The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has confirmed it will respond to UK Commission's 'call for evidence' on pharmacy professional leadership.
The commission wants to ensure the professions are well equipped, with a voice to help shape the future, and enabled to develop through sharing and learning from
best practice.
The UK Commission on Pharmacy Professional Leadership has been set up by the chief pharmaceutical officers of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. It will
produce recommendations for the future of pharmacy professional leadership in the UK.
The commission is co-chaired by Nigel Clarke, former chair of the General Pharmaceutical Council, and Professor Dame Jane Dacre, professor of medical education at
University College London's Medical School.
The commission will be hosting a webinar and has urged the associations and individuals to take part in 'call for evidence' which has been launched to inform and
develop its work.
A webinar in England will take place on Wednesday 7 September 6:30 - 8 pm. In Scotland it will be organised on Tuesday 6 September 7-8:30 pm and in Wales it will be
hosted on Thursday 8 September 7-8:30 pm.
The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) temporary register which was expected to close on 30 September 2022 will continue for the next two years following a
request from the secretary of state for health and social care.
The temporary register was set up in 2020 after the then secretary of state asked the GPhC to use its emergency powers in order to rapidly register pharmacy
professionals to assist in the national response to the Covid-19 emergency.
The UK government has made this decision, which is referenced in its new 'Plan for Patients' in England to enable health professionals on the temporary registers to
continue to support the health and social care system.
The Government had previously announced that the temporary registers established by the health professional regulators were expected to close on 30 September 2022.
The decision by the UK government to ask the regulators to keep the temporary registers means that pharmacy professionals on GPhC temporary register can continue to
practise.
New legislative orders approved by the Privy Council will give the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) and Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland (PSNI)
powers to set professional standards for Responsible Pharmacists, Superintendent Pharmacists and Chief Pharmacists.
The Pharmacy (Preparation and Dispensing Errors - Hospital (and Other Pharmacy Services) Order 2022 and the Pharmacy (Responsible Pharmacists, Superintendent
Pharmacists etc.) Order 2022 have been published and are expected to come into force in December 2022.
Trevor Patterson, Chief Executive of the Pharmaceutical Society NI said: "We have been working with our colleagues in the GPhC and Government for some time on these
two pieces of important legislation and we are delighted they have now reached the statute books.
"Both Orders enable and enhance the powers we, and the GPhC, have to define the roles and responsibilities of Responsible, Superintendent and Chief Pharmacists,
respectively. They also create protections against criminal prosecution for hospital pharmacists where an inadvertent error is made either in dispensing or assembly,
in certain defined circumstances, similar to the protections available to colleagues working in community/registered pharmacy settings. Provisions that allow the
appointment of a Deputy Registrar for our organisation will also be introduced.
The future of community pharmacies is in danger. With some 639 local pharmacies closing in England since 2016, action is clearly needed to ensure their
longevity and maintain their rightful place on the high street.
With increasing pressure on the NHS, which is suffering from healthcare backlogs and long waiting lists following the harsh impact of the pandemic, pharmacies
have an opportunity to create a more substantial contribution within the healthcare industry.
To ensure that pharmacies are able to embrace this opportunity, they need to be equipped with the necessary tools to enable them to meet the needs of an increasingly
digital population.
One way of doing this is to support pharmacies online, by providing them with a means to connect to patients via mobile, tablet or desktop. In turn, the UK population
needs to be more aware of the services that can be provided by a pharmacist - many of which would save them from visiting a GP.
Former pharmacy minister Steve Brine was on Wednesday (November 2) elected chair of the influential Health and Social Care Committee, the cross-party
parliamentary group that scrutinises the work of the Department of Health and Social Care and its associated public bodies.
The Conservative MP for Winchester won 253 out of 432 votes beating off four other contenders for the role - Stephen Hammond, Dr Caroline Johnson, Anne Marie Morris
and James Morris - in a four-stage election in which MPs voted by ranking candidates in order of preference. Dr Johnson, who was Mr Brine's main challenger, bagged
148 votes in the final round.
An election for a new chair of the Health and Social Care Committee was triggered following the resignation of Jeremy Hunt MP who was appointment as chancellor of
the exchequer on October 14.
Issuing a statement after his election, Mr Brine said: "I welcome the opportunity as chair to continue the calm, measured work of Jeremy Hunt and to examine new
solutions to support the NHS to enable it to continue providing the services that we all depend upon."
Northern Ireland's chief pharmaceutical officer paid a visit to a community pharmacy in Belfast on Monday (November 7) - marking the end of this year's Ask
Your Pharmacist week, an annual public awareness campaign launched by the National Pharmacy Association.
Cathy Harrison interacted with patients and staff in the pharmacy before recording a video to promote NI's 'Pharmacy First' service in which she described community
pharmacies as "one of the front doors to the health service" with over 500 outlets located across the country.
"In our community pharmacies you can always rely on friendly staff, medicines expertise, and walk-in access to face-to-face advice," she said.
First launched in Scotland, the NHS Pharmacy First service enables patients to have a consultation with a pharmacist for advice on minor ailments.
Ms Harrison also drew attention to community pharmacy's role in cancer awareness and helping people to quit smoking, as well as managing patients with urinary tract
infections, in addition to playing their part in delivering Covid-19 and flu vaccinations.
Rosemont Pharmaceuticals (Rosemont) has acquired Lucis Pharma Ltd, a specialist pharmaceutical business in the UK.
Through this acquisition Rosemont will expand its existing portfolio and have access to a pipeline of innovative products, providing lifesaving pharmaceuticals to
the UK and overseas markets.
Founded in 2012, Lucis has grown to become a leading provider in the development and licensing of novel and exclusive medicines. With over a dozen SKUs covering a
variety of therapeutic areas, Lucis has established a strong portfolio that, in addition to a pipeline of innovative developments, serve the growing patient need for
liquid medicines.
The acquisition will enable Rosemont to broaden its portfolio and enter the unit dose / sachet market through the pipeline products, whilst growing the business
through recent Lucis product launches in 2021/22.
"As well as continuing to broaden our portfolio and add to our strong growth globally, this acquisition also gives access to pipeline products and developer
relationships to accelerate our entry into new product areas such as sachets" said Howard Taylor, Chief Executive Officer of Rosemont.
Community Pharmacy England has published new guidance to help members to complete the 2022/23 Data Security and Protection Toolkit (DSPTK).
The Toolkit is used to make a pharmacy's information governance (IG) declaration and the deadline is Friday (30 June).
Community Pharmacy England collaborated with the NHS DSPTK team to keep the workload associated with Toolkit completion manageable whilst maintaining the
appropriate data security protections.
Key differences in this year's Toolkit include- improvements to the Toolkit's layout; improvements to the question wording and pharmacy-specific tips; and the
Toolkit displays the answers submitted by the pharmacy in the previous submission for various questions, allowing pharmacy owners to simply confirm that the
information remains accurate and adjust this if necessary.
The NHS Parent Organisation Code (POC) headquarters (HQ) batch submission feature also continues to enable to allow pharmacy owners (that own three or more
pharmacies) to complete a single submission for all their premises.
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has re-elected Andrew Carruthers as chair of RPS Scotland Pharmacy Board.
Andrew is a Medicines Governance pharmacist within NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, where he has a clinical commitment to Care of the Elderly. Prior to becoming a
pharmacist, he studied Pharmacology at the University of Glasgow, and maintains a keen interest in pharmacokinetics and research.
In his address for the position, he said: "In my second term I want to continue to support and drive the introduction of RPS Ambassadors and the creation of an
online RPS community."
"As a previous RPS local coordinator, I've seen first-hand that RPS Local events are a great forum to formally support the training and development of local
pharmacists. With input from our members and RPS staff we could share learning, inspire, and enable development, and build a supportive online community for the
profession."
He was the RPS Local Co-ordinator for Greater Glasgow and Clyde for 3 years, then he co-opted on to the Scottish Pharmacy Board (SPB) in 2018 and have been an
active and effective member of the board. He was re-elected to the board in 2021 and he stood and was elected as Chair.
Former Prime Minister Theresa May has formally opened new offices of LEO Pharma UK and Ireland during a launch event in Maidenhead, Berkshire.
The company said on Friday (June 16) that the new building, based at Foundation Park, will function as its UK and Ireland operational headquarters.
LEO Pharma has been manufacturing dermatology products in the UK and Ireland for over 60 years and continues its commitment to the Maidenhead area, where it been
based for 10 years. The grounds offer state-of-the-art facilities and a greener and more sustainable workplace, the company said and hoped that that strong transport
connections at Foundation Park will allow for seamless international collaboration, while a range of health and wellness initiatives will contribute to employee
wellbeing.
This new space will enable a collaborative and flexible work environment for LEO Pharma staff, ensuring they can continue to work to improve the lives of people
living with skin conditions, their families and society.
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.
The Department of Health has published 'A Guide to Developing the Role of Consultant Pharmacists' in Northern Ireland on Thursday (22 June).
The guidance provides direction on supporting a consistent approach to the introduction of senior clinical pharmacy roles within and across HSC organisations.
The Chief Pharmaceutical Officer Professor Cathy Harrison said: "There is a recognised need for increased clinical pharmacy and medicines focussed leadership
across our HSC."
"Consultant Pharmacists have an essential role in healthcare as clinicians and as leaders who make a significant impact to medicines optimisation and clinical
governance, providing a vital link between clinical practice and service development by generating and disseminating evidence to drive improvements in care.
"I am delighted that this guidance has been published to take forward the strategic development and appointment of the consultant pharmacy workforce in both
primary and secondary care and to enable pharmacy to be at the forefront of healthcare in NI".
The British Generic Manufacturers Association (BGMA) has elected Diane DiGangi Trench to be its new vice-chair.
DiGangi Trench takes up the position replacing Xiromed's Peter Ballard and in 12-months' time will assume the association's chair role from Accord's Peter Kelly.
With over 25 years of pharmaceutical industry experience, DiGangi Trench has held a number of senior commercial roles including stints with Takeda and Astra Zeneca.
She joined Sandoz in 2018 in the US, where she served as Vice-President, Market Access and Patient Services.
In 2021, she became the head of Sandoz' UK business and in her two years in role, she has led the organisation through a post-COVID recovery and growth phase to
prepare for the proposed spin out of the company from its parent, Novartis, expected later this year.
She said: "It's a great honor to take on the role of Vice Chair of the BGMA. The success of the generics and biosimilar industry is essential to the functioning of
the NHS. Generic medicines fill four out of five UK prescriptions and biosimilars enable the NHS to expand access to more patients. I am passionate about increasing
the sustainability of our industry so we can continue to play our vital part in the health of the nation."
Mark Samuels, BGMA chief executive, said: "We are extremely fortunate to be able to call upon the expertise of Diane who has already added significant value through
her role on the BGMA board and leadership of a key strategic committee.
Despite being relatively new to the dispensing doctor market as a short-liner, Bestway Medhub is seeing exponential growth in the market in addition to
the 3,500 independent pharmacies that we service and deliver to.
We have however been servicing the dispensing doctor market for well over 40 years through our dispensing appliance contractor (DAC) Wardles.
Wardles service and supply more than 55% of all dispensing sites with dressings, bandages, appliances, ostomy, wound care and hosiery.
Graham Burford-Row
To meet the needs of dispensing practices and surgeries we carry a large range of more than 10,000 Generics, PI's and OTC products. We offer net pricing so the
practice can see straight away what price they are paying for their products - with no hidden fees.
We offer all our practices 24-hour online ordering via our Bestway Medhub ordering portal and our recently launched Wardles FP Portal. Additionally, we have the
backup of a telesales department with personal service from myself and a dedicated Internal Dispensing Dr Account Manager.
We offer daily, weekly or monthly calls to those customers wishing to hear our special offers. Our deliveries are done daily via our third party full-line logistics
partner for efficient deliveries, which no other short-line wholesaler offers.
Bestway Medhub understands that dispensing practices are not only in the business of offering superior care to their patients and community, but they also offer
numerous other services like clinics, nursing and referrals. By enabling practices to cost save, the funds could be used elsewhere instead.
The government has extended VAT exemption from Monday (1 May) on healthcare services carried out by pharmacy staff under the supervision of pharmacists.
HM Revenue and Customs has issued a note detailing the change to the VAT treatment of medical services. The Government said this will bring the VAT treatment of
pharmacists in line with other registered health professionals providing medical services to the public.
The Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) said: "This is something that PSNC has been seeking Government agreement on for a long time, including in
recent CPCF negotiations."
PSNC believes that the extension of this VAT exemption will help as community pharmacy businesses try to make better use of the skill mix in their teams both now
and in the future.
"Not only does it enable contractors to review the VAT status of any locally commissioned services currently provided by non-registered pharmacy staff but also, in
time, it could be used to amend nationally commissioned services to allow support staff to provide certain parts. For example, following a recent amendment to the
service Directions, pharmacy technicians are now able to perform blood pressure checks as part of the Hypertension Case-Finding Service and deliver the Smoking
Cessation Service.
NHS England has commissioned the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) to develop guidance that helps community and hospital pharmacy teams across Britain to
reduce the impact of pharmacy services, pharmaceutical care and medicines on the environment.
The RPS said the Greener Pharmacy Guidance will enable pharmacies to self-assess their impact against the standards, benchmark and improve through evidence-based
activities and actions.
"I'm delighted our strong commitment to helping pharmacy reduce its environmental impact can now be taken to the next level through developing guidance and
accreditation for pharmacy teams," RPS president Professor Claire Anderson said.
"Medicines account for 25 per cent of carbon emissions within the NHS and this initiative underscores our commitment to promoting sustainable healthcare and
supporting the NHS's goal of achieving 'net zero' emissions by 2040."
Peter Morgan, medicines assistant director at NHS England, commented: "Pharmacy staff are involved in the purchasing and dispensing of almost every medicine used
in the NHS and the new Greener Pharmacy Guidance and Self-accreditation scheme will provide support for pharmacy professionals by outlining clear actions to deliver
more environmentally sustainable pharmacy practices."
The RPS said the guidance and digital self-assessment toolkit will integrate with carbon calculator tools to help pharmacy teams to measure their carbon footprint,
action plan to reduce use of carbon and improve sustainability.
The Pharmacists' Defence Association (PDA) has welcomed the government's defeat in the House of Lords on the Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Bill.
It believes that the proposed Bill, if enacted, would allow the government to dictate minimum levels of service during times of industrial action, enabling
employers to name specific employees that they require in work.
Those employees could then face losing their jobs if they failed to turn up to work on that day. Trade unions could also be fined if they did not force those named
individuals to go to work.
PDA director, Paul Day said, "This Bill should be of real concern to pharmacists and other health professionals. The idea of their employer being able to effectively
conscript them to work or face the sack does not feel like a positive employment relations environment."
The House of Lords has voted for key amendments to the Bill to prevent unions from being required to force workers to comply. This also prevents workers from being
forced to work or face the sack and allows for greater consultation and Parliamentary scrutiny on the proposals which the Westminster government is trying to
implement.
The House of Commons will now be required to vote on the amendments over the next few weeks. Whilst the House of Lords amendments are likely to be defeated, it
shows the degree of opposition there is to this Bill.
The government has unveiled its much awaited 'NHS Long-Term Workforce Plan' to tackle the staff shortage in the pharmacy sector. The plan set out an ambition
to increase the training places for pharmacists to around 5,000 places by 2031/32.
David Webb, Chief Pharmaceutical Officer for England, in his open letter to pharmacy professionals said: "The NHS LTWP sets out how we can build on changes,
addressing the changing needs of patients over the next 15 years, by closing the current workforce shortfall through funding for increased education and training
places and a comprehensive retention strategy."
The plan commits to expand training places for pharmacists by 29% to around 4,300 by 2028/29 and Grow the number of pharmacy technicians in future years.
"The development of independent prescribing as part of initial education and training is a gamechanger for pharmacists, patients and the NHS, with
approximately 2,800 newly registered pharmacist independent prescribers due to join the workforce every year from September 2026," said Webb.
"This will be transformational for all pharmacy teams, creating improved access and quality of care for patients and, importantly, a more flexible workforce with
skills that are equally applicable in all pharmacy settings, enabling multi-professional clinical teams to work in new ways."
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has published its new 'Core Advanced Pharmacist Curriculum' to enable professional development towards advanced pharmacist
practice.
This follows an intensive programme of work undertaken in collaboration with a wide range of UK stakeholders, the society said today (June 27) in a statement.
The Curriculum will equip pharmacists with advanced leadership, education, and research capabilities which are essential to support, lead and advance the profession
through transformative change so it continues to meet evolving patient and service requirements.
The RPS Core Advanced Curriculum provides the blueprint to develop such individuals by articulating a UK entry-level standard to advanced pharmacist practice,
relevant to all patient-focussed pharmacist roles and aligned to multi-professional definitions of advanced practice.
This curriculum completes the core RPS post-registration curricula, creating a seamless post-registration professional development continuum modelled around five
common domains- Person-centred care and collaboration; Professional practice; Leadership and management; Education; and Research.
Pharmacy wholesaler PHOENIX UK is investing over £13 million to build a new state-of-the-art distribution hub in Wakefield.
The 260,000 sq. ft facility is expected to be operational next year and will service community pharmacies, hospitals and dispensing doctors across the North East
of England and Yorkshire.
In a statement on Tuesday (July 5), PHOENIX UK said the completed hub will feature 22 dock level loading bays and seven access doors to enable the productive arrival
and distribution of medical products.
It will also be highly energy efficient, including the use of Solar PV on its roof. The car park will also offer 46 electric vehicle charging bays.
Speaking at an official opening event held on 30 June to mark the expansion of the company's distribution capabilities, group managing director of PHOENIX Steve
Anderson said: "Over the last few years, we have seen an outstanding growth in customer demand for our core services outpacing the market: Wakefield is a prime
example of how we are committed to investing in the future by expanding our UK-wide operational capabilities to offer all our customers across the country the
best possible service they need, want and deserve.
