Detailed job description and main responsibilities

1. CLINICAL RESPONSIBILITIES

• To lead (with the support of the clinical lead pharmacist post) the provision and development of a high-quality clinical pharmacy service as part of the multidisciplinary team to patients within cancer, palliative care and the LSD unit, to ensure maximum efficacy, safety and economic drug use and to demonstrate professional accountability to enhance patient care. The responsibilities will include:
• Regular attendance of consultant ward rounds and multidisciplinary team meetings
• Demonstration of expert specialist knowledge in the field of cancer, palliative care
• Delivery of a high quality, specialist ward-based pharmacy service. This involves taking medication histories from patients admitted to the wards, clarifying inconsistencies with the patient’s GP or Community Pharmacist, ensuring appropriate use of patients’ own drugs brought from home, drug supply, review of highly complex medication regimens, clarification of medication changes made during inpatient stay by liaising with the medical team, drug interaction and adverse drug reaction monitoring, discharge planning and rapid turnaround of TTAs, full medication counselling to patients, and assessment for appropriateness of compliance aids to assist patients’ medication needs.
• Provision of pharmacy-led cancer outpatient clinics including prescribing, review, verification, optimisation and monitoring of systemic anti-cancer medicines (SACT)
• Provision of expert prescribing advice in the specialist area, including selection, adverse events and dosage adjustment in specialist areas where limited or conflicting information is available. This advice may be challenged.
• Promotion of high-quality cost-effective prescribing
• Leading the development and ensuring adherence to evidence based prescribing guidelines / protocols within cancer services
• Making evidence-based decisions, in partnership with patients and other professionals within the specialist area
• Development and review of Patient Group Directions
• Development and review of Shared Care guidelines
• To participate in drug usage reviews
• Development of relevant patient information leaflets which complement licensed product information
• In conjunction with the clinicians and managers, ensure compliance with CQC medicines related outcomes, NICE technology appraisals and other government initiatives and national policy.
• To liaise and work with other specialist pharmacists to share the best practice, to strengthen patient focused pharmaceutical care.
• To liaise with the palliative care pharmacist at Marie Curie Hospice Hampstead on pharmaceutical issues and to provide expert advice on aspects of symptom control and pain relief as appropriate.

3. RESPONSIBILITY FOR PATIENTS
   • To manage own caseload and work as an independent prescriber in cancer clinics, prescribing and optimising SACT
   • To demonstrate an advanced level of clinical assessment – including assessment of cancer patients to ensure chemotherapy is prescribed safely and responses to treatment are documented appropriately. To know when to refer patients to a senior clinician for review.
   • To provide clinical screening support for the supply of chemotherapy medicines including ensuring:
     • Anti-cancer treatment prescribing is in accordance with an approved protocol or ensuring an ‘off-protocol’ form has been completed
     • Anti-cancer treatment is in accordance with NICE / CDF guidelines or criteria for use
     • Funding arrangements are in place prior to commencing treatment
     • Doses are correct, taking into account laboratory results, dose reductions and previous treatments
     • Appropriate supportive medicines have been prescribed
   • To provide patient-facing medicines advice and counselling service to cancer patients where appropriate to enhance understanding of medicines prescribed.
   • To contribute towards ensuring a high-quality patient experience within the cancer setting.
   • To deal effectively with situations where medication errors have occurred, including liaising directly with patients and staff concerned.
   • To lead in responding to complaints from patients and the public in relation to medicines management issues within cancer services as required.
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4. RESPONSIBILITY FOR POLICY AND SERVICE DEVELOPMENT

• To lead on the continuing development of policies and procedures to ensure that cancer services comply with existing legal requirements and best practice in the field and requirements of the Care Quality Commission.
• To be responsible for providing expert advice to senior pharmacy, clinical and management staff regarding the pharmaceutical aspects of network and national standards (e.g. North Central London Cancer Alliance/ BOPA) and guidelines relating to cancer and to ensure these are met or implemented
• To lead in maintaining records of chemotherapy regimens used outside the agreed list and present this on a regular basis to the Local Chemotherapy Group.
• To lead on the production and implementation of business plans for the development of the pharmacy service provided to the cancer services in line with local oncology clinical strategy.
• To audit the service provided with the aim of improving the service provided by the pharmacy cancer team