• Job Description

  Req#: B0467-25-0032?language=en&page=393&sort=publicationDateDesc

  Job summary

  The East Lancashire Alliance is currently looking to recruit a Pharmacy Technician on behalf of the Hyndburn Rural PCN.

  This is a permanent position, full time preferred but would consider part time.

  Main duties of the job

  Pharmacy technicians play an important role, complementing clinical pharmacists, community pharmacists and other members of the PCN multi- disciplinary team. Pharmacy technicians are different to clinical pharmacists as they are not able to prescribe or make clinical decisions. Instead they provide key skills, working within the practice dispensary, to ensure the safe, effective & efficient handling of medicines.

  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 post holder will help patients to get the best from their medicines by switching medications to agreed and approved protocols, improving repeat prescribing processes in General Practice, including promotion of repeat dispensing and online ordering, minimising clinical risk and aiming to reduce wasted medicines.

  About us

  The East Lancashire Alliance is a network of 9 PCNs covering 48 GP practices covering a population of over 390,000 patients across East Lancashire. Patients are at the heart of everything we do and we pride ourselves in ensuring our patients feel safe, supported, communicated with and respected at a time when they may be feeling vulnerable. The Alliance are proud to represent our member practices and to champion our Primary Care Partners, by working with local general practice and other system partners in the provision of patient centred, local healthcare services. Each practice has a close-knit team of staff who collectively seek to improve the health of their patient populations. East Lancashire is one of the world's most innovative, original and exciting places to live and work. From the beauty of the surrounding countryside, to the heart of the vibrant inner Towns and Villages with great shopping, entertainment and dining options. Wherever you go you will experience a great northern welcome with people famed for their warmth, humour and generosity.

  Details

  Date posted

  15 May 2025

  Pay scheme

  Other

  Salary

  Depending on experience

  Contract

  Permanent

  Working pattern

  Full-time, Part-time

  Reference number

  B0467-25-0032

  Job locations

  Clayton Medical Centre

  Wellington Street

  Clayton Le Moors

  Accrington

  Lancashire

  BB5 5HU

  
  

  Doctors Surgery

  High Street

  Rishton

  Blackburn

  BB1 4LD

  
  

  Job description

  Job responsibilities

  Clinical Pharmacy in General Practice is part of an exciting programme of transformation to develop a new model of care which addresses our ambition to deliver person-centred, coordinated care across the district. The Clinical Pharmacy in General Practice model is supported by the direction of national policy including the Five Year Forward View and GP Forward View where there is a need to better utilise the role of pharmacy within primary care to pro-actively help patients stay safe and well and out of hospital as well as helping to reduce the demands on general practice.

  Pharmacy technicians play an important role, complementing clinical pharmacists, community pharmacists and other members of the PCN multi- disciplinary team. Pharmacy technicians are different to clinical pharmacists as they are not able to prescribe or make clinical decisions, instead working under supervision 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 post holder will help patients to get the best from their medicines by switching medications to agreed and approved protocols, improving repeat prescribing processes in General Practice, including promotion of repeat dispensing and online ordering, minimising clinical risk and aiming to reduce wasted medicines.

  In addition, the post holder will be responsible for encouraging the development of better understanding of the principles of medicines optimisation throughout the practice teams and promoting good practice in line with therapeutic developments. This will involve assisting the PCN in achieving national requirements, NICE implementation and utilisation of medicines optimisation initiatives.

  Key duties and responsibilities

  Clinical

  • Undertake patient facing and patient supporting roles to ensure effective medicines use, through shared decision-making conversations with patients.
  • Carry out medicines optimisation tasks including effective medicine administration (e.g. checking inhaler technique), supporting medication reviews and medicines reconciliation. Where required, utilise consultation skills to work in partnership with patients to ensure they use their medicines effectively.
  • As determined by the PCN, support medication reviews and medicines reconciliation for new care home patients and synchronising medicines for patient transfers between care settings, linking with local community pharmacies.
  • Support the Clinical Pharmacist in Structured Medication Reviews (SMR) i.e. organise necessary monitoring tests prior to SMR.
  • Provide expertise to address both the public health and social care needs of patients, including lifestyle advice, service information, and help in tackling local health inequalities.
  • Manage shared care protocols and liaise with Clinical Pharmacists for more complex patients.
  • Support initiatives for antimicrobial stewardship to reduce inappropriate antibiotic prescribing locally.
  • Technical and Administrative
  • Support the PCN multi-disciplinary team to ensure efficient medicines optimisation processes are being followed.
  • Implement efficient ordering and return processes and reducing medication wastage.
  • Provide training and support on the legal, safe and secure handling of medicines, including the implementation of the Electronic Prescription Service (EPS).
  • Promotion of Electronic Repeat Dispensing (eRD) and online ordering.
  • Develop relationships with other pharmacy professionals and members of the multi-disciplinary team to support integration across health and social care including primary care, community pharmacy, secondary care and mental health.
  • Support practice reception teams in streaming general prescription requests, so as to allow GPs and clinical pharmacists to review the more clinically complex requests.
  • Support the implementation of national prescribing policies and guidance within GP practices, care homes and other primary care settings.
  • Support the PCN to deliver on QIPP agenda, QOF and locally commissioned enhanced services.
  • Supporting quality improvement measures and contributing to the Quality and Outcomes Framework and enhanced services.
  • Support the PCN in reviewing and developing practice policies for CQC requirements.

  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 any training programme 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.
  • Taking responsibility for own development, learning and performance and demonstrating skills and activities to others who are undertaking similar work.

  Quality:

  The post-holder will strive to maintain quality within the practice, and will:

  • Alert other team members to issues of quality and risk.
  • Assess own performance and take accountability for own actions, either directly or under supervision.
  • Contribute to the effectiveness of the team by reflecting on own and team activities and making suggestions on ways to improve and enhance the teams performance.
  • Work effectively with individuals in other agencies to meet patients needs.
  • Effectively manage own time, workload and resources.

  Supervision

  The postholder will have access to appropriate clinical supervision and an appropriate named individual in the PCN to provide general advice and support on a day to day basis.

  Job description

  Job responsibilities

  Clinical Pharmacy in General Practice is part of an exciting programme of transformation to develop a new model of care which addresses our ambition to deliver person-centred, coordinated care across the district. The Clinical Pharmacy in General Practice model is supported by the direction of national policy including the Five Year Forward View and GP Forward View where there is a need to better utilise the role of pharmacy within primary care to pro-actively help patients stay safe and well and out of hospital as well as helping to reduce the demands on general practice.

  Pharmacy technicians play an important role, complementing clinical pharmacists, community pharmacists and other members of the PCN multi- disciplinary team. Pharmacy technicians are different to clinical pharmacists as they are not able to prescribe or make clinical decisions, instead working under supervision 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 post holder will help patients to get the best from their medicines by switching medications to agreed and approved protocols, improving repeat prescribing processes in General Practice, including promotion of repeat dispensing and online ordering, minimising clinical risk and aiming to reduce wasted medicines.

  In addition, the post holder will be responsible for encouraging the development of better understanding of the principles of medicines optimisation throughout the practice teams and promoting good practice in line with therapeutic developments. This will involve assisting the PCN in achieving national requirements, NICE implementation and utilisation of medicines optimisation initiatives.

  Key duties and responsibilities

  Clinical

  • Undertake patient facing and patient supporting roles to ensure effective medicines use, through shared decision-making conversations with patients.
  • Carry out medicines optimisation tasks including effective medicine administration (e.g. checking inhaler technique), supporting medication reviews and medicines reconciliation. Where required, utilise consultation skills to work in partnership with patients to ensure they use their medicines effectively.
  • As determined by the PCN, support medication reviews and medicines reconciliation for new care home patients and synchronising medicines for patient transfers between care settings, linking with local community pharmacies.
  • Support the Clinical Pharmacist in Structured Medication Reviews (SMR) i.e. organise necessary monitoring tests prior to SMR.
  • Provide expertise to address both the public health and social care needs of patients, including lifestyle advice, service information, and help in tackling local health inequalities.
  • Manage shared care protocols and liaise with Clinical Pharmacists for more complex patients.
  • Support initiatives for antimicrobial stewardship to reduce inappropriate antibiotic prescribing locally.
  • Technical and Administrative
  • Support the PCN multi-disciplinary team to ensure efficient medicines optimisation processes are being followed.
  • Implement efficient ordering and return processes and reducing medication wastage.
  • Provide training and support on the legal, safe and secure handling of medicines, including the implementation of the Electronic Prescription Service (EPS).
  • Promotion of Electronic Repeat Dispensing (eRD) and online ordering.
  • Develop relationships with other pharmacy professionals and members of the multi-disciplinary team to support integration across health and social care including primary care, community pharmacy, secondary care and mental health.
  • Support practice reception teams in streaming general prescription requests, so as to allow GPs and clinical pharmacists to review the more clinically complex requests.
  • Support the implementation of national prescribing policies and guidance within GP practices, care homes and other primary care settings.
  • Support the PCN to deliver on QIPP agenda, QOF and locally commissioned enhanced services.
  • Supporting quality improvement measures and contributing to the Quality and Outcomes Framework and enhanced services.
  • Support the PCN in reviewing and developing practice policies for CQC requirements.

  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 any training programme 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.
  • Taking responsibility for own development, learning and performance and demonstrating skills and activities to others who are undertaking similar work.

  Quality:

  The post-holder will strive to maintain quality within the practice, and will:

  • Alert other team members to issues of quality and risk.
  • Assess own performance and take accountability for own actions, either directly or under supervision.
  • Contribute to the effectiveness of the team by reflecting on own and team activities and making suggestions on ways to improve and enhance the teams performance.
  • Work effectively with individuals in other agencies to meet patients needs.
  • Effectively manage own time, workload and resources.

  Supervision

  The postholder will have access to appropriate clinical supervision and an appropriate named individual in the PCN to provide general advice and support on a day to day basis.

  Person Specification

  Experience

  Essential

  • Experience of working as a qualified, registered pharmacy technician in primary care, community or hospital pharmacy

  Desirable

  • Demonstrate ability to influence and persuade partners and stakeholders of the respective merits of different options, innovations, new opportunities and challenges

  Attributes

  Essential

  • Works effectively independently and as a member of a team
  • Flexible approach to meet service needs and ensure a stakeholder focused response
  • Self-motivated and proactive
  • Able to undertake the demands of the post with reasonable adjustments if required
  • Independently mobile to be able to work across several sites and travel to meet with stakeholders
  • Adaptability, flexibility and ability to cope with uncertainty and change

  Qualifications

  Essential

  • Professional registration with GPhC
  • Meets the specific qualification and training requirements as specified by the GPhC criteria to register as a Pharmacy Technician
  • Meets the specific qualification and training requirements as specified by the GPhC criteria to register as a Pharmacy Technician; c. enrolled in, undertaking or qualified from, an approved training pathway. For example, the Primary Care Pharmacy Educational Pathway (PCPEP) or Medicines Optimisation in Care Homes (MOCH);
  • Evidence of continued professional development (CPD)

  Desirable

  • BTEC/NVQ level 3 or equivalent in pharmaceutical sciences

  Skills

  Essential

  • Computer literate with an ability to use the Microsoft office packages
  • Able to analyse and interpret prescribing data
  • Has 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
  • Able to think analytically; anticipating obstacles and thinking ahead; using analytical techniques to draw logical solutions to problems
  • Excellent communication skills, verbal and written, with the ability to adjust communication style and content to suit the audience
  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills with team members, patients, carers, and other healthcare professionals. Whilst recognising peoples needs for alternative methods of communication

  Desirable

  • Computer literate with an ability to use the required GP clinical systems
  • Understand the aims of current healthcare policy within the PCN

  Person Specification

  Experience

  Essential

  • Experience of working as a qualified, registered pharmacy technician in primary care, community or hospital pharmacy

  Desirable

  • Demonstrate ability to influence and persuade partners and stakeholders of the respective merits of different options, innovations, new opportunities and challenges

  Attributes

  Essential

  • Works effectively independently and as a member of a team
  • Flexible approach to meet service needs and ensure a stakeholder focused response
  • Self-motivated and proactive
  • Able to undertake the demands of the post with reasonable adjustments if required
  • Independently mobile to be able to work across several sites and travel to meet with stakeholders
  • Adaptability, flexibility and ability to cope with uncertainty and change

  Qualifications

  Essential

  • Professional registration with GPhC
  • Meets the specific qualification and training requirements as specified by the GPhC criteria to register as a Pharmacy Technician
  • Meets the specific qualification and training requirements as specified by the GPhC criteria to register as a Pharmacy Technician; c. enrolled in, undertaking or qualified from, an approved training pathway. For example, the Primary Care Pharmacy Educational Pathway (PCPEP) or Medicines Optimisation in Care Homes (MOCH);
  • Evidence of continued professional development (CPD)

  Desirable

  • BTEC/NVQ level 3 or equivalent in pharmaceutical sciences

  Skills

  Essential

  • Computer literate with an ability to use the Microsoft office packages
  • Able to analyse and interpret prescribing data
  • Has 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
  • Able to think analytically; anticipating obstacles and thinking ahead; using analytical techniques to draw logical solutions to problems
  • Excellent communication skills, verbal and written, with the ability to adjust communication style and content to suit the audience
  • Excellent verbal and written communication skills with team members, patients, carers, and other healthcare professionals. Whilst recognising peoples needs for alternative methods of communication

  Desirable

  • Computer literate with an ability to use the required GP clinical systems
  • Understand the aims of current healthcare policy within the PCN

  Disclosure and Barring Service Check

  This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

  Employer details

  Employer name

  East Lancashire Alliance

  Address

  Clayton Medical Centre

  Wellington Street

  Clayton Le Moors

  Accrington

  Lancashire

  BB5 5HU

  
  

  Employer's website

  https://eastlancashirealliance.co.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)

  Employer details

  Employer name

  East Lancashire Alliance

  Address

  Clayton Medical Centre

  Wellington Street

  Clayton Le Moors

  Accrington

  Lancashire

  BB5 5HU

  
  

  Employer's website

  https://eastlancashirealliance.co.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)

• About the company

  National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly-funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). The founding principles were that services should be comprehensive, universal and free at the point of delivery—a health service based on clinical need, not ability to pay. Each service provides a comprehensive range of health services, free at the point of use for people ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom apart from dental treatment and optical care.

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