Job Description

Closing date - 16 May 2025

Job summary

Pontefract & Knottingley PCN is looking to recruit additional Pharmacy Technicians to join our existing team. The current team, lead by the lead Pharmacy Technician, have built excellent working relationships between themselves and colleagues across the PCN, practices and colleagues from other PCNs. This is an exciting time to join Primary Care and help shape the future of patient care at the first points of contact.

Our PCN is made up of four GP Practices; Ashgrove Medical Centre, Friarwood Medical Centre, Northgate Medical Centre, and Stuart Road Medical Centre in the east of the district located across Pontefract and Knottingley and serving a population of approximately 49,000 registered patients.

Main duties of the job

The Pharmacy Technician will work closely with the PCN Pharmacy Team, Care Home Team, GPs, and other members of the PCN and practices. They will work within a pharmacy team with support and guidance from the Pharmacy Technician Lead and other pharmacy technicians to provide safe patient centred care.

Respond to medication related queries and acute prescription requests within their competency, and medicines reconciliation following discharge from another care provider.

To provides direct support to the PCN Care Home Team regarding medication queries.

To provide specialist pharmaceutical technical services, professional advice and direct support to Practice GPs, Nurses, Pharmacist, HCAs, and Reception/Administrative Staff

To liaise with patients, clinical and non-clinical staff, practice, hospital and community pharmacists and patient's carers to improve the pharmaceutical care of patients.

To develop the role of the Practice Pharmacy Technician to maximise support to all Clinical and Non-clinical practice staff to improve patient care in relation to all aspects of medicines and their impact.

To provide professional specialist medicines advice to GPs, Nurse Practitioners, Practice Nurses, Community Pharmacists, Community Nurses, and other health professionals to promote the safe, effective and high-quality, cost-effective use of medicines in all prescribing decisions for the benefit of the Practice's patients

About us

Conexus Healthcare Limited is the Confederation for general practice in Wakefield, we have four areas of work.

1. Delivery of high-quality public facing Health and Wellbeing services across the Wakefield District: We develop, manage, and deliver health and care services that support the population of the whole Wakefield district

2. Delivery of Training, Development and Consultancy support across the United Kingdom: We design and deliver a range of training courses, development activity and provide advice and guidance that supports general practices and other primary care organisations.

3. Supporting Our Practices and Primary Care Networks (PCNs): We support general practices and PCNs across the Wakefield district to be more resilient, sustainable and deliver better patient care and care for the health needs of their populations.

4. Providing a voice and influence for General Practice in the Health and Care System: We provide a forum to develop a unified voice for General Practice and support general practices to cooperate and work collaboratively with the wider health and care sector partners in the district.

Built within primary care, for primary care, Conexus Healthcare Limited works with local GPs and their practices to champion investment in and deliver effective primary care at scale. By connecting in this way, we are stronger, more resilient and can care effectively for over 370,000 local people together.

Job description

Job responsibilities

To act as a Technical Pharmacy Advisor to Practice Clinicians To advise Practice Management and other non-clinical staff concerning administrative aspects of medicines management as appropriate To manage repeat prescription requests, resolving queries where possible and producing prescriptions for clinical review and signature To address the following areas without the need to consult a GP/Clinical Pharmacist in each case (although clinical support and advice will always be available if required):
-Review dates following medication reviews.
-Facilitate and document correct addition & removal of medications following receipt of a discharge summaries, secondary care, and community clinic letters.
-Tidying repeat medication lists - including synchronising durations and removing medications not ordered within a defined period.
-Changing acute medications to repeat where appropriate- e.g. A new medication that a GP/Pharmacist Prescriber has commenced and there is subsequently evidence for the need for the item on a repeat basis and necessary tests/checks have confirmed this
-Addition/Removal of Medication for Nursing Home patients under GP/Pharmacist Prescriber guidance
-Co-ordinate District Nurse Medication and Dressing requests for the practice population
-Co-ordinate medical device prescription requests, including requests for catheters, nutritional supplements/feeds, and stoma care products.

To work in conjunction with the nominated Clinicians who support Nursing Homes in the area Provide independent information to patients regarding medicines and prescribing changes, initiating further support from other healthcare professionals where appropriate To review practice stock management and develop systems to improve processes. Analyse Practice prescription data to produce reports as requested Participate in review and setting of policies relating to medicines management and prescribing Implement initiatives to reduce waste of prescribed medicines Support and influence the Practice Clinical, Management and Administrative Teams to implement procedural and service changes relating to prescribing to ensure best practice is adopted in accordance with local guidelines, legislation, directives, and safety updates e.g. NICE, MRHA etc. Duties may vary from time to time without changing the general character of the post or the level of responsibility
Person Specification

Skills & Knowledge

Essential

Excellent written and verbal communication skills Knowledge of pharmacy procedures Understanding of medicines legislation and ethics IT skills including MS Word and Excel Excellent time management skills Adaptable and quick to make relationships with new teams Flexible and cooperative Ability to identify risk and escalate appropriately Ability to maintain confidentiality Evidence of working autonomously or as part of a team
Desirable

Skills in analysing and presenting prescribing activity data SystmOne User
Experience

Essential

Medicines management or dispensing role in the community or within a hospital setting
Desirable

Policy/procedure development General Practice repeat prescribing systems
Other

Essential

An understanding, acceptance, and adherence to the need for strict confidentiality Able to work under pressure Hard working, reliable, honest, pleasant, and approachable Able to work autonomously with minimal supervision Independently mobile and able to travel across the district
Qualifications

Essential

NVQ Level 3 in Pharmacy Services or equivalent Registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) Evidence of Continued Professional Development
Desirable

Completion of CPPE primary care educational pathway.
Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Job Types: Full-time, Part-time

Pay: 28,229.00-30,843.00 per year

Work Location: In person

Reference ID: A0430-25-0012