Lead Dermatology Pharmacist

Job overview

This is a very exciting opportunity for an enthusiastic and experienced pharmacist to undertake the Lead  Dermatology Pharmacist post at Wexham Park Hospital.  At Wexham Park Hospital, services to the dermatology patients are provided through a team dedicated to delivering high standards of care. The post holder will work closely with colleagues in the dermatology team across Frimley Health, as well as colleagues in the ICS and community.

The post holder will lead the delivery of clinical pharmacy services to the dermatology team, including review of guidelines and processes, training of junior pharmacists and other MDTs, and extensive review of patient’s medication to ensure medication optimisation is practised. In addition, this post holder may be requested to hold clinics and support homecare prescribing.

The Trust has recently started using the new electronic patient record system EPIC, so the post holder will have the opportunity to review ways of working and work with the MDT team to improve processes and patients’ outcomes.

Main duties of the job

Main duties of this role include:

• Provision of clinical pharmacy services to the dermatology patients and clinics.
• Run clinics and co-ordinate homecare prescribing.
• To take an active role in committees relating to specialist area e.g. clinical governance committee
• To write and review dermatology guidelines and work with directorate pharmacist at Frimley Park Hospital to review and send communications about dermatology medicines.
• Provide clinical pharmacy services to other patients within the hospital

More details in the job description.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

• To work closely with the senior pharmacists, clinicians, nursing staff and other senior managers to develop pharmaceutical services to patients within the directorate.
• To ensure close relations cross-site with the pharmacy team at Wexham Park Hospital as well as Frimley Park Hospital
• To provide a clinical service to Dermatology Clinics & reviews at FHFT.
• Provide a clinical pharmacy service to specialised areas and a clinical pharmacy service to cover other areas when ward cover is needed. The service includes:

• assessing pharmaceutical care needs
• initiating and carrying out care plans
• medicines reconciliation and optimisation
• review for need of drug therapies, selection of appropriate drug therapies/doses / modification of existing therapies
• advice to doctors / other health care staff
• discharge planning
• counselling patients
• attending ward rounds as per departmental requirements, which may involve flexibility of start / finish time
• The service is according to departmental procedures and meets the minimum standards agreed with the Clinical Pharmacy Manager. The service provided will take current legislation into account.
• To fulfil the role of an Independent Prescribing Pharmacist within the individual’s area of competence, including medicines reconciliation on admission and prescribing of currently prescribed medicines on discharge.
• To help develop and promote suitable shared care arrangements for medicines between hospital and primary care by providing relevant information to patients and health care workers.
• To take an active role in committees relating to specialist area e.g. clinical governance committee
• Development of the Service
• To undertake research in own area of field. To lead on proposing policy or service changes and understanding it’s impact on other areas.
• Formulary and Guidelines.
• To ensure that drugs utilised within the directorate reflect the recommendations, the policies and formulary of Frimley Health and those of tertiary centres. To increase economic awareness within the area through directorate financial reports and to advise on cost effective prescribing..
• To produce drug evaluations for the DTC and MOB as requested by the Clinical Pharmacy Manager. To make recommendations to the directorate concerning the introduction and use of new drugs.
• To make recommendations to clinicians and pharmacy concerning drug supply problems relating to drugs used within areas of specialty according to pharmacy procedures.
• To work with clinicians and nurses to develop, implement and monitor the use of protocols within Dermatology to ensure the safe use and supply of medicines. This includes the development of protocols and advice to nursing.
• To support the maintenance of the Trust Drug Formulary, so it is accurate and up-to-date following decisions made at both the DTC and MOB meetings.
• In the absence of the Principal Pharmacists ensure that consultants, requesting new products / new users of existing drugs, are provided with the relevant information and request forms.
• In the absence of the Principal Pharmacists, to review Individual Prescribing applications, which are one-off requests for urgent medicines not normally held by the hospital. This involves obtaining background information relating to the request and liaising with the consultant requesting the new drug and the Chair of New Drugs and Formulary Committee.