A Vacancy at Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
This post offers the opportunity to work in a key role in a small dynamic team to deliver a high quality clinical pharmacy service to the Oxford Heart Centre. You will work in the specialist areas of cardiology, cardiac and thoracic surgery as well as cardiothoracic critical care.
Building on your foundation knowledge, experience and skills, you will be working in a small and dynamic team to deliver compassionate excellence. As a specialist pharmacist you will grow in all four pillars of practice in order to prepare for an advanced practice role.
Main duties of the job
Overall Objectives
• To participate in, develop and provide clinical pharmacy services to the Cardiology, Cardiac & Thoracic Directorate with specific
responsibility for clinical services to the cardiology wards including the acute cardiac care unit and the cardio-thoracic ward on a
rotational basis.
• To support the cardio-thoracic critical care pharmacist and provide clinical pharmacy cover services as required.
• To provide clinical pharmacy support to the cardiology day case unit and cardiac angiography suite as required depending on the
development of pharmacy services to this clinical area
• To promote and ensure the safe and effective use of medicines within the directorate to achieve high standards of medicines related
aspects of patient care.
• To encourage the cost-effective use of medicines and to improve the quality of pharmaceutical care for patients.
• To provide specialised professional and technical education to enable the clinical units to meet high standards of patient care and
safety.
• To be an active member of the pharmacy department and the specialist directorate pharmacy team and ensure continuous two-way
exchange of information to maintain high standards of medicines use within the Trust.
Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trustis one of the largest NHS teaching trusts in the country. It provides a wide range of general and specialist clinical services and is a base for medical education, training and research. The Trust comprises four hospitals - the John Radcliffe Hospital, Churchill Hospital and Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre in Headington and the Horton General Hospital in Banbury.
Our values, standards and behaviours define the quality of clinical care we offer and the professional relationships we make with our patients, colleagues and the wider community.
We call this Delivering Compassionate Excellence and its focus is on our values of compassion, respect, learning, delivery, improvement and excellence.
These values put patients at the heart of what we do and underpin the quality healthcare we would like for ourselves or a member of our family. Watch how we set out to deliver compassionate excellence via theOUH YouTube channel.
Specialist Clinical Pharmacist: Clinical Practice Role:
• To provide and develop a comprehensive, highly specialised clinical pharmacy service to the cardiology and cardiac and thoracic surgical wards:
◦ Individual prescription review to optimise therapy
◦ Confirmation of the patient’s medication history
◦ Advice on dosage, side-effects, cautions and monitoring required
◦ Advise on administration of medicines
◦ Appropriate and clear endorsing of prescriptions to ensure safe practice
◦ Monitor the effect and appropriateness of medication
◦ Education of patients on their medication
◦ Involvement in discharge planning and provision of discharge medication
• To provide clinical pharmacy support to other ward areas within the Trust as appropriate on a reciprocal basis.
• To ensure medicines are used appropriately, safely and cost-effectively in accordance with Trust policy, standard operating procedures
and medicines legislation.
• To monitor the use of medicines within the ward areas. This includes recording of significant clinical interventions and involvement in
risk management issues which includes recording and investigating clinical incidents/near misses.
• Ensure compliance with medicines legislation and local policies
• To use available information to influence prescribers and ensure the most cost-effective choice of therapy in accordance with guidelines
as appropriate.
• To participate in ward rounds and clinical meetings as appropriate in order to provide pharmaceutical advice to prescribers and other
health care professionals.
• To ensure accurate patient medication records are updated and maintained electronically.
• To work closely with the ward-based technicians, where available, in providing ward-based pharmacy services.
• To liaise with external agencies to ensure safe, timely and appropriate supply of medicines to patients e.g. Baxter, Homecare
companies etc., where appropriate.
• To participate in ward-based clinical and safe storage of medicine audits.
• To tutor rotational clinical pharmacists undertaking a Diploma in clinical pharmacy and other pharmacists including foundation
pharmacists and to act as a role model and mentor for other pharmacists within the team and within pharmacy.
• To develop personal practice research in accordance with the Trust and pharmacy strategy.
• To contribute to local, national and international specialist interest groups and conferences/meetings.
• To become a non-medical prescriber and work as a non-medical prescriber within the directorate as appropriate
• To provide teaching for the pharmacy and directorate teams as required.
• To develop specialist knowledge and act as a knowledge base/resource for the specialist area and to keep up to date with current
trends and research in the specialist area.
• To work with the clinical pharmacy team to support the strategic developments of the service e.g. electronic prescribing, improved
discharge processes, accredited technician checking etc.
• Actively contribute to the planning and efficient co-ordination of clinical pharmacy initiatives including discharge planning, prescribing
protocols, pharmacists on consultant ward rounds etc
Interviewer information pack
• To contribute to and implement the clinical governance plans of the clinical area and the pharmacy as appropriate.
• To participate in dispensary, evening and weekend work as per rota allocation.
Specialist Clinical Pharmacist: Key Directorate Roles:
• To liaise with the pharmacy team lead and the rest of the multi-disciplinary team to ensure adherence to guidelines where appropriate.
• To identify, review and implement processes, polices and procedures that significantly improve the cost-effective use of medicines
within the directorate.
• To assist in the development and writing of medication related guidelines, in conjunction with the directorate and primary care
teams as appropriate.
• To work with the Directorate Lead Pharmacist on monitoring of prescribing and drug expenditure within the directorate,
and to give advice on cost containment where appropriate.
• To be involved in the preparation of new drug submissions for the Trust Medicines Management Therapeutic Committee (MMTC). To
provide resources to ensure safe implementation of new medicines/technology into clinical practice.
• To provide teaching and induction to new medical and nursing staff as required.
• To manage foundation pharmacist rotations within the cardiac team.
• To organise the clinical and dispensary rotas for the team.
• To manage team meetings within team.
Professional Role:
• To ensure confidentiality is always maintained.
• To be professionally accountable for actions and advice.
• To use experience and clinical judgment to assist in problem-solving and troubleshooting within the Pharmacy department.
• To give professional support to the site operational managers.
• To be aware of the training and competency assessment requirements of foundation pharmacists, diploma pharmacists and student
pharmacy technicians and to participate in their training and competency assessments as required.
• To support the dispensaries by participating in the screening and checking of prescriptions and dispensed items as part of the rostered
duties and as required.
• To participate in Continuous Professional Development.
• To participate in late duty, weekend and bank holiday working according to rotas.
• Any other reasonable duties as requested by the Clinical Director of Pharmacy and Sterile Services.
• To participate in any future 7 day working patterns should the pharmacy department change its current working patterns.
This advert closes on Tuesday 30 Jul 2024
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