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Tapping the potential of community pharmacies

Melanie Smaus, Public Affairs Officer, Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC)

Open Door - August 2004 page 5

There are some 12,000 community pharmacies - local chemists - in the UK and nearly half the population lives within 500 metres of one. It is estimated that around six million people visit community pharmacies each day.

Pharmacies already provide a range of services to the public including dispensing NHS prescriptions, advising on the treatment of minor ailments, smoking cessation schemes, advice to care homes and blood pressure monitoring. However, the range of services available differs from pharmacy to pharmacy and from primary care trust to primary care trust, depending on whether there is additional funding allocated at a local level.

The Government's Vision for Pharmacy in the New NHS1 document foresees an expanding role for community pharmacies as 'places where patients are able to access an increasing range of healthcare services' and calls on pharmacies to play a key role in delivering National Service Frameworks. Pharmacists are well placed to look out for signs and symptoms of long term conditions, given that some 94% of the population uses community pharmacies at least once a year.

The Government recognises that a new national contract is necessary in order to make their Vision for pharmacy a reality and this is currently under negotiation. The aim of the new contract is to widen the services provided by community pharmacists, for the benefit of patients, beyond the traditional role of dispensing prescriptions and selling medicines.

The new contract will be a rolling programme, with gradual transition from the old to the new. It is envisaged that the contract framework will develop over time, to keep pace with the changing needs of patients and the NHS. The new contract consists of three different levels of services; essential, advanced and enhanced. Once appropriately trained, pharmacists will be able to expand the range of services they provide. Implementation is expected to begin later this year.

Following its introduction, and assuming that the necessary resources are forthcoming, community pharmacists will be able to play a fuller role in the detection, intervention and treatment of people with a wide range of chronic conditions. Specifically, they may become a more prominent partner in relation to:

  • Supporting self monitoring of symptoms of MS, for example through patient education, stocking appropriate medicines and providing advice on their use
  • Signposting people to healthcare professionals - for example, specialist MS nurses
  • Medicines management - helping people to make the best use of their medication through a face to face discussion with the pharmacist on medication including side effects. An element of this will be a 'medicines use review', which has been shown to improve the quality of prescribing and improve health outcomes. People with chronic conditions managed by medication have more contact with community pharmacists than any other healthcare professional; consequently community pharmacists are well placed to detect early changes in condition and identify at-risk patients well before they reach the hospital revolving door
  • Repeat dispensing - this could see people getting repeat medication from their pharmacist for up to a year without having to go to their GP
  • Endorsing a 'balanced' diet, exercise and other general health promotion messages

The extended role for pharmacists should ensure that they are fully integrated into the NHS care team. People want to fit their care around their everyday lives, not the other way around - and care in a community pharmacy setting is convenient for most people as appointments aren't necessary and few people have to travel far to find one.

For more information on the expanding role of community pharmacy please contact: Melanie Smaus, Public Affairs Officer, PSNC on 01296 432 823 or by email at melanie.smaus@psnc.org.uk or visit the PSNC website

Reference

  1. A vision for pharmacy in the new NHS. Department of Health, July 2003

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