Clinical Pharmacist

The following are the core responsibilities of the PCN pharmacist. There may be, on occasion, a requirement to carry out other tasks. This will be dependent upon factors such as workload and staffing levels: • Undertake structured medication reviews for patients with long-term conditions, polypharmacy, frailty, and those prescribed high-risk medicines, in line with national and local guidance, including care home residents. • Support the management of long-term conditions (e.g. hypertension, diabetes, asthma, COPD), ensuring safe, effective, and evidence-based prescribing. Review ongoing medication plans to optimise outcomes and make appropriate recommendations to clinicians. • Respond to medicines-related enquiries from GPs, practice staff, wider healthcare teams (e.g. community pharmacy), and patients/carers, providing clear advice and recommending appropriate solutions. • Implement and support medicines optimisation initiatives in line with NICE guidance, local formularies, and ICB policies. • Promote cost-effective prescribing in accordance with national and local guidance. • Reconcile medicines following hospital discharge or outpatient clinic appointments to ensure continuity of care. • Contribute to clinical audits, quality improvement projects, and prescribing reviews to support safe and effective practice. • Support prescribing safety activities, including high-risk drug monitoring, medicines safety alerts, and recall processes. • Support prescription clerks in the repeat prescribing process, ensuring timely, safe, and appropriate authorisation in line with practice protocols. • Maintain accurate, contemporaneous clinical records in accordance with professional standards and information governance requirements. • Support the practice in meeting CQC compliance standards. • Provide supervision and oversight to prescription clerks and pharmacy technicians as appropriate. • Carry out medication reviews for existing and newly registered patients. • Take responsibility for continuing professional development and maintaining competence. • Work within your scope of competence and refer patients to the appropriate healthcare professional when necessary. • Support local pharmacy service initiatives (e.g. Pharmacy First). • Identify cohorts of patients at high risk of harm from medicines using EMIS searches and take appropriate action. • Act on safety alerts in a timely manner, including implementing changes following MHRA alerts, product withdrawals, and other local or national guidance. • To support the delivery of enhanced services and other service requirements on behalf of the PCN. • To ensure appropriate supervision of safe storage, rotation and disposal of vaccines and drugs • To undertake all mandatory training and induction programs. • To attend a formal appraisal with their manager at least every 12 months. Once a performance/training objective has been set, progress will be reviewed on a regular basis so that new objectives can be agreed. • To contribute to public health campaigns (e.g. flu clinics) through advice or direct care. • To maintain a clean, tidy, effective working area at all times. In addition to the primary responsibilities, the pharmacist may be requested to: • Support delivery of QOF, ICB incentive schemes, QIPP and other quality or cost effectiveness initiatives. • Agree and review prescribing protocols and/or practice policies and monitor compliance levels. • Analyse prescribing or long-term condition data using tools like ePACT, Eclipse or EMIS etc • Support care co-coordinators if needed with clinical queries related to long-term conditions • Undertake any tasks consistent with the level of the post and the scope of the role, ensuring that work is delivered in a timely and effective manner. Confidentiality: • In the course of seeking treatment, patients entrust us with, or allow us to gather, sensitive information in relation to their health and other matters. They do so in confidence and have the right to expect that staff will respect their privacy and act appropriately. • Information relating to patients, carers, colleagues, other healthcare workers or the business of the practice may only be divulged to authorised persons in accordance with the practice policies and procedures relating to confidentiality and the protection of personal and sensitive data. Job description Job responsibilities The following are the core responsibilities of the PCN pharmacist. There may be, on occasion, a requirement to carry out other tasks. This will be dependent upon factors such as workload and staffing levels: • Undertake structured medication reviews for patients with long-term conditions, polypharmacy, frailty, and those prescribed high-risk medicines, in line with national and local guidance, including care home residents. • Support the management of long-term conditions (e.g. hypertension, diabetes, asthma, COPD), ensuring safe, effective, and evidence-based prescribing. Review ongoing medication plans to optimise outcomes and make appropriate recommendations to clinicians. • Respond to medicines-related enquiries from GPs, practice staff, wider healthcare teams (e.g. community pharmacy), and patients/carers, providing clear advice and recommending appropriate solutions. • Implement and support medicines optimisation initiatives in line with NICE guidance, local formularies, and ICB policies. • Promote cost-effective prescribing in accordance with national and local guidance. • Reconcile medicines following hospital discharge or outpatient clinic appointments to ensure continuity of care. • Contribute to clinical audits, quality improvement projects, and prescribing reviews to support safe and effective practice. • Support prescribing safety activities, including high-risk drug monitoring, medicines safety alerts, and recall processes. • Support prescription clerks in the repeat prescribing process, ensuring timely, safe, and appropriate authorisation in line with practice protocols. • Maintain accurate, contemporaneous clinical records in accordance with professional standards and information governance requirements. • Support the practice in meeting CQC compliance standards. • Provide supervision and oversight to prescription clerks and pharmacy technicians as appropriate. • Carry out medication reviews for existing and newly registered patients. • Take responsibility for continuing professional development and maintaining competence. • Work within your scope of competence and refer patients to the appropriate healthcare professional when necessary. • Support local pharmacy service initiatives (e.g. Pharmacy First). • Identify cohorts of patients at high risk of harm from medicines using EMIS searches and take appropriate action. • Act on safety alerts in a timely manner, including implementing changes following MHRA alerts, product withdrawals, and other local or national guidance. • To support the delivery of enhanced services and other service requirements on behalf of the PCN. • To ensure appropriate supervision of safe storage, rotation and disposal of vaccines and drugs • To undertake all mandatory training and induction programs. • To attend a formal appraisal with their manager at least every 12 months. Once a performance/training objective has been set, progress will be reviewed on a regular basis so that new objectives can be agreed. • To contribute to public health campaigns (e.g. flu clinics) through advice or direct care. • To maintain a clean, tidy, effective working area at all times. In addition to the primary responsibilities, the pharmacist may be requested to: • Support delivery of QOF, ICB incentive schemes, QIPP and other quality or cost effectiveness initiatives. • Agree and review prescribing protocols and/or practice policies and monitor compliance levels. • Analyse prescribing or long-term condition data using tools like ePACT, Eclipse or EMIS etc • Support care co-coordinators if needed with clinical queries related to long-term conditions • Undertake any tasks consistent with the level of the post and the scope of the role, ensuring that work is delivered in a timely and effective manner. Confidentiality: • In the course of seeking treatment, patients entrust us with, or allow us to gather, sensitive information in relation to their health and other matters. They do so in confidence and have the right to expect that staff will respect their privacy and act appropriately. • Information relating to patients, carers, colleagues, other healthcare workers or the business of the practice may only be divulged to authorised persons in accordance with the practice policies and procedures relating to confidentiality and the protection of personal and sensitive data.