Principal Pharmacist - Surgery Job Northampton area,England UK,Healthcare

Job summary

This is a secondment post to cover maternity leave for the post of Principal Pharmacist for Surgery.

The Principal Pharmacist (Surgery) is a senior clinical and strategic leader responsible for delivering high-quality, patient-centred pharmacy services across the surgical division. The postholder provides both operational and strategic leadership to a team of pharmacy staff, ensuring safe, effective, and efficient medicines management and optimisation within the directorate.

Working closely with multidisciplinary teams, the Principal Pharmacist integrates fully within the surgical division, aligning pharmacy services with directorate priorities, clinical pathways, and organisational objectives. They play a key role in shaping and implementing pharmacy strategy, ensuring that service development is responsive to evolving clinical needs and national guidance.

As part of the Pharmacy Management Team, the postholder contributes to the wider leadership and governance of pharmacy services and deputises for the Associate Chief Pharmacist, Clinical Services when required. This includes providing expert, timely, and evidence-based advice on all aspects of medicines use to support the Trust in achieving its clinical, operational, and strategic goals.

Main duties of the job

To operationally and strategically lead a team of pharmacy staff providing services the Surgical Divisions and directorates and be responsible for the delivery of all Pharmacy Services to these areas.
To personally integrate into the division so that directorate plans and issues are incorporated into overall pharmacy service provision, development and strategy.
To be part of the Pharmacy Management arrangements and deputise for the Associate Chief Pharmacist, Clinical Services to help ensure that the Trust receives accurate, timely and contemporary information and advice on all aspects of pharmacy and medicines to meet it's objectives.
To be a specialist pharmacist in a specific area of surgery and to provide personal, highly specialised clinical pharmacy services.

About us

University Hospitals of Northamptonshire (UHN) was formed through the grouping of Kettering General Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust. As one group, we are on a journey to improve services for our communities by working collaboratively, modernising the way we deliver care and continually striving for excellence.

Working together allows us to share expertise, strengthen services and create greater opportunities . There may be a requirement to work across our hospital sites depending on service needs.

Our Excellence Values:
Compassion, Accountability, Respect, Integrity and Courage.

UHN welcomes applications from people from all protected groups and is committed to creating an inclusive working environment. We are proud signatories of the Armed Forces Covenant and have achieved the Gold Award under the Armed Forces Employer Recognition Scheme. Our active staff networks support colleagues from all backgrounds and help ensure everyone feels valued here at UHN

Details

Date posted: 01 October 2026

Pay scheme: Agenda for change

Band: Band 8b

Salary: £66,582 to £77,368 a year per annum / pro rata

Contract: Secondment

Working pattern: Part-time

Reference number: -CSS

Job locations: University Hospitals of Northamptonshire, Northamptonshire, Northampton, NN1 5BD
, United Kingdom

Job responsibilities Clinical Responsibilities

To provide highly specialised advice and guidance on the safe, effective and economical use of medicines to specific directorate[s] patients and healthcare staff and the organisation whilst undertaking clinical pharmacy duties.
To optimise medicines through prescribing role operating within areas of competence (where appropriately qualified and authorised via the Trust NMP register).
To ensure that you maintain competence in all relevant areas of practice and to ensure that you continually develop to fulfil registration with the GPhC.

Policy and service development

To be responsible for the provision of directorate[s] clinical pharmacy advice/care to patients and healthcare staff; this includes out-of-hours arrangements, on-call & weekend services.
To be responsible for developing, implementing and monitoring pharmacy and medicines policy, practice and standards.
To be responsible for developing and prioritising all clinical pharmacy services to directorate[s]; to develop service specifications if necessary.
To be responsible for relevant pharmacy…