The GPA pharmacy team currently consists of a Senior Clinical Pharmacist, responsible for the clinical supervision and service development, and six Clinical Pharmacists working across the three PCNs which GPA covers. We are in the process of recruiting Pharmacy Technicians to our teams and look forward to the added expertise they will bring.

 

What does a Clinical Pharmacist in a GP surgery do?

Clinical Pharmacists are experts in medication and have undertaken many years of training to develop an in depth knowledge about how medicines work and their side effects. Many can also prescribe medication for you.

Clinical Pharmacists are frequently involved in anything relating to medication, but some examples of their roles in the GP surgery include:

• Answering any questions relating to medication from patients, this may be due to a concern or a request for more information. As pharmacists are experts in medicines they are best placed to help you with any queries you may have.
• Answering questions relating to medication from other members of the practice team. These can be hugely varied, but might include checking if medicines interact with each other or calculating an appropriate dose for a specific patient.
• Structured medication reviews, these are more in depth reviews of medication which go through everything from how a patient is able to manage their medication, including any swallowing difficulties or problems opening packets, to if medicines are still required. This is always carried out with you, the patient, and ensures you are at the center of any decisions, making the most of your medicines for you and most importantly keeping you safe from any harm.
• Review of safety alerts and national guidance relating to medicines, ensuring that these are actioned in a timely way, keeping all the patients in the surgery safe.
• Carry out review of long term conditions, such as depression, to ensure you are being managed appropriately with your medication and signposting you to other appropriate support. Other long term medication reviews might also require health checks and your Clinical Pharmacist may need to take clinical observations such as your blood pressure to check the medicines are working as they should.

Check your surgery’s website for further information on what the Clinical Pharmacists do there.

Structured Medication Review

Click the image to open PDF view.

What does a Pharmacy Technician in a GP surgery do?

Pharmacy technicians are highly qualified in managing common problems relating to medicines they work closely with the Clinical Pharmacists and the practice team to ensure you are able to get the best from your medicines.

Some examples of the roles pharmacy technicians play includes:

• Supporting prescribing teams in managing repeat prescriptions, from answering queries to helping to set up appropriate access.
• Dealing with discharge and outpatient letters from the hospital, ensuring any changes to your medication are updated accurately and appropriately on your GP record.
• Supporting the management of medicines for patients in care homes.
• Answering medicine related queries from patients and other members of the practice team.

Find out more about the Pharmacy Tech role in the following Presentation. 

The GPA Pharmacists

Below are the GPA pharmacists showing which practices they work in on different days. They have pre-bookable appointments within these times and if you have a query regarding your medication they would be happy to help. Please contact the individual surgery to make an appointment.

Abington Medical Centre:	Philippa Jones (Monday and Wednesday mornings) Steven Nelmes (Tuesdays and Thursdays) Hafsa Ravat (currently on leave)
Abington Park Surgery:	Steven Nelmes (Mondays and alternate Fridays) Hafsa Ravat (currently on leave)
King Edward Road Surgery:	Steven Nelmes (Wednesdays and alternate Fridays) Hafsa Ravat (currently on leave)
Greenview Surgery:	Nishma Shah (Wednesday and Friday)
Leicester Terrace Health Centre:	Nishma Shah (Monday, Tuesday and Thursday)
Maple Access Surgery:	Aggrey Mpofu (Fridays) Rumbi Gabi (Tuesdays and alternate Thursdays)
Danes Camp Surgery:	Abdul Hoque (Wednesdays)
Delapre Surgery :	Abdul Hoque (Tuesdays and Fridays)
Mounts Surgery:	Aggrey Mpofu (Monday and Tuesday) Rumbi Gabi (Wednesday and alternate Thursdays)
Mayfield Surgery:	Aggrey Mpofu (Thursdays) Rumbi Gabi (Fridays)
Western Favell Plus:	Aggrey Mpofu (Wednesdays and alternate Thursdays) Rumbi Gabi (Mondays)