Job summary
- Main area
- Aseptic Services, Pharmacy
- Grade
- NHS AfC: Band 6
- Contract
- Permanent
- Hours
- Full time
- Part time
- Job ref
- 262-A-25-7373823
- Employer
- North Cumbria Integrated Care NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Cumberland Infirmary
- Town
- Carlisle
- Salary
- £38,682 - £46,580 Per annum
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 21/08/2025 23:59
Employer heading
Specialist Quality Assurance Technician - Aseptic Services
NHS AfC: Band 6
Job overview
The successful candidate will contribute to the delivery and development of a high quality, patient-centred aseptic service, including participation in, and preparation, for internal and external audits and the delivery of service improvement plans. As part of Senior Aseptic Team you will assist in the supervision and ensuring adherence to the quality management system, supporting the further development of your management and leadership skills.
Qualities and skills required include:
- Organisation and prioritisation
- excellent team player
- effective communicator
- ability to effectively manage change
- a commitment to the continuous improvement of the service
- ability to maximise the contributions of the whole team.
The post holder will be a registrant of the General Pharmaceutical Council, and demonstrate knowledge of and experience or working in a GMP environment with suitable people management skills.
Main duties of the job
The main duties of the job include supporting the management of the Pharmaceutical quality system, acting as an accredited product approver, providing pre-process checking and accuracy checking of aseptic products ensuring compliance with GMP and the “Quality Assurance of Aseptic Preparation Services: Standards”, and any other current legal, national, regional or local guidelines pertaining to unlicensed activities, thus ensuring the highest levels of professional and technical standards are achieved
Management and administration duties by contributing to the effective management of all available resources relating to aseptic dispensing i.e. staff, equipment and facilities.
Contributes to the supervision and training of staff and students from all disciplines in the speciality, acting as a role model.
Ensure that the organisation of services supports the delivery of the highest standards of patient care in the pursuance of the Trust’s objectives. The Aseptic team is responsible for ensuring that effective systems of work are in place to ensure the safe delivery of aseptically prepared medication.
The centralised section 10 aseptic unit is responsible for preparing and dispensing 20,000 items per year with a range of products for inpatients and outpatients within the Trust. This includes chemotherapy products and monoclonal antibodies
Working for our organisation
At NCIC, we have an ambition to deliver outstanding healthcare services to the population of North Cumbria. The Trust is committed to creating a centre of excellence in providing rural and remote healthcare and provides a wide range of community and acute services throughout our county.
Our 5 key principles demonstrate our belief in the delivery of ‘safe, high quality care every time’:
- Being a clinically led organisation
- Quality and safety at the heart of our Trust
- A positive patient experience every time
- A great place to work
- Managing our money well
As an organisation we are serious about supporting a diverse workforce that reflects our local community and are very much focused on being an inclusive and compassionate place to work.
Across the North East and North Cumbria we are working together to deliver our ambition to be the greenest region in England by 2030. All staff are expected to support sustainability.
Detailed job description and main responsibilities
Please see attached job description and person specification for further information regarding the role and the essential and desirable criteria required to be met by applicants.
Please note, due to changes implemented by the Government to the UK immigration policy, individuals who require a Health and Care Visa or a Skilled Worker Visa may no longer be eligible for sponsorship where the UKVI salary threshold is not met or if the occupation is not included in the updated Immigration Salary List (ISL). Applicants must check their eligibility to be employed in any role they are interested in applying for, prior to completing an application for employment. Any applicants who do not meet the eligibility criteria will not be progressed.
If you are applying under the Disability Confident Scheme or Armed Forces Covenant and you meet all the essential criteria for a post, you will be guaranteed an interview.
Relocation assistance may be available for successful applicants moving to the region for certain posts. Please see our Policy for eligible vacancies.
- Please ensure that you document evidence of meeting all the essential criteria in the supporting information.
- If sufficient response is received this post could be closed earlier than the specified closing date, please apply as soon as possible to ensure that your application is considered.
Important Information
Candidates who have been successfully shortlisted for interview will be asked via an email notification to log on to their Trac account to select an interview time. This will usually be within 2 weeks of the closing date.
For candidates applying using a Hotmail account or have strict firewall settings please ensure the following:
- Junk Mail is checked regularly
Disclosure and Barring Service:
On 28 November 2020, the new Disclosure and Barring Service filtering rules will come into effect.
The changes mean that:
- youth cautions, reprimands and final warnings will no longer be subject to automatic disclosure
- the multiple conviction rule has been removed, meaning that if an individual has more than one conviction, regardless of offence type or time passed, each conviction will be considered against the remaining rules individually, rather than being automatically disclosed.
If you are unsure about whether you need to disclose certain criminal record information, free confidential advice may be sought from one of the charity bodies listed below. These bodies can advise you on what you are legally required to declare and may also be able to advise you on how you can disclose criminal record information to a prospective employer and your legal rights when doing so.
Nacro – Tel: 0300 123 1999, or email: [email protected]
Unlock – Tel: 01634 247350, email [email protected] or complete the online form on the Unlock website
The Trust is committed to safeguarding adults and children therefore if the post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (ROA) 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended) the successful candidate(s) will be subject to a criminal records check with the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). The cost of the DBS must be met by the successful candidate(s) through salary deduction. DBS charges are as follows if applicable to the post:
Standard Check: £18 + Administration cost of £3.85 = £21.85. Deducted at £6.85 from 1st month salary and £5 deducted from salary over following 3 months.
Enhanced Check: £38 + administration cost of £3.90 = £41.90. Deducted at £11.90 from 1st month salary and £10 deducted from salary over following 3 months.
As part of the one of the largest employers in the UK NCIC future employees will have also access to the following benefits.
A lease car may be available for this position; further details will be provided upon appointment if applicable.
27-day holiday scheme rising to 33 after 10 years
Flexible working Scheme
Excellent opportunities for development
Competitive NHS Pension scheme
Access to NHS discounts with retailers and leisure companies
EAP (Employee Assistance Programme) a free, confidential counselling and information service to assist with personal or work-related problems
These schemes are subject to availability
Person specification
Qualifications
Essential criteria
- Formal technical or professional qualification – minimum BTEC, City & Guilds, Apothecary Hall or equivalent
- Registration with General Pharmaceutical Council.
- Minimum NVQ3 in Pharmacy Services, or equivalent documented practical experience
- TAQA assessors award or equivalent
- BTec Professional Development Certificate (NVQ4) in Accuracy Checking or MPharm
Desirable criteria
- Accredited product Approver
- Formal management qualification
- PTQA post graduate diploma
Knowledge and Experience
Essential criteria
- Significant post-qualification experience
- Previous experience in Aseptic unit in hospital pharmacy
- NVQ processes
- Managing staff and resources
- Training in a pharmacy environment
- Proven ability to supervise, train and motivate staff
- Accuracy checking experience
- Presenting data in a variety of formats
- Experience of writing standard operating procedures
- In-depth knowledge of GMP and all areas of pharmacy technician practice
- Knowledge of NVQ processes
- Knowledge of Human Resources policies and procedure
- Basic computer skills in Microsoft Word and Excel
Desirable criteria
- Management of a Pharmaceutical Quality System
- Advanced computer skills using a variety of computer programmes
- Knowledge of electronic QMS
Skills
Essential criteria
- Ability to work calmly and accurately under pressure to meet required deadlines.
- Highly effective communication and interpersonal skills.
- excellent organisational skills, numeracy skills and planning skills
- Ability to manage time, people and resources.
- Flexible
- Able to organise and prioritise workload.
- Ability to work independently and as part of a team
- Ability to form working relationships with a wide variety of people and to work as an effective team member
- Focus for long periods of time and ability to deal with interruptions
- commited to CPD
- skilled within all areas of pharmacy
Personal circumstances
Essential criteria
- Flexibility with working hours/base to meet the needs of the service and patients.
Other requirements
Essential criteria
- Weekend and out of hours cover on rota
Employer certification / accreditation badges
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Applicant requirements
You must have appropriate UK professional registration.
The postholder will have access to vulnerable people in the course of their normal duties and as such this post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (Amendment) (England and Wales) Order 2020 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Nicola von Abo
- Job title
- Lead Pharmacist Aseptic & Cancer Services
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Telephone number
- 01228 814564
- Additional information
Can also have an informal discussion with the Deputy Accountable Pharmacist Matthew Upward on the same number.
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