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Job summary

Main area
Pharmacy
Grade
NHS AfC: Band 8a
Contract
Permanent
Hours
Full time - 37.5 hours per week (weekends, bank holidays rota and late shifts pro-rata)
Job ref
193-8154674NCG
Employer
Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust
Employer type
NHS
Site
Royal Berkshire Hospital
Town
Reading
Salary
£57,528 - £64,750 per annum
Salary period
Yearly
Closing
09/08/2026 23:59

Employer heading

Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust logo

Lead Pharmacist - ICU and Theatres

NHS AfC: Band 8a

At the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust we put our patients at the heart of every element of health and care that we provide. The Trust works together as a community to deliver its vision which is “Working together to provide outstanding care for our community.”

Royal Berkshire Hospital are pleased to announce that following our CQC inspection we have been rated ‘Good’ with inspectors reporting that we have made significant improvements.  The Trust’s overall rating has also improved to ‘good’.  

We are Compassionate in our thoughts, words and actions

We are Aspirational and have a true desire to be dynamic and to innovate

We are Resourceful and responsible in the way we work and live

We are Excellent in our development, fairness and sharing best practice

At the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust, we value candidates who bring their unique personalities, skills, and experiences to the Trust. When completing your application, we encourage you to highlight your individual achievements and strengths, showing us how they align with the requirements outlined in the job description and person specification. While we recognise that some applicants may use AI tools during the process, please be mindful that AI-generated responses can often lack the personal detail and relevance needed to demonstrate your suitability for the role. AI generated content is discouraged by the Trust and may diminish the candidates chances of success.

Amazing things happen at the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust; delivered by amazing people so why don’t you come and join us.  We offer a range of learning and development for all employees may you be clinical or non-clinical.  

Please note: all vacancies automatically close when 50 applications have been received.

Job overview

Band 8a Lead Pharmacist - ICU and Theatres

An exciting opportunity has arisen for an experienced and motivated pharmacist to join the ICU Team as a Lead Pharmacist at the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust.

This role will provide advanced clinical pharmacy leadership and specialist pharmaceutical care across ICU and Theaters, supporting the delivery of safe, effective and patient-centered care within a fast-paced acute hospital environment.

The post holder will work closely with multidisciplinary teams across ICU and Theaters , but also medical wards to optimise medicines use, support timely patient flow and contribute to service transformation initiatives across the Trust.

The successful candidate will play a key role in advancing clinical pharmacy practice, supporting prescribing governance, developing workforce capability and driving quality improvement aligned with Trust and national priorities.

This is an excellent opportunity for a pharmacist with strong clinical and leadership skills who is passionate about intesive care , medicines optimisation and innovation within hospital pharmacy services.

Main duties of the job

Leads and manages the delivery, development, and performance of a highly specialist clinical pharmacy service in ICU and Theatres within Royal Berkshire Hospital.

Oversees the planning, prioritisation, and organisation of pharmacy activities to ensure a safe, effective, and high-quality medicines optimisation service for ICU and Theatres.

Provides professional pharmaceutical governance, medicines safety support, education, and clinical leadership to ICU.

To develop and implement medicines management policies and procedures in line with local priorities, national directives, medicines legislation, and professional ethics.

To identify and resolve prescribing-related problems and other medicines-management-related issues and to ensure that the principles of clinical governance and the safe and effective use of medicines are followed.

Participate in consultant ward rounds and clinics within specialties identified as key areas.

Working for our organisation

Reading sits on the river Thames and is served by great road and rail links to London, Oxford and Southampton. With excellent leisure and shopping facilities, and a thriving cultural scene, Reading is a wonderful place to live, work and play and provides excellent facilities for families, including some of the best state and private schools in the UK.

The CQC rated the care provided by the Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust as Good.

Our "CARE" values: Compassionate, Aspirational, Resourceful, Excellent, reflect the type of Trust we aspire to be and you can join our dedicated and talented staff to make this happen.

Detailed job description and main responsibilities

Please refer to the attached Job Description and Person Specification for further details of the job role.

Person specification

Qualifications and Training

Essential criteria
  • Master Degree in Pharmacy
  • Member of GPhC
  • Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Pharmacy
  • Independent Prescriber
Desirable criteria
  • Member of UKCPA
  • Member of RCP
  • Postgraduate qualification in leadership , eg, MBA or Level 5/6 Senior Leadership
  • Formal Training in QI methodologies
  • Educational Supervisor Certificate/Diploma
  • MSc Critical care

Knowledge and Expereince

Essential criteria
  • Extensive Hospital Pharmacy Experience
  • Experience in working as IP
  • Experience in clinical governance
  • Experience of contributing to service development, quality improvement, or implementation of new ways of working
  • Ability to supervise, support and develop junior staff
  • Experience in writting clinical guidelines
Desirable criteria
  • Experience of managing or coordinating clinical pharmacy services or workload
  • Experience of Parenteral Nutrition management
  • Experience on ICCA system
  • Experience of involvement in research, audit, or practice-based publication
  • Experience in theaters and anesthetics

Skills and abilities

Essential criteria
  • Advanced clinical reasoning
  • Ability to influence prescribing and negotiate
  • Excellent attention to detail
  • Ability to work independently
Desirable criteria
  • Contributes positively to team culture, supporting colleagues and promoting a learning environment

Employer certification / accreditation badges

Apprenticeships logoNo smoking policyCare quality commission - GoodArmed 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.Florence Nightingale FoundationNational Preceptorship for Nursing Quality Mark 2024

Applicant requirements

You must have appropriate UK professional registration.

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.

Application numbers

This vacancy will automatically close when 50 applications have been received.

Documents to download

Apply online now

Further details / informal visits contact

Name
Bilyana Doncheva
Job title
Senior Lead Pharmacist - Clinical Services
Email address
[email protected]
Telephone number
01183228299
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