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he Pharmacy Schools Council (PhSC) has elected Professor Katie Maddock as the organisation's new chair. Prior to becoming head of school at Keele University, Professor Maddock had been MPharm course director and associate dean for education for the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, responsible for developing the clinical teaching at Keele. Before joining Keele University, she taught clinical pharmacy and pharmacy practice at Aston University. Her research interests lie in pharmacy education, particularly the use of technology in teaching, clinical therapeutics, augmented reality simulation and interprofessional education. She was also awarded a principal fellowship of the Higher Education Academy in November 2020. Having worked in hospital pharmacy, Professor Maddock is acutely aware of the pressures that Covid-19 has placed on healthcare, as well as the importance of retaining and building upon the positive changes to patient care and pharmacy practice that were developed in response to the pandemic.

The public awareness campaign for community pharmacy, 'Ask Your Pharmacist Week' this year will be on 31 October - 7 November, the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) has announced. Every year AYP Week is held across the UK, with an aim to raise awareness of pharmacy services and to prompt conversations with key stakeholders at a local level about community pharmacy's role and benefits. Activities in previous years have ranged from public exhibitions and window posters to social media campaigns, projects with patient groups and visits to pharmacies from local dignitaries and politicians. NPA Head of Communications, Stephen Fishwick, said, "AYP Week is an important fixture in the pharmacy calendar, as it creates a space for focused public awareness activities to help customers, patients and stakeholders understand more fully the community pharmacy offer. We want people to be more aware of long-standing and new NHS services plus the skills and expertise on offer in pharmacies across the UK. AYP also aims to cultivate a richer dialogue with key stakeholders, which in England now includes leaders in Integrated Care Systems."

Community Pharmacy England, Company Chemists Association, and the National Pharmacy Association have all expressed their disappointment at a recent press statement made by Dr Leyla Hannbeck, Chief Executive of the Association of Independent Multiple Pharmacies. The CPE, CCA and NPA refuted AIMp's claim that pharmacy bodies operate independently, emphasising the importance of employing various channels and strategies to shape public policy. "It makes sense to use a variety of channels and tactics to influence public policy," NPA, CPE and CCA said in a joint statement issued on Wednesday (August 13). "Limiting our work to just one Parliamentary channel would be naive and do a disservice to pharmacy owners." On Aug. 12, AIMp highlighted that a lack of cohesion was one of the contributing factors to the sector's difficulty in gaining wider attention. Dr. Hannbeck argued that it's counterproductive for each pharmacy organisation to maintain its own manifesto, essentially a lengthy wish-list that is often unrealistic and unattainable. "This can conveniently allow those in power to easily employ a divide-and-conquer strategy," she said.

The hybrid professional and leadership session underscores the Sigma Conference's significance in offering hope and inspiration to its delegates. This pioneering venture unfolds following meticulous planning, months of deliberation, and the collaboration of experts from various health disciplines across the UK. This session, rich in diversity and expertise, aims to elevate the role of community pharmacy in the ever-evolving landscape of the NHS. It comprises three key components and delves into multi-professional collaboration, insights from NHS Chief Professional Officers from the four devolved nations complimented by the Royal College of Nursing Directorate Wales, and the evolving landscape of Pharmacy Professional Leadership. Multi-Professional Collaboration: Breaking Boundaries The crux of this ground-breaking session lies in appreciating and fostering greater multi-professional collaboration to set the stage for a thought-provoking session on how community pharmacy can be recognised as an important cog in the wheel of an integrated NHS. This convergence creates a dynamic platform for community pharmacy to form wider partnerships and explore opportunities, particularly with the recently launched NHS Pharmacy First 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 Department of Health in Northern Ireland has announced an immediate intervention worth over £5.3m in value, and a commitment to progress wider reform arrangements in collaboration with the Community Pharmacy NI (CPNI) to support pharmacies to deal with the ongoing pressure. The Minister and Department are 'very aware of the pressures facing community pharmacies'. They discussed the situation with CPNI representatives at a meeting last week. The scale of the unprecedented budgetary pressures and uncertainty currently facing the Department were spelt out. The Department said: "Notwithstanding these pressures, CPNI were informed that a support package for their sector was being finalised. This package includes immediate interventions worth over £5.3m in value, plus a commitment to progress wider reform arrangements in collaboration with CPNI." Recently, the CPNI highlighted that community pharmacists have issued a stark warning that shortages and skyrocketing prices of many medicines could result in pharmacies being unable to supply important prescription medicines to patients.

The Association of Independent Multiple Pharmacies (AIMp) celebrated achievements of its members during the pandemic at its first annual 'ball and award' ceremony held last week in London. To highlight the important role played by pharmacy teams, the association representing community pharmacy businesses with multiple branches, introduced two award categories - for patient safety and social care. Stephen Walls from H I Weldricks won the Patient Safety Awards and Sandeep Dhami, Nadia Hussain and Sachin Basandrai from MW Phillips won the Social Care Award. Congratulating the winners, Leyla Hannbeck, CEO of AIMp, said that community pharmacy teams "have worked tirelessly to deliver patient care throughout the pandemic." David McNicol, head of sales at AAH Pharmaceuticals, noted that the country and community pharmacy witnessed the toughest 18 months, and the gathering provided an opportunity to discuss ongoing challenges.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has published Pharmacy: Delivering a Healthier Wales that outlines a plan focusing on what can be achieved by end of 2025. The society has urged people to share their views by responding to the consultation on four key themes which were already set out in Pharmacy: Delivering a Healthier Wales -enhancing patient experience; developing the pharmacy workforce; seamless pharmaceutical care; and harnessing innovation and technology. "We want to hear from as many of you as possible. It is important that the aims for pharmacy over the next three years are right. So please take a look at the draft 2025 goals, the proposed activity and measures and complete our consultation response form by 11 September," said RPS. "We have been proud to continue to manage this important ambition for Wales, working on behalf of the Welsh Pharmaceutical Committee and with colleagues from all over Wales. Over 300 of you have already contributed to our face to face and virtual engagement sessions we held over the past three months and we thank you for your valuable input.

Community pharmacy could play an important role in proactive detection of heart valve disease (HVD), which remains under-recognised and under-detected in England, suggested a new report published by Wilmington Healthcare. Pharmacy bodies, including Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS), National Pharmacy Association (NPA) and Community Pharmacy England (CPE), have also endorsed the report, which encourages Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) to consider the innovative approach of detecting HVD with the help of community pharmacists. Despite HVD detection being a priority listed in the NHS Long Term Plan, a large number of people with HVD remained undiagnosed and untreated in the country due to lack of awareness of the disease prevalence. In June 2022, a pilot study was launched in Farnborough Primary Care Network (PCN), Hampshire, to evaluate the feasibility of using e-stethoscopes (digital auscultation) to detect this heart condition by a community pharmacist.

NHS England and NHS Improvement published on May 26 the findings of the Fuller 'stocktake' - setting out how primary care can work with partners across health and care to best meet the needs of their local communities. Dr Claire Fuller's report lays emphasis on the essential role of primary care and the potential of integrated neighbourhood teams in reducing the burden of ill health and tackling health inequities. It commends community pharmacy for keeping "its doors open to the public throughout" the pandemic whilst being "among the most recognisable of a multitude of dedicated staff delivering care around the clock in every neighbourhood in the country". The report highlights "recruitment and retention challenges across the wider primary care workforce" including in community pharmacy. Stressing the importance of community pharmacy teams in urgent care and prevention, including early diagnosis of cancers, the report points out that pharmacists could play "a more active role in signposting eligible people to screening and supporting early diagnosis, building on a number of successful pilots such as those from the Accelerate, Coordinate, Evaluate (ACE) programme".

The Challenges There cannot be anyone working in or with community pharmacy that either feels or sees the pain that emanates from the current operating climate. Pharmacy closures; increased workload and operating costs; increased patient and commissioner expectations; and, more fundamentally, an inadequate, undervalued and poorly structured remuneration and reimbursement contractual framework. As important as they are, we will not focus on these points here as they are not in the control of pharmacy owners and managers. They are the responsibility of those organisations that represent them at a national and local level who must deliver a better outcome as difficult as that may be. However, there are matters which are in the control of pharmacy owners and managers. These include their premises, their team, their systems and processes, their relationships with other healthcare providers and the broader community, their NHS and private service offer, and how they promote and deliver them to give the best patient experience. In order to create the head space to develop and implement a business plan, pharmacy owners and managers must make time to work on their business as well as in it. Then it requires the capacity and capability within their team to deliver the services and that excellent patient experience.

What skills does a pharmacist need these days? You'd think it would be sufficient to have a good understanding of pharmacy and the ability to offer a great patient service. Whilst this is true of course, the reality of the day to day role demands skills which most pharmacists have not been trained for as part of their formal qualification. At the very least, pharmacists find themselves responsible for running the pharmacy, managing people, managing processes and dealing with issues relating to customers, suppliers, surgeries, regulators and stakeholders. Even the most junior pharmacists quickly find themselves being accountable for the financial performance of their department and having to work within budgets or deliver on targets. Remarkably, despite the apparent lack of any formal training in these areas, pharmacists have been able to adapt and meet the challenges of whatever their job has thrown at them. Many pharmacists go even further, bringing out their inner entrepreneurial spirit to set up their own business. There are now over 6,000 pharmacy businesses owned by independent pharmacists, with this segment growing. Whilst pharmacists have historically adapted to their environments and picked up the necessary business skills, the rapidly changing landscape of pharmacy will require pharmacists to establish new skills to help ensure their businesses survive and thrive.

Acknowledging publication of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) Scotland's new professional vision for the future of pharmacy in Scotland - Pharmacy 2030, a Parliamentary Motion has been lodged in the Scottish Parliament. The vision, produced in collaboration with the National Pharmacy Technician Group Scotland, expects all pharmacists in a patient-facing role to become independent prescribers by 2030. The motion recognised the aim of the publication that by 2030 pharmacy teams will work together, using their expertise to make the best use of medicines and, will take a person-centred approach, providing care holistically rather than by clinical condition. It highlighted the important role that RPS would play by working with partners across health and social care to turn this vision into a reality.

The Pharmacists' Defence Association (PDA) has written to the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) to highlight several important points regarding their proposed "day of action" on 20 June 2024. The NPA describes this initiative as a response to the "emergency across the community pharmacy sector." In a letter addressed to NPA Chair Nick Kaye and Chief Executive Paul Rees, the PDA's director of pharmacy, Jay Badenhorst stressed the need for NPA members to consider their obligations to staff and patients before participating in the planned actions. He stated, "We are supportive of a new contractual framework for the community pharmacy sector." "However, any actions taken must ensure the safety of patients and the operational integrity of pharmacies." The PDA's letter also expressed concerns over the safety and operational impact of the proposed symbolic gestures, including turning off lights and blacking out windows.

The Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) has expressed disappointment as the government continued to refuse to "a much-needed broader funding uplift" for the community pharmacies in England. This follows conclusion of the first Annual Review of the progress of the five-year Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework (CPCF) deal by PSNC, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and NHS England & NHS Improvement (NHSE&I). "We remain deeply frustrated by government's refusal to agree a much-needed broader funding uplift for the sector, but we are determined to continue to look for better ways forward for the sector throughout 2022 and beyond," said Bharat Patel, PSNC vice-chair, negotiating team member and an independent contractor. Patel noted that despite some important wins such as recognition of key challenges faced by pharmacies, the commitment to consider these as part of our Year 4 negotiations, and agreement to take forward work on service fee and other regulatory changes, the PSNC is disappointed that the review did not lead to "immediate and tangible outcomes and improvements for contractors." The negotiator had put forward data and analysis showing the capacity and cost constraints faced by pharmacies.

Since its launch on January 31st, the Pharmacy First service by the Company Chemists Association (CCA) has achieved a significant milestone, completing over 200,000 consultations to date. This milestone underscores the service's vital role in providing same-day NHS care through community pharmacies across England. Recent analysis by the CCA has revealed a pressing need to bolster GP referrals, with disparities observed between different Integrated Care System (ICS) areas, resulting in what's described as a 'postcode lottery' for patients. CCA Chief Executive, Malcolm Harrison, emphasised the importance of sustained funding for Pharmacy First beyond 2025, ensuring its availability for patients, community pharmacies, and the wider NHS.

It's no secret that as pharmacists we are navigating a new and more demanding healthcare landscape. Our role has changed significantly since the start of the 21st century due to increased expectations from the public, advances in science and technology and changing workforce pressures. The Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework for England has placed a higher focus on clinical service. In addition, the Covid-19 pandemic resulted in significant acceleration in changing how we work day-to-day and the public perception of our role. Community pharmacy owners and staff have been under relentless pressure for the last two years. Dispensing volumes are continually increasing but dispensing revenues are being replaced by launching new services. We must find solutions to reduce the time it takes to dispense medication so we can focus on these new revenue generating services. To not just succeed, but to thrive, it is becoming increasingly important to understand and embrace the technology available.

Pharmacy owners discussed the key concerns and priorities for the future at the Community Pharmacy England's (CPE) digital briefing event held last week (on 7 May 2024). More than 500 pharmacy owners and their representatives registered for the event, which provided them an opportunity to learn more about the committee's work in key areas and share their views on important issues. Major concerns raised by them included underfunding, dispensing at a loss, and challenges in implementing Pharmacy First. Attendees described the new service as "slow", "challenging" and "underfunded", while also highlighting the importance of improving GPs' understanding of the service.

The Taskforce report recognises the important role of community pharmacy and pharmacy teams, and in particular, the fact that they often have most contact with individuals who are receiving medication assisted treatment, commented the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) on the publication of the Scottish Drug Deaths Taskforce's final report. The final report published on Thursday (June 21) follows four years of work developing and implementing a programme of actions to tackle the rising number of drug deaths in Scotland. RPS, as pharmacy's professional leadership body in Scotland and the rest of Great Britain, has positively engaged with the Taskforce as it carried out its work. Last year, RPS published 'Pharmacy's role in reducing harm and preventing drugs deaths (Scotland)' which contained 14 key recommendations. Many of the recommended actions within the Taskforce's report align with RPS policy.

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.