Lead Clinical Pharmacist - Gastroenterology

Job summary
We are delighted to offer an exciting opportunity for an experienced and motivated Gastroenterology Pharmacist to lead our Gastroenterology Pharmacy Team at the Royal Liverpool site.

This senior role provides expert clinical and strategic leadership for gastroenterology pharmacy services while maintaining an active clinical specialist and prescribing role within the multidisciplinary team. As a key member of the pharmacy clinical leadership team, you will lead pharmacists and technicians to deliver a high-quality, evidence-based pharmacy service across the Trust.

Working closely with gastroenterologists, hepatologists, specialist nurses, surgeons and other healthcare professionals, you will drive safe, innovative and patient-centred medicines optimisation for patients with complex gastrointestinal and liver conditions.

You will provide advanced clinical leadership, support service development and contribute to strategic planning at site and Trust level. The role offers the opportunity to shape the future of gastroenterology pharmacy services while supporting the development of the wider pharmacy workforce.

The successful candidate will have substantial hospital pharmacy experience, including significant experience in gastroenterology and/or hepatology, together with advanced clinical knowledge, strong leadership and organisational skills, and a proven ability to develop teams, improve services and deliver high-quality patient care.

Main duties of the job

• Lead the strategic development, delivery and evaluation of specialist clinical pharmacy services within Gastroenterology.
• Provide expert clinical pharmacy and medicines optimisation support for patients with gastrointestinal and hepatology conditions, ensuring safe, effective and evidence-based use of medicines.
• Lead, manage and develop the Gastroenterology pharmacy team, ensuring the provision of a high-quality, patient-centred service.
• Work collaboratively with gastroenterology consultants, hepatologists, specialist nurses, dietitians and the multidisciplinary team to optimise patient care across inpatient, outpatient and ambulatory settings.
• Lead service improvement initiatives, development of business cases, and implementation of national guidance and best practice standards relevant to gastroenterology and hepatology services.
• Develop, review and implement policies, guidelines and prescribing pathways relating to the management of gastrointestinal and liver diseases.
• Lead on medicines governance, including investigation of medicines-related incidents, complaints, audits and quality improvement projects, ensuring learning is embedded into practice.
• Lead, participate in and publish practice research, audit and service evaluation projects relevant to gastroenterology and hepatology.
• Represent pharmacy at gastroenterology, hepatology and Trust-wide committees, contributing to service planning and strategic decision-making.

About us
NHS University Hospitals of Liverpool Group (UHL Group) was formed on 1 November 2024, born from a shared aim to improve the care we provide our communities.

We are one of the largest employers in region, with over 18,900 colleagues who are dedicated to caring for our communities - from birth and beyond.

For the 630,000 people across Merseyside, we are their local NHS. We provide general and emergency hospital care, alongside highly specialised regional services that extend to more than two million people in the North West.

We operate from five hospital sites:Aintree University Hospitalis the single receiving site for adult major trauma patients in Cheshire and Merseyside, and hosts a number of regional services including an award-winning stroke facility.Broadgreen Hospitalis home to several elective surgical, diagnostic and treatment services, together with specialist patient rehabilitation.Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospitalprovide specialist services incardiothoracic surgery,cardiology and respiratory medicine, both in the hospital and out in the community.Liverpool Women's Hospitalspecialises in the health of women and babies, delivering over 7,200 babies in the UK's largest single site maternity hospital each year. TheRoyal Liverpool University Hospital is the largest hospital in the country to provide inpatients with 100% single en-suite bedrooms and mainly focuses on complex planned care and specialist services.

Job responsibilities

• Lead the strategic development, delivery and evaluation of specialist clinical pharmacy services within Gastroenterology.
• Provide expert clinical pharmacy and medicines optimisation support for patients with gastrointestinal and hepatology conditions, ensuring safe, effective and evidence-based use of medicines.
• Lead, manage and develop the Gastroenterology pharmacy team, ensuring the provision of a high-quality, patient-centred service.
• Work collaboratively with gastroenterology consultants, hepatologists, specialist nurses, dietitians and the multidisciplinary team to optimise patient care across inpatient, outpatient and ambulatory settings.
• Act as an independent prescriber, undertaking medication review, medicines reconciliation, initiation and optimisation of treatment, and prescribing within scope of practice.
• Lead service improvement initiatives, development of business cases, and implementation of national guidance and best practice standards relevant to gastroenterology and hepatology services.
• Develop, review and implement policies, guidelines and prescribing pathways relating to the management of gastrointestinal and liver diseases.
• Monitor and manage medicines expenditure, biosimilar uptake, high-cost medicines and cost improvement programmes within the speciality.
• Lead on medicines governance, including investigation of medicines-related incidents, complaints, audits and quality improvement projects, ensuring learning is embedded into practice.
• Develop and deliver education and training programmes for pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, medical staff, nursing staff and other healthcare professionals.
• Lead, participate in and publish practice research, audit and service evaluation projects relevant to gastroenterology and hepatology.
• Represent pharmacy at gastroenterology, hepatology and Trust-wide committees, contributing to service planning and strategic decision-making.

Qualifications
Essential

• Vocational Master's Degree in Pharmacy
• Registered as a Pharmacist with the General Pharmaceutical Council GB
• Diploma in clinical pharmacy or equivalent documented clinical experience
• Independent Non-Medical Prescriber (NMP)

Desirable

• Management qualification

Experience
Essential

• Managing a team
• Demonstrable experience in delivering a relevant specialist pharmacist role in acute care

Desirable

• Experience of prescribing biologic/ immunomodulating therapy
• Presenting at national conferences
• Managing and delivering projects
• Delivering medicines value and commissioning across landscape
• Experience of working across clinical pharmacy networks

Knowledge & Skills
Essential

• Excellent clinical knowledge and practical clinical skills within relevant specialty
• Working knowledge of medicine related legal and pharmaceutical regulations
• Excellent communication skills - written
• Excellent communication skills - verbal
• Able to work on own initiative and as part of a team
• Self-motivated and able to motivate/inspire others showing enthusiasm for the position
• Able to empathise with patients and colleagues
• Methodical and attention to detail

Desirable

• Highly computer literate including Microsoft Word, Office and PowerPoint
• Able to affect and manage change

Other
Essential

• Be personally responsible for own impact on staff morale and teamwork

Desirable

• Able to provide on call services

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.

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

Applicants must have current UK professional registration. For further information please see NHS Careers website (opens in a new window).