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The Centre for Pharmacy Post-Graduate Education (CPPE) has launched Menopause - an introduction for pharmacy professionals e-learning programme. The new Menopause: an introduction for pharmacy professionals e-learning programme aims to support pharmacist's to increase their knowledge and awareness of menopause and perimenopause, helping them to have initial conversations with those who need support. The programme teaches how to equip people experiencing menopausal symptoms with evidence-based information that allows them to make decisions about their own health management. This e-learning programme considers a range of topics, including the signs and symptoms associated with menopause and perimenopause, how a diagnosis is made and the national context supporting a growing role for pharmacy professionals in menopause care. It also discusses the benefits and risks of treatment options available, the common misconceptions that people may have about menopause and how to apply the evidence base to practice in order to help support decision making.

New research has shown that chronic pain can be objectively measured using brain signals, a report in The Conversation said. According to the report, a team of researchers conducted a study using brain implants capable of recording neural signals over an extended period. Their aim was to identify reliable markers of chronic pain severity in four patients as they went about their daily lives. While pain is typically a subjective experience, there is still much to discover about how pain signals are processed in the brain. Previous studies often relied on artificial settings, and the relationship between acute and chronic pain circuits remained unclear. To investigate this further, the researchers surgically implanted electrodes in the brains of four patients experiencing post-stroke pain and phantom limb pain. Neural signals were recorded in specific brain regions associated with planning, expectation, and emotion. The patients were then asked to report their pain severity levels multiple times a day for up to six months. Machine learning models were developed to analyse the recorded brain activity signals and predict the patients' self-reported pain intensity scores.

Your body is made up of about 60% water. Without water, it would be impossible to maintain a stable body temperature, get rid of the waste in your body, and lubricate your joints. When you don't get adequate water, you risk becoming dehydrated, which brings many issues for your body. Therefore, water is necessary to live; most people can barely last a week without water and not experience an assortment of health issues. Despite this obvious importance, many people don't put much thought into the kind of water they drink. Maybe you open your faucet into a glass or buy yourself bottled water without scrutinizing where this is coming from. However, do you know how safe the water you get from your tap or bottles is? Why should you drink purified water? Drinking contaminated water can cause many health issues for your body which is why purifying water is vital. There are many ways to purify your water, ranging from simple solutions to solutions using advanced technology such as water filters. It is not uncommon to find related searches online because people are increasingly interested in choosing the most effective water-purifying solutions. Before exploring different purification techniques, read about the benefits of keeping hydrated as you play poker on Uptown Pokies.

Lapses in strategies to tackle COVID-19 this year continue to create the perfect conditions for a deadly new variant to emerge, as parts of China witness a rise in infections, the head of the World Health Organization said on Friday (December 2). The comments by WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus mark a change in tone just months after he said that the world has never been in a better position to end the pandemic. "We are much closer to being able to say that the emergency phase of the pandemic is over, but we're not there yet," Tedros said on Friday. The global health agency estimates that about 90% of the world's population now has some level of immunity to SARS-COV-2 either due to prior infection or vaccination. "Gaps in testing … and vaccination are continuing to create the perfect conditions for a new variant of concern to emerge that could cause significant mortality," Tedros said. COVID-19 infections are at record highs in China and have started to rise in parts of Britain after months of decline.

The country as a whole is facing uncertain and challenging times, and for our profession emerging from the second year of the pandemic, the pressures and stresses don't look to be easing up. It is undeniable that the wellbeing of those in our pharmacy family has suffered and many face emotional and psychological challenges in addition to immense workplace pressure. What do we know about the state of wellbeing within the profession? As the profession's independent charity, it is crucial that Pharmacist Support keeps abreast of the changing needs of the profession to enable us to meet the needs of those we are here to help. To do this, each year we collaborate with the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) to carry out an annual Workforce Wellbeing Survey. The last survey carried out was in the latter part of 2021 but nothing has changed since. And the results provided stark reading. Of the 1,014 responses received, many reported living with 'poor' or 'very poor' mental health and wellbeing. The survey results highlight a continued clear need for mental health and wellbeing support. Within the survey, it was identified that there is a very clear need for independent assistance, with many saying they feel unable to talk to their employers about their mental health issues. The need for our charity has never been clearer.

As we transition in England through yet another NHS organisational change, I ask myself what does this mean for community pharmacy? I would like to think that this change will bring about opportunity and a chance for community pharmacy to showcase and continue the excellent work that was carried out during the height of the pandemic and is still ongoing today. I hope that it allows community pharmacy to be regarded as part of the NHS rather than sitting on the side lines. This change has to lead to better funding for community pharmacy, without sufficient funding we will see more pharmacies close. We are hearing a lot about winter pressures but this year it feels like all year round pressure. What I have seen, whilst the NHS is under such pressure, is North East London (NEL) CCG transitioning to an integrated care board (ICB) almost seamlessly. I have seen people transitioning into new roles, whilst working hard to ensure that all plates are still spinning, which at the moment is no mean feat. I spent a day out recently visiting pharmacies with the chief medical officer of NHS NEL, Dr Paul Gilluley. The visits were positive, we felt listened to and understood. The feedback was great, it was recognised that community pharmacy is often the informal front door to the NHS and that we have so much to offer in terms of ill health prevention. Community pharmacy can offer a total solution as long as we have the tools to do so, which can save so much time and money. An example is the GP CPCS service, which has launched well across NEL.

A polio vaccine booster campaign is being launched for almost a million children in London aged between 1 and 9 after confirmation that poliovirus is spreading in the capital for the first time since the 1980s. The UK Health Security Agency has identified 116 polioviruses from 19 sewage samples this year in London, after first sending an alert about finding the virus in June. The levels of poliovirus found and genetic diversity indicated that transmission was taking place in a number of London boroughs, the agency said on Wednesday (Aug 10). Health secretary Steve Barclay said: "I recognise parents and guardians will be concerned about the detection of polio in London, however I want to reassure people that nobody has been diagnosed with the virus and the risk to the wider population is low… "Vaccines offer the best defence to children, and those around them, so I would encourage families to ensure they are up to date with their routine jabs, and to come forward for the polio booster as soon as they are contacted by the NHS."

The Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) has developed a webtool to help community pharmacy contractors estimate the impact on their payments under the new discount deduction system. The calculator aims to illustrate the changes to discount deduction that a pharmacy could experience during the transition to the new arrangements from October 2022 to January 2024, when the new system will be fully in place. PSNC's calculator requires contractors to input information about their individual pharmacy dispensing mix (i.e. split of reimbursement by appliances, brands and generics) to provide an estimate for the level of impact the new discount deduction system will have. "The impact on individual pharmacies cannot be estimated without using dispensing mix data, meaning that any estimates which do not take this into account will not be reliable," said PSNC. For years many contractors have been frustrated by how discount is applied to their accounts and have often raised concerns about the blanket nature of its application to PSNC.

Professor Harry McQuillan has said community pharmacists in the UK must change their focus from an 'accuracy of supply' to a 'safety of supply' model when it comes to dealing with patients. "The main take away message from tonight's lecture is for pharmacy professionals to really challenge themselves about whether they are focused on accuracy of supply or safety of supply," he said at this year's UCL School of Pharmacy Lecture in London on Thursday, 15 June. "For our community pharmacists it must be about safety, including prescribing, and ensuring patients and citizens get the maximum benefit from prescribed medicines. "To deliver this, we need to invest in our teams - harness technology and always be willing to take the next step in a more clinical future." The Chief Executive Office of Community Pharmacy Scotland, however, noted that at a time when the UK was grappling with an unprecedented national debt crisis exacerbated by severe cost of living and spiraling inflation, community pharmacy will need to make a "compelling case" of where the priority should be in the sector. Expanding on the financial woes of the country, he compared the current national debt of the UK, which stood at a staggering 270 percent of GDP in September 2022, with the previous record-breaking national debt of 250 per cent at the end of WWII.

Denmark's Zealand Pharma and Boehringer Ingelheim said their experimental obesity treatment achieved up to 14.9% weight loss in a mid-stage trial, lining up a potential contestant in the booming obesity drug market. In a statement on Wednesday (May 10), the partners said that the Phase II dose-finding trial met its primary endpoint of weight loss after 46 weeks. Paola Casarosa, head of therapeutic areas at Germany's Boehringer Ingelheim told Reuters the partners are in discussion with regulators about the design of a planned follow-up trial in the third and last phase of testing. The enormous demand for weight-loss treatments such as Novo Nordisk's Wegovy, or potentially Eli Lilly's Mounjaro, could support as many as 10 competing products with annual sales reaching up to $100 billion within a decade, mostly in the United States, industry executives and analysts said. Lilly said about a year ago that Mounjaro was shown to reduce up to 22.5% in weight after 72 weeks of treatment in a much larger late-stage trial.

Medical malpractice is a serious issue, and if you are ever a victim of it, you need to know what to do. More often than not, people do not even know that they are victims of medical malpractice until it is too late. This blog post will discuss six important things that you need to know about medical malpractice. Read on to learn more. IT CAN HAPPEN TO ANYONE First and foremost, medical malpractice can happen to anyone. It does not discriminate based on age, gender, or race. If you have been a victim of medical negligence, then you need to take action. However, many people do not even know that they are victims of medical malpractice until it is too late. This is because the symptoms of medical malpractice can often mimic other conditions or diseases. As such, it is important to be aware of the signs and symptoms of medical malpractice so that you can take action as soon as possible. Some of the most common signs and symptoms of medical malpractice include sudden and unexpected death, severe or permanent injuries, disfigurement, as well as loss of limb. If you or a loved one have experienced any of these symptoms, then it is important to seek legal help as soon as possible. An experienced medical malpractice lawyer will be able to help you investigate your case and determine if you have a valid claim. In this case, take the time to explore online sources where you may come across the websites of some of the most reputable lawyers. This is where you will have the chance to learn about medical malpractice and what you can do to take action. Rest assured that with the help of a competent lawyer, you will be able to get the justice and compensation that you deserve.

Three leading healthcare bodies in Scotland have called for action to reduce the environmental impact caused by medicine prescribing. The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges and Faculties in Scotland, Royal Pharmaceutical Society and the Royal College of General Practitioners Scotland have all urged policymakers to enable a more sustainable approach to prescribing. This includes prioritising the introduction of electronic prescribing across the NHS, introducing the requirement for an environmental impact in NHS medicines procurement and improving the availability of data about the environmental impact of medicines. "We call on Scottish government, including the chief medical officer, to enable the delivery of a realistic medicine approach to prescribing by developing a supportive infrastructure for green social prescribing across Scotland," said the healthcare professionals in a joint statement. They have called on the pharmaceutical industry to make information about the environmental impact of medicines readily available in a standardised data format.

Within the last few weeks, at least six pharmacists have been subjected to interim order applications - either suspended or had significant restrictions placed upon their registration pending a full 'Fitness to Practise' hearing into serious allegations being made about their prescribing practices, the Pharmacists' Defence Association (PDA) has found. It said that there has been a "dramatic increase in action being taken by the pharmacy regulator (GPhC) against pharmacist prescribers associated with certain types of online prescribing services". It has warned pharmacist prescribers who work for online pharmacies about the specific risks associated with remote prescribing using a questionnaire-based model, typically with no direct prescriber/patient interaction. Common features that underpin the allegations include the following: Overreliance on a patient questionnaire to inform clinical decision making; No patient/prescriber interaction; Prescribing high risk medicines without adequate safeguards; Inadequate systems and processes leading to inappropriate prescribing; Very high volumes of prescriptions being authorised in short periods of time; and Prescribers/patient relationship established via an unregulated online portal.

Former chancellor Rishi Sunak, one of two candidates vying to be Britain's next premier, criticised the way outgoing prime minister Boris Johnson handled the Covid-19 pandemic, saying it had been a mistake to "empower" scientists and that the downsides of lockdowns were suppressed. The Tories are choosing a new leader after Johnson was forced to quit when dozens of ministers resigned in protest at a series of scandals and missteps. Party members are voting to select either Sunak or foreign secretary Liz Truss, who will take over next month. Opinion polls show Sunak is behind in race. The handling of the pandemic has become an issue, with Truss saying this month she would never again approve another lockdown and also asserting that as trade minister at the time she was not involved in taking the key decisions about how to respond. Sunak said the government had been "wrong to scare people" about coronavirus. He said he was banned by officials in Johnson's office from discussing the "trade-offs" of imposing coronavirus-related restrictions, such as the impact on missed doctor's appointments and lengthening waiting lists for healthcare in the NHS.

The Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC)'s director of pharmacy funding Mike Dent and Jack Cresswell, its funding strategy manager, will be hosting a webinar about changes to the discount deduction system on Wednesday 12th October at 7.30pm. The discount deduction scale has been a point of contention for community pharmacy contractors for many years, and PSNC has been pushing to remedy this. "The changes will lead to a levelling out for all pharmacies, with the impact on individual contractors varied due to their unique dispensing mix. We have been developing a series of resources about the changes, including an explanatory briefing, FAQs and an impact calculator. Our latest resource comes in the form of a webinar that aims to explain the new arrangements and the transition period in more detail," said PSNC.

Speaking at the SIGMA Conference 2023, Dr Leyla Hannbeck, CEO of the Association of Independent Multiple Pharmacies (AIMp), spoke about the increasing number of prescriptions, lack of funding and other existing challenges. Leyla explained how the pharmacy sector is facing immense challenges which are disrupting the delivery of services as well as impacting its growth. She further spoke about the hub and spoke model, and how it is unable to solve the issues. "Community pharmacies are clogged with prescription volume, and this is preventing them from supporting the wider NHS as well as offering services," she said. She said that the prescription volumes have rocketed, while the number of pharmacies in England has declined from 11, 522 in the year 2021-22 to 11, 414 in 2022-23. When it comes to Company Chemists' Association (CCA) pharmacies, there has been a loss of 1055 branches from 2022 to 2023.

The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) recently issued a public apology after they mistakenly referred to pharmacy technicians as 'pharmacist technicians' in a council paper. It has also written a letter of apology to the President of the Association of Pharmacy Technicians (APTUK) for the error they made. Meanwhile, the Pharmacists' Defence Association (PDA) has raised concern about an equally worrying trend in which pharmacists are being referred to by the GPhC and others as 'pharmacy professionals', a term that is also used for pharmacy technicians. The association said this creates confusion in the minds of the public about the two roles and responsibilities, which are very different, as well as have impact upon the workplace.

Two weeks prior to the closing of the hub and spoke consultation, issues around patient safety, costs and competition as well as practicalities such as what to do with uncollected medicines were discussed in a webinar on hub and spoke dispensing on Wednesday (May 26). The webinar was organised by Sigma Pharmaceuticals in association with the National Pharmacy Association (NPA). NPA director of corporate affairs Gareth Jones chaired the event and was joined by Sigma's Hatul Shah and Raj Haria as well as NPA vice chair Nick Kaye and NPA head of advice and support services Jasmine Shah. Kaye said: "There are still many 'unknown unknowns' with hub and spoke and the jury's still out on any potential benefits. I have lots of reservations about cost and it worries me how efficient this is for the business and the long term sustainability for the sector as a whole. Above all we need to think about the patient at the centre of all this and the potential confusion for them." Jasmine Shah felt patient safety was going to be the key in regards to whether the spoke and the hub would hold the ultimate responsibility and "who is going to take the accountability as far as patient care goes". She added: "It is most important that GPhC standards and NHS requirement are both met in identifying all the risks associated with the arrangement with hub and spoke and ensuring that (patient safety) measures are in place. Everything that needs to be looked at is by putting the patient at heart of the arrangement and seeing what is the safest way for them to receive care from both spoke and hub."

There are several aspects that must be taken into account. There are instances where two different kinds of medicines lead to side effects, hence you must see how you are managing your medication. Let us have a look at some of the best methods to ascertain proper medication management: LEARN ABOUT MOST COMMON MEDICATION MISTAKES This is one of the first things that one should know ABOUT simply because when you know what can lead to mistakes, you do not make mistakes. Some of the mistakes that most patients make may be in the form of taking too much medication, mixing up home remedies with prescribed drugs, and non-adherence to medical requirements. Evidence suggests that such mistakes lead to the ineffectiveness of medication, side effects, and overdose. USE ORGANIZATION TOOLS It may get very difficult to keep a track of the time and number of pills you need every day. It is especially true for elderly people who have a need for polypharmacy which is the use of five or more medications on a daily basis. Organization tools such as pill-box, alarm watch, and water bottle can be really helpful. For example, a pill-box can be used to keep your medicines safely and separately as per their categories such as medicines for diabetes in one part and medicines for pain in the other. This would help you easily manage your medication routine without a miss.