Integration of primary and community care is key to health service improvement - Lords Committee has said in a new report published on 15 December.
The report highlighted the need for better staff training, improved data-sharing, flexible healthcare structures and collaboration across different professions in
the healthcare system to support more integrated care.
Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) England has welcomed the report, and highlighted the important role pharmacy teams can play in improving patient care.
Tase Oputu, Chair of RPS England Pharmacy Board, said: "Pharmacists and pharmacy teams play a vital role in supporting more integrated care, working with
multidisciplinary teams across the health service.
Community pharmacy should be involved in key decisions in neighbourhoods and systems to help reduce workload and increase patient access, a roundtable
organised by the National Pharmacy Association to discuss a recent review on primary care integration has concluded.
The NPA said it would be sending the recently published report on the roundtable to local pharmaceutical committees (LPCs) and other local pharmacy leaders as a
tool to help them engage with Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) which will become statutory bodies from July 1.
The 'Fuller Stocktake: Community Pharmacy Roundtable' report, published on June 13 by the NPA, is based on a meeting hosted by the association on behalf of the NHS
team running a key review of primary care integration, the so-called 'Fuller Stocktake'.
NPA integration lead, Michael Lennox, said: "The NPA recognises the critical importance of our LPC network colleagues being there for contractors at the 42 local
systems level and influencing to fulfil the laudable ambitions of the Fuller Report.
"We ensured that community pharmacy voices were heard in the stocktake process and now that conversation needs to be amplified locally."
The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has welcomed the new research guidance published by NHS England for the integrated care systems.
The guidance is said to reflect the benefits of delivering research, for patients, staff and healthcare system performance, including the economic benefits for the
NHS.
Jennifer Harris, ABPI's Director of Research Policy, said: "This guidance is clear on what good research practice looks like and it's great to see it out and
available for the NHS to use.
"A research-active NHS delivers huge value to patients, staff and the system itself. We hope that putting this guidance into action will help Integrated Care Systems
realise the huge benefits that research can offer, and help make the UK once again a destination of choice for developing the medical breakthroughs people need."
The Pharmacists' Defence Association (PDA) is supporting pharmacists in England whose employment has been impacted by the creation of new NHS structures.
As a result of the 2022 Health and Care Act, Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) were established in England, and Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs) were closed on 1
July 2022. Each of the ICSs includes two key parts: an Integrated Care Board (ICB) and an Integrated Care Partnership (ICP).
The association said: "The previous structures in England, established by the Health and Social Care Act 2012, originally had over 200 clinical commissioning groups.
This number had reduced over recent years via mergers."
"However, this latest shift to just 42 commissioning entities means a significant change to significantly larger geographies and populations covered by each ICS.
Although each ICS and its activity can be subdivided into 'places', and within places into 'neighbourhoods', it is at the ICS level that the employer is formed."
"Whereas CCGs previously employed many local health professionals, including pharmacists, the new arrangements mean that ICBs are now that employer. The PDA is
supporting members who have contacted its Service Centre about the impact of these changes."
The lessons from Covid crisis applied in the future through collaboration can create a better integration between GP practices, hospitals and community
pharmacies, Pharmacists Defence Association (PDA) has proposed.
Stating that a more integrated healthcare system could enable pharmacists to provide effective and more efficient care to patients, the PDA proposed a model where
at least two pharmacists would be working in each community pharmacy, empowered, and enabled with two-way referral pathways, having more clinical input and full
access to patient records.
"Such an environment could not only help to improve communications between health professionals and increase access to services for patients, but would support
the NHS to operate more effectively."
Now is the best time for community pharmacy to integrate its model of NHS representation and support to ensure better outcomes for contractors, said James Wood, director of Contractor & LPC Support, Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC).
It is important for the sector to adapt to the new landscape and address challenges such as workforce, digital data, integration of pharmacy services, and medicines optimisation, he said during the first session of the sixth annual Pharmacy Business Conference held online on Tuesday, September 21.
Under the new system, every part of England will be covered by integrated care systems (ICSs) from April 2022. ICSs have been created to bring about big changes in how health and care services in England are planned, paid for and delivered. They are a key part of the direction of travel for the NHS as outlined in the NHS Long Term Plan.
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.
Charac, an NHS-integrated one-stop platform for independent community pharmacies, and Positive Solutions, the fastest growing pharmacy IT provider in the UK,
have agreed on a collaboration to support community pharmacies through new integrated technology platform - MyHealthHub.
The tech platform aims to give pharmacies a powerful and compelling tool to both help retain and attract new patients. The app will also allow the over 7,200
independent high street pharmacies which are lacking a digital footprint to compete with larger online pharmacies by providing them with an online presence.
The long-term strategic partnership brings together Charac's innovative approach to patient relationship management and Positive Solutions trusted expertise in
digital solutions for pharmacy.
With Positive Solutions' Analyst PMR used daily by 16,000 pharmacy team members to process over 87 million scripts and 180 million items, the collaboration will
help transform patient engagement and continue driving service business to pharmacies across the UK using a new innovative, integrative technology platform,
MyHealthHub.
MyHealthHub will not only integrate with Analyst PMR, but also forms part of an entire new technology ecosystem from Positive Solutions, the Hx platform and will
be entirely interoperable.
The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) and BeWell are working together to help provide efficiencies and productivity that address the growing pressures within
community pharmacy.
BeWell's Pharmacy Management Platform provides robust solutions that include Patient Relationship Management, Omnichannel Communications and Engagement, Services
and Bookings Management, access to patient records, NHS Login supported Patient Application, and repeat prescription capabilities for Pharmacy Website and Patient
App that include integrations with Surgery Online Services.
This single interoperable platform is also integrated with pharmacy PMRs, connecting back office and administrative functions with front-of-house digital patient
experiences. In line with the NPA's vision, BeWell has taken a leading role in formulating a unique ecosystem of pharmacy partners uniting marketing agencies,
PGD-based service providers, and delivery method partners - integrating their capabilities within the BeWell platform.
England's chief pharmaceutical officer (CPhO) David Webb has promised his "wholehearted support" for the community pharmacy sector at the board meeting of the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) on 28 June in St Albans.
After hearing the CPhO at the meeting, NPA chair, Andrew Lane, later declared: "David is someone we can do business with."
Webb thus listed his priorities as head of profession: integration of independent prescribing as part of pharmacy practice by 2026; promotion of inclusive pharmacy
practice for all pharmacy professionals; assurance of post-registration practice; developing the role of pharmacy technicians; support for Integrated Care Systems
and Primary Care Network pharmacy teams (including community pharmacy); medicines optimisation; and strengthening of professional leadership for community pharmacy.
He also reported that NHS England had recently increased its team of regional pharmacy integration leads from seven to 14, creating seven new senior posts.
Webb told NPA board members: "I want sincerely to thank community pharmacy teams for everything they are doing and to say that you have my wholehearted support. I believe in the importance of community pharmacy and will listen and engage as I've already demonstrated.
Online pharmacy PillTime has taken a step to boost its prescription growth by implementing new Patient Medication Record (PMR) system Titan in its
state-of-the-art premises.
PillTime moved to new, expanded 26,000sqft premises in Cribbs Causeway on the edge of Bristol earlier this year, where it has also installed state-of-the-art
robotics in a bid to significantly enhance future productivity and capacity.
Teething problems over Easter weekend saw PillTime struggling to seamlessly integrate all the new systems and processes while physically moving premises which
affected service delivery and customer support.
However, CEO Leighton Humphreys was supported by Tariq Muhammad, CEO of Invatech Health, who is a former community pharmacist and has worked with independent
pharmacies around the UK as well as larger online businesses, to integrate Titan into their workflows.
Alongside integration work, Muhammad and his team supported PillTime with necessary design, governance and pharmacy expertise as the company struggled to meet its
usual high standards for dispensing medicines to patients.
The Independent Pharmacies Association (IPA), in collaboration with the Association of Optometrists (AOP), the British Dental Association (BDA) and the
NHS Confederation has written to health secretary Wes Streeting, urging him to ensure sustainable investment in primary care to strengthen the NHS and better
serve patients.
In their letter, the group congratulated Streeting on his recent appointment as Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and requested a meeting to provide
their joint constructive input towards improving health outcomes.
They expressed concern that recent administrations have failed to follow through on promises to properly integrate and fund primary care, leading to deteriorating
health outcomes.
"Our collective experience is that our National Health Service (NHS), and health outcomes generally, have suffered at the hands of recent administrations that have
talked much about the importance of properly integrating and funding primary care but not followed through with action," they wrote.
The associations emphasised the need to transition the NHS to a Neighbourhood Health Service, where more care is delivered within local communities to identify
problems earlier.
A recently published report on medicines optimisation highlights the urgent need for transformative changes across all pharmacies to unlock their full
potential in delivering integrated care.
The report by Public Policy Projects (PPP) is first of the four in the series that emphasises the significant benefits that medicines optimisation can bring to
integrated care systems (ICSs).
This includes reducing health inequalities and improving population health.
Pointing to the "untapped opportunity" that medicines optimisation presents for ICSs facing financial challenges, the report underscores the vital role of
pharmacies in enhancing patient outcomes.
The launch of the Pharmacy First services has already demonstrated the essential contribution of pharmacies to the health and care system.
With "medicines being the second highest cost to the NHS," the report recommends ways "to achieve better value for money while improving patient outcomes".
Kelby Krabbenhoft, the president and CEO, has an aggressive strategy for the growth of the health care system, and in 2007 that vision aligned with a $400 million donation from philanthropist and businessman Denny Sanford.
Pharmacists and pharmacy technicians are set to receive up to £15.9 million over the next four years which will help them thrive in multidisciplinary healthcare teams and enable expansion of frontline staff in primary and community care.
The funding, which is part of the Pharmacy Integration Programme allocation, will improve registered pharmacy professionals' skills, through a range of training
and development opportunities.
The programme is a part of education reform for pharmacy professionals and will allow them to identify career pathways.
Health Education England and NHS England will work in partnership to develop "a formal portfolio recognition process to identify the existing skills, training and experience gained by pharmacists working in primary care, allowing them to work more flexibly and better support GP services", HEE said in a statement today (November 8).
The Pharmacists' Defence Association (PDA) has raised the issue faced by the pharmacy students on returning to in-person assessments while urging the
universities to take an empathetic approach in transition of online to in-person exams.
It was highlighted by the association that many student members were apprehensive about the return to in-person assessments. This is due to their continuing worry of Covid-19 transmissions and anxiety caused by changing exam formats and procedures.
However, with the ease of Covid restrictions, now pharmacy schools are able to decide how exams are conducted but the PDA believes that they should communicate the
process to students in advance.
"A return to normal university life is considered to be beneficial to student health and well-being. In-person exams are an important part of preparing for students' future trainee assessment examinations, GPhC accreditation for pharmacy schools, and ensuring the integrity of exam results. As future healthcare professionals, face-to-face interaction is also an integral part of the role," said the PDA.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) announced on Monday (November 22) that it would integrate NHS Digital, NHSX and Health Education England into NHS England and Improvement (NHSE&I) as part of major workforce planning and technology reforms.
The merger is part of the government's long-term strategy for the recruitment, training and retention of healthcare staff coupled with a digital transformation of
working practices.
The overhaul is based on recommendations made by NHS Digital chair Laura Wade-Gery who led a government-commissioned review to improve patient care, centralise the NHS workforce and accelerate digital delivery.
Commenting on her recommendations, Wade-Gery, said: "In the rest of our lives, digital has really changed how we live and we must now make this true in healthcare.
The goal of my review is to equip the national centre with the right capability to support Integrated Care Systems to deliver better citizen health. We need to have
the culture, operating model, skills, capabilities and processes to put data, digital and technology at the heart of how we transform health services."
David Webb, the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer for England, acknowledged that the "pressure in the system is high", but urged everyone to "keep our eye on the
design" of the NHS plan, adding that the "the objective is to bring the different parts of primary care together" in the patient interest.
Speaking during the opening keynote session at the the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) conference held on Thursday (13 October), he added that the NHS plan
intends to bring different parts of primary care together to help patients.
He said the new integrated care boards (ICBs) are a key strategic framework as they provide the "potential to form partnerships to deliver integrated services across
larger populations".
"ICBs will want to work with Local Pharmaceutical Committees to plan for the local population and the new community pharmacy clinical leads in ICBs, who have been
funded by NHS England, are there to advise."
He explained that once an ICB takes over the commissioning of pharmaceutical services (which they are all due to do by April 2023), it could use its funds to
commission a local enhanced service as an add on to an advanced service. For instance, a CVD risk assessment could be added to the blood pressure check service.
Glenmark, a multinational pharmaceutical company, has partnered with AI data-driven supply chain management platform 7bridges.
Initially focusing on their European business, where they have operations in 15 markets, the supply chain and logistics function is a big focus area for this cost
reduction.
The partnership with 7bridges will allow Glenmark to baseline their supply chain data giving them visibility of data, cost and service performance across their
network of logistics service providers.
This exercise will identify areas where invoices from their logistics service providers are being incorrectly or overcharged. With automatic dispute raising,
savings will be quickly achieved. The platform will then enable Glenmark to benchmark their data, so they can compare the performance and cost of their LSPs to the
wider industry.
With Glenmark's global vision to emerge as a leading integrated research-based global pharmaceutical company, this investment in their supply chain will be integral
to achieving this.
The next step in the partnership will be to run simulations to optimise road freight services and 3PL operations, with the aim to then roll out globally.
Keith Ridge, who retired from the role of England's chief pharmaceutical officer this month, has written to the NHS regional directors regarding a package to empower community pharmacies to implement clinical services in their integrated care systems.
Though details about this letter are not available, Malcolm Harrison, chief executive officer of the Company Chemists' Association, welcomed the move saying: "It is a positive step towards the greater integration of community pharmacy care into the NHS.
"It is vital for the NHS that patients can benefit from the clinical care services set out in the Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework."
Harrison, however, highlighted that while pharmacies are being pushed to do more, the efforts to introduce new clinical services should be supported with "sustainable funding and material actions to increase workforce numbers in the sector."
"We are concerned that without the funding and people in place, the desired volume of necessary services cannot be delivered, no matter how well coordinated."