Advanced Specialist Pharmacist (Education) & Practice Educator - Plymouth
Job overview
Are you an enthusiastic, motivated and dynamic pharmacist with an interest in Education, Training and developing others?
Do you want to be an instrumental part of education and training of the health workforce in the southwest?
We are looking for a passionate and enthusiastic individual to provide professional expertise to shape and provide the building blocks for the pharmacist workforce of the future.
This is a joint post between the pharmacy team at University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust (at Derriford Hospital) and the University of Bath MPharm team (based at the University of Plymouth).
You will spend approximately half your time supporting Education and Training in the NHS Trust and half the time working on the new Bath MPharm being delivered in Plymouth.
The well-regarded and successful Bath MPharm is being delivered on site at the University of Plymouth. The MPharm course in Plymouth started in Sept 2024 and we are looking to expand the new academic team with a new Practice Educator post based at University Hospitals Plymouth.
Main duties of the job- To support and deputise for the Lead Pharmacist for Education and Training in the delivery of the education and training strategy across the department.
- To engage proactively with the research agenda and ambitions of the pharmacy department. Whilst it is essential that teaching is informed by research/professional expertise there is no formal research component in this role.
- To design and deliver high quality teaching which is informed by significant professional experience gained via practice, research/study and teaching experience, to undergraduate students on the new MPharm programme - to include lectures, workshops, applied pharmacy practice skills sessions and supervision of dissertations or projects, assessment and marking and pastoral care of students, in line with Department/School and University policy.
- To support students when learning in practice settings primarily in the NHS Trust (UHP) by delivery of Clinical Learning in Practice (CLIP), and placements.
- To contribute effectively to university wide developments and innovation in the design and delivery of teaching. This may include participation in professional accreditation activities where necessary
***Preference will be given to internal Trust staff, as well as ‘Priority’ and 'At Risk' status including NHS At Risk staff throughout Devon who are able to display recent relevant experience as dictated by the Person Specification.***
Working for our organisation
The University of Bath is working collaboratively with the University of Plymouth and NHS England to address the shortage of pharmacists in the Southwest. The well-regarded and successful Bath MPharm is being delivered on site at the University of Plymouth.The MPharm course in Plymouth started in Sept 2024 and we are looking to expand the new academic team with a new Practice Educator post based at University Hospitals Plymouth.
University Hospitals Plymouth NHS Trust (UHP) is the largest hospital on the Southwest Peninsula providing comprehensive secondary and tertiary care to a population of around 2,000,000 people who can access our specialist services.
We would support you to attain your goals. At UHP, we are steadfast in our values: we put people first, we take ownership, we respect and value others, we are compassionate, and we listen, learn and improve. Depending on the stage of your career, further study will be encouraged and supported.Practice research is also encouraged in this role.
The education and training team are highly regarded within the department. The team are committed to inspiring to a culture of learning, providing equitable access for all and empowering excellence in colleagues. There are already good working relationships with various external partners and a potential for these relations to expand as the team's capacity grows.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
To deliver on-going developmental, education and training programs for all pharmacy staff.- Designing and implementing appropriate teaching, learning and assessment plans to support trainee pharmacists, in line with local, regional and national agendas.
- Provide educational or practice supervision for trainees as required.
- Support others to deliver on training curriculums in their roles as educational or practice supervisors.
- Develop or maintain partnerships with higher education institutes, regional and local organisations to advance the education and training strategy
- To support in education and training of non-pharmacy staff within the organisation
- To maintain own clinical competence as part of enabling non-medical prescribing training. Where required, act as a designated prescribing practitioner for trainee pharmacists
- To support in the promotion of pharmacy and pharmacy careers to external organisations
- As a Practice Educator, work within realms of specialist therapeutic knowledge and experience and teach therapeutic topics and general areas of pharmacy practice, as applicable.
- The post holder will contribute to teaching on the new University of Bath MPharm delivered at the University of Plymouth: Practice Educators will work in two different workplaces: clinical pharmacy practice (hospital) and the University of Plymouth campus. To make this arrangement work there is recognition from both workplaces of the for flexibility. The university workload is driven by term dates and the preferred arrangement is for Teacher Practitioners to work the equivalent of 0.5 WTE on the following basis:
§ 3 days a week during term time
§ 2 days a week outside of term time
Most of the teaching is timetabled for 9am – 5pm but may be timetabled up until 7pm. Therefore, Practice Educators will need to be available between 9am and 5pm with occasional flexible working to cover timetabled late sessions.
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria- Master’s degree in pharmacy, or equivalent
- Registered member of the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC)
- Postgraduate diploma in clinical pharmacy or equivalent
- Non-medical prescribing qualification or working towards attainment of non-medical prescribing qualification.
- Proven evidence of Continuing Professional Development
- Education related qualification e.g. PgCert Education
- Education supervisor training
- Designated Prescribing Practitioner or undertaking training
- Current membership of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society
- Active member of a pharmacist specialist interest group
Knowledge and Experience
Essential criteria- Appropriate and sufficient demonstrable experience of clinical pharmacy practice
- Demonstrable experience of planning and initiating training or educational programs
- Demonstrates depth and breadth of proven understanding of subject matter at a complex conceptual level.
- Demonstrable experience in a range of clinical specialties.
- Excellent proven knowledge of general clinical pharmacy and drug use
- Proven understanding of NHS priorities
- Previous demonstrable experience of teaching, training and staff development.
- Demonstrable experience as Practice Educator
- Demonstrates recognisably high-quality teaching technique
- Good presentation skills
- Demonstrable experience of liaising with Universities and NHS
- Extensive demonstrable University teaching experience & undertaking management roles in teaching or significant relevant demonstrable professional experience
- A sound proven understanding of academic processes and university regulations associated with teaching/ teaching quality
- Demonstrable experience of developing pharmacy services.
- Hospital pharmacy practice
- Demonstrable experience in writing up research for publication in peer reviewed journals
- Demonstrable experience in presenting research in the form of a poster
Aptitude and Abilities
Essential criteria- Good communication skills, written and verbal, with ability to demonstrate fluency, clarity and effectiveness at all levels.
- Time management skills and can prioritise own workload
- Demonstrate potential management ability
- Proven knowledge and understanding of financial issues affecting NHS
PLEASE NOTE THAT ALL COMMUNICATION WILL BE ELECTRONIC, PLEASE CHECK YOUR EMAIL ACCOUNT REGULARLY INCLUDING YOUR JUNK FOLDER.
If you need support with the online application process or require reasonable adjustments with the application and/or interview process please contact the Recruiting Manager for this post.
We recognise that work life balance is important for our colleagues and so we invite requests from applicants about less than full time/flexible working for our advertised roles. We recommend contacting the manager of the role prior to applying and we commit to giving requests full consideration.
We welcome and encourage applicants who identify with all protected characteristics to apply for our roles. We believe that diversity strengthens our teams and improves our patients' experience. At UHP we aim to create an inclusive workplace and hospital where everyone feels they belong and included.
It is sometimes necessary to close vacancies before the closing date. If you have not heard from us within 4 weeks of the closing date, please assume that you have not been shortlisted.
Providing false information is an offence & could result in the application being rejected or summary dismissal/police action if an applicant is successful.
Please note that if you are successful in your application & accept the position you agree that the Staff Health and Wellbeing Department can access your health records from your current/previous employer in order to check the status of your inoculations & screening tests.This is an automated process & the information will only be used for these purposes prior to your taking up the position with us.
For Doctors Roles:
Unsolicited CVs and Candidate Profiles/Details
University Hospitals Plymouth has a commitment to sourcing candidates directly and as such we do not accept speculative CVs from agencies.
We do, however, work with a defined list of preferred HTE Framework suppliers who may be invited to support us in sourcing candidates for particular roles.
In line with our preferred supplier list, we only pay agency fees where we have a signed agreement in place and an agency has been instructed by a member of the Trust’s Medical Workforce team.
We do not pay agency fees where speculative and unsolicited CVs are submitted to the Trust or Trust employees by any other means than the official route above. Where this is not observed the Trust reserves the right to contact these candidates directly and initiate discussions without payment of any agency fee.
Any candidate details (whether written or spoken) or CVs that are referred directly will not constitute an introduction. The Trust will under no circumstances be responsible for any recruitment fees in relation to these contacts.
Submission of any unsolicited CVs, candidate’s details and/or proposals to the Trust will not be considered further and will be deemed evidence of full and unlimited acceptance of this Agency Protocol.
In order to establish and maintain good working relationships with the Trust’s agency suppliers, we ask that this Protocol is adhered to and thank you for your co-operation.