Job summary
- Main area
- Pharmacy
- Grade
- Band 8A
- Contract
- 12 months (Fixed-term contract until 20 September 2027)
- Hours
- Full time - 37.5 hours per week
- Job ref
- 430-CC26-935A-A
- Employer
- Milton Keynes University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
- Employer type
- NHS
- Site
- Pharmacy (Dept)
- Town
- Milton Keynes
- Salary
- £57,528 - £64,750 Per annum pro rata
- Salary period
- Yearly
- Closing
- 29/10/2026 23:59
- Interview date
- 11/11/2026
Employer heading
Principal Pharmacist Digital Medicines & EPMA
Band 8A
At Milton Keynes University Hospital, you will be welcomed into a friendly and supportive environment where teamwork and respect are at the heart of everything we do. We are proud to live our Trust values and behaviours every day, creating a culture where everyone feels heard and valued.
MKUH staff's Motivation and Involvement scores are among the highest in our peer group, showing that our people feel inspired and included in decision-making (Staff Survey, 2024).
Our benefits
We believe in recognising and rewarding the amazing contribution of our staff and that is why we offer a comprehensive benefits package designed to support your wellbeing, work-life balance, and professional growth, including:
- Free on-site parking including EV charging
- Complimentary refreshments
- Flexible working arrangements
- Discounted gym membership
- Salary sacrifice car scheme
- Generous annual leave, with the option to bank holiday entitlement
- Membership of the NHS Pension Scheme
- On-site nursery (charges apply)
- A wide-ranging staff health and wellbeing programme including EAP
- VIVUP products to support your mental, physical, and financial Wellbeing
Job overview
Principal Pharmacist Digital Medicines & EPMA (Fixed-term contract for 12 months to cover maternity)
Department: Pharmacy
Band 8a: £57,528 - £64,750 per annum pro rata
Full-time 37.5 per week (maternity cover until 20 September 2027)
All MKUH roles will be considered for flexible working
We are seeking a highly motivated and experienced pharmacist with a passion for digital medicines to join our Digital Medicines team on a fixed term basis until 20th September 2026. You will play a crucial role in the ongoing optimisation of our EPMA system, support patient safety, and cost-effective prescribing.
Milton Keynes University Hospital (MKUH) NHS Trust is a Global Digital Exemplar (GDE) Trust with a fully integrated Cerner Millennium electronic health record/ EPMA which is live across all inpatient areas, and our outpatient prescribing roll out is underway.
Working under the strategic leadership of the Chief Pharmacy Information Officer (CPIO), you will help deliver the Trust’s ambitious digital medicines agenda. You will be part of a friendly and supporting Digital Medicines team consisting of pharmacy technicians and pharmacists, and will collaborate with colleagues in Pharmacy, IT, clinical services, and with our system supplier Oracle Health. This role offers a unique opportunity for a pharmacist with both IT and clinical skills to innovate and drive improvement through technology and informatics.
'We care We communicate We collaborate We contribute'
Interview date: 11 November 2026
Main duties of the job
- Hands-on build work within the eCARE EPMA system, ensuring clinical configuration meets user, Trust, commissioner and statutory requirements.
- Supporting the introduction and optimisation of digital medicines initiatives across the Trust.
- Clinical project and change management, applying organisational change principles to deliver sustainable benefits.
- Stakeholder engagement with pharmacy, clinical teams, IT and suppliers.
- Contributing to clinical pharmacy services to maintain contemporary practice and ensure digital solutions are clinically relevant.
Working for our organisation
Milton Keynes University Hospital, in proud partnership with the University of Buckingham, is a University Teaching Hospital committed to advancing patient care through cutting-edge research and education. With a “Good” rating from the CQC and significant investment underway, this is an exciting time to join our team and grow your career.
As a medium sized general hospital, we provide a full range of general medical and surgical services, including a busy Emergency Department, Maternity, and Paediatrics. As the population of our city and surrounding areas continues to grow rapidly, we are expanding and enhancing our facilities to meet rising demand and improve access to care for all our communities.
We are also proud to offer a growing portfolio of specialist services. In January 2025 we opened our state-of-the-art Radiotherapy Centre, bringing advanced cancer treatment closer to home. Our services also include neonatology, specialist surgical care, and a wide range of diagnostics, supported by the new Community Diagnostic Centre at Whitehouse Health Centre.
Further investment is underway, including the construction of Oak Wards – a new ward block featuring two 24-bed wards – and the recently approved Women and Children’s Centre, set to open by 2030.
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Detailed job description and main responsibilities
NHS Staff Survey: Our Health and Safety Climate score outperforms the national average, showing our commitment to creating a safe, healthy, and supportive environment for all.
To work closely with colleagues in the EPMA team, clinical teams, the IT department and Oracle to develop the EPMA solution.
Liaise closely with the Specialist Pharmacy Technician EPMA to ensure new drugs, order sentences and PowerPlans are set up correctly in the EPR system in a timely manner in line with local formulary and policies. Analysis of clinical risks and issues related to EPMA, reporting and proactively managing these as required, utilising the appropriate Trust mechanisms
Please refer to attached Job description for further information.
We believe success lies in the diversity of our employees and are committed to promoting equality, encouraging diversity, and embracing inclusion. We welcome applications from everyone interested in working for us.
MKUH is committed to equal opportunities and improving the working lives of our staff and as such we offer a range of flexible working practices.
We reserve the right to expire vacancies prior to the advertised closing date once enough applications have been received.
MKUH uses identification scanning technology to confirm the authenticity of documents; all prospective employees of MKUH will have their original documents verified using this technology.
By applying for this role, you accept if successful, that information from your application will be transferred into the national NHS Electronic Staff Record (ESR) system. Your personal data may be transferred from the Trust to another NHS organisation where your employment transfers within the NHS. This is in accordance with the streamlining programme which aims at saving you time and improving efficiencies within the NHS when your employment transfers.
Upon commencing employment with the Trust, all employees (except Medical & Dental Staff on national terms and conditions) are subject to a probationary period lasting a period of six months with an option to extend for a further six months to a total of 12 months.
Person specification
Qualifications and knowledge
Essential criteria
- Degree in Pharmacy
- Registered with the GPhC
- Postgraduate Clinical Certificate
- Evidence of ongoing CPD as required by the GPhC
Desirable criteria
- Member of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society
- MSc in Clinical Pharmacy Practice or relevant speciality
- Independent Prescriber
- Education and Training qualification
Experience
Essential criteria
- Significant post registration experience with at least 3 years in a hospital post
- Experience of managing drug expenditure for a specialty and understanding budgets
- Previous evaluations reviews of medicines used in the specialty’s patient group
- Experience as a trainer
- Experience working as part of a multi-disciplinary team to provide patient care
- Experience of audit work
- Service development
- An awareness of national standards and service delivery issues relevant to area of practice
Desirable criteria
- Proven experience in developing and working with electronic prescribing solutions
- Personnel management
- Experience of appraising staff and giving feedback
- Medicines Information
- Management qualification
- Introduction of a new service
- Project management
- Published work
- Specialist knowledge in the relevant area of practice
Skills
Essential criteria
- Ability to manage time effectively and work to deadlines demonstrated in a previous post
- Ability to plan, prioritise and organise self and others
- Effective verbal and written communication demonstrated in a previous post
- I.T. skills such as computer literacy, word processing and spreadsheet skills
- Managerial skills
- Communication skills.
- Good presentation skills
- Report writing
- Problem solving
- Good team work and ability to work alone
Desirable criteria
- Leadership skills
- Critical appraisal skills
- Radical thinking
- Innovative
- Ability to motivate and act as a role model
- Ability to use Microsoft Excel and Microsoft Word
Personal and people development
Essential criteria
- Experience of supervising and developing colleagues
- Evidence of Continuous Professional Development
Communication
Essential criteria
- Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to influence others
- Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written
Employer certification / accreditation badges
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.
Documents to download
Further details / informal visits contact
- Name
- Vivian De Vittoris
- Job title
- Associate Director of Pharmacy Operations
- Email address
- [email protected]
- Additional information
Cornelia Libal, Chief Pharmacy Information Officer at [email protected]
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