Outpatient (OP) Pharmacy In Charge

Role Overview

As the senior pharmacist on site, you will take day-to-day ownership of the dispensary and the pharmacy team, making sure that patients receive the correct medication safely and promptly. Your work keeps the pharmacy running smoothly: from managing stock and supervising pharmacy technicians to handling billing exceptions and maintaining strict regulatory compliance. You act as the bridge between clinical prescribing, supply availability, and the hospital's financial controls, ensuring every prescription is accounted for and every patient interaction is dependable.

Key Responsibilities

• Supervise the daily workflow of the pharmacy, including shift allocation and direct oversight of pharmacy technicians, to ensure dispensing is accurate, well-organised, and completed without unnecessary delay.
• Manage all prescription billing processes, including recording cash and insurance transactions. If the hospital system goes down, coordinate with front-desk staff to issue a manual card for the patient, finalising the bill once the system is restored.
• Verify that every prepared prescription is correctly labelled, double-checked against the original order, and that patients or their representatives are informed before collection. This includes confirming patient identity, drug name, dose, allergies, and legible usage instructions.
• Maintain continuous stock oversight by performing daily counts, spot checks, and monthly stock takes. Investigate and report any variances or expiries with clear explanations, and escalate urgent shortages to the Pharmacy Manager for approval of manual purchases.
• Oversee stock movement in the hospital information system, including goods received, returns, petty-cash purchases, inter-branch transfers, expired items, losses, and theft. Ensure every movement is recorded in real time for full traceability.
• Manage expiry risk proactively using FIFO/FEFO principles, apply green stickers to short-dated items, share short-expiry lists with prescribing doctors, and lead the weekly shelf-check routine. Document and quarantine all expired drugs, then arrange disposal in line with regulatory guidelines.
• Maintain the emergency trolley and other critical pharmacy equipment, ensuring they are always stocked, functional, and checked according to schedule. Chart fridge temperatures twice daily and report any deviations to the relevant department.
• Act as the first point of escalation for incidents, quality concerns, and fraud prevention. Record sentinel events within 24 hours, enforce infection-control practices during extemporaneous preparation, follow audit recommendations, and preserve patient confidentiality at all times.

Requirements & Qualifications

• Bachelor of Pharmacy degree from a recognised institution.
• Valid, current practice license issued by the Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB).
• At least 4 years of hands-on pharmacy experience, including a minimum of 1 year in a supervisory or lead capacity.
• Strong attention to detail and organisational awareness, with the ability to track multiple stock lines, expiry dates, and billing records without losing accuracy.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, enabling clear teamwork with doctors, nurses, reception staff, and patients under pressure.
• Demonstrated reliability and professional judgment, especially when handling controlled drugs, resolving billing issues, or enforcing protocol during system downtime.