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Job summary

Main area
Offender Healthcare
Grade
Band 3
Contract
Apprenticeship: 2 years
Hours
Full time - 37.5 hours per week
Job ref
277-6418917-CHAN
Employer
Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust
Employer type
NHS
Site
HMP Channings Wood
Town
Newton Abbot
Salary
£22,816 - £24,336 pa
Salary period
Yearly
Closing
11/07/2024 23:59

Employer heading

Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust logo

Pre-Registration Pharmacy Technician (Apprenticeship)

Band 3

Job overview

Are you ready to unlock your potential within a challenging, creative and fast paced work environment? Do you want to escape your current job role and work with people to build positive and productive lives, whatever their past? Now is the time to break into offender healthcare and develop your career.

We are currently looking for a compassionate, knowledgeable and motivated Pharmacy Technician Apprentice to join our friendly team at HMP Channings Wood

Our healthcare team have a real impact on promoting health and well-being to those in prison and we pride ourselves on using skills and strategies that instil hope for patients future resettlement back into the community. We directly deliver Mental Health, Physical Health, Pharmacy and Clinical Substance Misuse in an integrated healthcare delivery model to provide effective and responsive care to improve wellbeing and support better outcomes in the future.

As part of our pharmacy team, you will enjoy all the benefits of NHS AfC employment (inc pension) with the opportunity to work within a forward-thinking service, who encourage career and personal development to all staff to increase their clinical and interpersonal skills.

Main duties of the job

During this 2 year apprenticeship programme you will receive a comprehensive training programme delivered to NVQ3 level by enrolment with a recognised college of further education providing the NVQ3 in Pharmaceutical Sciences and supported within the working environment. Training will include:

  • Pharmaceutical Science
  • Pharmacy Practice (dispensing, distribution, procurement, counselling etc)
  • Pharmaceutics
  • Law and Ethics
  • Actions and Uses of Drugs
  • Disease Management

You will work under the supervision of our Senior Pharmacists and Regional Pharmacists and you will contribute towards the smooth and efficient running of the pharmacy service on site within the prison. This will include all aspects of stock control (routine ordering, receipt of goods, computer input, storage of medicines), dispensing clinically screened prescriptions and dispensing weekly/monthly in possession medication to patients. You will work out of Medication Administration Points (Meds hatches) on the wings and in the healthcare department, acting as the second checker for controlled drug administration. 

Applicants without NVQ L2 may be required to undertake this trainee programme first, prior to being enrolled on to the NVQ L3 course.

Please note, sponsorship cannot be provided for this role 

Working for our organisation

Oxleas offers a wide range of NHS healthcare services to people in community and secure environment settings. Our services include community health care such as district nursing and speech and language therapy, care for people with learning disabilities and mental health care such as psychiatry, nursing and therapies. Our multidisciplinary teams look after people of all ages and we work in close partnership with other parts of the NHS, local councils and the voluntary sector and through our new provider collaboratives. Our 4,300 members of staff work in many different settings including hospitals, clinics, prisons, secure hospitals, children’s centres, schools and people’s homes.

We have over 125 sites in a variety of locations in the South of England. In London we operate within the Boroughs of Bexley, Bromley Greenwich and into Kent. We manage hospital sites including Queen Mary’s Hospital, Sidcup and Memorial Hospital, Woolwich, as well as the Bracton Centre, our medium secure unit for people with mental health needs. We are the largest NHS provider of prison health services providing healthcare to prisons within Devon, Dorset, Bristol, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire, Kent and South London. We are proud of the care we provide and our people.

Our purpose is to improve lives by providing the best possible care to our patients and their families.  This is strengthened by our new values:

  • We’re Kind
  • We’re Fair
  • We Listen
  • We Care

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

  • Undertake NVQ3 training in line with defines objectives.
  • Participate in prison top-up/stock services.
  • Participate in stock control measures, including expiry date checks and stock rotation.
  • Ensure completion of daily monitoring records on a rotational basis.
  • Keep up to date and follow all relevant departmental procedures.
  • Participate in the induction of new staff.
  • Follow the relevant procedures for each rotation, including adherence to GDP, Orange guide and COSSH regulations etc. in order to deliver the service in a safe and effective manner.
  • Undertake any other duties as reasonably required by the Specialist Prison Services Pharmacist

 

Distribution

  • Deal with basic stock and top up queries.
  • Liaise with the relevant pharmacist to ensure Prisons have sufficient stock but not overordering and maintain an efficient ‘to-follow’ system.
  • Return to stock or dispose of all medicines returned from prisons, in line with local procedures.

 

Dispensary

  • Identify potential problems regarding the lack of availability of medicines for individual prescriptions, seeking advice on suitable alternatives or an agreed delivery timetable.
  • Ensure medication is dispensed to meet agreed delivery times.
  • Receive prescriptions from the Prison’s in accordance with dispensary procedures. Prioritise prescriptions according to urgency.
  • Deal with queries from prison healthcare staff and referring complex issues to senior staff members or responsible pharmacist for the prison.
  • Ensure stock levels of all products are accurate and support the appropriate ordering of stock through liaison with ordering personnel. Inaccuracies in all medicines should be investigated before being referred to line manager without delay.
  • Responsible for the maintenance of a specific area of the dispensary in order to make sure that medicines are stored appropriately and in-date.

 

Ordering and Invoicing

  • Process orders for medication supplies including assisting with sourcing urgent supplies.
  • Dealing with out of stock queries, liaising with the relevant staff as appropriate.
  • Investigate any stock discrepancies referring to a more senior member of staff when required.
  • Investigate manufacturers’ delays, update the list of delays and ensure all relevant staff are informed.
  • Book in deliveries of controlled drugs when they arrive to fulfil legislative requirements.
  • Receive and check goods (NB manual handling and sometimes heavy lifting involved)
  • Safely store goods in the appropriate areas of the pharmacy

     

IMPORTANT INFORMATION, PLEASE READ:

All applicants must be willing to undertake National Security Vetting in order to work in a Prison Setting. This will be completed as part of the pre-employment checks through Oxleas and the prison vetting team.  

 

You will need to provide: 

Proof of right to work documentation 

Proof of ID, needs to include 1 photographic ID

Proof of address documentation 

Non-UK passport holders will need to have correct documentation (right to work in the UK) and a Home office Share code. 

 

Address History: 

5 years address history will be needed.  

Applicants that are not UK Passport holders who provide less than 5 years UK address history will need to provide a Police Certificate which must be in English from where they resided previously. 

Applicants who are UK Passport holders who have lived abroad for a period of more than six months during the last three years will need to provide a certificate of good conduct or an overseas police check in English from the countries resided in or visited.

 

In order to assist you in obtaining a Police Certificate, guidance can be sought from:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/criminal-records-checks-for-overseas-applicants

If the country you have resided in is not listed here, you can obtain the necessary information by contacting the relevant Embassy or High Commission for that Country. Their contact details can be found on the Foreign & Commonwealth Office website (http://www.fco.gov.uk/en).

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria
  • 4 GCSE’S A*-C in two science subjects, Maths and English
Desirable criteria
  • NVQ 2 Pharmacy services

Experience

Essential criteria
  • Proven work or study record
Desirable criteria
  • Pharmacy experience

Skills

Essential criteria
  • Good written and verbal communication skills

Employer certification / accreditation badges

Veteran AwareNo smoking policyAge positiveInvestors in People: GoldDefence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) - BronzeImproving working livesArmed Forces Covenant Gold AwardMindful employer.  Being positive about mental health.Disability confident employerStonewall equality policy. Equality and justice for lesbians, gay men, bisexual and trans people.Step into health

Applicant requirements

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Documents to download

Apply online now

Further details / informal visits contact

Name
Emmie Arbury
Job title
Pharmacy Operations Manager
Email address
[email protected]
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