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Pharmacist Support, a charity centred on bolstering pharmacist well-being, has launched a new course to help pharmacy professionals to foster a positive and supportive workplace culture. The 'Embracing a Workplace Wellbeing Culture' course is specially designed for pharmacy managers and leaders, and aims to address the unique challenges faced by them in cultivating a healthy environment for their teams. During the course, they will be empowered with practical strategies that can be implemented immediately, which can contribute to improved team wellbeing and performance. Workforce Wellbeing surveys conducted by the firm with the RPS have shown that the pressures on the pharmacy workforce continue to negatively impact on mental health and wellbeing, Pharmacist Support Chief Executive, Danielle Hunt said.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society's (RPS) second roundtable on workforce wellbeing resulted in a series of collaborative actions to address pharmacy professionals' mental health and wellbeing challenges. The roundtable brought together key stakeholders from the pharmacy sector, including organisations like the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), Community Pharmacy England (CPE), the National Pharmacy Association (NPA), and the profession's independent charity Pharmacist Support (PS). A report detailing the outcomes of the meeting was published on Friday, highlighting the key areas of discussion and the agreed-upon actions by the participants. During the roundtable, participants discussed the importance of understanding the workforce demographics, both nationally and locally, and using data to address wellbeing issues effectively. They also emphasised the need for using supportive standards set by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) and the Care Quality Commission (CQC) quality statement to support and empower pharmacists' wellbeing positively.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has released findings from its fifth annual workforce wellbeing survey, which was conducted in collaboration with the profession's charity, Pharmacist Support. Exposing the mental health challenges faced by pharmacists, the survey revealed a troubling statistic: 86 per cent of pharmacists are at a high risk of burnout. Inadequate staffing was the main factor contributing to burnout, followed by lack of work-life balance, insufficient protected learning time, absence of colleague or senior support, and long working hours. While pharmacies are encouraged to provide more clinical services, more than 60 per cent of pharmacists surveyed reported that they were not being offered "sufficient protected learning time" to focus on their professional development and learning needs. The survey also exposed a distressing trend of workplace abuse, with over 40 per cent of pharmacists reporting verbal abuse from the public, and 25 per cent from colleagues or managers.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) recently announced a valuable addition to their e-library collection: the Maudsley Deprescribing Guidelines, authored by renowned experts Mark Horowitz and David Taylor. Designed to assist pharmacists and clinicians in recognising and appropriately treating withdrawal effects of medications, the guidelines have garnered praise from industry figures like Peter Pratt, National Speciality Advisor for Mental Health Pharmacy and RPS Fellow. This initiative responds to the increasing demand for guidance on safely reducing or discontinuing psychiatric medications, providing comprehensive support for clinicians and patients alike. Drawing on insights from contributors to The Lancet Psychiatry, the handbook offers step-by-step instructions for tapering antidepressants, benzodiazepines, gabapentinoids, and z-drugs, along with troubleshooting strategies.

Burnout is a state of physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion caused by prolonged stress. It can affect anyone, regardless of their profession or personal situation. Recognizing the warning signs of burnout is crucial for taking proactive steps to address it before it leads to more severe health issues. This article will explore the key indicators of burnout and provide practical strategies for managing and preventing it. Physical Symptoms of Burnout Physical symptoms are often the first signs of burnout. These symptoms can manifest in various ways, including chronic fatigue, insomnia, headaches, and muscle tension. Persistent fatigue, even after a full night's sleep, is a significant red flag. This type of exhaustion can make daily tasks feel overwhelming and unmanageable. Insomnia, or difficulty sleeping, is another common physical symptom. Individuals experiencing burnout may find it hard to fall asleep or stay asleep, leading to a vicious cycle of fatigue and sleeplessness. Headaches and muscle tension, particularly in the neck and shoulders, are also prevalent. These symptoms are often caused by the body's prolonged stress response, which keeps muscles in a constant state of tension.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has informed the Welsh Parliament about the workforce crisis in the pharmacy sector and the need to prioritise staff well-being and training requirements to help Covid recovery plans. Providing evidence to the Senedd's Health and Social Care Committee's inquiry into waiting times, the RPS director in Wales Elen Jones emphasised that the pandemic brought the pharmacy workforce under immense pressure. She emphasised on "the need for workforce planning that allows pharmacists enough time to learn, teach and embed new skills," which would help in maintaining a motivated and sustainable workforce. Jones presented the evidence alongside colleagues from the Royal College of General Practitioners, Community Pharmacy Wales and the Royal College of Nursing.

The Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) provide an opportunity to break the silo mentality in the health and care sector, National Pharmacy Association (NPA) chair Andrew Lane told MPs. While giving evidence to the Health and Social Care Select Committee on 6 December about the effectiveness of ICSs, Lane also poured cold water on newspaper reports that community pharmacists will be drafted in to break the NHS strike, as he reiterated the call for a "properly costed and funded environment." "We've been in different silos historically and ICSs are an opportunity to pull all systems together for the benefit of patients," he told committee members. Lane pointed to dementia-trained pharmacy delivery drivers and the Discharge Medicines Service as instances where the influence of community pharmacy already stretches beyond primary care into hospitals and social care. "We've seen pharmacists prescribe and get UTIs off doctors' desks, so we are starting to release capacity [in the system] and we're on that clinical journey. We welcome that, but it has to be with the right level of funding," he added.

Erection problems are common conditions that can affect adult men of any age. General awareness about erection problems has grown in recent years, and men's partners and society at-large generally view it as a common condition. Indeed, 75% of men and their partners agree that they are a normal part of life for a man. But despite progress to normalise the condition, the research points to the fact that men still feel responsible for erection problems. The survey's key findings underscore the multi-faceted social pressure men feel to perform socially, professionally, emotionally, and sexually. 90% of men feel expected to provide financial support, 80%+ feel they should be in control of their feelings, and 92% think it is expected of them to perform in bed. Despite erection problems being commonplace, expectations about sexual performance complicate the situation and make a major impact on the lives of those it affects. When men are confronted with erection problems, 60% expressed feeling disappointed. This disappointment, combined with the difficulty that 1 in 3 men have spoken about it, has a strong impact on well-being. 36% of men feel their mental health has been impacted by erection problems and leads to a feeling of guilt, and 74% of men feel responsible for difficulties in achieving or maintaining an erection.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) on Thursday (30th November) announced the launch of a new suicide surveillance system, bolstering its efforts to tackle emerging methods of suicide and clamp down on those seeking to sell dangerous products to vulnerable people. For now, the DHSC will work with the National Police Chiefs' Council to gather near to real-time data from across the country on deaths by suspected suicide by gender, age group and method. The data will be obtained from individual police forces in England and the government will get it within three months of a suspected suicide, the DHSC said in its release. Previously, the only suicide data available at a national level was provided by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), but it could take up to 2 years for the official ONS data to come through.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has said that multi-buy deals on paracetamol violate the existing voluntary sales guidelines. The professional body is urging the government to pass legislation that prohibits retailers from making such offers on medicines for pain relief. They have also sent letters to MP Maria Caulfield who is the Minister for Mental Health and Women's Health. The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is requesting to take action on the legislation at the earliest. The concern raised is that multi-buy offers such as 'buy one get one free' can encourage people to buy and store excess packs, which may lead to accidental or impulsive overdose.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE)'s independent committee has called for more research to ensure liposuction for treatment of chronic lipoedema is safe and effective enough for use on the NHS. Lipoedema is more prevalent in women and very rarely affects men. It is characterised by an abnormal, usually symmetrical, accumulation of fat in the legs, hips, buttocks, and occasionally arms. It is a separate condition to obesity and lymphoedema. The cause of lipoedema is unknown, but hormonal changes, weight gain and genetics are thought to be involved. The size and shape of legs, and the resultant mobility issues and pain, can have a profoundly negative effect on quality of life, and physical and mental health. The interventional procedures advisory committee reviewed evidence from several sources, including eight before-and-after studies. The committee was informed that several different liposuction techniques are used and that they may have different safety and efficacy profiles.

NHS England's decision to forgo commissioning puberty suppressing hormones (PSH) for children and young people, citing insufficient evidence of their safety and clinical effectiveness, follows a comprehensive review conducted by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) in 2020. The clinical report underscores that "PSH treatment options will not be part of routine commissioning" for people under the age of 18 in England grappling with gender incongruence or dysphoria. The NHS England review analysed nine observational studies on Gonadotrophin Releasing Hormone Analogues (GnRHa) and found no statistically significant difference in gender dysphoria, mental health, body image, and psychosocial functioning among children and adolescents treated with GnRHa. Duncan Rudkin, chief executive of the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), acknowledged the challenges faced by pharmacy professionals regarding prescriptions for puberty suppressing hormones, stating:

More than a third of pharmacists who participated in a survey said they have seen an increase in patients declining prescriptions due to the cost in the last 12 months. The survey was jointly conducted by the Pharmacists' Defence Association (PDA) and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS), extending their support for the Prescription Charges Coalition (PCC). Responding to the survey, 90 per cent of pharmacists admitted seeing cases where patients decline all the medicines on a prescription due to cost. Nearly all respondents said they have seen cases where patients declined some of their prescribed medicines and more than a quarter of them have experienced such situation often. They have warned of the impact of prescription charges as patients are denying vital medicines, including those for blood pressure and mental health, inhalers, antibiotics, pain relief, and statins, which can have potential consequences for the individual's health.

The Labour Party's election manifesto, unveiled with a focus on bolstering community pharmacy services and enhancing localised healthcare, has sparked responses from key pharmacy bodies across England. A standout pledge within the manifesto is the commitment to establish a Community Pharmacist Prescribing Service, aimed at granting more pharmacists independent prescribing rights. This initiative is viewed as pivotal in recognising the clinical capabilities of pharmacists and their potential to alleviate pressures within primary care. Additionally, Labour's plan advocates for broader healthcare access improvements, including enabling opticians to directly refer patients to specialist services and expanding self-referral options where suitable. The manifesto also introduces proposals to trial Neighbourhood Health Centres, designed to consolidate various healthcare services under one roof, such as family doctors, district nurses, and mental health specialists.

Many of us drink alcohol on a regular basis, and when it comes to the weekend many of us have been known to overindulge a little. For the most part we understand the dangers of alcohol. We have an understanding that it can damage our liver, exacerbate mental health conditions and lead to addiction, with private alcohol treatment one of the few pathways to recovery. However, there are also many other effects that we may not be quite as familiar with, but it is important to know about them, particularly if you are a heavy drinker. Among some of the more common effects you may not be aware of, include… Disruption of REM Sleep Often we think alcohol gives us a better night's sleep, knocking us out for the count. However, while it does aid falling asleep, the quality of that sleep is significantly harmed. It disrupts the normal sleep cycle by reducing the time spent in rapid eye movement sleep, a stage that is important for memory consolidation and cognitive function. This sleep is less restorative and is why we often feel groggy and tired the following day.

With restrictions applied nationwide and people under obligation to stay at home, our mental health is at risk. One way or the other, we must have a plan in place on how to get through the days in quarantine.

Social anxiety and its allied depression are very common in every other individual nowadays. It is given the third rank by the connoisseurs who deal with a psychic disorder or say mental health. US Government epidemiological statistics unveil that at any given time the % of people suffering from social anxiety is 7% and in certain or under specific conditions the % of social suffering due to anxiety goes higher to 13% of the population at any given time...

Millions of women prefer an abortion with abortion pills. Whether taken at home or at the health center, a woman chooses medical abortion than surgical abortion. Research has found that abortion pill alone is 85 percent successful in terminating abortion during the first trimester (7 to 9 weeks). If you are not yet mentally prepared for bearing a child then you can go for a termination...

A new Information Standard has been published to support improved medication and sharing of allergy information across healthcare services in England. The move will standardise medication message content and help reduce medicines related errors and improve patient safety. It will also allow efficient sharing of medicine information between NHS and social care organisations, including hospitals, GP practices, residential care homes, mental health trusts, and community pharmacies. The Standard that came into effect in October "will save healthcare professionals valuable time accessing key medicines information, provide clinicians with access to a richer source of information, consistent across all care settings", said Shahzad Ali, NHS Digital clinical lead for the Interoperable Medicines Programme.

Lack of staffing and increased demand from patients is mounting unsustainable pressure on the NHS, putting patient safety and care at risk, a new poll of NHS leaders by the NHS Confederation revealed. NHS leaders in England warned that the service has reached a "tipping point" with nearly 88 per cent saying "the demands on their organisation are unsustainable." The survey, published ahead of the monthly performance figures for the NHS England, covered leaders across hospitals, ambulance services, mental health providers, community services, primary care and integrated care systems. It highlighted primary care, urgent and emergency care as greatest areas of concern, with record levels of demand on A&E departments and increasing bed occupancy rates.