Specialty
Pharmacy

Supporting undergraduate pharmacy students
In addition to clinical placements for undergraduate pharmacy students throughout the undergraduate curriculum, there are also other opportunities for undergraduate students to learn skills from the hospital setting. Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust also provides some teaching to students at the school of pharmacy, University of London for subject areas such as microbiology and some students also undertake project work in the pharmacy department as part of their course.

Supporting postgraduate pharmacists
Pre-registration training
On leaving pharmacy school with a degree, it is compulsory for those graduates wishing to practice as a pharmacist to complete a year of pre-registration experience. The Trust has 20 places available for graduates wishing to undertake this training. The training programme is well supported by experienced tutors in order to assist the graduate attain the skills and knowledge required for registration as a pharmacist.

The aim of the pre-registration pharmacist training programme at the College is to develop pharmacists with a patient-centred approach to delivering hospital pharmacy services and a good understanding of the roles of the multi-disciplinary team members. As well as providing a strong foundation of clinical knowledge and medicines use, training will focus on problem solving, communication skills and self-directed learning. This programme will equip the trainee with the skills and knowledge necessary to become a competent hospital pharmacist with a strong patient focus, while instilling the Trust values.

Postgraduate diploma and masters courses
The main focus of the postgraduate study for qualified pharmacists at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust is to support the pharmacists working in the Trust to enhance their knowledge in order to perform their role better. Postgraduate study may occur at several stages in the pharmacists’ career starting with the newly qualified pharmacists.

The aim of the training for the band six pharmacists at the College is to build on the skills gained through the pre-registration year to provide an efficient, safe and patient focussed hospital pharmacy service. This will concentrate on the key competencies required by further developing self-directed learning alongside a formal postgraduate training programme. The broad skill base will encompass clinical, personal and managerial competencies including decision making, prioritisation, time management and team working. It will equip the pharmacist with the confidence, ability and knowledge of medicines use to prepare for a specialist role, while instilling the Trust values.

All new band six pharmacists are enrolled onto the JPB postgraduate diploma in general pharmacy practice in order to equip practitioners with the core skills and competencies they require to provide pharmaceutical care in a practice setting. The course works on a philosophy of student centred workplace learning. The ethos and culture of the course is to enhance and develop self reliance and an adult approach to learning in support of continuing professional development.

The curriculum is delivered through a consortium of higher education institutions (HEIs) working in collaboration with NHS specialist pharmacy services.

The majority of the clinical and practitioner-based skills-learning are work-based, using mentoring and facilitation of experienced tutors and facilitators.

Progress is guided through the use of personal learning plans (such as a record of in-service training and assessment) agreed between the student practitioners and their practice tutor.

After the core competencies relating to the foundation level are achieved, students are supported to continue their studies to obtain a diploma. This may be through continuing the above course or by transferring onto alternative courses offered by other pharmacy schools. This may include postgraduate diplomas offered by Queens University Belfast, Keele University, John Moores University, Liverpool or Bath University.

After completion of the postgraduate diploma students who would like to are supported to continue to study for a master of science.

Non-medical prescribing
In order to maximise on the skills of our experienced pharmacists, there is the opportunity to become qualified as an independent non-medical prescriber. Pharmacists undertake a university run course which is supplemented by workplace learning. Completion of this qualification enables the pharmacist to prescribe for patients within their area of expertise.

Supporting postgraduate education for pharmacists
In line with Imperial College Healthcare’s commitment to ongoing learning, a postgraduate study programme is in place for qualified pharmacists at the Trust which supports pharmacists to enhance their knowledge in order to perform their role better. Postgraduate study occurs at several stages in a pharmacist’s career; starting with the newly qualified pharmacists.

The aim of the training for entry-level pharmacists at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust is to build on the skills gained through the pre-registration year to provide an efficient, safe and patient-focused hospital pharmacy service. This will concentrate on the key competencies required by further developing self-directed learning alongside a formal postgraduate training programme. The broad skill base will encompass clinical, personal and managerial competencies including decision making, prioritisation, time management and team working. It will equip the pharmacist with the confidence, ability and knowledge of medicines used to prepare for a specialist role, while also instilling the Trust’s values.

All entry-level pharmacists are enrolled onto the joint programmes board (JPB) postgraduate diploma in general pharmacy practice with the School of Pharmacy, University of London, in order to equip practitioners with the core skills and competencies they require to provide pharmaceutical care in a practice setting. The course works on a philosophy of student-centred workplace learning. The ethos and culture of the course is to enhance and develop self reliance and an adult approach to learning in support of continuing professional development.

The curriculum is delivered through a consortium of higher education institutions (HEIs) working in collaboration with NHS specialist pharmacy services.

The majority of the clinical and practitioner based skills learning are work-based, using mentoring and facilitation of experienced pharmacist tutors and facilitators from within the department. Progress is guided through the use of personal learning plans (such as a record of in-service training and assessment) agreed between the student practitioners and their practice tutor. The department is accredited as a training centre through JPB/School of Pharmacy, University of London, to enable this course to be run from Imperial College London.
After the core competencies relating to the foundation level are achieved, students are supported to continue their studies to obtain a diploma. This may be through continuing the above course or by transferring onto alternative courses offered by other pharmacy schools. This may include postgraduate diplomas offered by Queens University Belfast, Keele University, John Moores University, Liverpool or Bath University.

After completion of the postgraduate diploma, pharmacists interested in continuing their study are supported to study for a master of science.

For more information about the diploma in general pharmacy practice, contact the University of London School of Pharmacy.

For more information on the competency development and evaluation group (CoDEG), contact the CoDEG directly.

For information on how to work with the Trust as a pharmacist, contact Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust.