Job overview
Band 8A Lead Pharmacist – VTE & Stroke
We are looking for an enthusiastic and forward-thinking clinical pharmacist to join our Pharmacy team as Lead Pharmacist – VTE & Stroke.
This is an exciting opportunity to lead and develop specialist pharmacy services for venous thromboembolism (VTE) prevention, anticoagulation stewardship and stroke medicines optimisation across the Trust. Working as part of a multidisciplinary team, you will play a key role in improving patient safety, driving evidence-based practice and delivering high-quality, patient-centred care.
As an Independent Prescriber, you will provide advanced clinical care for patients with complex needs, contribute to specialist clinics and multidisciplinary meetings, and support the development of integrated stroke and thrombosis pathways. You will also lead quality improvement, clinical audit, guideline development and education, helping to shape and enhance services across the organisation.
This role offers an excellent opportunity for an experienced clinical pharmacist looking to develop their leadership skills while making a tangible impact on patient outcomes and the future of pharmacy services. You will work closely with colleagues across pharmacy, medicine, nursing and the wider healthcare system to deliver innovative, safe and effective medicines optimisation.
Main duties of the job
To provide highly specialist clinical pharmacy leadership for venous thromboembolism (VTE) prevention, anticoagulation and stroke services across the Trust.
The post holder will lead the development, implementation and evaluation of anticoagulation stewardship, stroke medicines optimisation and VTE prevention programmes, ensuring safe, effective, evidence-based and cost-effective use of anticoagulant and thrombolytic therapies.
The post holder will work as an independent prescriber, providing advanced pharmaceutical care, participating in clinics and multidisciplinary team meetings, and supporting the delivery of high-quality stroke and VTE care pathways.
The post holder will provide strategic leadership for anticoagulation governance, VTE prevention, hospital-acquired thrombosis investigations, stroke medicines management, guideline development, audit, quality improvement and education.
The post holder will support the lead in the development, delivery and continuous improvement of pharmacy services across Stroke medicine.
They will also act as a member of the pharmacy clinical leadership group and contribute to the strategic development of pharmacy services within the Trust.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please refer to the attached Job Description and Personal Specification for further details of the job role.
Person specification
Skills & abilities
Essential
- Strong clinical decision-making skills, with the ability to manage complex patients and optimise prescribing (A/I)
- Ability to prioritise and manage a complex workload within a fast-paced, high-pressure clinical environment (A/I)
- Effective communication skills, with the ability to convey complex clinical information to patients and multidisciplinary teams (A/I)
- Ability to influence and negotiate with clinical and operational colleagues (A/I)
- Strong organisational skills with the ability to coordinate clinical and service priorities (A/I)
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to use clinical judgement and data to inform decisions (A/I)
- Experience of delivering education or training sessions to multidisciplinary teams (A/I)
Desirable
- Experience of using data, metrics or digital tools to support service improvement or patient flow (A/I)
- Leadership skills appropriate to a senior clinical role (A/I)
- Ability to independently assess, prescribe and manage patients within specialist clinics (A/I)
Knowledge and Experience
Essential
- Significant post-registration hospital pharmacy experience (A/I)
- Experience of working as an independent prescriber within a clinical setting (A/I)
- Experience of leading guideline, SOP, PGD or pathway development (A/I)
- Experience of working within multidisciplinary teams to deliver patient care (A/I)
- Experience of clinical governance, including incident reporting, investigation, audit and risk management (A/I)
- Experience of contributing to service development, quality improvement, or implementation of new ways of working (A/I)
- Experience of supporting, supervising, or mentoring junior staff (A/I)
- Experience of line management, supervision, or mentoring of staff (A)
- Experience of anticoagulation stewardship and VTE prevention
- Experience of working within stroke services (A/I)
Desirable
- Experience of managing or coordinating clinical pharmacy services or workload (A/I)
- Experience of working across primary–secondary care interfaces (A/I)
- Experience of involvement in research, audit, or practice-based publication (A/I)
- Awareness of emerging developments in advanced therapies and genomics (A/I)
- Experience managing cost improvement projects related to medicines (A/I)
- Involvement or experience presenting at regional or national conferences or professional forums (A/I)
Education, qualifications & training
Essential
- MPharm degree or equivalent (A)
- Registered Pharmacist with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) (A)
- Postgraduate clinical pharmacy qualification (Diploma/MSc or equivalent experience) (A)
- Independent Prescriber Qualification (A)
Desirable
- Membership of the Royal College of Pharmacy, UKCPA or equivalent (A)
- Postgraduate qualification or training in leadership, education, or clinical practice (A)
- Training in quality improvement or service development methodologies (e.g. Lean, QI, PRINCE-2) (A)
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Applying for this NHS job
This advert is for Lead Pharmacist – VTE & Stroke with Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust in Reading, South East, England. It is listed as a Band 8 Pharmacist role. The advertised salary is £57,528 - £64,750 per annum. The contract type is Permanent. The application deadline is 21 Jul 2026.
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