Advanced Specialist Mental Health Pharmacist (Maple Ward)

Job overview

We are seeking an experienced, dedicated and hardworking Mental Health Pharmacist to join our Clinical Pharmacy Team, providing specialist services to the Acute and Urgent Care Service Line. This is an exciting opportunity to work within an innovative, award‑winning pharmacy team that is forward thinking and at the forefront of using technology to support the medicines optimisation agenda and improve patient outcomes.

The post holder will provide highly specialist clinical pharmacy input to mental health services, offering expert advice on the safe and effective use of medicines to clinical staff, service users and carers. A key aspect of the role involves contributing to medicines safety work, including incident management, risk reduction and quality improvement initiatives. The post holder will also support the senior pharmacy leadership team and play an active role in the ongoing development and transformation of pharmacy services within the service line, as well as contributing to Trust‑wide and Integrated Care System medicines optimisation priorities.

The role requires a strong clinical background in mental health pharmacy, alongside an innovative, flexible and proactive approach to service delivery and service improvement. Higher postgraduate qualifications in clinical pharmacy are essential, and a postgraduate certificate in psychiatric therapeutics and a non‑medical prescribing qualification are highly desirable.

Main duties of the job

• To deliver an advanced comprehensive medicines optimisation service to patients and the multidisciplinary treatment team responsible for their care.
• To provide input into policy and procedures affecting the use of pharmaceuticals at both local and trust wide levels.
• To liaise with Trust pharmacy staff to support an effective dispensing and supply service.
• To deputise for the Lead Acute & Urgent care Pharmacist which may include attending senior meetings.
• To act as a key member of the multidisciplinary team and provide expert advice to clinical teams across the organisation
• To be involved in the initiation and on-going support of audits, projects and innovations within the A&UC Service Line, using QII methodology.
• To support Trust staff to effectively use pharmacological interventions to manage violence and aggression.
• To develop and deliver formal training on pharmacological interventions in acute mental health conditions for nursing, medical and pharmacy staff.
• To be able to critically appraise the literature and give accurate interpretation in order to improve the use of medicines.
• To provide safe, clinically effective and cost effective use of drugs in patients within the agreed borough/service area(s).
• To reduce risk associated with medicines use by contributing to the safe medication practice agenda.  This will include identification and reporting of medicines related incidents.
• Where qualified to be practice as an independent prescriber within their scope of practice.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please see the attached Job Description and Person Specification for full details on what this role entails.