Associate Chief Pharmacist - Aseptic Services

Job overview

The Associate Chief Pharmacist for Aseptic Services is a senior pharmacy leader responsible for the strategic, operational, professional and financial management of aseptic services across King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. Reporting directly to the Chief Pharmacist, the postholder leads the delivery and development of a highly specialised, high-risk and regulated service that supports frontline patient care through the provision of chemotherapy, immunotherapy, parenteral nutrition, CIVAS and aseptically prepared medicines across multiple hospital sites.

The role provides expert leadership to ensure aseptic services operate safely, efficiently and in compliance with GMP, GCP and Trust governance standards. The postholder is accountable for service quality, risk management, workforce planning, business continuity, service improvement and quality assurance systems, ensuring patients have uninterrupted access to critical medicines and treatments.

The postholder also has responsibility for budget management, business case development, capital planning, commissioning and validation of facilities and equipment, and delivery of efficient, sustainable services. This role is essential to maintaining patient safety, regulatory compliance, service resilience and the continued provision of high-quality Aseptic Services across the Trust.

If you have applied for this role in the last 3 months, please refrain from re-submitting your application.

Main duties of the job

• Provide strategic, operational and professional leadership for Pharmacy Aseptic Services across King's College Hospital, ensuring safe, effective and sustainable service delivery.
• Lead and develop the Trust's aseptic services, including chemotherapy, immunotherapy, parenteral nutrition (PN), CIVAS and aseptically manufactured products.
• Ensure compliance with all relevant legislation, Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP), Good Clinical Practice (GCP), quality assurance standards, Health and Safety requirements and external regulatory expectations.
• Provide expert professional advice to the Chief Pharmacist on aseptic services, facilities, equipment, workforce, governance and service development.
• Develop and implement strategic plans to support service growth, innovation, capacity management and future patient care requirements.
• Lead, manage and develop the multidisciplinary aseptic workforce, including recruitment, appraisal, training, competency assessment, succession planning and performance management.
• Ensure robust business continuity and capacity planning arrangements are in place to maintain uninterrupted access to critical patient treatments and medicines.
• Manage delegated budgets, monitor expenditure and identify opportunities for service efficiencies and financial sustainability.
• Oversee the commissioning, qualification, validation and ongoing performance of aseptic facilities.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

The Associate Chief Pharmacist for Aseptic Services provides senior strategic, professional and operational leadership for Pharmacy Aseptic Services across King's College Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. Reporting to the Chief Pharmacist, the postholder is responsible for the safe, effective and compliant delivery of aseptic services across multiple hospital sites, supporting the provision of chemotherapy, immunotherapy, parenteral nutrition (adult, paediatric and neonatal), CIVAS and other aseptically prepared medicines that are critical to patient care.

The postholder leads the development and implementation of the Trust's aseptic services strategy, ensuring services remain responsive to clinical demand, organisational priorities and national developments. They provide expert advice to the Chief Pharmacist and senior clinical and operational colleagues on all aspects of aseptic services, quality assurance, governance, workforce planning and service development.

A key responsibility is ensuring full compliance with relevant legislation, Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP), Good Clinical Practice (GCP), quality assurance standards, health and safety requirements and regulatory expectations. The postholder is accountable for maintaining robust quality systems, managing risk, overseeing audit and inspection readiness, investigating incidents and implementing continuous quality improvement initiatives.

The postholder is responsible for managing delegated budgets, monitoring financial performance and identifying opportunities to improve efficiency and value. They lead the development of business cases, capital investment programmes and service transformation projects, including the commissioning, qualification and validation of aseptic facilities and equipment.

As a member of the Pharmacy Management Team, the Associate Chief Pharmacist contributes to the wider strategic direction of pharmacy services and works collaboratively with clinical teams, senior managers, regional partners and external stakeholders to improve patient outcomes and service performance. The postholder also leads research, audit and innovation within aseptic services and supports regional collaborative working to ensure the continued delivery of safe, high-quality and sustainable aseptic services.

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.