Band 3 Pharmacy Assistant Technical Officer

Job overview

**Candidates who have interviewed for this post within the last three months should not reapply.**

The post holder will be responsible for the supply of pharmaceuticals within pharmacy, wards, units and community clinics.

The post holder will be responsible for the daily receiving and checking of pharmaceutical items and the dispensing of medicines.

The post holder will be part of a Pharmacy Team who will provide a range of pharmacy services on behalf of the Trust to its patients and customers. Work will be undertaken following departmental Standard Operating Procedures (SOP’s) and under the supervision of the Head of Pharmacy. Liaises with: patients and their representatives; technicians; pharmacists; ward managers; nurses; doctors; buying office staff; porters; UHB Pharmacy

Main duties of the job

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Main Duties

• To participate in the daily ward stock supply service, including controlled drugs, to wards and departments as necessary establishing and maintaining a communication link between Pharmacy and the wards/units served.
• To receive deliveries, check stock and receipt.
• To make-up supply orders for the community-based clinics.
• To accurately supply controlled drugs on request from clinical areas and for discharge / outpatient prescriptions, on a daily basis in accordance with departmental procedures and in compliance with related legislation regarding record keeping, storage and transportation of controlled drugs.
• To maintain and replenish the out of hour’s emergency supplies by issuing medicines to the appropriate wards. Carrying out daily stock checks to identify items taken, recording and monitoring the refrigerator temperatures to ensure storage conditions are within the defined parameters. Replace short dated medicines where appropriate to minimise wastage.
• To maintain and replenish the emergency drugs on wards and keeping a record of when emergency drugs are reaching expiry for replacement.
• To store and distribute medicines in accordance with manufacturers and local guidelines ensuring;
• Good stock rotation
• Daily maintenance and monitoring of appropriate storage environment e.g. fridge, room temperatures
• Restricting the availability of defined medicines e.g. controlled drugs, high cost drugs
• To assess surplus medicines returned from clinical areas on a daily basis against a defined criteria and where suitable return into stock for re-use.
• To dispose of waste products according to the Trust waste policy including appropriate handling of corrosive materials, cytotoxics and flammable substances.
• To participate in the programme to regularly review ward and departmental stock lists in order to reduce waste and ensure appropriate supply of medicines. This involves evaluating the stock used over a set period of time and calculating the stock levels accordingly. This process is ongoing.
• To issue and supply stock items daily to appropriate areas ensuring stock rotation, suitability for use, packaging and labelling are correct.
• To identify stock shortages and place orders communicating with the Acute Unit staff regarding urgency and availability.
• To interpret and dispense prescriptions on a patient specific basis for discharge, outpatients and in patients under the supervision of the pharmacist/checking-technician . Ensuring the work is carried out to a high degree of accuracy, safely and efficiently following current standard operating procedures of the department on a daily basis, under supervision of the Pharmacist or Checking Technician.
• To input prescription data into the pharmacy computer system ensuring high levels of accuracy.
• To use a variety of communication techniques appropriate to circumstances preventing barriers to understanding in order to provide advice to patients on the medicine supply, estimating waiting times, arranging for items to be ordered/delivered. To assist patients in obtaining necessary medicine supplies e.g. liaising between the doctor and the patient to ensure that prescriptions are available where appropriate. To respect the patient’s confidentiality and the sensitive nature of information. Confirming the patients understanding.
• To plan own work, liaising with manager to ensure appropriate management of dispensary work.
• To successfully complete, or have completed, a dispensing accuracy assessment to demonstrate competency in dispensing accurately and safely on an ongoing basis.
• To answer the telephone promptly and politely where appropriate throughout the working day. Dealing with query/information and responding promptly. Relaying complete and accurate information. Recognising self-limitations and referring to appropriate person
• To conduct reception duties when required during the day, in a polite, pleasant and professional manner to receive and issue prescriptions in accordance with departmental procedures
• To effectively communicate issues relating to medicine supply to services, members of the Pharmacy Team, patients, carers or other healthcare professions within the trust and other external organisations using a appropriate tools and techniques and checking understanding.
• To take action to ensure outstanding medications orders to wards or patients are followed up and supply made within a suitable time frame. To take appropriate action where long term delays are identified.
• To take appropriate daily action to ensure medication requiring delivery is sent to individual patients using a suitable method e.g. registered post, courier. Give consideration to safe transportation of medication, storage requirements and urgency.
• To demonstrate an ongoing commitment to continuing professional development (CPD) by maintaining a portfolio of evidence.
• To undertake, complete and pass mandatory and recommended training programmes.
• To carry out record keeping and data collection data for audit purposes.
• To comply with requirements of statutory regulations, including Medicines Act, Misuse of Drugs Act and Regulations, Health and Safety at Work Act, COSHH, etc and local operating procedures to ensure that the work is to a high standard (accurate).
• To maintain the security of the department at all times.

We are a small, friendly forward thinking team that is currently expanding, providing a ward based pharmacy service. Patient experience and safety is at the centre of everything we do.

Support, mentoring and further training will be provided to the successful candidate by the Head Pharmacist and team members, to ensure that you fulfil your potential in this new challenging role. You will be actively encouraged to contribute to service development and quality improvement.

Applicant requirements

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.