care partners.

Our Core Values

• Safety
• Care
• Respect
• Communication
• Learning

We are dedicated to fostering a workforce that reflects the diversity of the communities we serve. We encourage applications from individuals of all backgrounds, including those from underrepresented groups.

Employee Benefits

Our employees enjoy a variety of benefits, including flexible working arrangements, 27-33 days of annual leave plus bank holidays, sick pay, NHS Pension Scheme, complimentary eye tests and health checks, gym discounts, bicycle loan schemes, salary sacrifice car schemes, and support for various personal challenges.

Primary Duties

SECTION 1 - MAIN DUTIES:

Ward Services

Participate in the pharmaceutical stock replenishment service for designated wards and departments, ensuring adequate stock levels are maintained. This includes visiting clinical areas to verify stock levels and expiry dates of medications, removing surplus or expired stock, and managing medicine recalls.

Rotate stock in medicine cupboards to ensure shorter-dated stock is utilized first, minimizing waste.

Raise orders for ward and department pharmaceutical supplies through the pharmacy computer system.

Collaborate with nursing and pharmacy staff to ensure stock lists and levels meet the clinical area's requirements.

Identify unexpected changes in product usage and notify the supervisor or ward pharmacist.

Distribution / Ward Order Assembly

Assist the Senior Procurement Technician and Principal Pharmacy Technician in the receipt, storage, issuance, and control of stock in the Pharmacy Receipt and Distribution area.

Assemble items against orders raised for clinical areas, including issuing pharmaceutical products to community clinics.

Utilize the pharmacy computer system to document issues and returns from clinical areas, ensuring all transactions are accurately recorded.

Collaborate with pharmacy team members to address supply issues and prevent stock shortages in clinical areas.

Participate in maintaining and replenishing emergency resuscitation boxes and trays according to local procedures.

Pharmacy Stock Control

Conduct regular stock checks within the department to ensure computer records accurately reflect actual stock holdings.

Report stock shortages to procurement colleagues to ensure pharmaceutical products are available for patient care.

Identify and report stock discrepancies to a supervisor to maintain product availability.

Participate in a system for checking expiry dates to ensure stock rotation and minimize waste. Report expired stock to a supervisor and dispose of it appropriately, documenting the process in the pharmacy computer system.

Monitor cold storage equipment to ensure temperatures remain within defined limits and report any variations to a supervisor.

Maintain storage areas in a clean, organized, safe, and tidy condition in compliance with Health and Safety regulations.

Receipt of Goods

Receive and verify goods against delivery notes, entering batch numbers in accordance with local procedures. Transfer goods to the correct stock location and rotate stock to ensure shorter-dated items are used first.

Assess pharmaceutical products returned from clinical areas, returning items fit for reuse to stock and disposing of unfit items according to COSHH regulations and Trust procedures. Document returned items in the pharmacy computer system.

Dispensary Duties

Carry out reception duties within the department, including answering telephone inquiries, receiving prescriptions/orders from patients and hospital staff, and logging information accurately.

Evaluate prescriptions to determine patient eligibility for prescription charges, collecting payments or issuing promise-to-pay forms as appropriate.

Ensure patient details are recorded on prescriptions and liaise with medical and nursing staff as necessary.

Issue pharmaceutical products collected by hospital staff.

Assist in general dispensary duties related to the preparation, packaging, labeling, and dispensing of pharmaceutical products according to local procedures.

Aseptic Services

Participate in the Aseptic Dispensing Service under the supervision of the Principal Pharmacy Technician, performing assembly of ingredients, routine aseptic manipulations, and environmental monitoring within the Aseptic Dispensing Unit.

Act as a confirmer, checking the accuracy of volumes drawn during reconstitution procedures.

General Responsibilities

Maintain adequate supplies of pharmacy consumables (containers, labels, bags, etc.) to ensure availability in the dispensary and request orders when necessary.

Use and clean equipment and apparatus, including tablet counters.

Participate in weekend, bank holiday, and late working rotas to meet service needs.

Engage in general clerical and housekeeping duties, maintaining prescription statistics and other workload data as required by the Dispensary Manager.

Handle manual loads of up to 20Kg regularly, utilizing appropriate equipment for heavier items.

Assist in training less experienced colleagues or students.

Undertake initial and ongoing training in all relevant aspects of the pharmacy service.

Deliver medicines and messages within the hospital as required, utilizing appropriate equipment, including computers, to fulfill various duties of the role.

Qualifications and Experience

Desirable Qualifications

• Good general education, preferably with Mathematics and English at GCSE level or functional skills training available.
• Training to NVQ2 level or equivalent, either attained or to be provided.

Desirable Experience

• Recent experience in a healthcare setting.
• Recent experience in another public/customer service industry.

Skills and Knowledge

Essential Skills

• Effective verbal and written communication skills with patients and service users, particularly over the phone.
• Ability to prioritize workload within organized rotas.

Desirable Skills

• Familiarity with necessary keyboard skills for departmental computer systems.

Other Factors

Essential Attributes

• Good health and attendance record.
• Neat, tidy, and professional appearance.
• Respectful towards colleagues, other disciplines, and the public.
• Ability to meet the demands of a busy department.
• Team-oriented with a collaborative approach.
• Approachable, respectful, and supportive to management.
• Capable of lifting and moving manual loads, including pharmacy boxes and deliveries.
• Open to guidance, direction, and constructive feedback.
• Tactful and discreet in all interactions.
• Willingness to adopt flexible working patterns and embrace change.
• Reliable, dependable, and trustworthy with a strong sense of responsibility.
• Punctual and a good timekeeper.

Desirable Attributes

• Practical, enthusiastic, and self-motivated individual.