Band 5 Mental Health Medicines Optimisation Pharmacy Technician

Job summary

Are you a Pharmacy Technician who is passionate about delivering high quality medicines optimisation services? If so, AWP are looking for a forward-thinking, enthusiastic and knowledgeable Technician to join our team.

This is a brand new role with the main purpose to work closely with the Clinical Lead Pharmacists and Lead Medicines Optimisation Technician to contribute fully to medicines optimisation activities within community mental health teams, work to appropriate clinical standards and develop the service in line with local and national strategies and standards.

This particular post is based in the East side of the Trust in BaNES, Swindon and Wiltshire. The base is negotiable based on location.

PS: Applicants without a recognised Medicines Optimisation qualification will be considered at a band 4 grade whilst completing training.

Main duties of the job

Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust (AWP) is a significant provider of high quality mental health services across a core catchment area covering Bath and North East Somerset (BaNES), Bristol, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Swindon and Wiltshire.

The Trust provides services for people with mental health needs, with needs relating to drug or alcohol dependency and mental health services for people with learning disabilities. Increasingly these services are delivered in community settings. Our community services are supported by inpatient units that provide short term assessment, treatment and care.

The AWP pharmacy service supplies medication and provides clinical support to wards and teams across our core catchment area. We have two dispensaries: one in Calne (Wiltshire) and one at Callington Road Hospital (Bristol). As well as managing the medicines supply chain in the trust, we support the safe and effective use of medicines throughout the organisation through our clinical work, enquiry answering, medicines governance activity and many other roles.

About us

We are AWP (Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust) a diverse organisation with over 5,000 dedicated staff providing inpatient and community-based mental health care.

We provide services from a range of locations to approximately million people living in Bath and North East Somerset (BaNES), Bristol, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Swindon, across the county of Wiltshire and in parts of Dorset.

Our outstanding people promote mental health and wellbeing. The expertise and resources within AWP are dedicated to a person-centred approach for those who use our services and for all employees. We recognise that happy and fulfilled employees give better care.

At AWP we actively encourage applicants from all backgrounds; we are particularly keen to encourage applications from people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, those with disabilities and from the LGBTQ+ community. We want people to bring their unique blend of experiences, backgrounds, perspectives and knowledge to AWP, as diversity makes us stronger.

Job description

Job responsibilities

The AWP pharmacy service employs approximately 60 staff. There are two Technician-led dispensaries in the Trust (one in Bristol, and one in Calne, Wiltshire), and clinical pharmacy teams embedded in the locality ward/community team bases. Each locality has a locality lead pharmacist, clinical pharmacists and medicines optimisation technicians. As well as managing the medicines supply chain in the trust, we support the safe and effective use of medicines throughout the organisation through our clinical work, enquiry answering, medicines governance activity and many other roles. The team are friendly, dynamic and evolving, with aspirations to improve patient care across the AWP geography.

Please read the full job description, person specification for the role to ensure you meet the essential criteria.

Person Specification

Education and Qualifications

Essential

Registered with the General Pharmaceutical Council as a Pharmacy Technician

Recognised, current Accuracy Checking Technician qualification

Nationally recognised, current Medicines Optimisation Technician qualification

Desirable

Advanced Medicines Optimisation Training Unit (Clinical Prioritisation) or equivalent advanced clinical diploma

Experience and Knowledge

Essential

Excellent communication and organisational skills

Excellent time management skills

IT literate, including Microsoft Office

Desirable

Experience in a hospital pharmacy or equivalent position

Experience of working in a mental health setting

Experience of clinical audit

Skills and Abilities

Essential

Ability to react to and manage the changing situation within the service on a daily basis and motivate and inform staff accordingly

Able to deal professionally with both staff and patients when dealing with sensitive information

Innovative and self-motivated

Desirable

Quality improvement/project management abilities

Other requirements

Essential

Car driver or to be mobile with the facility to move quickly across a geographically dispersed area with limited access to public transport