Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) has published a set of service proposals that describe how pharmacy services could develop in the future within the context of government drives for efficiency.
The proposals include the introduction of a care package, which would see repeat dispensing becoming a default option where medicines are needed on a long-term basis, patient registration at pharmacies, and pharmacies offering enhanced medicines optimisation services.
Pharmacies would also offer inhaler technique checks and advice routinely, undertake targeted prescription interventions, support for patients after discharge from hospital and offer minor ailments and emergency supply services.
The document comes as part of the discussions with the NHS following the 17th December open letter in which the government announced a number of plans for community pharmacy including a £170 million reduction in funding. The government highlighted the need for efficiencies but also stated that it wanted to develop a clinically-focused community pharmacy service.
The Department of Health (DH) and NHS England have no specific proposals on how to develop that clinically-focused community pharmacy service, so they invited PSNC to propose service development options for discussion.
The proposals offer a possible way to develop the pharmacy service in order to meet the NHS and government’s stated aims for patient care, and PSNC will undertake further development work on them subject to the response they receive from DH and NHS England.
The proposals are set out in three phases, in recognition of the need to allow the wider NHS and community pharmacy to adopt them in a controlled manner that also allows time for other enablers, such as IT, to be put in place.
To read a summary of PSNC’s service development proposals, visit dld.bz/enzNm.
