Pharmacy Technician

Job summary

Stroud Cotswold Primary Care Network has a new opportunity for an energetic and motivated Pharmacy Technician to join our friendly practices. Our PCN Pharmacy team has been built over the last 3 years to include a mix of 5 clinical pharmacists and 3 technicians. We are looking to add an additional Technician role to establish a larger presence in our surgeries and increase the service capacity of our team.

The role of a pharmacy technician is well established and highly valued within our Practices and this is a wonderful opportunity for an individual who is passionate about primary care and demonstrating the positive impact pharmacy skill brings to the multidisciplinary team.

Main duties of the job

The postholder will work as part of the pharmacy team to provide the following;

Support with applicable aspects of the Quality and Outcomes Framework, Primary Care Offer and PCN Network Contract DES/IIF Managing medication queries, medicines reconciliation and prescription processes Communicating with community and hospital pharmacies to ensure patients receive the correct medication they need in a timely manner Promoting high quality, evidence based cost-effective prescribing in primary care.

About us

Stroud Cotswold PCN is a network of 5 practices located in one of the most beautiful parts of our county. We are looking to recruit a Pharmacy Technician to join our friendly team. With excellentclinical leadership in place, we are offering this opportunity to a pharmacytechnician who is eager and willing to be part of patient supporting activities that will benefit their populations.

The PCN is a co-operative group of practices who work closely together to deliver services which provide an enhanced level of care for our patients. Our supportive and friendly pharmacy team is looking for an enthusiastic and driven team member to further enhance our positive presence across the network. After induction training, you will be required to work across 2 or 3 of our surgeries, often alongside one of our Clinical Pharmacists. As a technician, the post holder will work as part of a collaborative multi-disciplinary team to deliver high quality service to our patients.

Job description

Job responsibilities

The PCN clinical pharmacy team plays an integral part of the General Practice Multi-Disciplinary Team. It is part of further transformation to develop a model of care which addresses our ambition to deliver person-centred, coordinated care across the Primary Care Network (PCN).

Pharmacy technicians work under the clinical supervision of the wider team to ensure effective and efficient use of medicines. Pharmacy technicians core role responsibilities will cover clinical, and technical and administrative categories. The purpose of the role is to lead improvements to maximise safe, cost effective best practice in prescribing to improve the quality of patient care.

The postholder will work as part of the PCN Multi-disciplinary Teams to provide support with the following;

Clinical support in areas such as medicines optimisation, medicines safety and quality improvement including responding to alerts (MHRA/CAS) and recording actions Assisting senior team members in identifying areas for improvement using data from suitable clinical systems and conducting quality improvement projects, either in collaboration with team members or independently. Support practices with relevant aspects of the Quality and Outcomes Framework and PCN Network Contract DES/IIF Managing medication related queries from both patients and colleagues. Finding solutions to problems. liaising with community pharmacy, secondary care, mental health departments or social care as needed and following up with patients or team members where appropriate. Ensuring medicines reconciliation following discharge from other healthcare settings is completed accurately and address any queries or unclear information. Communicating with patients and community pharmacy to facilitate timely supply of medication Improving prescription processes and administration workflow(for example streamlining general prescription requests, electronic repeat dispensing and implementation of prescription services) Work alongside primary care colleagues to implement process improvements in the management of long term conditions, synchronisation of their medication and to promote reduction in wastage of medicines Supporting and mentoring other team members eg technicians or prescription clerks and engaging in shared learning and best practice. If not yet completed, the postholder must be willing to complete the mandatory 15 month CPPE Primary Care Pharmacists Education Pathway which includes work time release for study days/webinars/tutorials, support from a clinical supervisor and tutor and self-study in own time. The postholder will communicate frequently with community and hospital pharmacy to help utilise skill mix, improve patient outcomes, to help manage workflow and ensure better access to healthcare promoting use of CPCS and NMS services Patient contact is a key part of this role, therefore strong communication skills are crucial to promote effective and appropriate signposting, service information and lifestyle advice where needed whilst helping to tackle health inequalities. The role is pivotal to improving quality of care, safe use of medicines and promoting cost effective prescribing. The postholder will need to know where to access reliable sources of information and have knowledge of relevant formularies and local and national prescribing guidance Support initiatives for antimicrobial stewardship to reduce inappropriate antibiotic prescribing locally. The successful candidate will need the ability to adapt to change and take on new challenges as they arise within the sector.

All Pharmacy Technicians must work within their competency and know when to refer to senior team members

General

The postholder will: Develop a culture that promotes equality and values diversity. The postholder must be aware of and committed to the Equality and Diversity policies of the appointing GP Federation and comply with all the requirements of these policies and actively promote Equality and Diversity issues relevant to the post. Ensure the principles of openness, transparency and candor are observed and upheld in all working practices. The post holder will have, or acquire through training provided by the organisation, the appropriate level of safeguarding and knowledge, skills and practice required for the post and be aware of and comply with the organisations safeguarding protection policies and procedures. Ensure that any infection prevention and control issues are reported to the line manager/Infection Prevention and Control 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 peoples rights, interpreting them in a way that is consistent with practice procedures and policies, and current legislation Respecting the privacy, dignity, needs and beliefs of patients, carers and colleagues Behaving in a manner which is welcoming to and of the individual, is non-judgmental and respects their circumstances, feelings priorities and rights. Personal/Professional development: The post-holder will participate in appropriate training programmes implemented by the practice as part of this employment, with such training to include: Participation in an annual individual performance review, including taking responsibility for maintaining a record of own personal and/or professional development (CPD)

Person Specification

Qualifications

Essential

Professional registration with GPhC - Required BTEC/NVQ level 3 or equivalent in pharmaceutical sciences Evidence of continued professional development (CPD) Core GCSEs (Maths, English and Science) grades A-C

Desirable

Safeguarding adult and children level three. Information Governance toolkit completion. Basic life support training.

Experience

Essential

Experience of working as a pharmacy technician or apprentice technician in primary care, community or hospital pharmacy. Computer literate with an ability to use Microsoft Office packages. Attention to detail, able to work accurately, identifying errors quickly and easily. Has a planned and organised approach with an ability to prioritise their own workload to meet strict deadlines. Excellent verbal and written communication skills. An excellent understanding of data protection and confidentiality issues.

Desirable

An ability to use SystmOne clinical system. Able to analyse and interpret prescribing data. Able to think analytically; anticipating obstacles and thinking ahead; using analytical techniques to draw logical solutions to problems. Influencing and negotiating skills. Ability to adjust communication style and content to suit the audience.

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